Team

Planning Solutions Consulting Limited

We bring together a team of skilled professionals with both experience in the fields of tourism/leisure consultancy and operational management of leisure businesses.

Kevin Brown BSc PG Dip - Managing Director

Kevin Brown leads the consultancy in strategic planning and options appraisals. Kevin has a sound knowledge of research based appraisal work in tourism, leisure and community development projects. He has considerable experience in feasibility studies, business planning and exit strategies, agency and acquisitions. He also provides support for site appraisals, planning and Audience Development Plans.

Prior to joining Planning Solutions Consulting, Kevin worked for Fleury Manico, Chartered Surveyors, a specialist leisure company where he was Head of Research.

Kevin led all the research based activities which formed an important aspect of valuation advice. He secured the firm’s inclusion on the Register of Expert Advisers for the Lottery Sports Fund and managed the in house research archives and data systems.

Previously Kevin worked for four years at the South East England Tourist Board managing the grant scheme (Section 4) for tourism development projects in the Region.

Michael Stickland FTS - Director

Mike is a director of Planning Solutions Consulting and managing director of Planning Solutions Limited (PSL).  He founded PSL some 12 years ago and continues to head up the operational elements of the company's business – including Conkers(www.visitconkers.com), the Savoy Holiday Village (www.savoyholidays.co.uk) and a Harry Ramsden’s franchise in Brighton.

He continues to play a major role in a wide range of consultancy projects providing operational and financial advice for specialist developments, notably in relation to the day visitor attraction and holiday lodge sectors.

Mike has had a leading role in the development of Conkers in the Heart of National Forest. He has in-depth knowledge and operational experience of the tourist, leisure, catering, property, sport and recreation markets for over 40 years.

He also has a comprehensive background in operations mainly for Rank and Ladbroke Hotels, having been a site manager of a quality holiday village, Regional Director and Operations Director of 15 holiday resort venues. He latterly became a Board Director of Rank Holidays and Hotels Developments Ltd where he led the development of the Oasis Village holiday product in Cumbria which was subsequently acquired by Center Parcs.

Richard Linington MA - Director of Research

Richard heads up our offering in primary and secondary research working on feasibility studies, market assessments, development strategies and Audience Development Plans. Richard also manages the marketing strategy for Conkers, a £16 million visitor attraction in the Heart of the National Forest and consults on the marketing strategy for The Savoy Holiday Village, a luxury holiday development on the Isle of Wight.

Richard has a strong background in both primary and secondary research and he leads our offering in user research www.userresearch.co.uk.

Prior to joining Planning Solutions, he worked as a User Researcher and Usability Analyst at Razorfish, one of the UK’s leading digital consultancies and BMP DDB Needham, the multi-national advertising agency. He also writes a successful blog on tourism www.carbonneutraltourism.co.uk

Richard is also a director of Onboard TV (www.onboardtv.co.uk)
which provides self-funding digital advertising solutions for transport providers. Onboard TV provides a mix of advertising, original features and editorials on Wightlink ferries and the service reaches over 4 million passengers per annum.

David Howells, Principal Associate, Regeneration and Economic Development

David is a professionally qualified and highly experienced individual working in the field of regeneration and economic development. He has significant consultancy experience of developing tourism strategies, programmes and carrying out impact assessments. David runs Rubicon Regeneration, a consultancy specialising in regeneration and economic development.

With some 20 years’ experience of working in both the public and private sector, he has specific knowledge and experience of regeneration and economic development, including socio-economic research, feasibility and options appraisal, business planning, the tourism sector and cluster development and community regeneration. He also has experience of structuring and delivering multi-disciplinary programmes and projects to promote holistic regeneration, including devising delivery structures and presenting funding packages.

David is a former Associate Director at Enterprise plc, an international regeneration consultancy, with particular responsibility for managing the London and southeast office. He is also a former Director of Newidiem, an economic development consultancy based in Wales.

Our team has worked with David on a number of projects. For more information please visit: www.rubiconregen.com

Clive Johnson, Principal Associate Marketing and Commercial Strategy

Clive Johnson brings considerable experience of working at director level in the fields of marketing and commercial development of tourism and leisure products and services.

Clive previously worked as the Director of Marketing and Visitor Services at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard, where he continues to work on a consultancy basis. He was responsible for leading the marketing team and preparing the marketing, branding, PR and events strategies at this award winning maritime heritage attraction. Clive also managed all research activities and completed a site-wide five year strategic marketing plan required, along with an externally produced audience development plan, to support a major Heritage Lottery Fund bid to build a new museum for the Mary Rose.

At Explore Worldwide, the UK market leader in direct sell adventure holidays which offered over 170 Tours in over 90 countries worldwide Clive managed a team of 12 to undertake all of the company’s marketing activities.

Clive has a long relationship with our team having worked with Mike Stickland at the Rank Group where he was responsible for a £6 million marketing budget 'whilst holding the position of Head of Marketing for Butlins for six years.

Prior to this Clive spent five years at Thomson Holidays in both operational and product marketing roles before taking up Account Director positions in London advertising and direct marketing agencies handling their major travel & leisure accounts.

Paul Dicken, Principal Associate, Training, Disability and Access

Paul Dicken has considerable experience in the marketing and training sectors alongside providing expert advice on disability and access issues.

Paul founded ‘Through the Roof’ as a training and educational charity which focuses on providing clients with tools to enable them to be inclusive of disabled people. The charity now employs nine people plus a large network of volunteers and turns over £250,000 a year. The charity has produced a number of written publications and the Disability Rights Commission uses ‘Through The Roof’ for any enquiries related to their specialities.

He has also held a number of senior positions with the English Tourist Board / British Tourist Authority where he latterly held the position of Head of Policy. In this senior post with ETB/BTA, he was responsible for developing and communicating tourism policy with senior civil servants and with Government in Westminster and the EU in Brussels. He has served on the Disabled Persons Transport Advisory Committee and on the Access to the Skies Committee.

As head of Market Consultancy at the ETB he headed a department providing marketing training and was responsible for development of ETB seminars, chairing the seminars and conducting some of the training. He also published the ETB's marketing intelligence publication, ‘Insights.’

Since 2007, he has lived in North Wales where he runs a tourism consultancy, ‘Access Tourism/Twristiaeth Mynediad’ specialising in access issues.

Daniel McGregor MSc - Associate Planning Consultant

Daniel works with Planning Solutions on a consultancy basis as a Senior Planning Consultant bringing with him over 35 years of planning experience. 

Dan has extensive experience of working at senior levels in town and county planning with urban and rural authorities at County and District levels.   This is coupled with a wide and successful history of working in the private sector.
 
In the private sector he has advised law firms on planning issues and worked on the Manpower Services Commission / Community Taskforce as a Senior Project Manager. Whilst in the public sector Dan held a number of senior roles in Somerset and Devon County Councils, and Bristol City Council and Stroud District Council.

Dan’s expertise is in submitting planning applications, negotiating with local planning and service authorities, planning appeals, development feasibility studies, commercial and private developments, carrying out surveys for the purposes of urban design and environmental assessment reports.

Rachael Osborn BA – Researcher

Rachael helps to carry out research activities which helps to inform our strategic work. She is also responsible for developing our knowledge management system to ensure that the latest research is shared throughout the company. Rachael has experience of carrying out research for Audience Development Plans through to commercial leisure developments and wildlife based visitor attraction projects.

She graduated from the University of Chichester in the summer of 2007, achieving a BA (Hons) in Tourism Management. During her degree Rachael covered modules in; Sustainable Tourism, Tourism Management and Planning and Research Skills. For her Dissertation, Rachael explored ‘The Retailers’ Perceptions of Tourism in Chichester’, working alongside Chichester District Council.

Whilst studying for her degree Rachael also achieved certificates for ‘Welcome Management’ and ‘Welcome All’ awarded by the English Regional Tourist Board under their ‘Welcome to Excellence’ Scheme.