The Biofarm Team

We are environmental and planning specialists with the expertise to help developers, LPAs and landowners deliver BNG.

Bringing experience and integrity to your project

Biofarm was established in response to the Environment Bill receiving Royal Assent in November 2021. Our team includes leading UK figures in ecological, environmental and property consultancy.

We have vast experience in delivering environmental offset schemes. We understand habitats and associated metrics, and how to deliver in a timely way.

Our methodology is based on delivering BNG in good faith, rather than ‘finding a way through the regulations’. This is because we are environmental custodians at heart and because we know genuine delivery serves our clients best.

You’ll enjoy the positive PR you deserve for doing this right – and the knowledge you’re a part of the biodiversity solution.

Our Team

Dominic Woodfield

Head of Ecology 

  • Dominic has been a professional ecologist since 1994 and, as well as being on the board at Biofarm, is MD of Bioscan, a highly respected name in the ecological consultancy sector. He has a wide-ranging knowledge of environmental regulation and impact assessment gained over a long career working for developers and other clients. This includes the design and successful delivery of offsetting, mitigation and compensation schemes via both metric and non-metric approaches. He brings to the company an in-depth knowledge of ecosystem function, practical habitat creation and management and delivery of net gain in order to demonstrate alignment with planning policy and the emerging statutory framework around biodiversity.

Simon Nash

Head of Habitat Management 

  • Simon is a passionate environmentalist and advocate for habitat restoration and the reintroduction of keystone species in support of natural regeneration. Formerly Director of Operations and then Chief Executive of Wetlands International, Simon has worked with wetland conservation teams in over 25 countries in West Africa, the Mediterranean and Black Sea regions, Russia and South East Asia. From 2006 to 2018 Simon was the CEO of Somerset Wildlife Trust, a sizeable local and regional NGO in the South West of England. Simon now works on a range of environmental projects and related policy research in a private capacity in the UK and Europe.

Chris Scott

Chief Commercial Officer 

  • Chris joined Biofarm in 2023 to help develop and execute Biofarm’s growth strategy. He has spent 12 years in B2B consultancy businesses, building market-leading and customer-centric products and solutions through deeply understanding his clients’ needs. As an entrepreneur, Chris was also formerly the founder and commercial leader of a number of successful supply chain management and technology start-ups. Outside of work, Chris enjoys playing golf as well as spending time in nature with his two children. Since moving to the Hertfordshire countryside in 2014, he has been a keen volunteer for local environmental and wildlife projects, and he actively raises awareness of sustainability issues.

Andy Brainin

Co-Founder & CFO

  • Andy is a member of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants. He has a background in ESG investing and a keen interest in natural capital. He co-founded Biofarm to commercialise and scale habitat restoration in the UK, in order to combat the recent, dramatic decline in the country’s biodiversity. Before founding Biofarm, he spent six years at KPMG within the Management Consulting division, specialising in Finance Function Re-organisation, Transformation Programme Management and Risk Management for banks and insurance companies. In 2013 he co-founded South Hill Capital and has been instrumental in growing the company into an international, multi-sector real estate investment portfolio and asset management business.

Philip Brainin

Co-Founder & CEO

  • Philip co-founded Biofarm in 2021 to directly aid in the recovery and restoration of Biodiversity to the UK, which is one of the most environmentally degraded countries in the world. Philip started his career in the property industry and is a member of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. He began his career with Laing O’Rourke as a construction planner on Heathrow Terminal 5, after which he moved to DTZ and Jones Lang LaSalle, advising lending institutions on their distressed property loan books. In 2013 he co-founded South Hill Capital and has been instrumental in growing the company into an international, multi-sector real estate investment portfolio and asset management business.

Chris Rowland-Smith

Land Director

  • Chris is a vastly experienced property professional and entrepreneur, with 20 year’s experience in land and planning. He has also managed many development projects over this time, ranging from £500k-£3m in construction value. He has been a founding member of a number of innovative businesses within the property sector focused on unlocking hidden value in land, blending expertise and technology to create efficient and scalable businesses; notably Lumière property in 2013 and Lumière Sites in 2021, which developed proprietary geospatial technology to identify and unlock planning opportunities at scale in the UK.

Evie Hymas

Ecologist

  • Evie is a Biodiversity Net Gain ecologist with a background in conservation. She has a passion for assessing interactions between the built and natural environment and specialises in innovative biomonitoring technology. Evie has worked with several London-based organisations, with projects including developing fine-scale tracking systems for African Wild Dogs, enhancing environmental DNA techniques on the River Thames and investigating impacts of land-use change on biodiversity in the Bornean Rainforest. She holds a BSc in Biological Science and a Masters in Biodiversity and Conservation Research.

Holly Aitken

Business Development Manager

  • Fresh from a dynamic career in Australia, Holly brings her entrepreneurial spirit, business development acumen, and sustainability expertise to Biofarm. She has driven remarkable market growth at startups like Trule Ltd and Rosy Soil, using strategic initiatives and keen competitor analysis. At Raaise, Holly worked in Business Development to help secure crucial and aligned investments for climate startups. With an award-winning BSc in Physical Geography, her commitment to sustainability is both academically and practically grounded. Holly's exceptional skills in relationship building and stakeholder engagement were further honed as a Women in Climate and Energy Fellow at EnergyLab, where she worked on urban greening and environmental policy in Melbourne.

Anatilde Conceição

Finance Manager

  • Anatilde is an experienced finance professional with a twenty-year track record supporting the growth of new businesses. She has a background in real estate, finance and accounting and has been instrumental in growing Biofarm; driving efficiency, optimising the finance and treasury functions, and supporting business operations. She has a keen interest in Natural Capital and Biodiversity and has significant experience of growing new businesses. Prior to joining the team, Ana spent over a decade scaling a biosciences company from inception to a multibillion-dollar business. In her free time, she likes hiking, travelling and having fun with her family.