
David Ramsay
Partner - Head of Planning
PlanningSouthampton
––With over 20 years’ experience in the planning industry, David is Head of Planning at Vail Williams.
He specialises in providing strategic direction for each of the five planning teams across the firm, and is also responsible for the day-to-day running of the Solent team, providing planning consultancy advice to clients wishing to develop land for a wide variety of uses.
Experience
His planning expertise spans a wide variety of sectors. With the Government’s current focus on housebuilding, a lot of his work is residential but he and his team also advise on complex developments including commercial, healthcare, leisure, education proposals, as well as strategic and immediate planning applications.
With a proven track record of successfully negotiating complex planning consents, both for new clients and through repeat business, David acts for a number of regional and national housebuilders such as Taylor Wimpey, Cala and Bargate Homes and Registered Providers such as Vivid and Radian.
He also advises various care home and extra care providers, to deliver care homes throughout the south east and has worked on Southampton’s first two Build-to-Rent residential schemes, with several others in the pipeline.
In the education sector, he and his team act for Southampton Solent University / Morgan Sindall and the University of Surrey, obtaining planning consent to deliver new University buildings, as well as working with several contractors and Councils to deliver new schools across the South East.
Outside of work David enjoys football, rugby, trail running and various motorsports.
Key Skills
- Planning advice
Game-changing updates announced for National Planning Policy Framework
The UK Government has this week (Thursday 12th December) unveiled significant reforms to the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF) to address housing challenges and encourage more sustainable development.
New Government announces raft of planning changes
In a speech delivered this morning, Chancellor Rachel Reeves outlined seven key policies aimed at relaxing planning rules and promoting development.
Urban regeneration: What is needed to turn the tide on terminal retail decline?
High streets form a vital part of our towns and cities, providing everything from cultural and community space to bricks and mortar for local businesses to operate from. Yet our urban centres continue to remain in a period of post-pandemic recovery.
Biodiversity Net Gain now mandatory: What developers need to know
Hot on the heels of the latest NPPF changes, developers must now ensure that their developments result in more or better natural habitat or biodiversity net gain (BNG), in a move hailed as one of the world’s most ambitious in biodiversity terms.
15-minute cities – a people and planet first approach, but not without its challenges
Government delays implementation of biodiversity net gain causing yet more developer uncertainty
Will Local Authority Biodiversity Net Gain targets set new benchmark?
NPPF latest: U-turns and yet more missed opportunities?
Two new hires boost Vail Williams’ planning team
Kathryn Banks and Oliver Galliford join the Gatwick and Surrey teams respectively.
What can we expect from this week’s Autumn Budget and Spending Review?
Whilst Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, states that the economy is booming with 1.2m job vacancies and the number of people in work back to pre-Covid levels, this is yet to trickle down to businesses’ bottom lines.
Planning changes restrict council influence over unwanted development
As part of the Government’s on-going measures to improve the planning system to ‘increase housing supply on brownfield land, stimulate investment in urban areas and sustain jobs’, new permitted development rights (PDR) were introduced to allow change of use from commercial to residential, without the need for full planning permission.
NPPF - a new dawn or a missed opportunity?
A new version of England's national planning policy document (NPPF) was published by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government on 20 July. This follows a consultation on proposed revisions to the NPPF, published earlier in the year.
Post-Covid recovery plan unveiled in Queen's Speech
Government launches consultation on new Permitted Development Rights
Housing Need Changes – what councils and developers need to know
Planning Changes July 2020 - A guide to the latest developments
Planning White paper: Delivering on a radical promise, or more political rhetoric?
Latest planning changes do not mean ‘automatic permission’ for new home and hospitals
What this week’s planning changes mean in practice
Build, build build: Will planning changes deliver development or delay?
FAQs: How is COVID-19 affecting planning and development?
Vail Williams planning expert in top 50 Women of Influence in planning
Vail Williams LLP nominated for prestigious planning industry award
From paper round to Partner, planning expert, David Ramsay, returns to Vail Williams
Vail Williams appoints planning Partner, as David Ramsay returns to the ranks
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