Our People.

Our team has over 150 years of combined experience within the land and planning industry, making us ideal partners to offer advice on land promotion, the planning process and development.

Ken Lever

Deputy Chairman

Richard Mees

Chief Executive

Joshua Sinnett

Managing Director

Grant Stevenson

Planning Director

Will Blacker

Land Director

Kieran Bray

Development Director

Jo Kirk

Group Finance Director

Gavin Gallagher

Planning Director

Neil Myers

Construction Director

Eric Grove

Chairman

E. [email protected]

Eric Grove is one of the most successful property entrepreneurs in the country.

Eric has previously set up and successfully managed Canberra Homes, which was sold to McAlpine’s and Catesby Property Group.

Throughout his career, Eric has been responsible for delivering over 4,000 residential units per year and managing a portfolio of residential and commercial land across the whole country.

Ken Lever

Deputy Chairman

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In a career spanning more than five decades, Ken brings with him a wealth of experience in executive and non-executive roles across a varied range of sectors, with a particular background in strategic financial management.

He is currently Chairman of the UK’s largest independent integrated waste management company Biffa plc, as well as leading global consultancy firm RPS Group plc, while he is also non-executive director of automotive retailer Vertu Motors and Rockwood Strategic plc, an investment company.  Ken is a member of the Advisory Board of the Alliance Manchester Business School.

Richard Mees

Chief Executive

E. [email protected]

Richard has been working with Eric Grove both directly and previously as a consultant for 10 years.

Richard has a wealth of experience from small brownfield development sites to large sustainable urban extensions both in commercial and residential property.

His experience and skills are across the life-cycle of the development process from land acquisition and planning through to construction and disposal.

A member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. Richard enjoys spending time with his young family and tries to keep fit, family and work permitting.

Joshua Sinnett

Managing Director

E. [email protected]

Josh joined Rainier Developments in 2017 from Gallagher Estates, where he worked as Land Director with a primary focus on strategic land.

He has an extensive track record at delivering sites suitable for development throughout the UK and prides himself on working closely with landowners, their advisers and key stakeholders to obtain the best possible planning consent for all involved.

During his spare time, Josh enjoys playing a range of sport (especially tennis) and is a life long suffering supporter of Aston Villa football club.

Hana Grove

Director

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Hana is a graduate of art college.  Within Rainier Developments Hana plays an active role in evaluating the company’s projects.  Hana has a keen eye for architecture, design and placemaking, and ensures that our developments are at the highest possible quality.

Hana is a lover of nature, and all forms of art.

Grant Stevenson

Planning Director

E. [email protected]

Grant has over 17 years’ experience in planning and development. Grant can advise on all aspects of the planning process and has extensive experience in leading large, multi-disciplinary teams to deliver timely and cost-effective planning permissions. In addition, he has considerable experience of the appeal process and has been involved in a number of planning inquiries, including acting as expert witness.

He started his career at Birmingham City Council, before moving to Barton Willmore, advising a range of house builder and developer clients. During this time he was involved in a number of high profile schemes in the Midlands, including one of the Government short-listed Eco-town proposals. More recently, Grant spent four years at Catesby Estates identifying new development opportunities and managing a number of strategic land projects across the UK.

Grant is a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).

Will Blacker

Land Director

E. [email protected]

Following graduation from the University of Portsmouth with a degree in Property Development, Will worked at BNP Paribas Real Estate and CBRE within their development land teams, both in Birmingham and London. He specialised in the acquisition and disposal of development sites. Will became a Chartered Surveyor and a member of the RICS in 2013.

Over the past 10 years, Will has been involved in some of the largest residential transactions in the Midlands, achieving record land values on behalf of landowners, which have included a mix of housebuilders, developers, corporates, public bodies and private owners.

Outside of work Will enjoys walks with his dog Boycie, skiing and travelling the world.

Kieran Bray

Development Director

E. [email protected]

Hailing from a commercial background, Kieran has over 18 years’ experience with tier one main contractors delivering multi-million pound residential, commercial and educational construction schemes.

Having worked in the residential sector for a number of years, Kieran has a wealth of experience in the design, cost, procurement and construction of medium to high-density city centre residential developments.

In his spare time Kieran enjoys spending time with his wife and three children. He regularly attends the Ricoh Arena where he is a Coventry City season ticket holder with his father and two sons.

Jo Kirk

Group Finance Director

E. [email protected]

Jo qualified as an accountant at an earlier age than is typical, due to deciding not to go to university after A Levels and going straight into the industry to gain experience and study around a full-time job.  This method of study was repeated with the ICSA qualification and a MBA from Warwick Business School.

Jo has been involved in a variety of sectors, managing and leading finance functions, but more notably within property investment and development since 2005, ensuring as part of her finance leadership role that the operational function was aligned to the strategic goals.  Within her current role she is responsible for developing the finance function to meet the strategic requirements of the company.

In her spare time, Jo can be found running, swimming or undertaking random DIY tasks.

Gavin Gallagher

Planning Director

E. [email protected]

Gavin has over 19 years’ experience in Planning and Development. During his time as a consultant at Barton Willmore, Gavin worked with Eric and Richard on a range of projects from small scale brownfield developments to a large sustainable urban extension.

Gavin is fully conversant with all aspects of the Planning process, including land promotion, planning applications and appeals.

Gavin is a member of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI). In his spare time Gavin enjoys taking his son to play Rugby, who will hopefully become the next Jonny Sexton.

Neil Myers

Construction Director

E. [email protected]

Prior to joining Rainier Developments, Neil spent over 25 years within just two tier-one main contractors, working across technical and operational roles from Graduate Engineer through Project and Contracts Management, and then to the position of Regional Operations Manager.

Neil has extensive pre-construction and construction phase experience, successfully delivering a wide range of projects within many sectors including residential, commercial, retail, healthcare and education.

This experience has led to a broad knowledge of building design, operational delivery, project management and contract and commercial management.

Away from work, Neil enjoys spending time with his family and will also often be found enjoying his chosen sport of cycling.