Made in Sussex: Argyll Environmental

Argyll Environmental is a premier risk management consultancy, specialising in environmental due diligence and risk assessment for property and land. SBT looks at their journey and where their success so far will take them in the future

Not a week goes by without a headline appearing in the news relating to an environmental issue, risk or concern; whether it’s flooding, subsidence, sink-holes or contaminated land. With more and more properties being developed, including those on brownfield sites, the need to assess and understand any potential environmental risk is vital from a risk management point of view for developers but also for investors, owners and tenants.

As a city that is committed to sustainability, it is no surprise that Brighton has developed quite a reputation for environmental expertise and with demand for specialist environmental data and consultancy on the up, Brighton-based Argyll Environmental has witnessed significant growth. Since it was established back in 2004, the company has grown to a team of 24 and over this time has established a close relationship with the University of Brighton.

Simon Boyle, Argyll’s Environmental Law Director, coordinates an MSc course module in Environmental Assessment and Management and around half of its employees are from Brighton University. The team has recently relocated to larger offices in Queens Road, Brighton, to enable further expansion to take place.

Reflecting on when the company was founded, Chris Loaring, Argyll’s Head of Consultancy confirms:

We initially set up to provide environmental due diligence and risk assessment data and reports for property and land transactions. This was primarily to law firms and, such was our success, that we quickly found ourselves providing this service to the majority of the UK’s top 50 law firms.

Argyll soon expanded its services to include flood risk and in 2011 was acquired by Landmark Information Group significantly expanding the depth of knowledge it could provide and consequently strengthening its services.

Continues Chris:

Since becoming part of Landmark, it has really enabled us to scale out operations and broaden into new service areas. Today we work with a huge variation of clients – from global private equity asset managers, housing associations and property developers, through to planners and architects. We give them the environmental analysis they need to help them make fast and informed investment and management decisions, as well as ensure that appropriate insurances, environmental indemnity or remediation is put in place.

Looking ahead, Chris explains that several new launches are planned, including the start of a series of Environmental Breakfast Briefings:

We’ve got a busy time ahead with a range of new services in the pipeline, including a land-use decision-making application, which will make a big difference to those looking to redevelop brownfield sites. We are also keen to share our knowledge and expertise and establish our Queens Road office as an education centre for those wanting to learn more about environmental analysis. With this in mind, in early September we will be holding our first Environmental Breakfast Briefing, and invite professionals from the Sussex region to come and find out more about specific areas of interest.

The first briefing will focus on brownfield development and feature a presentation from renowned expert Stephen Sykes on the challenges of brownfield development; plus it will include a special preview of some of Argyll’s new services.

For further information on Argyll Environmental visit http://www.argyllenvironmental.co.uk or call 0845 458 5250