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Principal Planning Consultant (Policy)

Employer
Capita
Location
Manchester/Salford (North West) or Breckland or North Tyneside or Barnet (North London)
Salary
Negotiable
Closing date
4 Jun 2019

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This is a career opportunity for somebody looking to play a key role in the delivery of an effective and efficient planning policy service for local authority clients in a successful, rapidly growing consultancy.

1. About the role

As our Principal Planning Consultant, you will be part of an ambitious, successful team providing our clients with high quality, timely and outcome based Planning Policy services. We provide a range of services to local authorities around their planning policy functions including policy development; providing technical input to the evidence base; sustainability appraisal; project management and a critical friend role. We provide expert witness services for planning appeals primarily for local authorities but also private sector clients. You will also be accountable for:

- Local Planning Policy commissions assisting our client Local Authorities to deliver all aspects of their Planning Policy function including:

  • Technical input into all stages of local plans from inception through to adoption
  • Neighbourhood plans
  • Sustainability Appraisals and SA scoping reports
  • Supplementary Planning Documents
  • Development briefs and masterplans  
  • Community Infrastructure Levy charging schedules
  • Project management and monitoring (peer review of services; project plans; local development schemes and annual monitoring reports)
  • Supporting evidence and studies across a wide range of issues.

- Assisting in the delivery of our expert witness offer for appeals.

- Contributing to the delivery and improvement of business management systems, procedures and processes. 

- Supporting the growth of the team by making a positive contribution to business development, securing repeat work and applying a commercial lens to all work undertaken and behaviours.

2. About Us

For more than 30 years Capita has been working across the public and private sectors, solving the complex challenges of our clients, increasing productivity, enhancing their use of technology and data, improving customer and public services and adding value to the UK and local economies.

Capita is committed to the local government sector and is the market leader in the delivery of Planning Resilience Services to Local Authority clients. We have worked with over 100 Local Authority clients nationwide, and have an outstanding track record of providing Development Management, Planning Policy, Minerals and Waste and Consultancy services to our clients. We are investing in our growing capability in data analytics, robotics and automation to further develop our Plan Tech offer and to deliver digital innovation to the market.

Our team comprises 210 planning professionals located across four office locations which present an unrivalled opportunity to be involved in a wide range of projects, providing scope for career advancement and a varied CV without the need to change employment. We believe our people are our strongest assets and we are committed to ensuring that we have policies and practices in place to recruit and retain the highest quality people.

3. What you will do

As our Principal Planning Consultant you will:

  • Be concise and possess the ability to communicate at all levels, be well organised and efficient, have a positive attitude, be proactive and solve problems to produce well balanced outcomes.
  • Provide consistently high quality professional advice on planning policy matters to our clients and other interested parties.
  • Demonstrate ability to work alone on projects where required as well as contributing and adding value to team projects.
  • When necessary, be prepared to travel for our various commissions which include clients across the North West and Midlands; and on occasion, in other parts of the country.
  • Be involved in service improvements and our business operations to ensure resilience competitive edge, efficiency and effectiveness going forward.
  • Ensure project and team targets are met and knowledge and expertise is shared whilst assisting to secure new and repeat work in the way you deliver projects.

The above list is not meant to be an exhaustive range of tasks and responsibilities and is subject to the changing requirements of the business.

4. Your experience will include:

  • A recognised planning qualification and membership of the Royal Town Planning Institute. 
  • Extensive experience and demonstrable track record in the successful delivery of planning policy services to a broad client base and a sound understanding of local government and planning.
  • High level of ability to prioritise and manage a workload whilst working flexibly to meet both the commercial and contractual needs of the business.
  • Exceptional communication skills and the ability to engage with colleagues, peers and senior staff.
  • Demonstrable experience of working as a senior/principal planning officer or consultant in the public/private sector.
  • A high level of knowledge and understanding and application of current and emerging planning legislation.
  • An ability to manage and prioritise your own workload and work with limited supervision.
  • An ability to develop and maintain good working relationships with clients and colleagues.
  • Being ambitious to enhance the reputation of the Planning Policy service for innovation, quality  and timeliness of delivery.
  • Full driving license.

5. What’s in it for you?

This is an exciting time in our development as we build on our established position as a leading provider of statutory planning services in the UK. Join us now and help shape our offer while continuing to deliver a first rate planning service to our existing clients. We will motivate you to perform at your peak, recognising your achievements and rewarding them appropriately. As well as a generous basic salary we also offer you a minimum 23 day’s holiday, discretionary annual bonus, company pension scheme and access to voluntary benefit options including; child care vouchers, share save scheme, life assurance, holiday buy and many more designed to suit your own personal lifestyle.

Our business is an established and respected player in the Local Public Services markets, capable of challenging the ‘status quo’ and delivering outstanding client facing results.

There are strong career opportunities across the Capita group nationwide and overseas, with a strategy of secondment and resource sharing to enable maximum opportunity for individuals.

Our culture is one of promotion according to talent and impact, not time served in the business. Ambition is expected and rewarded. We invest heavily in our people, recognising that our staff are our most valuable asset. Individual training plans and accelerated schemes foster an environment of continual personal development.

Closing Date: 04/06/2019

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