Meet the team

Martin Farrington worked in local government for 35 years and was the Director of City Development at Leeds City Council with responsibility for the physical, economic and cultural development of the city for 14 years up to September 2024. His work included leading the second largest local planning authority in the UK, regularly dealing with more than 4,500 applications every year.

During his time in Leeds, Martin has led the £180m Leeds Flood Alleviation schemes 1 & 2, the delivery of the First Direct Arena, the redevelopment of Headingley Stadium and taking Leeds Bradford Airport from public to private ownership in 2007.

Martin also led the proposals for regenerating the South Bank of Leeds City Centre, which includes working with Network Rail on the redevelopment of Leeds Station, the restoration of Temple Mill for the British Library North and the delivery of a new city centre park.

Martin also led the development of the £136m East Leeds Orbital Road which opened in 2022 which facilitates an urban extension of some 4,500 new homes, and he supported the growth of the city’s retail core through £500m of investment in the development of Trinity Leeds and the Victoria Gate John Lewis scheme.

Russell is the lead for our Land Assembly and Development Advisory services. He is an accomplished Chartered Surveyor with approaching 20 years’ experience, a large proportion of it within the rail industry. He is also a member of the Compulsory Purchase Association.

Russell specialises in land assembly and infrastructure delivery and has played a key role on several major projects such as HS2, Midland Mainline Electrification and East Coast Mainline Power Supply Upgrade.

He has a successful track record working within senior roles and has managed teams both when leading on large scale projects and in delivering diverse and complex caseloads. Russell is the land and property lead on the Northumberland Line project, the major third party led rail scheme.

With a background in regeneration and development viability, Russell also advises local authorities and transport bodies on the redevelopment of property assets surrounding stations, where value can be reinvested to improve passenger facilities.

Susan is a rail property specialist. She has over 30 years’ experience working in property and contractual roles within the rail industry including management of the railway estate for various rail franchises.

She supports third-party projects through the highly regulated and complex Station Change and Network Change processes. She is also adept at land acquisition and negotiating leasehold interests.

As a recognised industry specialist, Susan has been part of regulator led working groups to develop new station property lease structures to assist the shaping of ongoing government franchise strategy & policy. She is currently supporting the DfT with a programme to revamp the rail industry.

Julie is a rail property specialist with over 25 years’ experience developing land strategies for rail development schemes, managing rail industry processes to facilitate projects, negotiating land acquisitions for major rail schemes, negotiating complex lease agreements, landlord and tenant management and enhancing secondary income streams for train operators. Julie is extremely client focussed and has the ability to persuade and influence others. She has excellent negotiating skills and demonstrates diplomacy in sensitive situations.

Edward has a comprehensive background in strategic development, utilities, and property acquisition spanning over two decades.

His expertise extends to managing land acquisitions, negotiating complex compensation claims, and overseeing diverse portfolios for clients such as HS2 Ltd, Network Rail, and Severn Trent Water.

Matthew is a Chartered Town Planner with a comprehensive history of managing multidisciplinary teams of consultants and in doing so securing planning permission for complex mixed-use schemes. He is a specialist in assembling applications and gaining consent for developments in designated areas. He has an extensive knowledge of local authorities and has experience of working with both county, district and unitary authorities.

Matthew works extensively with SLC’s clients, sharing his expertise in advising and managing projects that require planning permission, listed building consent and other related consents. He is focused on ensuring the continued high-quality delivery of SLC’s Planning and Environmental Services to meet the demand of an increasing project portfolio. Matthew is currently engaged on various high-profile projects on behalf of SLC clients, with roles including planning and environmental research, advising on the scope of the planning applications, and supervising the contributions of environmental specialists.

Allen is an ethically motivated, environmentally passionate, commercially seasoned Chartered Town Planner with a proven track record of delivering major urban and infrastructure projects and commissions on time, and on budget. Allen is a strategic and lateral thinker who always seeks to identify and successfully manage risk. He is a politically experienced tactician, fully versed in the planning process.

Allen has been Director of Planning at SLC Property since 2015 and leads an experienced team of planners and designers. He works with clients, sharing expertise in realising complex development opportunities which require planning permission, listed building consent or environmental assessment. He is focussed on ensuring clients can understand and realise the potential of their land and property-based assets through the planning process.

Allen is currently engaged on a number of high-profile projects on behalf of SLC clients, including: Coventry Station Masterplan – secured planning and listed building consent for the £35m scheme; Transport for West Midlands – managing the multidisciplinary team securing planning permission for the £85m investment in 5 new rail stations; Northumberland Line managing the multidisciplinary team securing planning permission for the £160m investment in 6 new rail stations: Cardiff Hendre Lakes – advising CPDL and investors on the planning and consents strategy for the proposed station and the associated economic development; and Nuneaton Rail Station: advising on the potential scope of the economic development opportunities and assisting in preparing the masterplan.

An accomplished Project Manager with over eight years of experience, specialising as a technical lead for Land Referencing & GIS in several Highway Improvements, Railway Infrastructure, Housing Regeneration and Renewables projects.

Prior to joining SLC Property, Jamal’s role as a Principal Consultant with Ardent was to ensure all legislations and land referencing requirements of a Development Consent Order (DCO), Compulsory Purchase Order (CPO), and Transport & Works Act Order (TWAO) were met.

Vicky has worked in the Estates and Property industry for over 20 years. During this time, she has continued to expand her knowledge of the sector and now specialises in Valuations and Asset Management. She is a highly organised individual who can manage the needs of many different types of stakeholders.

Peter has over 30 years’ experience in Commercial, Property, Valuation, Infrastructure and Compensation and is a member of the Compulsory Purchase Association. A considerable element of his background has been to value property with a view to then negotiate with a variety of stakeholders.

At SLC Property, he is responsible for the acquisition of a number of sites for the Northumberland Line, which are to be used for stations and car parking. He is also agreeing temporary Land Requirements to enable line works by Network Rail and Ground Investigation Access Licences.

He also provides property and valuation advice to other areas of SLC to facilitate development and additional services for property and stations.

Huon has worked in the rail industry for over 15 years and has extensive experience of the franchise system and the regulatory & legal frameworks in which it operates.  Before joining SLC Property, Huon worked for train operating companies where he managed the regulatory elements of a large portfolio of depots and stations.

He successfully managed the transition from a standard franchise to a direct award contract franchise (DAC) and from the DAC to a newly awarded, competitively tendered franchise.  Huon has worked on a range of projects at SLC including University, Perry Barr, TfGM Horwich Parkway, Blakedown, Kidderminster, Wolverhampton, Coventry Station Masterplan and DfT OLR.

He is particularly proud of the progress we have made on University, which is a very complex project in terms of the land and regulatory requirements, and the work he has done for TfGM setting up new Station Access Conditions, Annexes and Access Agreements for Horwich Parkway station.

Will supports colleagues in the property aspects of rail infrastructure redevelopments, including station surveys and commercial modelling. He has taken on the lead role to manage property matters on several projects and supported legal processes on station redevelopments.

Will has completed land investigations producing land and consents strategies to inform stakeholders and supported the creation of commercial modelling for ScotRail’s Qualifying Expenditure and Arriva Trains’ East Midlands franchise bid.  He has strong analytical skills and a diligent approach to research and investigatory work.

His proudest achievements so far have been successfully completing the station change process for Kidderminster, bringing in computer aided design to property and successfully building relationships with third parties and major stakeholders while working on Perry Barr.

Liam gives advice to clients regarding rail infrastructure projects and assists others within SLC regarding all aspects of property in rail projects.  He has a Bsc (Hons) in Building Surveying and has also worked at Baker Stuart as a Utilisation Surveyor.

Since starting as a Graduate Surveyor in 2020, Liam has worked on University, Perry Barr, DfT OLR and many other projects. His proudest achievement is being a part of University and watching the scheme progress.

Peter is a Chartered Town Planner with a proven track record of delivering major urban and infrastructure projects and commissions on time and on budget. He graduated from Newcastle University with first class honours in Town and Country Planning and was awarded a prize by the Royal Town Planning Institute for his studies.

Peter has experience working in both the local authority and private sectors and has a sound understanding of the planning process. Peter has an encyclopaedic knowledge of Town and Country Planning Legislation and can advise on all aspects of planning law.

Becky is a qualified economist with more than 20 years’ consultancy experience assembling convincing business cases for schemes. She has a track record securing funds and finance for heritage and built environment schemes.

She has extensive experience of managing the multidisciplinary teams necessary to deliver investments in heritage lottery funded schemes. Becky has a proven track record of managing teams of consultants to deliver services and schemes on time and on budget.

Jo is an experienced town planner with a proven track record of delivering major planning permissions, masterplans and listed building consents on time, and on budget. She is a specialist in development for housing, community facilities, transport and infrastructure and particularly in designing and implementing the required stakeholder engagement. Her practical experience as a qualified anthropologist enables her to assist clients to tailor their proposals to the needs and perspective of specific people and communities.

Alannah is a Senior Chartered Planning Associate working with SLC to deliver SLC’s Planning and Environmental Services to meet the demand of an increasing portfolio. Some of Alannah’s achievements with SLC include: the preparation of request for screening opinions and pre-applications for six new railway stations as part of the Northumberland Line development in the North East; negotiating with the local planning authority to agree the scope, extent and nature of the information required to support the planning applications for those schemes; managing the contributions of the various disciplines to support the timely submission of planning applications for such schemes; identifying risks in achieving planning permission on time and on budget and establishing appropriate mitigation measures; assisting in the preparation of Land and Consents Strategies and other essential documents for funding bids; and advising on legal matters relating to the use of permitted development rights in both England and Wales. She is also working on the discharge of conditions for highway infrastructure projects

Alison is a skilled and experience project designer, with a history of working effectively to help deliver projects on time.  As well we delivering a range of planning services, Alison leads on architectural and design services, working on a wide range of schemes for clients across the UK. Her experience in sectors as diverse as rail, retail, housing, renewable energy and heritage mean she is well placed to deliver complex, multifaceted projects, managing a wide range of other disciplines to inform the planning and design process.

Matt is a Property Assistant with over a year’s experience in SLC Property’s Rail and Regulation team.

Matt has a Higher National Diploma from Sutton Coldfield College and studied Fine Art at Birmingham City University.

Since joining SLC Property, Matt has specialised in CAD and property transactions, as well as gaining experience of regulatory matters such as Station Change.

Henry is an ambitious and enthusiastic graduate surveyor with over 2 years’ experience in energy, infrastructure, and utilities sector. He is working towards becoming a qualified chartered surveyor with the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Henry has already completed a number of APC competencies, including: Access and Rights (Level 3), Compulsory Purchase and Compensation (Level 3), Surveying and Mapping (Level 2) and Valuation (Core).