Grace Nesbit

Current Employer/Organisation Name

Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council

What have you been doing since leaving Exeter, and what are you doing now?

I graduated from Exeter in 2024 and started my job as a Planning Policy Graduate Trainee with Basingstoke and Deane Borough Council. I work in a small team of 11 people in the planning policy department to create our Local Plan together – a big statutory document full of policies which guides where sustainable development should go over the next 20 years in the borough.  

I work on a lot of projects within the wider council on top of this, such as creating maps using GIS to help with meetings on local government reorganisation.  

Working in the council has given me the opportunity to get involved in things I’m passionate about, such as joining working groups for: environmental action; equality diversity and inclusion; and an early careers network.  

I’m really fortunate that Basingstoke and Deane is funding a part time masters for me at UCL in spatial planning, so I work 4 days a week and go up to London one day a week. I’ve just finished the first year of my masters and have one more year to go, and I’m aiming to use this degree to become a chartered town planner. It’s been so incredible for my career development to meet people from all over the south east who work in similar fields to me, and it’s so interesting to study the theory at university and then see how it plays out in real life in my job. 

Why did you choose this career? And what do you enjoy most about your work?

When I was at Exeter I did a year abroad at the University of Tokyo, where I got to study a really wide range of subjects. I took modules in architecture, GIS, politics, environmental science, and urban design. Across all of these I realised that I really enjoyed studying the built environment (I did already study human geography at Exeter so that’s not really a surprise!) and how different choices made by politicians and architects alike can majorly impact people’s quality of life and experience of a place. This was especially true living in Tokyo for the year, as it was such a huge city with incredible public transport but a completely different planning system to the UK.  

When I came back to study my final year at Exeter I decided to apply for planning masters and jobs, and managed to get chosen for my position at Basingstoke, and I have been absolutely loving it since. I love feeling like I’m still using my undergrad degree, but taking it further with my studies at UCL. My team are very supportive and make sure I get lots of opportunities to learn, my first time watching a cabinet briefing was definitely an experience! I really appreciate most of all that the purpose of my job is to update our Local Plan, which is such an important document for both protecting the environment, ensuring we can deliver affordable housing, and making sure it’s all done to a high standard. Creating these policies and going out for consultations in the local area make me feel like I’m really helping and serving my community,  which is so important for me to feel fulfilled in and enjoy my job and gives me a sense of purpose. 

Please tell us if you were a member of any societies, groups or sports clubs?

I was a member of GeogSoc throughout my time at uni, and a member of BodySoc in final year (it helped me to stay sane through my dissertation!). On my year abroad in Japan I joined a ‘circle’ called FSF, which was all about local Japanese students and international students meeting.

What did you enjoy most about your programme and what was the biggest highlight?

The different modules we could choose across such a wide range of topics in geography, because it let me choose things I was passionate about. The biggest highlight was the trip to Freiburg in final year. 

What did you most enjoy about studying here?

Exeter as a city – I really didn’t want to leave! I loved the campus community and the fact we had such gorgeous nature right on our doorstep. 

Why did you choose to study at Exeter?

The beautiful campus and small city feel, the fact it’s close to the sea, and that you could choose so many optional modules and go on a year abroad. 

What skills and experiences have been most useful for your career?

GIS, team working, meeting tight deadlines and managing lots of deadlines at once, and independent research. 

What advice would you give to a current student who wishes to pursue your career?

Just reach out to people who either work in planning in the private sector or public sector, and ask if they have any tips or could offer you work experience. To work in the council more broadly, practice STAR method for applications and interviews and follow the councils you’re interested in on LinkedIn, they will always advertise their positions there and you could message people from the team who comment on the job listings. 

What are your plans for the future?

I plan to finish my masters and become a chartered planner, then I’d love to move up to becoming a principal planner eventually for more responsibility over the Local Plan document. It would also be really interesting to work in development management – this is another part of planning within the council as I didn’t realise before starting that there are so many individual routes.