The RICS has appointed a new Regional Chair for the South West. He is James Gregory who is a Partner and head of agency at Alder King in Swindon.

As Regional Chair, he will be responsible for driving the RICS programme across the region.

familiar industry figure with some 15 years’ experience, James began his career at Alder King in Swindon, before transferring to the company’s Bristol office.

He later joined Donaldsons (now part of DTZ) and then moved to take up a client development role at Express Park in Bridgwater. He recently returned to Alder King as a Partner in the Swindon office.

Throughout his career he has concentrated on the commercial and industrial markets. James has been a member of the RICS South West Regional Board since 2000. He is also a South West Representative for the RICS Council of England.

Originally from Kent, he moved to Bristol in 1989 to study valuation and estate management at the University of the West of England and now lives in Thornbury.

On taking up the new RICS role, James says: “The RICS plays a key role in supporting the thousands of members working in the South West. There is a real need, too, to bring young people into the industry and generate understanding on the breadth and depth of the surveyor’s role.

"During my period in office, one of the areas on which I will be focusing is building on our work with schools and higher education bodies to highlight the exciting career opportunities encompassed by our industry.”