Tim joins the top-ranking team | 09 January 08

LAW firm Ward Hadaway has bolstered its top-ranking planning team with the recruitment of a regeneration expert.

New recruit – Tim Wheeler, who is joining the planning team at North law firm Ward Hadaway.

Tim Wheeler joins the team from Derwentside District Council, where he was head of building planning control.

The 46-year-old, who lives in Gosforth, has almost 25 years’ experience in local authority planning.

Tim has worked at four councils in the North-East, covering a wide range of local planning, project, conservation and development control work.

He has been involved on several key regeneration schemes, including projects in the East End of Newcastle, educational developments in Darlington and schemes in Derwentside including Project Genesis in Consett. He has also been a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute for more than 20 years.

Mr Wheeler said: “I am really pleased to be joining Ward Hadaway. The firm has an excellent reputation in the North-East, particularly in the planning and development sector, and I look forward to using my experience in a range of issues to help Ward Hadaway’s clients achieve their goals.”

Neil Robson, head of property and planning at Ward Hadaway, said: “It is great to welcome Tim on board. The fact that we can attract people of his calibre and experience speaks volumes and I am sure he will make a real impact at the firm.”

Ward Hadaway has been the highest ranked law firm in a list of the UK’s biggest earning planning consultancies for the past two years.

Figures from industry publication Planning – the journal of the Royal Town Planning Institute – show that the firm brought in fees of more than £1.3m in the year to the end of March 2007.

During 2007 the planning team – now 11-strong with the addition of Tim Wheeler – worked on an estimated 160 planning applications and 80 appeals.