Military's manoeuvrer

Planning, 10 October 2008

Imagine a world where planning controls don't bite with their usual intensity. Where houses are built freely, where roads follow their own path. A place where dormer windows appear without warning. A land where mobile phone masts are built with impunity. Until 2006, this was the developer's utopia inhabited by Defence Estates.

The Ministry of Defence (MoD)'s property arm tried not to abuse the privileges afforded by its immunity from the prescribed development control regime. It never set out to build an army barracks in Trafalgar Square - but it could have done if it had wanted to. Only when the Crown Estate lost its exemption from planning control under the Planning and Compulsory Purchase Act 2004 did the MoD wake up from its dream.

If you are an army commander accustomed to parachuting 3,000 men behind enemy lines at the drop of a cap, your reaction to the announcement that it might now take 13 weeks to gain a planning decision is not difficult to predict. Mark Limbrick, who joined Defence Estates as head of its planning and construction team in the year the act won Royal Assent, was the man who had to break the unwelcome news to the top brass.

"Some of my colleagues had difficulty appreciating the freedom that planning committees have to make decisions," he explains. "The military is a hierarchical organisation, so it could not understand why there is no single chain of command from the DCLG through local authorities to planning committees. It used to be an inward-looking organisation."

The MoD owns one per cent of land in the UK. Over the years, more than 50,000 houses and 45,000 other structures have been built on its 240,000ha, all without having to go through the usual application channels. Shuddering planning officers should nevertheless be heartened by the knowledge that it is Defence Estates' policy to build to set development control standards.

Limbrick leads a team of seven planning experts advising military units across the country. "We have to communicate what planning is about and translate their requirements into a system that they are not familiar with," he says. Defence Estates now acts just like any other developer, he insists: "We used to notify local authorities, they would make some comments and then schemes went ahead. We are now looking to be more transparent and proactive in the way we operate."

The operation might be more outward-looking, but Limbrick's work still sets him apart from a traditional planning brief. One current problem he is wrestling with - how to obtain planning permission to store 60 high-speed jets - puts tricky negotiations on car parking spaces into perspective. "I knew that it would be a challenging position, giving a real opportunity to engage with things I would not come across in mainstream planning," he says.

Before taking the post, Limbrick had committed his career to his native West Midlands. He enjoyed some of his best years at Wolverhampton City Council, where he rose to become head of transport strategy and development control. A move to the Audit Commission in 2001 gave him a challenging role as an audit inspector, but the role left him short on satisfaction.

Itching to get back to the front line, he became head of development services at Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council. He helped to turn round what was an ailing service, making it a regular recipient of planning delivery grant cash. Now, when he is not finding a home for a fleet of jets, he is advising on the army's plans to redistribute its forces around the UK.

"The majority of the army's personnel are located in the southern third of the country and yet the main recruitment areas are in the Midlands and the north of England. The long-term intention is to rebalance our presence," he explains. He is also grappling with the problem of finding homes for more than 20,000 army personnel who are due to return to the UK from German bases in the years ahead.

Defence Estates' development plan, released earlier this year, is perhaps the closest engagement with local authorities that the developer has ever embarked on. Limbrick hopes that councils will reciprocate by developing a better knowledge of his organisation's work.

"When I joined, I was surprised at the lack of understanding in mainstream planning of what Defence Estates is looking to deliver," Limbrick notes. "If you look through UK development plans, we were completely absent from them until two or three years ago."

Limbrick's extensive civilian and public sector background looks set to make him hugely valuable as the organisation undergoes a sea change in attitude to development and estate management. His team, based in Sutton Coldfield, will assume more importance as troops return from duties in Germany and the Middle East and Defence Estates looks to buy up more land to meet its changing needs. "Military requirements are ever-changing," he explains. "It is an exciting and fast-moving environment. Defence Estates is the place where the armed forces interact with the wider community."

While the planning system strives to become more democratic and pushes for stronger community consultation, Defence Estates is waking up to its new obligations. The brass hats may require some convincing, but the move can only help to drive up standards.

CV

Age: 47

Family: Married with two daughters

Education: Degree in geography, Portsmouth Polytechnic; MA in regional planning, Lanchester Polytechnic; diploma in town planning, University of Central England

Interests: Sustainable living, walking, DIY, railways, folk music, organic gardening and football

2004: Head of planning and construction, Defence Estates

2003: Head of development services, Dudley Metropolitan Borough Council

2001: Central region inspection service, Audit Commission

1986: Planning assistant rising to section head, transport strategy and development control, Wolverhampton City Council.