Celebrating 35 years of Bell Cornwell
We are incredibly grateful to have celebrated our 35th anniversary this year, something which simply would not have been possible without our clients and dedicated team.
We are immensely proud of all we have achieved since opening our doors 35 years ago, so seized the opportunity to celebrate with those that helped make it all happen. A party at the stunning Bombay Sapphire Distillery made for a wonderful evening and was the perfect way to mark over 10,000 projects and 35 years’ worth of planning service.
As we look back over the last 35 years and the milestone we have just achieved it is safe to say we have come a long way. We are regarded as one of the market leaders in the planning industry and this is something we take great pride in. We have worked hard to achieve this reputation and continue to work hard to maintain it whilst sticking to our core values as a business.
History of Bell Cornwell
1986: The practice was founded by Linda Saunders, Graham Bell and John Cornwell. Initially based in Basingstoke, within 3 years the business had expanded so rapidly that the decision was taken to move to larger premises in Hook – where we are still based today.
1987: Bell Cornwell employed its first senior planner – Ian Sowerby – who worked his way up through the ranks to become Partner and has since retired.
2007: As the company grew, staff numbers expanded to handle the ever-increasing number of varied development projects so we opened our second office opened in Exeter. Today the team is based in Exeter and led by Iestyn John.
2008: We opened our office in Amersham. The Buckinghamshire team is now led by Rebekah Jubb and we can still be found in Old Amersham.
2013: Rebekah Jubb becomes Partner after 9 years with Bell Cornwell.
2015: Iestyn John becomes Partner after 5 years with the South West team.
2016: The London office opens in Southwark which is where we are still based today and the team is led by Partner, Mike Cole.
2019: Nick Cobbold and Mike Cole are both made Partners and lead our Hampshire and London teams respectively.
2020: The UK goes into lockdown and our team manages to maintain our exceptional level of service from home. In January 2021 we open our Cornwall office in Victoria.
2021: Celebrating our 35th anniversary!
Over the last 35 years, the planning and development sector has changed in lots of ways but this is always something we have embraced and the business has adapted and responded accordingly. Each office represents a unique milestone and we are proud to have achieved this level of expansion and geographic coverage. We wish to take this opportunity to thank everyone that has worked with us over the last 35 years to enable Bell Cornwell to get to where we are today…we certainly couldn’t have done it without you!
