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023 8082 7462
Matt is a highly experienced planning and environment solicitor advising on planning applications, appeals, judicial reviews and transactional work. Matt advises across a plethora of planning and environment matters; ranging from application strategy, planning conditions, enforcement investigations, development consent orders, the Community Infrastructure Levy, compulsory purchase and related public law issues. Non-contentious work includes planning obligations, habitats, nitrates, phosphates and biodiversity net gain.
Matt advises on planning and environmental matters in both spheres of town and country, with a particular focus in recent years on bespoke business and residential development, minerals, heritage development and waste. He advised the Secretary of State on decision-making, judicial review, policy and legislative drafting as a barrister in the Government Legal Service. He has dealt with complex infrastructure and development in London while a solicitor at international law firms and in local government.
In 2025, Matt was ranked 11th among the UK’s highest-rated planning solicitors in private practice in Planning magazine’s annual Planning Law Survey.
Memberships
- Country Land and Business Association (Committee Member of the Hampshire Branch)
- Southampton Property Association
- The Environmental Law Foundation
- Compulsory Purchase Association
- UK Environmental Law Association
Recent examples of work:
- Appearing at the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Local Plan Examination making a successful argument that Natural England reconsider a recommendation to screen out for a Habitats Regulations Appropriate Assessment the possibility of a significant likely effect upon Petromyzon marinus; Sea lamprey in Christchurch Harbour as a result of pollution in the Avon Valley SPA.
- Planning advice for a minerals extraction and batching plant sited over 77 hectares accessed from the New Forest National Park with a legal agreement for biodiversity net gain, highway relocation and translocation of the endangered Southern Damselfly.
- Judicial Review legal challenge quashing the Secretary of State’s grant of development consent for a sizeable windfarm development off the coast of Norfolk in the North Sea.
- Planning advice and a S106 planning obligation in the South Downs National Park to secure a three-year planning consent for the 5-day Boomtown Fair festival at the Matterley Estate.
- Advice to the City of London Corporation on the Aldgate Square Project and the Bloomberg European HQ’s section 106 planning agreement including the relocation of the Temple of Mithras scheduled monument.
