New support network is launched for women planners

New support network is launched for women planners

August 19, 2024

A new group has been formed to support women working in planning and a 30-strong launch event was recently held at the South Downs Centre.

Sussex Women Planners met up to share ideas, experiences, best practice, and challenges for the inaugural event in Midhurst.

Claire Tester, Planning Policy Manager, said: “The group started when several of us noticed that there are ‘Women in Planning’ groups for Kent and the Solent, but nothing in between.  This means that women planners based in Sussex have to travel long distances to access networking and other support specifically designed for us.

“Whilst the sector has definitely become more welcoming to women over the last 30 plus years I have worked in it, there are still challenges that many women face, including holding our own in male dominated meetings, negotiating flexible working to fit around caring responsibilities and over-coming imposter syndrome.”

The launch event included a talk from Leanne Buckley-Thomson, a barrister from No5 Chambers, about the changes to the planning system introduced through the National Planning Policy Framework last December and the Levelling Up and Regeneration Act (LURA).

Claire spoke about the changes to Local Plan-making being introduced through the LURA, some of which are being trialled by the National Park.  This includes the current consultation on the Local Plan Review.

For more information email sussexwomenplanners@gmail.com or follow on Linkedin.

An RTPI Research Paper in 2020 identified that while “gender equality is crucial to all parts of society, it is particularly essential to planning because the lack of gender diversity affects not only the way we design and plan, but also who we design and plan for. Hence, the benefits of having women in planning go far beyond fulfilling the industry’s immediate skills needs”.