Helen is an established professional with over 22 years in private consultancy representing a wide range of clients across a number of property sectors. Having held partner and director positions, leading planning teams in multi-disciplinary organisations in various office locations across the East and South East of England, Helen's passion and commitment to project delivery and client service led her in 2013, with Mike Carpenter, to establish CODE Development Planners.
Helen has particular skills and experience in negotiating complex issues to secure planning permissions and allocations. With her ability and experience in leading both established and newly formed multi-disciplinary teams, ensuring each member is fully briefed and focused on and aligned to the strategy for achieving success, she has been central to the delivery of large scale residential, commercial and mixed use urban extensions and regeneration projects. Notable examples of projects which presented complex challenges but which achieved successful planning permissions due to Helen's focused and robust negotiations (at times sensitive and at other tenacious) have included: an urban extension for a new community at Chilmington Green (south west Ashford) for up to 5,750 homes, schools, high street and associated community and other infrastructure; a mixed use regeneration scheme comprising 20,500sqm of office space, 200 residential units and a hotel on a historic brownfield, riverside site; a multi modal distribution park comprising 120,000sqm of B8 uses, rail sidings and a new connection to the Great Eastern mainline; a new sixth form centre comprising 20,750sqm of education and ancillary floor space; a 1,000 home redevelopment of a golf course and relocation of the golf club. A large number of projects Helen advises on are sites within the Green Belt.
Helen believes that regardless of the size of the project, the role of the planning consultant is to add value through their knowledge of the planning system, their ability to identify 'angles' that other disciplines might not see, and their character to achieve a positive outcome.
Helen and Mike led the promoter team in the successful and multi-award winning mixed use 2,000 home extension to Martlesham now known as Brightwell Lakes directly adjacent to BT's research station at Adastral Park. Mike and Helen were also responsible for leading the team who successfully obtained the draft allocation of a 4,000 home new garden village at Dunton in the borough of Brentwood.
Helen regularly represents clients through the public consultation process, including public exhibitions, planning for real exercises, stakeholder forums and council meetings - engaging with stakeholders and the wider community to achieve positive and time effective outcomes for clients. In addition to identifying land in areas with potential for growth through site sieving exercises, ahead of and through the development plan preparation process, Helen has successfully demonstrated deficits in local authorities' five year housing land supplies.
Helen is experienced in managing the preparation and co-ordination of environmental statements. Helen has appeared as expert witness at section 78 appeal inquiries and at development plan examinations.
