Simon Harth

I am currently a director in Mott MacDonald's Land Advisory practice and a passionate advocate of early careers and continuing professional development through the development of apprenticeships, fostering industry representation, recognition and collaboration.

I began my career as a Land Referencer in 2004, when I started a three-month temporary role as a Land Referencer at Mouchel Parkman, Land Aspects (now WSP).  My first role involved the identification of land and associated interests and rights impacted by scheme development as well as engaging with stakeholders regarding a proposed dual carriageway in County Tyrone.  Until this point, my career direction was uncertain, but I knew that I wanted to apply practical skills and knowledge to approaching and resolving issues.  These first steps have led to a 17-year career in WSP, where my own specialism in Land Referencing has allowed me opportunities to collaborate across various design and environmental engineering disciplines, delivering major infrastructure and regeneration projects across the UK and Ireland.

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My love of this geography related job was instant.  I bring together human geography through engagement of project stakeholders, with physical geography through cartography, geographic information systems and data repositories, contributing to successful planning applications and the granting of Statutory powers facilitating the fundamental assembly of land for infrastructure construction.  In 2021 I become a chartered geographer, awarded by the Royal Geographical Society.     

​I have varied my career by seeking new challenges and roles.  I trained as a GIS technician to develop spatial datasets using licenced, open-source and field data, forming essential elements of planning applications and public communication tools.  Proposed tramlines and airport rail-links brought me to Scotland and my move to London was initiated by a secondment with Network Rail, supporting the final stages of the cross-London Thameslink Programme railway project, gaining a valuable insight of applied geography from a client’s perspective. 

My principal vocation is as a Geographer and Land Referencer supporting major and notable infrastructure and regeneration planning applications in rail, highways, energy and water infrastructure sectors across the UK.

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I am currently a director in Mott MacDonald's Land Advisory practice.  I am a passionate advocate of early careers and continuing professional development through the development of apprenticeships, fostering industry representation, recognition and collaboration.