What Nexus Planning does

Nexus Planning is an independent UK town planning consultancy founded in 2013 by Roger Tustain, employing more than 50 planners across five offices in Birmingham, Bristol, London, Manchester and Reading. The firm advises both private developers and public sector clients, with a stated roster of approximately 100 local authority clients and 50+ private developers and housebuilders including Gleeson Land, Vistry Homes, Taylor Wimpey and Miller Homes. Core work covers the promotion of land through the local plan process, reserved matters applications, brownfield regeneration, retail and leisure planning, and the firm has built a dedicated Later Living service line for specialist older-people housing.

The firm operates six service pillars: Strategic Land, Reserved Matters, Brownfield Development, Retail & Leisure, Later Living, and Nexus Analytics & Research. Underlying technical work combines traditional planning evidence base preparation and written representations with GIS-based demographic analysis and, under the analytics pillar, use of mobile location data (Apple/Google Mobile APIs) for footfall and catchment assessment. The firm has promoted more than 4,500 hectares of land through local plan examinations and is increasingly acting as expert witness at planning inquiries.

Revenue is generated on a fee-for-service basis, typically through fixed-fee project instructions (e.g., promotion of a site through local plan, reserved matters submissions, appeal representations) and retainer-style engagements with repeat developer clients and local authorities. The firm is privately held with no external equity funding disclosed, and growth has been funded organically alongside partner reinvestment. There is no public revenue disclosure, but the headcount and office footprint imply a mid-sized UK planning practice by sector standards.

Name

Nexus Planning

Legal name

Nexus Planning Limited

Website

https://nexusplanning.co.uk

Company type

Private

Founded year

2013

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Nexus Planning is an independent UK town planning consultancy founded in 2013, employing 50+ planners across five offices. It serves approximately 100 local authorities and 50+ private developers with strategic land promotion, reserved matters, and specialist planning services.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Town Planning Consultancy

NAICS

Architectural Services (541310)

SIC

Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Engineering, Accounting, Research, Management (8700)

akta.pro primary industry

Real Estate Market Research & Economic Advisory (Demand/Supply, Location Analytics) (BPAJANAD)

akta.pro secondary industry

Public Sector & Policy Consulting (BPAHACAN)

Keywords

• Town planning consultancy
• Strategic land promotion
• Planning applications advisory
• Retail leisure studies
• Environmental impact assessment

Headquarters

HQ city

London

HQ country

United Kingdom

HQ region

Europe

Offices5 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Planning Consultancy Services: Professional services including planning strategy, planning applications, site promotion, EIA coordination, appeals, expert witness services, and needs/impacts assessments for public and private sector clients. Revenue generated through professional service fees for advisory and consultancy engagements.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Nexus Planning is an independent town planning consultancy providing planning strategy, planning applications, site promotion, EIA coordination, appeals and expert witness services to UK public and private sector clients. The firm is organised into six integrated service pillars — Strategic Land/Greenfield Development, Reserved Matters, Brownfield Development, Retail & Leisure, Later Living, and Nexus Analytics & Research. Services are delivered by more than 50 professionals operating from five UK office hubs (Birmingham, Bristol, London, Manchester, Reading).

Product overview

Nexus Planning is an award-winning town planning consultancy offering a comprehensive suite of planning services organized into six integrated service pillars. The core offerings include Strategic Land / Greenfield Development for identifying and securing planning permissions on greenfield sites; Reserved Matters for detailed residential applications; Brownfield Development for urban regeneration projects; Retail & Leisure for evidence-led commercial advice; Later Living for retirement and care schemes; and Nexus Analytics and Research for demographic analysis and evidence-base studies. Services span planning applications, site promotion, EIA coordination, appeals, and needs assessments. The company operates from five UK offices serving public and private sector clients nationwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Nexus Analytics and Research (NAR): In-house team of demographic, economic and GIS specialists providing evidence-based research, socio-economic analysis, and planning evidence to support planning decisions.

Products and services

• Strategic Land / Greenfield Development Identifying and assessing greenfield development opportunities, producing strategies to unlock development potential, and securing development plan allocations and planning permissions for clients including developers, housebuilders, landowners and land promoters.
• Reserved Matters Reserved matters strategy and applications for residential sites, covering design detail through to securing permission for residential and mixed-use developments following outline consent.
• Brownfield Development Planning strategy for brownfield sites, urban regeneration and housing-led redevelopment in complex urban locations for public and private sector clients.
• Retail & Leisure Evidence-led town centre, retail, leisure, hotel and commercial needs advice for UK public and private clients, including needs/impact assessments and town centre strategies.
• Later Living Specialist planning advice for retirement living, care, assisted living and age-focused residential schemes, including older people's housing needs studies.
• Nexus Analytics and Research (NAR) In-house demographic, economic and GIS analytics service producing socio-economic assessments, Health Impact Assessments, retail and leisure studies, open space strategies and other evidence-base research to support planning applications and Local Plan preparation.

Quantifiable outcome

• Planning permission secured for South West Aylesbury (1,400 homes) on behalf of Gleeson Land in May 2026
• +6 more outcomes

Named customers30 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature1 record

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Nexus Analytics & Research (internal team)coreOthersNexus Analytics & Research is an internal team of demographic, economic and GIS specialists within Nexus Planning. This team produces socio-economic and human health Environmental Statement chapters, retail and leisure studies, open space strategies, and other evidence-base research to support planning applications and Local Plan preparation.
• Adrian KealminorOthersAdrian Keal is a Planner Consultant (qualified architect and town planner) who works part-time for a limited number of long-term clients, managing planning and urban design projects. He has worked with Nexus since 2013.
• Various Sub-consultants and Technical SpecialistscoreImplementation/ SI/ Consulting PartnerNexus coordinates multidisciplinary consultant teams including architects, engineers, environmental consultants, and other technical specialists to deliver comprehensive planning services. The company acts as lead consultant on complex projects, coordinating these sub-consultant teams.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• DLP Planning: UK planning consultancy with strategic land, residential, and EIA offerings. Direct competitor for housebuilder clients and reserved matters / planning application work.
• Lichfields: Independent UK planning, economics, and development consultancy. Highly comparable specialism in strategic land, retail and residential planning, and public-sector Local Plan evidence base work.
• Turley: UK-based independent planning, design, and economics consultancy. Most direct competitor in scale and specialism, offering strategic land promotion, EIA, retail and residential planning across the UK.
• Boyer (Wates Group): Independent UK town planning consultancy, owned by Wates Group. Direct peer serving housebuilders, developers, and public sector with planning applications, strategic land promotion, and appeals.

Broad incumbents

• Bidwells: UK property consultancy with planning, residential, and rural development teams. Competes on strategic land and housebuilder mandates as part of a broader property services platform.
• Montagu Evans: UK real estate advisory firm with strong planning, development, and retail/town centre capabilities. Comparable on retail, leisure, and regeneration mandates but operates a wider service offering.
• RPS Group (now part of Tetra Tech): Multidisciplinary consultancy with significant UK planning capability, now part of Tetra Tech. Competes across strategic land, EIA, and residential planning with a much larger bench and global footprint.
• JLL (Planning): Global real estate services firm with a UK planning team covering strategic land, residential, and commercial development. Larger multidisciplinary platform competing on enterprise and framework mandates.
• Savills (Planning Division): Global real estate advisory firm with a substantial UK town planning team. Competes on planning applications, strategic land, and regeneration as part of a much broader property services portfolio.
• CBRE (Planning): Global real estate services firm with UK planning capability covering strategic land, residential, and commercial planning. Broader portfolio, but competing head-on for enterprise developer mandates.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat3 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/nexus-planning

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles21 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Nexus Planning