Practical Help Offered to Drive North East Regeneration

Two well-known North East firms, property consultants, Sanderson Weatherall and solicitors, Ward Hadaway, have teamed up to help North East councils sharpen up their urban regeneration processes.

At a sell-out conference this month, they delivered the first in a possible series of seminars to assist local authorities improve the way they approach land purchase and their use of Compulsory Purchase Orders (CPOs).

The event, which sold out in just 48 hours, offered delegates a chance to hear about the latest techniques to ensure the seamless delivery of a development scheme by drawing the expertise from senior planning lawyers, property lawyers and valuers.

Speaking at the event, Sanderson Weatherall’s director of rating, Richard Farr, said: “Both firms felt it important that we should work together to offer our neighbouring local authorities the latest advice and knowledge on legislation in this area, to ensure that the region is able to make the most of its development opportunities.

“CPOs remain for many a contentious subject, and it is hoped that our conference will have helped delegates to carry out the process effectively while ensuring there are no losers on either side.”

At the day-long seminar, Ward Hadaway and Sanderson Weatherall presented the audience with an overview of the process involved in the compulsory acquisition of land and highlighted the pitfalls and how best to avoid them to ensure smooth running for all parties involved.

During his address, Ward Hadaway associate, Keith Wilkinson, said: “Acquisition of land through the compulsory purchase process can, if not properly handled, can be complex and difficult to understand and a number of specialisms are vital to the process.”

Many local authorities continue to look at the use of CPOs as a powerful regeneration tool.

“In some instances, local authorities have no alternative but to use this process as a mean to drive regeneration and development, especially in areas where there is vacancy, dereliction and under-use of buildings and land,” said chairman for the event and partner at Ward Hadaway, Robin Atkin. “This seminar was designed to cover all aspects of this process. From the initial inception of the scheme, considering the planning position and preferred developer, making the compulsory purchase order and seeking its confirmation.”

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Speaking at the conference were Neil Robson, partner at Ward Hadaway; Keith Wilkinson, associate at Ward Hadaway; Richard Farr, director at Sanderson Weatherall; Andrea Proudlock, associate at Ward Hadaway; Liz McLoughlin, senior surveyor at Sanderson Weatherall and Robin Atkin, partner at Ward Hadaway.