Park People: A Day in the life of Philip Campbell, Commercial Director

Each month, we thought it would be great to hear from a variety of different people who work on Milton Park.

This month, we volunteered our Commercial Director, Philip to be the first guinea pig of the new feature – learning more about his involvement in the consultations that will help to shape the future of the Park… as well as his love for coffee, hot chocolates and a desire to go for more runs.

“The last 18 months have been challenging for everyone”

I think there is bit of a perception that many in the real estate world have had their feet up on the sofa. At Milton Park nothing could be further from the truth! And whilst I can’t claim that everything has gone 100% to plan, I would like to say a massive thank you to the entire Milton Park team (and our supplier partners) who continue to work tirelessly to keep the show on the road and put up with my constant stream of requests.

Individuals like Lucy Mason – who has been overseeing the smart metering project to help give greater visibility on energy usage to help drive down consumption. Veronica Reynolds – who has implemented green travel projects including the new cycle routes and bus service. Peter King – who with the help of the landscape team has only gone and won some awards! Nikki Gibson and the Innovation Centre team who just last week reported 100% occupancy. All of those who involved in our new developments at the Bee House and 178 Brook Drive who have just kept going. And of course, the security team for being present throughout. You can find out more about our team here!

What are you looking forward to?

As a people person, one of the things I have missed most is meeting in person with our fantastic occupiers and seeing my team face-to-face on a daily basis. I am now really enjoying seeing the growing number of people back in the workplace and I am so pleased to hear many of our valued amenity providers are starting to report a much-needed upward trend in people visiting. With the inevitable fall in footfall during the pandemic I am acutely aware of how much those businesses have struggled.

What does a typical day/week look like to you?

As for my typical day… there is really no such thing. Although there are some constants – it always involves a least one cup of coffee, definitely a hot chocolate and occasionally (but not often enough) a run along the new cycle path across Kelaart’s Field and through Sutton Courtenay or Milton Village. And it is always busy.

Mondays always start with the team ‘swap and share’ meetings. where we each give a two-minute update about recent and upcoming activities we are involved with across Milton Park. We literally cover everything – from charity cake sales to welcoming new businesses, to progress with developments.

This week, I have also had meetings with several life sciences occupiers about how we can support their expansion plans. Topics discussed have ranged from the need for additional space or new buildings, complex alterations with clean rooms, and explaining how the Milton Park Local Development Order (LDO) simplified planning arrangement can speed up the process of getting planning permission.

As you may have read in previous newsletters, we are currently working with the Vale of White Horse District Council to refresh the LDO so there have been several meetings on that too. And talking to friends in the real estate sector often reminds us how fortunate we are to work with such a forward-thinking local Council as the Vale.

What is coming up at Milton Park?

Recently, we also hosted the first face-to-face Milton Park Liaison Group meeting for about 18 months. It was lovely to see so many familiar (and some new) faces. This is a forum where we update local parish councillors and interest groups on all matters Milton Park, so relevant information can be disseminated by the members to local residents. We have been hosting these since 2013 and meet three times a year. We are hugely grateful to Cllr Richard Webber who kindly chairs the meetings.

I have also had several meetings with our talented development team about three new schemes they are beavering away on and we look forward to saying more about those in due course.

More widely I also had a meeting with Asylum Welcome about possible ways in which Milton Park community can assist with the refugee crisis. More on how you might be able to help to follow.

I also met with other local stakeholders about a local charitable project we are working on – which I’ll be able to discuss more on very soon. I am so grateful to everyone involved, particularly those businesses who have already kindly agreed to get involved. Please do reach out to Veronica Reynolds to find out more.

In addition, we have just responded to two other consultations: the Government-commissioned Oxford-Cambridge Arc Event and OCC 2050’s plan. These two plans will highlight the impressive contribution Milton Park businesses make to the Oxfordshire innovation cluster.

Finally, I found the time to head out for a jog towards the end of the day, particularly important as I’ve signed up for the Santa Fun Run taking place on 10 December outside Park Club. Hope you can join in too!

Fancy being featured in our ‘Park People’ series? Drop us a line at marketing@miltonpark.com