Viable Options
The basis of this episode was a series of posts Sam Stafford spotted that Nick Cuff at Urban Sketch had shared on his Prop Views blog about the Parkhurst Road judgement and the implications thereof. Sam asked Nick if he…
50 Shades of Planning
Samuel Stafford hosts 50 Shades of Planning, a podcast that digs into the often perplexing world of the English planning system. Rather than offering dry policy lectures, these conversations embrace the sector's inherent complexities and occasional absurdities. The aim is to provide a wide-ranging view, bringing in diverse voices from across the fields of planning, property, design, and development. You'll hear from practitioners, thinkers, and critics, each sharing their unique experiences and perspectives on how places are shaped. A recurring series within the podcast, titled 'Hitting The High Notes', features in-depth discussions with leading figures, examining pivotal career moments and influential projects. These talks are structured around six key planning milestones, offering a concrete framework for understanding professional journeys and systemic challenges. By weaving together themes from government, business, arts, and social sciences, this podcast reveals how planning sits at a crowded intersection of politics, economics, and community life. Tune in for thoughtful, sometimes surprising, explorations of the forces that decide what gets built, where, and why.
Episodes
Why do places look the way they do?
Sam Stafford was at a symposium organised by Create Streets at Hatfield House in June last year called ‘Building for generations’. All of the presentations on the day and the conversations there upon led Sam back to the…
Vibes and Stuff
Sam Stafford was in Birmingham recently and took the opportunity whilst there to catch up with old friend of the podcast Myles Wild Smith and new friends of the podcast Mike Knott, Bart Shirm and Beth Pywell. Myles is a…
Hitting the High Notes - Richard Schofield
This is another episode in the Hitting the High Notes series, which, if you have not listened to one before, is town planning's equivalent, nee rip off, of Desert Island Discs. During these episodes Sam Stafford chats to…
Emerging Planners
A couple of months ago Sam Stafford saw that Shaun Knights at Preston City Council and national vice chair of the Young Planning Officers Society (POS) had posted on LinkedIn encouraging nominations for POS’ ‘Emerging Pl…
Meet the MPs - Lib Dems
The role of local councillors in the planning system has been a familiar topic of conversation on the podcast in the context of, for example, overturning officer recommendations and the case for a national scheme of dele…
Red Hot Planning Chat
Sam Stafford was in London recently and whilst there caught up with friends of the podcast Hana Loftus, Mike Kiely, Nicola Gooch, Simon Ricketts and Andrew Taylor. Hana is a Director at HAT Projects; Mike is a former Chi…
All Around the World - New Zealand
This is the fourth of a series of episodes being led by the oldest friend of the podcast, Paul Smith. Paul put it to Sam Stafford that debates about the planning system in England tend, for the most part, to focus solely…
Hitting the High Notes - Peter Soulsby
Sam Stafford was invited to a ProCon Leicestershire event in Leicester in October 2025 and also on the panel that evening was his old friend Grant Butterworth. Grant, Head of Planning at Leicester City Council, kindly in…
The Shard Inquiry
This episode features the recording of an event hosted by Lorenzo Pandolfi and Simone Pagani in February 2026. Lorenzo and Simone invited Chris Katkowski and Russell Harris to tell the story of the Shard inquiry. Chris a…
