Under The Spotlight With Jessica Lloyd

Jes joined Paul Basham Associates as a Graduate Transport Planner in 2014 following a BSc Geography undergraduate degree at Sussex University. Whilst originally from Bristol, Jes decided to remain on the south coast completing a Masters in Transportation Planning and Engineering at Southampton University whilst working with us and has worked her way up to a Principal Transport Planner.

What does your job involve? 

My day to day role is a bit of everything which I love. I still manage to get involved in report writing and preparing drawings, whilst also overseeing other members of staff and reviewing their work. I’m also on the phone a lot talking to clients and architects etc to keep projects moving. I am also involved with our Quality Management System and have been since being a graduate after Mark noticed how much of a perfectionist I was (I still am!!) as well as being a First Aider.

What achievement are you most proud of since joining Paul Basham Associates? 

I think one of my biggest achievements is completing my Masters and securing a distinction. Working full time alongside completing the coursework and revising was tough but the end result was definitely worth it.

I am also pretty pleased about a few project permissions, one which I worked on for around 5 years, from initial feasibility stages through to securing full planning permission which involved a lot of meetings with different parties due to some tricky off-site highway constraints including Highways England land which should hopefully start construction soon.

And one last one – winning ‘Consultant of the Year’ in 2017 for Barratt David Wilson Homes’ Southampton branch which was amazing!

What do you see for the future at Paul Basham Associates?  

I think one of the nice things about Paul Basham Associates is the focus on progression for each individual and seeing people work their way up through the company and I see this approach continuing and expanding as we take on more graduates across all our offices.

What do you get up to in your free time?
Having moved from Bristol to Brighton to Southampton I spend some of my free time seeing friends and family from these places, particularly enjoying a nice cold pint of cider at one of Brighton’s many beach bars or at my parents local pub in Somerset. Other than that, I enjoy shopping, eating out or going for nice walks in pretty locations. I’ll also happily admit I am quite the gym bunny and enjoy a good sweat session, but I do also really enjoy cake, chocolate and ice cream – what girl doesn’t? Aside from those, my other past time is planning my next holiday, right now that is a little tricky, but I’ll hopefully be able to do some more exploring soon. 

What challenges you each day? 

Working on a variety of projects keeps you on your toes as each site is unique and has its own challenges and whilst you may be working on one project, the phone may ring about another project and you have to quickly adjust to the different opportunities and constraints. In some ways a challenge, but also part of the reason I like my job.