Planning and development consultancy Montagu Evans has expanded its advisory capability with the appointment of CPO specialist Simon Mole as Partner. He joins from Carter Jonas where he was a partner and led its South of England infrastructure and land assembly team.

In his new role Simon will lead on the growth of Montagu Evans’ CPO offer within the firm’s Development Advisory team.  He brings 20 years’ professional experience, 16 of which have been spent specialising in CPO, regeneration and infrastructure.

Alan Harris, Head of Advisory at Montagu Evans, commented: “Strategic land assembly sits at the heart of planning and development, and good CPO advice is an essential part of this.  It is critical to unlocking much-needed land for future development, whether for new housing, town centre regeneration or transport and infrastructure investments. In Simon we have a leading CPO expert with longstanding experience who will be an integral part of our growing team.”

Simon Mole, Partner at Montagu Evans, added: “The Levelling Up agenda has focussed many local authorities on the pressing need to regenerate towns, extend urban centres and provide new housing across the UK. Montagu Evans understands the important role CPO work plays in planning, development and regeneration and has an impressive track record in providing collaborative, strategic development advice across the whole of the country. This, coupled with the opportunity to join them at the start of their Advisory team’s new journey was a particularly attractive proposition. I am looking forward to adding value to the partnership’s existing client relationships and to developing new opportunities together.”