Leaders Plus Mentors

Each Leaders Plus candidate is paired with a senior mentor from Future of London’s extensive cross-sector network. These mentors provide a ‘safe space’ sounding board for candidates, as well as invaluable experience and insights from their own careers. See here for more about mentoring.

Leaders Plus Round 13 – Mentors

Dr Phil Askew
Director – Landscape, Peabody

Phil is an experienced landscape and urban designer who has spent the last 15 years as an expert client leading significant projects including the design and delivery of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and the regeneration of Thamesmead in SE London for Peabody. He is a respected leader in the industry sitting on design review and judging panels and is a Design Council Ambassador. He is an empathetic leader, passionate about design and focussed on the challenges and opportunities that public space presents. He is creative, strategic and detail focussed, calm and modest with an interest in people and place.

Mark Baigent
Interim Director of Planning & Sustainable Regeneration, Croydon Council

Mark  has worked in local authorities for over 30 years, including senior roles at Redbridge Haringey, Tower Hamlets, Lewisham, Greenwich, and Kensington & Chelsea. In his previous role at Redbridge, Mark led on  housing delivery, town centre regeneration, planning, corporate property, libraries, leisure, and culture services. Mark has led a number of partnership and collaboration projects, including setting up Capital Letters (the pan-London procurement hub for temporary accommodation). He has also worked as a consultant advising on council-owned local housing companies and published several practical guidance books on housing companies, capital investment and emergency housing responses.

Ros Barclay
Director, Coverdale Barclay

Ros runs a communications and engagement agency specialising in the built environment. Ros’ own specialisms are strategic brand development & repositioning, marketing communications and stakeholder and community engagement. Ros is a former head of marketing at Capco Covent Garden and former Deputy Chair of the West End Marketing Alliance (WEMA). She spent 5 years at Selfridges in Brand Marketing, Customer Insight and Business Development.

Virginia Blackman
Principal & National Head – Site Assembly & Compulsory Purchase, Avison Young

Virginia’s particular interest is in getting involved from the start of the project through to delivery, ensuring site assembly is integrated with the commercial, planning and wider project process and team, and communication and engagement with the local community. She is a regular speaker for the Compulsory Purchase Association, Waterfront Conferences and Westminster Briefings. Recent projects include five garden communities, West Hendon Estate Regeneration, Vicarage Fields Barking, High Road West, Kings Landing Maidenhead, Calverley Square Tunbridge Wells, growth plans at Bristol City Airport and advising a number of those affected by HS2 at Euston. Clients include London Borough of Haringey, Metropolitan Housing Association, Barratt, London & Newcastle, and Regus. She is a member of the RICS Working Group on Compulsory Purchase, an experienced expert witness, and a Registered Valuer. Virginia has worked with the Future of London Diversity Speaker Network and has mentored colleagues.

Greg Campbell
Partner, Campbell Tickell

Greg is a strategic management consultant and Partner at Campbell Tickell. A consultant for over 20 years, he has worked directly with well over 500 organisations across the UK, Ireland and beyond. He has extensive national networks. He has broad experience in strategy and governance, regulation and troubleshooting, risk management, growth and new business, PR and marketing, regeneration and community development, HR and recruitment. Organisations he has advised on a range of matters include councils and council companies, housing associations, care and support providers, sports and leisure bodies, charities, housebuilders and developers, property investors and funds, maintenance contractors, and legal firms.

Shanaaz Carroll
Interim Head of Economic Development, Slough Council; Director, Make the Link Ltd

Shanaaz has been an economic development and policy professional for over 25 years in both the public and private sectors. She has worked for local, regional and central government where she led programmes focused on economic policy, business/enterprise, neighbourhood renewal and regeneration, including private sector engagement. She has worked with senior officials and Ministers on issues from social exclusion and place-making to retail-led regeneration. Prior to starting her own business Shanaaz was Chief Executive of the Association of Town & City Management, where she worked supporting town centre partnerships across the UK as well as with international partners.

Matthew Dibben
Director – Regeneration and Property, LB Lambeth

Having worked in local government for 17 years, Matthew has developed a keen insight into the political, financial, and operational workings of the public sector. A leader of place in London, across regeneration, property and economic development, developing strategies for place and sectors in time spent in Camden, Brent and most recently in Lambeth.

Tracey Downie
Chief Executive, Women’s Pioneer Housing

Tracey has delivered a range of social housing services at senior, executive and non-executive level for over 15 years. Tracey began her career tackling racial harassment in some of the most deprived areas of south Birmingham and, throughout her 25 years in the housing sector, has continued to be an advocate for inclusivity and diversity. Tracey remains committed to delivering good quality social housing including through non-executive roles and she has recently been appointed Chair of Ekaya Housing Association.

Matthew Essex
Executive Director – Place, RB Kingston

Matthew has worked in regeneration, project management and property for more than 25 years in a variety of roles across local government, the non-profit sector and development corporations. Matthew is an experienced mentor and a regular contributor at conferences and round tables on local authority led housing companies, mixed-use developments and placemaking. As Executive Director of Place at Kingston, Matthew is responsible for planning, property, regeneration, housing and the Council’s capital programme – leveraging the value of the council’s significant landholding to drive an ambitious development programme across the leisure, commercial and housing portfolios including the regeneration of the Cambridge Road Estate through a long-term JV with Countryside.

Esther Everett
Head of Design, LLDC

Esther is a qualified architect with many years in the private sector. With experience in education and community architecture, urban design, regeneration and public realm, she joined the public sector in 2010 in Design for London’s Lower Lea Valley team. She has since worked for the London Legacy Development Corporation leading on major projects, masterplans and regeneration programmes in and around Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park. Her current role involves coordinating programmes with partner organisations and providing design advice to planning colleagues on major live LLDC applications. Esther is also Creative Director for the 2015 RIBA Guerrilla Tactics conference, which sets up dialogue between small architecture practices and commissioning bodies across the public and private sectors.

Alison Handley
Director – Transformation, L&Q

Alison Handley is a strategic leader and change specialist, currently in the role of Director of Transformation at L&Q Group. With a career rooted in driving transformation across complex organisations, Alison brings a wealth of experience in operational development, business architecture, and strategic planning. She plays a pivotal role in shaping and delivering L&Q’s long-term vision through cross-functional collaboration and a strong focus on outcomes. Alison is highly committed to passing on learning in order to help others grow and develop. Her mentoring approach is grounded in empathy and straight talk.

Caroline Harper
Interim Managing Director, Be First

Caroline is a strategic thinker who pays attention to detail, has a great love for cities and the built environment and enjoys working with good people who like to get things done. A planner by background, she recognises that planning is but one piece of overall regeneration. In her current role at Be First, the urban regeneration vehicle for LB Barking & Dagenham, her role has broadened to encompass regeneration, inward investment and business development. She’s a regular panellist, podcaster and conference presenter, and in 2023, joined the Future of London Board. Prior to Be First she worked as JLL’s first female Planning Director in London and at CBRE before that.

Alexander Jan
Chair, Central District Alliance BID

Alexander is former chief economist of Arup where he managed teams delivering a wide range of projects tackling problems and opportunities facing London and other major cities on matters ranging from infrastructure plans to business rates reform. He is currently chair of the Central District Alliance and Hatton Garden business improvement districts which cover Camden and Islington between and around Farringdon and Tottenham Court Road Elizabeth line stations. Alex is chief economic advisor to the London Property Alliance (City and Westminster property associations) and is an independent advisor to the EC BID in the City of London. He is currently writing a biography of Lord Ashfield (1874-1948), the creator and first chairman of London Transport.

Stephen King
Director, London Councils

Stephen has had a career at the interface of policy and delivery, around economic development and the delivery of infrastructure, with a focus on London and the South East. His career has been predominantly in the public sector, within a national agency and the subregional partnership the Innovation Corridor, focused on driving inclusive economic growth in the London/Harlow/Cambridge corridor. Most recently he has lead on a wide range of policy areas at London Councils, for example supporting the set up of the Housing and the Growth Missions, as well as working on the London Growth Plan. He has also had experience within the private sector providing consultancy support to strategic land promoters. Stephen has returned to consultancy.

John Lumley
Director of Corporate Projects, L&Q

At L&Q John has Group-wide responsibility for asset management; stock rationalisation; homeownership and leaseholder services; London Living Rent and intermediate products; all new build sales & marketing; and L&Q Estates – L&Q’s strategic land and development business. Prior to re-joining L&Q four years ago he was Director of Regeneration at Hackney Council, responsible for creating and leading one of the largest direct delivery programmes of council housebuilding in the country, as well as housing strategy & policy, economic regeneration, and private sector housing. Before Hackney, John worked at L&Q in a variety of development and regeneration roles for ten years. He is a board member and the treasurer of Future of London, a Board member of Future of Greater Manchester, and a trustee of the New Cross Gate Trust.

Sean McLaughlin

Sean McLaughlin has worked in public services and place-making across London since 1982. Formerly Managing Director of Homes for Haringey and Corporate Director of Housing and Adult Social Services at LB Islington, he now works and volunteers as a coach, mentor, consultant, and non-executive in the education, charity, and housing sectors. His professional interests include housing delivery, area regeneration, supporting vulnerable people, and strengthening community resilience. A coach and mentor for over 20 years, Sean will soon complete a Professional Certificate in Executive Coaching at Henley Business School.

Ed Watson
Director, Ed Watson & Associates

Ed runs his own strategic planning and place consultancy, EW&A, having previously been a senior leader in local government. He works with a range of public and private sector clients including Arup, British Land and Be First. He is a non-executive director of a small architectural practice. At Westminster City Council he led the West End Partnership (WEP) as well as being the Executive Director for Growth, Planning and Housing. From 2009 to 2015 Ed was at LB Camden leading the Environment, Planning and Regeneration Directorates, where he led on Kings Cross, HS2 and the Council’s own development programme – the Community Investment Programme.

Emma Williamson
Director of Planning, OPDC

Emma has 30 years industry experience, starting her career in the voluntary sector in Southwark and is currently the Director of Planning at Old Oak and Park Royal Mayoral Development Corporation (OPDC) delivering 25,500 homes and 56,000 new jobs around the new HS2 and Crossrail station at Old Oak. Emma was previously the Assistant Director for Planning, Building Standards and Sustainability at Haringey Council and worked in the Planning Decisions team at the GLA. Emma has a strong track record for securing planning for major strategic regeneration schemes, including Argent’s £500m Tottenham Hale development and Spurs’ Stadium redevelopment, Chelsea Barracks and London’s Royal Docks.