Assessing Viability in Planning under the National Planning Policy Framework

25th April 2023

The Great Hall, Sutherland Building

6pm - 7pm

Property and Construction Lecture Series - Atam Verdi, Executive Director, Aspinall Verdi - Property Regeneration Consultants

This lecture will take place on campus, in The Great Hall, Sutherland Building. Refreshments will be served from 5:45pm in the entrance of Sutherland Building.

About this event

The lecture will examine the issues around housing and in particular the provision of affordable housing in England through the planning system. It will touch on key issues in the housing market, the approach to delivery of affordable housing from the existing policy approach and also touch on current proposals made as part of the Levelling Up and Regeneration Bill which is currently making its way through Parliament.

About the speaker

Atam has been active in the Development Consultancy sector for over 29 years. He started his early career at a Local Authority as a Trainee Valuer and subsequently secured his Land Management degree. He qualified as a Chartered Surveyor whilst working in the City of London with Jones Land Wootton and then moved back to Yorkshire in 1996.

He has been active in the regeneration and development sector nationally, working with DTZ and King Sturge where Atam headed the northern consultancy team. In 2009 AspinallVerdi was founded together with Ben Aspinall and the business has grown with five offices including Newcastle, Leeds and London.

The practice provides a range of services to Local Authority clients which include CIL and Plan Viability Studies, scheme specific viability reviews, employment land and site unlocking studies, business planning to secure public funding including Brownfield Housing Funding and Levelling Up funds.

Atam is also working with land owners and developers in terms of assessing development options, supporting planning applications and also making funding bids to unlock development. The understanding of valuation, development economics and planning underpins this work.

Atam was a member of the working group which produced the latest RICS Assessing Viability in Planning Guidance, providing a practitioner’s insight in to the process and particularly from a Northern perspective.

Atam is also a member of the RICS Member Services Steering Group, a member of the RICS policy panel, a Design Council Expert, Member of Historic England’s Historic Places Panel and a Director of the social enterprise Headingley Enterprise and Arts Centre.