Catherine Bailey joins the team from a multi-disciplinary environmental consultancy in Suffolk where she was involved in both private and public sector design and environmental planning projects across the Eastern region. She also has a wealth of local authority experience having held posts at Thurrock Council, Essex County Council, Kent County Council and the Thames Gateway South Essex Partnership
Catherine joins CambridgePPF at an interesting time. In Spring 2014 the topic of growth will be firmly back on the radar when Cambridge City Council and South Cambridgeshire District Council submit their draft local plans to the Secretary of State for examination. These documents will set out where development will take place in and around the city over the coming decades.
CambridgePPF has made extensive comments on the draft local plans produced over the last two years. Ideas and suggestions submitted have focused on protecting and enhancing the historic character, amenity and green setting of the city – and influencing the design of new buildings and the environment that surrounds them – while taking into account the growth demands that continue to make Cambridge such a popular place to live and work.
In her role Catherine will focus on monitoring new developments that come to light. She will also work closely with the charity’s planning committee and heritage working group, creating more opportunities for proactive engagement with local developers and council representatives.
CambridgePPF’s planning committee and heritage working group meet every one or two months respectively to debate the big growth challenges facing the city and discuss individual planning applications as they come forward. Separately Catherine will be involved in a number of additional planning-related projects that CambridgePPF has in progress, including the creation of a cohesive strategy for the River Cam Corridor.
Catherine Bailey said: “If you are going to work in planning anywhere in the country then Cambridge would probably be near the top of the list for most professionals. Transformed over the last thirty years from a university-dominated market town into a centre for high tech industries, the city and local area are set for continued growth. Cambridge is widely recognised as a key driver for the prosperity of the East of England and is a vital asset for the wider UK economy. While this is beneficial for everyone that lives and works here it inevitably throws up challenges in terms of potential impact on the environment and local heritage. I look forward to working with the team at CambridgePPF and key decision makers to ensure that decisions taken today will have a positive impact in the future for local residents, existing businesses, inward investors and visitors to the city.”
Professor Peter Landshoff, a trustee of CambridgePPF and chair of the charity’s planning committee, said: “Catherine has already proved herself to be energetic and knowledgeable. She is going to be a really useful member of the CambridgePPF team.”
About Cambridge Past, Present and Future (CambridgePPF)
Founded as Cambridge Preservation Society in 1928, CambridgePPF is a registered charity campaigning to keep Cambridge and its surroundings special by positively influencing planning developments, delivering environmental education and managing the green spaces and historic buildings in its care. Its diverse property portfolio includes Wandlebury Country Park and its Iron Age Ring; Coton Countryside Reserve; Barnwell Leper Chapel; Bourn Windmill plus various wildlife sites and historic buildings. Key achievements include protecting sites such as Grantchester Meadows, the Gog Magog Hills and Wandlebury Estate from development and helping to establish the Cambridge Green Belt in the 1960s. CambridgePPF has a growing membership, which makes a vital contribution to the cost of conserving, managing and developing its sites. With its HQ at Wandlebury, the charity has a mix of busy full and part-time staff and is run by a Board of Trustees together with Advisory Committees staffed by dedicated volunteers. For more information about the charity and benefits of membership: www.cambridgeppf.org
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Cambridge Past, Present & Future
Wandlebury Ring
Babraham
Cambridge
CB22 3AE
01223 243830
development2@cambridgeppf.org
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