It’s a milestone worth marking. But an announcement like this shouldn’t be an exercise in celebration for its own sake, it should be honest about the industry we’re operating in, and clear about what a change in leadership actually means for the people who work with us.

An industry sending mixed signals

The data right now tells an interesting story. Housebuilding applications in England reached a five-year high in the 12 months to June 2026, reaching around 412,000 proposed homes, roughly 30% up on the previous year. On paper, that looks like confidence returning to the market.

But intent and delivery are two different things. New-build starts told a very different story over the same period, falling sharply quarter-on-quarter. The gap between what’s being applied for and what’s actually getting built is widening, not narrowing. A pipeline can look full and still be moving slowly underneath.

That’s the reality our clients are working in: more applications in the system, but more scrutiny, more complexity and no guarantee that permission translates into progress on site. We don’t think the industry needs another list of the problems it already knows about. It needs consultants who can actually move things through that complexity.

What doesn’t change

The biggest lesson from nearly three decades in this business is a simple one: reputation is built on long-term relationships and consistency, not on any one project or any one person. Being accessible, staying solutions-focused, and delivering on what you say you’ll do – that’s what clients remember, and it’s what keeps them coming back.

That won’t change under new leadership. Clients can expect the same commitment to quality, technical excellence and collaborative working that has always defined the business, and the same focus on finding practical ways through planning, design and technical challenges rather than simply flagging where they exist.

What also doesn’t change is why the multidisciplinary model works. We don’t advise on planning in isolation or hand over a design and step away. We understand how a project moves from concept, through planning, into delivery. Bringing planning, urban design, landscape and technical expertise together under one roof means we spot opportunities and constraints earlier, and our advice stays commercially grounded.

Two backgrounds, one approach

Toby and Nathan built their careers on similar foundations. Both have worked across technical, design and planning disciplines, which gives them a shared, holistic view of how developments actually get delivered. Where they differ is where they add the most value together: Nathan’s strength is decisive technical leadership and practical problem-solving on complex sites; Toby’s is shaping planning and development strategy and bringing planning, design and commercial thinking together to unlock opportunities.

It’s a leadership pairing built the same way the business is, around complementary expertise rather than a single point of view.

Investing in what’s next

Growth for its own sake isn’t the ambition here. The plan is to keep strengthening the integrated approach, with planning, urban design, landscape architecture and technical delivery working as one team, so it delivers more value for clients, not just more services on a list. Alongside that, investing in people remains central: clear career pathways, mentoring and leadership development, so the next generation gets the same opportunities that shaped this leadership team in the first place. Toby joined the business as an apprentice; that’s the kind of pathway the business wants to keep open.

Demand for new homes isn’t the problem in this market – navigating an increasingly complex planning and delivery landscape is. Clients are looking less for isolated advice and more for one team that can manage risk and identify opportunity across the whole process. That’s exactly where an integrated, multidisciplinary consultancy is best placed to help.

The next chapter

What Toby and Nathan are taking on isn’t a change of direction, it’s a continuation of the same values, relationships and commitment to quality, led by two people who have spent 35 years at The Noble Consultancy and helping shape the projects and successes this business has delivered.

Thank you to every client, colleague and partner who has trusted The Noble Consultancy over the years. We’re proud of what’s been built, honest about the challenges ahead, and looking forward to the next chapter together.