TWO senior appointments have been made at County Hall recently. Stephen Hurr is Pembrokeshire County Council's new head of planning, while Jane Gibson has been appointed head of quality regeneration and tourism. Stephen, who has a long career in local government, joined the council from Cumbria County Council in 1999. He was previously the authority's development plans officer, overseeing the preparation of the Joint Unitary Development Plan, and managed the council's Countryside Team. Stephen said: "Planning is a positive process, guiding development and the use of land in the county's towns and rural areas in the public interest. "We need to ensure the services we provide are customer-focused, and that quality decisions are made in acceptable time limits." He succeeds David Lawrence, who has retired. Jane Gibson has been the council's Quality Pembrokeshire manager with a remit covering Listed Buildings, conservation and landscapes. Brought up in Neyland, Jane moved away and worked for five different local authorities and the private sector before moving back into local government in Pembrokeshire. She succeeds Erica Fielding, who has also retired. She said: "This is an exciting time to be taking responsibility for flagship services such as tourism and regeneration. There are a number of major developments underway, and new opportunities through convergence funding to enhance town centres and strategic employment sites and improve the quality of life for communities. "Quality needs to be the keystone for improving the tourism offer and regeneration agenda across the county."
