Graham Thomas

Graham is a member of the national Strategic Planning Group and has been engaged with the Design Council’s roundtable Taskforce on New Towns. He is a strategic leader with a wealth of “placed based” experience, holding senior leadership roles in planning, housing, economic growth, and environment at both County and District Councils. As Chair of the Essex Planning Officers Association, he led the work on the award winning  Essex Design Guide (2018) and established the Essex Quality Review Panel (2019) and sub-groups focused on health and Garden Communities. For the past five years working with Essex Climate Action Commission’s (ECAC), he has led the Built Environment work on implementing ECAC recommendations, working with Commissions and partner local authorities to bring forward a healthy Net Zero carbon home standard. He is the County Planner for Essex leading on strategic developments including the Chelmsford and Dunton Hills Garden Communities, and the Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects. Prior to joining Essex, he was Head of Growth and Economy at Cambridgeshire County Council, where he led on the delivery of the New Settlement programme of work, including Northstowe and Alconbury Weald. Graham brings additional insight in regard to public sector capacity building and strategic planning skills.