Make Planning Make Sense

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Jamie Holmes, CEO of Vu.City. In this episode, we talk through the power of Vu.City as a communication tool. We also chat about what’s next for Vu.City, a bit of comparative politics, and a bit of behavioural sociology.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

It's our first episode in front of a live studio audience! Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Hannah Irish, Associate at McGuireWoods, discuss the pratfalls and pitfalls of Section 106 legal agreements.

We cover:

🔹 What Section 106 agreements are and why they matter

🔹 When they’re required (vs. CIL or conditions)

🔹 Common causes of delay — and how to overcome them

🔹 Legal and policy tests under Reg 122 & the NPPF

🔹 Real case studies on monitoring fees and CIL “double dipping”

🔹 Our top tips for streamlining agreements and keeping them lawful

A huge thank you to CREW UK and Pulse Consult for sponsoring and hosting the event.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with John Somers, Senior Lecturer in Planning and the Historic Environment and Course Leader of the MA RTPI Apprenticeship programme at the University of Westminster. In this episode, we take a closer look at planning as a profession, how planning is perceived, what skills planners need and how we can support the next generation of planners.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Natalie Taylor, Managing Director at Acacia Management Facilities, specialists in interior and exterior landscaping. We discuss opportunities to introduce more plants into our built environment and what role planning can play to this end.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Esther Robinson Wild and Darcie Kerr of historic environment consultancy Robinson Wild. We talked about Robinson Wild's unique approach combining heritage and viability expertise as well as the importance of integrity, expertise and a robust evidence base in determining heritage significance.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Paul Willis, Transport Director at YES Engineering, to discuss the Government and Mayor of London's recent policy note, the need for a "common sense" approach to guidance, the efficacy of pre-apps and much more.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Marco Tomasi, Director at Formation Architects. In this episode, we sketch a world beyond this one where planning is predictable, timely, and delivery-orientated. Are planning agents soon to be obsolete?

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Prof. James White, Professor of Planning and Urban Design at the University of Glasgow and co-author of Condoland: The Planning, Design, and Development of Toronto's Cityplace. James shares how planning negotiations and land value capture shaped the development of a major brownfield site in central Toronto and what lessons we can draw from this case study here in the UK.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI and Alex Roth sit down with Alex Uregian, Director of SME developer City Sanctuary. We bring Big Picture Energy to our discussion about the competing priorities for high-quality residential accomodation, the problems paralysing the entire sector, and more than one (pretty darn sensible) apprach that Government can take to work with the sector to actually get affordable homes delivered.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.

Aaron Zimmerman MRTPI sits down with Paul Higgs MRICS, Founder of the Millbank Group and former Senior Executive at Barratt. Paul is not pleased, and you shouldn't be, either. Join the conversation about why SME developers are an endangered species, land banking (!), and how policy making has become unhinged from its ramifications.

Be sure to follow for new episodes each week. Make Planning Make Sense is presented by Centro Planning Consultancy and recorded in beautiful London, England.