Congratulations to five TPS members, Leighton Cardwell, Andrew Fyfe, James MacPherson, Deborah Paton and Mark Welch, who were awarded the TPP following the November Professional Review Interviews!

Leighton Cardwell has recently joined Jacobs in Leeds as a Principal Consultant with a remit to manage and develop their modelling teams across the north of England. His role is “focused on leading, inspiring and mentoring others by promoting best practice, securing our involvement in some of the most interesting transport planning challenges and projects, and which the blend of technical and managerial competencies covered by TPP is vital to ensuring” and he is: “keen on creating an environment where people feel free to use skills from other areas of transport planning and professional life to provide insights into our models, and how best to analyse them for the benefit and clarity of our clients. The TPP, and being a professional transport planner more generally, provides a great platform to "hone" these skills and use them effectively for the benefit of decision and policy makers in and out of the transport sphere.

Andrew Fyfe is a senior transport consultant with CH2M HILL, based in their Glasgow office.  Since joining the company in 2008 he has played an important role on some major projects in Scotland, including providing the auditing and advice on transport impacts of major planning applications affecting Scotland's trunk road network, as well as a number of other projects for Transport Scotland, including the A82(T) Tarbet to Inverarnan Upgrade and the Traffic and Transport Advisor and Auditor (TTAA) Commission. Commenting on his award, Andrew said:
"Gaining the TPP is a great achievement for me and important both for personal recognition and my career progression. I am looking forward to continuing my work in transport planning and taking on some interesting challenges."

James MacPherson is a Principal Transport Planner in the Manchester office of Peter Brett Associates, leading a team of four technical staff. He has a diverse range of project experience for both public and private sector clients and is tasked with a business development role in the midlands and north of England.  He is also mentoring two members of Peter Brett’s staff undertaking the TPS Professional Development. James said “obtaining the TPP qualification has been an important target in my professional development. Its award allows me to demonstrate to existing and potential clients that I have the professional knowledge, experience and credibility to provide them with transport and highways advice.  The TPP qualification is the only dedicated professional recognition in transport planning and it is vital that more people work towards obtaining it in order to further establish our profession in its own right.  I will strongly encourage members of my team to work towards award of the TPP”.

Deborah Paton, an Associate Director with AECOM in their Edinburgh office, is a Chartered Town Planner with 13 years of experience.  But, despite already having a professional qualification, she explained “as the TPP path has become embedded in recent years, I've grown to appreciate its value as an accreditation that truly recognises and strengthens the transport planning profession in its own right. I therefore worked through the process with the support of my employers, who also recognise the importance of being able to offer qualified professionals to clients - indeed, some of our major clients now specifically ask for staff to be TPP qualified. I'm delighted to call myself a Transport Planning Professional, and look forward to mentoring staff who are working towards it. My biggest tip - keep a detailed CV describing all your professional activity from the very start of your career!"

Mark Welch works in Transport for London’s Rail and Underground Transport Planning department, principally concerned with developing the case for new investment and ensuring it addresses the challenges of today as well as those forecast for the future.  He felt the TPP proficiencies captured the areas on which he wanted development of his career, and found “the whole process rewarding. The interview was challenging and has helped me improve my skills that will benefit future career progression, and I have a clear understanding of where I can continue to strengthen my capabilities. I look forward to supporting colleagues in their own work towards their TPP.”

The last submission date for the next round of Professional Review Interviews is 4 April 2014.