Ian Sharratt has been appointed to the Commission for Architecture and the Built Environment (CABE)'s design panel for seven new stations as part of the £16bn Crossrail programme.

The Crossrail design review panel brings together 12 built environment experts and will be chaired by Les Sparks OBE, a former CABE commissioner who headed CABE's national design panel. Its vice-chair is Ken Shuttleworth of Make Architects.

The panel will provide expert advice on the quality of designs for the new Crossrail stations and the buildings above them.

The panel will start work in early 2009 reviewing designs for Paddington, Bond Street, Tottenham Court Road, Farringdon, Liverpool Street, Whitechapel and Custom House stations.

Crossrail, which is scheduled to open in 2017, will provide high-frequency rail access into and across London and is expected to have a major impact on London's transport network, increasing its capacity and bringing an additional 1.5 million people within 60 minutes commuting distance of central London.