Luke Grandon

First class Geography & Planning graduate with speciality, and passion in sustainability looking for a first-time opportunity in an Urban Planning role. Through my education, I have gained incite on the issues surrounding the urban setting, in addition to the potential for its sustainable innovation. This has only increased my appetite to pursue this career. I have demonstrated a hardworking attitude and good time management through the grades I have achieved in my education, whilst also enjoying my job, and social life. I wish to utilise the skills I have acquired through both my education and employment to succeed in an urban planning role and help improve the overall urban environment.

My experience in hospitality includes a progression through different roles, from kitchen porter to sues chef. The year before university when I worked as a sues chef at the Pedler Peckham restaurant my responsibilities included expediting, stock taking, and creating new dishes for the menu. This has allowed me to excel in leadership and communication, organisation, and creativity. I stive to be positive and proactive in anything I do and find it impossible to do anything half-heartedly. 

I have also undertaken internships prior to university which helped me to realise my passion for development. The key one being an engineering internship at Balfour Beatty during their work on the foundations for the Vauxhall, One Nine Elms project. This internship gave me an understanding of the immensity of large developments even before above ground constructed. Working closely with experienced ground engineers, documenting, processing, and analysing data from the site showed me the complexity of large-scale development. 

My current role in construction consists of various elements of a commercial to residential renovation. Despite learning construction methods, the main skills I have learnt relevant to the role are in the profits that the development will bring, including working out its gross yield, net yield, and return of the investment. Working closely with experienced builders and the owner has also allowed me to get an insight on the cost of labour and materials, and the timescale of different elements of construction. I was able to use knowledge from my degree in planning during the process of applying for planning permission and understanding how to implement new building control regulations. 

My degree in Geography and Planning has provided me with a wide range of knowledge on the UK planning and development industry whilst also increasing my desire to pursue a career in development as I researched current innovation and the potential to further evolve the planning and development system. My degree has helped in elevating the skills I have learnt through my employment whilst also giving me exceptional GIS skills in programmes such as ArcGIS.