Carter Jonas has recruited three new partners, creating a Town Centre and Urban Change Team. They will drive forward town centre development across the UK, providing both the public and private sectors with strategic development advice, enabling successful partnerships, and implementing complex long-term projects.

Paul Ellis, Jennifer Miles and Caroline Searle have joined Carter Jonas' London headquarters, complementing the existing Development Team. They have an established track record of working together including at Cushman & Wakefield, where at one time they were all partners.

Collectively they offer 70 years of experience on major urban development projects.

They join with a significant volume of client work, including projects that will redefine existing towns and cities and schemes to create new visionary urban centres that harness technological advancement and shifts in societal behaviour.

By way of example, the team is working with Broxbourne Borough Council and Hertfordshire County Council on Brookfield. This 330-acre site in Hertfordshire includes the pre-eminent new retail and leisure led town centre scheme within the UK, alongside a linked Garden Village scheme. Additionally, the trio supports Swansea Council on projects to deliver a socio-economic step change to the city and region, including a major development based around a 3,500-capacity arena, set to complete later this year.

Paul Ellis has advised a range of local authorities on major development projects across the UK in an approximately 30-year career to date, with successful projects including Bath Riverside, Watermark Southampton and the Arc and Apex scheme in Bury St Edmunds. He is acknowledged as one of the UK's leading advisors in this specialist area.

Jennifer Miles focuses on mixed-use urban regeneration and has 20 years of experience, including the delivery of Liverpool ONE and Heart of Sheffield, providing clients with in-depth support throughout the development process.

Caroline Searle has 18 years' experience delivering mixed-use town and city centre regeneration schemes across the UK and overseas, including supporting Birmingham City Council and Network Rail on the delivery of Grand Central and advising on the creation of a new retail and leisure destination within Abu Dhabi's financial centre. She has developed a keen interest in the creation of urban strategies to shape successful and sustainable places.

At Carter Jonas, Paul, Jennifer, and Caroline will work closely with Planning and Development teams around the country as well as specialists in investment, agency, estate strategy and land assembly.

Colin Brown, Head of Planning & Development, said: "The UK's urban centres are facing challenges across all areas on a scale not seen for decades. The public sector will need to lead the way in responding, taking a proactive approach to stimulating local economies, working with the private sector to reposition and repurpose assets. In this new team, we have the skills and experience to help urban centres respond to immediate and significant challenges."