TheTownPlanner Ltd is a family run business based in the scenic Highlands of Scotland set up in 2018.  With the availability of email, phone technology communication options and online mapping and planning tools, many planning services can now be provided with minimum need for travel. The town planning services offered by TheTownPlanner Ltd are therefore available throughout the UK. 

The company is led by Jane Shepherd, a fully qualified Chartered Town Planner with over thirty five years’ experience and supported by Peter Shepherd, with his customer care, administration and IT skills and his dogged enthusiasm and ability for finding creative solutions.  

Jane is TheTownPlanner and a brief summary of Jane’s experience is provided below.  For more details of this please click on the Experience and Qualifications drop down in this About menu.

Prior to setting up TheTownPlanner Ltd, Jane worked at several planning authorities throughout the UK for over thirty years.  These included; Westminster City Council, The Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, Elmbridge Borough Council, South Ayrshire Council and the Cairngorms National Park Authority.  Her positions have ranged from Planning Assistant up to Head of Town Planning, dealing with a broad and complex range of planning issues.

Jane has considerable experience in all areas of planning work.  This includes development management (processing planning applications), planning policy, conservation, development monitoring and enforcement.  Jane has worked both as a practitioner and a manager dealing with planning applications, enforcement cases, prosecutions, appeals and preparing local plans and drafting planning policy.  Throughout her career Jane has presented planning and enforcement cases and policy documents to Planning Committees, providing expert advice to Members and fielding questions from Members and the public.  Public speaking and facilitating consultations for community groups has also been provided by Jane. Jane also has experience in dealing with all types of planning appeals: written representations, local hearings and being a witness at public inquiries.   

Jane, TheTownPlanner, has also featured as a Planning Expert on BBC local and national radio, including BBC Radio 4, BBC Radio Scotland and BBC 5 Live.