Bidwells expands on back of residential and commercial growth

Property consultants Bidwells has made several appointments to help meet increasing demand in the residential and commercial sectors.

Mike Derbyshire, head of planning at Bidwells, said he had made nine appointments across planning, environmental impact assessment and viability functions since he took on the role in November.

The new appointments will help meet increasing demand in the residential and the “vibrant” commercial sector, he said.   

He added: “Since the middle of last year there has been quite a significant change in sentiment and as a consequence, financial directors now have the confidence to say, ‘We need to grow’.”

Derbyshire said housebuilders have now “come back with a vengeance”, and added that they are looking beyond “oven-ready sites” to more strategic projects.

He said the National Planning Policy Framework's five-year housing supply requirement meant that the team had been hiring people with the skills to objectively assess housing need.

“You need those very numerate planners who can do that demographic number crunching,” he said. “It’s that kind of skill set that’s in demand at the moment.”

He added that the environmental assessment sector is another growth area due to “increasing regulations” in the sector.