Graeme Bell is a Chartered Surveyor and Town Planner. He is Director of Planning, Infrastructure and Economy for Devon County Council and is a Vice President of the Town and Country Planning Association.
He is a former Director of the Town and Country Planning Association, Secretary of the National Planning Forum and was elected the first President of the Planning Officers Society in 1997 representing local authority chief planners across England.
He has long been associated with driving forward the housing agenda both campaigning through the TCPA and also through his local government work. As Director of Environmental Services for Swindon, he recommended for approval the Southern Development Area for housing. Now at Devon, he is closely involved in helping deliver the new settlements at Cranbrook and Sherford. In 2008 he was appointed by the Housing Minister to recommend Beacon Council status for local authorities under the theme Homes for the Future. In 2007 he undertook Reviews of Ashford's Future and Aylesbury Vale Advantage for the CLG, specifically examining their capability to deliver the growth agenda.
He writes and lectures on planning and environmental matters both at home and abroad and has written a regular column in Planning for ten years.
