Meet the team

I joined Gleeson as Managing Director of Gleeson Land in January of 2023.

I was attracted to the Gleeson plc company because of its superb heritage, success in delivering long term residential planning consents and desire to grow.

We have an exceptionally high calibre team which I am privileged to be part of.

I am a land person through and through, having started my career as a Land Buyer at Laing Homes straight out of University with an Honours Degree in Residential Development.

I went on to work as Land Director for Beechcroft Developments and Crest Nicolson before joining St Modwen Properties where I held a number of senior management posts over a 15 year period including Managing Director of St Modwen Homes, Group Residential Director and most recently Managing Director for their Strategic Land and Regeneration division.

I am passionate about delivering sustainable schemes that serve both our landowners and agents as well as our clients who will be developing the land.

I have worked in the property industry for 16 years with the last 12 years in land. My land experience started with Banner Homes, a medium sized high end housebuilder, on schemes from 3 to 60 homes. I then continued this with Cala Homes, one of the UK’s leading large housebuilders, acquiring and overseeing sites ranging from 50 homes to complex mixed use schemes with 600+ homes and multiple stakeholders.

With a young family spare time feels like a distant memory however I do still get to enjoy a weekly game of 7 a side football, watching Arsenal (not always enjoyable) and spending time with my wife and kids, often socialising over good food and drink with family and friends.

I work within the Technical team assisting the Land and Planning teams in delivering planning approved sites that are well thought out, realistically achievable, and investigated thoroughly. I also create Land Registry compliant legal boundary plans and have even done some layout designing for our office renovations!

After finishing my A-Levels I went straight into the working world as a brand ambassador for SONY at expos in London and worked in retail for a short stint before making the move into the construction industry with a five star housebuilder. Here I gained valuable experience as I trained in all departments from land buying, site management and technical to surveying, material procurement and even customer care. Whilst learning on the job I also went to college and earned a HND in Construction and the Built Environment.

I love football – I play between 2-4 times a week & support Chelsea FC (que the boos!). I also enjoy being creative, whether that is making music or livestreaming with friends. My favourite thing to do however is spend time with my Son on the weekends.

As a Planning Manager, I oversee the planning strategy from initial site identification to obtaining planning permission.

Prior to Gleeson Land I spent 14-years working in planning consultancy, where I promoted and secured site allocations within local plans and neighbourhood plans throughout England. I also headed a research and analytics team, and prepared a range of demographic and housing needs, housing land supply, socioeconomic, and education capacity evidence in support of land promotions through to planning application S106 negotiations. Prior to that, I spent 6 years working at the Department for Communities and Local Government and the Regional Assembly for the South East.

I hold a BA(Hons) in Planning Studies and a Diploma Town Planning from Sheffield Hallam University. I am a chartered member of the Royal Town Planning Institute.

Away from the office, when not being kept busy by my young sons or cocker spaniel, I try to find time for a spot of microbrewing, cooking or cycling.

As a Land Technician I am responsible for identifying new opportunities for development and supporting the land team. Part of my role is to create informative tables using data we have collected. Using this I create detailed GIS maps plotting the data. I am also a member of the G-Life wellbeing committee.

In 2021, I graduated from the University of the West of England with a degree in Geography, I really enjoyed the diversity of the course and here I found my interest in redevelopment. I also worked part-time as a Bartender and a Lifeguard.

In my spare time I enjoy going to the gym (and then talking about it all the time). I also ‘play’ for a Sunday league team where I have been told that I try very hard…

As a member of the Planning team, I assess land opportunities and where I see potential for releasing value make recommendations to inform the bidding process. If we secure the site, I then set the planning strategy. I look after a portfolio of sites across the south of England, ranging in size from 50 homes up to 1,000 homes and manage these through the promotion and application process, including dealings with Council officers, stakeholders, consultants, agents and landowners.

I am a Member of the Royal Town Planning Institute and have wide-ranging private sector experience, gained within London and across the South, dealing with development control and strategic planning on brownfield and greenfield sites. I joined Gleeson Land from a national property consultancy, where I headed up the Guildford planning team. Prior to this, I worked for a multi-disciplinary consultancy based in London for over 10 years. I am a graduate of the University of Sheffield with a degree in Urban Studies and Planning, and a Diploma in Town Planning.

Most of my spare time is spent being a dad taxi for my three kids (pointing out interesting buildings, new developments and planning application notices). I also enjoy cooking (and eating!) so I recently joined a gym in an attempt to undo the damage. I also follow football generally and am a lifelong Everton fan.

I am part the Land Team and our responsibility to is source new opportunities for future development. We are passionate about working with landowners and their Agents to identify land that has potential for development. We can then work together to enter into mutually beneficial agreements that enable my planning colleagues to promote the land through the planning process.

I started my career at Welbeck Land preparing development appraisals and very quickly discovered a passion for strategic land. I was able to join the team responsible for the running the Strategic Land fund and spent 3 years promoting greenfield land for development in the Home Counties, Oxfordshire and Wiltshire. I then joined Berkeley Homes, one of the UK’s leading housebuilders, and spent 7 years acquiring and promoting strategic land sites ranging from 100 new homes to 2,000 new homes.

I have a MSc in Real Estate from Cass Business School and a BA in Philosophy from King’s College London.

With a young family I don’t have too much spare time for hobbies in between attending Little Kickers and swimming lessons! A nice walk and a Sunday roast with family and friends makes for a perfect weekend for me.

As Finance Director for Gleeson Land I work closely with Guy Gusterson, the Gleeson Land MD, and the team in Fleet to drive the operational performance, growth and results of the business. My role is to provide the financial information needed for accurate decision making, including managing risk and reporting performance, as well as helping to shape the future growth of the business.

I’m also the Group Financial Controller of MJ Gleeson plc and lead the Group Finance team reporting to the CFO. My team is responsible for the external financial reporting of the Group, including producing the Annual Report, as well as Group tax matters, Board level budgets and forecasts, and managing bank relationships and compliance.

I joined Gleeson in October 2016 having working in professional practice with PwC from 2004, qualifying as a Chartered Accountant in 2007. Prior to that, I worked as a mechanical engineer for a manufacturing company, qualifying as a Chartered Engineer in 2004 - so I like to think I am not “just another accountant!”

Outside of work, I have an busy lifestyle looking after our three young boys and trying to fit in some running when time allows. I’m also a keen road cycling fan, although I spend more time watching these days than I do riding!

I’m part of the Land Team with responsibility for sourcing opportunities for future development.  This is achieved through a mix of direct approach to landowners and through our network of Agents.  Once a site is identified and headline terms agreed with the owner, I oversee the legal steps required to formalise the agreement.

I have over 30 years’ experience working in the property industry, including seven years working in Hong Kong.  Prior to joining Gleeson Land I worked for Barratt Homes for 14 years, the last five years as the Land Director for their southern counties division.  I have a BSc Honours degree in Estate Management from the University of Reading.

During my time in the industry I have worked through the handover of Hong Kong to China in 1997, the 2008 property market crash, the immediate aftershock of Brexit in 2016 and latterly the impact of COVID.  Somehow the world of property always manages to bounce back.

My main preoccupation is cycling.  In between convincing myself I need the latest bit of kit or the latest gadget in the pursuit of going faster, sometimes I even go out on my bike.  In truth I just need to lose weight.

I’ve been working at Gleeson Land for approaching four years as a Planning Manager.  The key role in my job is managing projects through the planning system, to ultimately delivering planning consents for our landowners.

This work encompasses a range of inputs at various stages which can include advice at pre-contract stage, long-term plan promotions; to the management and coordination of our project teams on more ‘immediate’ planning applications.

I worked for just over 4 years in the Planning Department of a Local Authority in Surrey, before working at one of the country’s major housebuilders, in the South-East, for over 10 years.  This combination of working within the public and private sector has helped shape a breadth of knowledge of the planning system and residential development industry.

I like to spend as much of my spare time with my family, socialising with friends, following all sports and playing Golf.

I assess all the technical aspects of site acquisition and providing planning support on matters such as ground conditions, highways, drainage and utility provision.

I have 25 years’ experience in the residential development industry having worked with a number of plc housebuilders in technical and engineering roles on a wide variety of brownfield, greenfield and regeneration schemes.

In my spare time I like running, cycling and paddleboarding off the coast of South Devon or seeking out new craft beer bars, beer festivals and brewery taprooms.

Purveyor of fruit for the office, and supplier of biscuits…. Outside of that I head up the Technical team who support the Land and Planning team to deliver technically sound, well-designed, and deliverable planning consents.

I started my career in a Transportation and Highways consultancy and subsequently joined an architectural practice before moving onto a housebuilder over 20 years ago. In that time I have been involved in hundreds of developments, ranging from small low-rise greenfield residential to high rise mixed use and brownfield regeneration schemes of up to 10,000 dwellings.

I also obtained a BSc in Building Surveying from the University of Reading through a distance learning course while working full time for a housebuilder, who were both generous and understanding in terms of university commitments.

I have two young kids; I have no spare time. When time permits, I do like to watch MotoGP (motorcycle racing) and anything Snowsports related. If I am very lucky, I also like to catch up on the latest in the World Surf League.

I work as a Planning Manager in the Planning team. My responsibilities include evaluating the development potential of new land, promoting sites for development, managing and submitting planning applications, and securing deliverable planning permissions for our landowners.

I am a chartered town planner. My career started as a transport planner before graduating with a Masters in Planning and Development from the University of Reading. I have a broad range of experience having worked in a local planning authority, and a national planning consultancy, before moving to Gleeson Land in 2016.

In my spare time I enjoy cycling and tennis.

I have a dual role at Gleeson as Development Director, covering both land and planning.  In land I secure new sites to add to our portfolio, and resolve any land issues which might arise on existing sites.  On planning I jointly oversee the planning team with Rob Phillips the Planning Director.  We ensure that planning applications are submitted at the earliest opportunity with the best prospects for success.

I am Chair of the HBF South West Planning Group. I have a BA in Geography, and an MPhil in Environmental Planning and Development, accredited by both the RTPI and RICS.  I started my career in planning consultancy working for some large multi-disciplinary companies, and undertook a secondment to the MOD.  I then moved on to do a stint in local authority, working for policy teams at both Bracknell Forest and Hart Councils.  I joined Gleeson in 2013 and have worked on a variety of schemes ranging from small developments of 50 or so, up to large allocations for several thousand homes.

When my four-year-old lets me I like to look after my garden.  I also enjoy online gym classes, and walks in the woods.

In my role as Planning Director, I work with Rachel Scott to manage the planning function for Gleeson Land. This involves directly managing projects and overseeing the planning strategies on our sites, making sure planning applications are submitted at the most opportune time and to ensure each scheme maximises value for our landowners.

I will also advise on the planning prospects of new land opportunities and work with the Land Team in bringing these into our growing portfolio.

I hold a Bachelor of Arts degree and Post Graduate diploma in Town Planning and  have been a member of the RTPI for over 25 years. I started my planning career with the London Borough of Hillingdon and then spent 5 years working for BAA at Heathrow Airport before moving into the housebuilding sector, where I spent over 12 years managing the planning function of a plc housebuilder. I joined Gleeson Land in summer 2018.

During my career, I have been lucky enough to work on a wide range of major residential led development projects across the south east of England ranging from high rise apartment buildings in town centres, to major greenfield urban extensions

For my sins I am a season ticket holder at Queens Park Rangers and still just about manage to play 6 a side football every week, with other likeminded old folk!  I also enjoy a bit of cycling in the summer months, mostly the mid cycle rest where a coffee and cake is in order!

I also enjoy a bit of cooking, particularly a Sunday roast - nothing too fancy!

My role within Gleeson Land mostly revolves around raising Appointment & Warranty documentation, together with allocation & management of Purchase Order numbers. I am also responsible for processing consultant invoices together with general office support for across all departments.

My work history covers a variety of industries from Builders Merchants & high street Insurance Brokers to Bed Manufactures - with a little stint as a school dinner lady thrown in for extra variety when the kids were young. My roles have been within accounts departments, Sales (both field & office based), Marketing & general Administration roles. Whilst I did manage a BTEC Diploma in Business Studies, I would say that by this time of my life work experience is the main qualification.

In my spare I like to meet up with friends, a little bit of exercise (nothing too strenuous) and I love watching films.

I am a Planning Manager. I manage projects and oversee the planning strategy in order to bring sites forward at the appropriate time. I also watch planning policy closely to see what is expected to change in the future which in turn aids our thinking on sites. I have a strategic background and have managed sites up to 2000 units.

In 2021, I was named South East Young Planner of the year by the RTPI for my contribution to the Planning industry. I have over 10 years of experience in the industry having first undertaken an internship at Wokingham Borough Council before moving to a Planning Consultancy where I gained experience nationally on strategic developments. I have been involved in strategic development locations and garden villages as well as smaller scale developments. I hold a BA (Hons) in Geography and a MSc in Development Planning. I am also accredited with the MRTPI. Away planning I am also a qualified Swimming Teacher.

I’m a keen traveller and always have my next adventure lined up. In my spare I love being outdoors and in the summer months I can often be found on the water either paddleboarding, kayaking or hiking. When the weather is less appealing you’ll find me at my local yoga studio.