Urban Designer
- Employer
- Wychavon and Malvern Hills District Council
- Location
- Pershore, Worcestershire
- Salary
- £35,745 - £39,131
- Closing date
- 7 Nov 2021
View more
- Contract Type
- Contract
- Hours
- Full Time
- Discipline
- Planning, Urban Design
- Function
- Officer, Graduate, Planner
- Sector
- Local Authority
Job Details
Wychavon District Council is a great place to work, with high levels of resident satisfaction and motivated staff who enjoy working with us. Located in South Worcestershire the district boasts a beautiful natural environment, a rich heritage and plenty to do and see. Wychavon district is also ranked as the second best rural place to live in the UK.
We pride ourselves on being a progressive organisation who spends time and energy on what we know matters to our residents and communities – things like finding amazing spaces to build new homes, enhancing our natural environment, creating jobs, contributing to reducing the impact of climate change, helping people feel safe and preventing homelessness. We want to make our districts even better places to live, work and visit and our staff support us with this.
We are looking for an experienced urban design professional to join our team. You will be leading on the Council’s input on the design and delivery of planning applications, including major urban design schemes.
Our staff are at the heart of what we do, and as a result we are always looking to recruit, develop and retain the very best talent we can find. That's why, as well as offering interesting and varied roles, we also offer a range of attractive benefits, such as agile working arrangements (including working from home), generous holiday entitlements, a pension scheme, opportunities for personal development, and discounted gym membership. We have a friendly and supportive culture and we actively seek individuals who are role models for others and are prepared to share their knowledge and expertise with others.
Urban Designer
Two Year Fixed term Contract
£35,745 - £39,131 per annum
Based in our Planning Policy Team, you’ll have a lead role in urban design, shaping the future of our districts, delivering distinctive, sustainable, well connected and high quality places.
You’ll be responsible for providing specialist advice and guidance on the full range of urban design matters, negotiating on high profile and strategic planning applications on a day to day basis. You’ll also play a leading role in bringing forward strategic local plan allocations and associated master planning, formulating design policies in the new Local Plan / supplementary guidance and enhancing the skills and knowledge of colleagues.
We are looking for someone with the ambition, creativity and commitment to ensure that new development is of the highest quality design, supports our wider sustainability objectives, and preserves our built outstanding natural and built heritage. Exceptional communication skills that can influence a wide variety of audiences and the ability to respond confidently in a variety of situations are essential. You will need to demonstrate a creative approach to working with excellent problem-solving and organisational skills.
You should be able to demonstrate:
- Creativity with an innovative approach to recognising and solving problems.
- In depth knowledge and appreciation of urban design principles
- Ability to provide high quality advice and decision-making in relation to urban design matters
- Ability to undertake and support high profile negotiations
- Ability to manage and priorities complex workload meeting agreed deadlines and performance targets
The successful applicant will need to have a relevant degree level qualification, with chartered membership of (or eligible for) a relevant professional institute or body.
You will have experience of:
- Providing professional/technical advice to local authorities or other relevant organisations
- Developing and Promoting Urban Design policy and guidance
Secondments from other Local Government Bodies will be considered.
To discuss the post or for further information, please call Holly Jones on 01684 862293
Closing date: 7th November 2021
Interview date: 16th November 2021
Company
Working for Wychavon and Malvern Hills
Have you discovered what it's like to work here?
Watch this - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8poN0yTgvI
Wychavon and Malvern Hills District Councils are rewarding places to work, with high levels of resident satisfaction and motivated staff who enjoy working for us. Located in south Worcestershire, both districts boast beautiful natural environments, a vibrant network of towns and villages, a rich heritage and plenty to see and do.
We pride ourselves on being progressive organisations spending time, energy and investment on what we know matters to our residents and communities – things like supporting our town centres and rural communities, creating jobs, keeping the streets clean, reducing our carbon footprint, helping people feel safe and preventing homelessness.
We are two Councils with one vision, with planning and place-making at the heart of our two corporate plans, and strong support for the planning function at the Senior Management level and with both sets of Executive Board members.
Working with you
Our staff are at the heart of what we do, and as a result we are always looking to recruit and develop the very best talent we can find.
As well as providing fulfilling jobs, we offer a range of attractive benefits, such as flexitime, generous holiday entitlements, a local government pension scheme, plenty of opportunities for personal development, and discounted gym membership.
As a shared service, the Planning function splits its time between Pershore and Malvern offices and we also offer the ability to work from home for up to 60% of the working week.
Working in Planning and Infrastructure
Covering an attractive and well connected part of the country with thriving villages, market towns and a host of heritage attractions, we are also a major growth area. Being strategically placed at the crossroads of the west Midlands, Herefordshire and Gloucestershire, there is substantial demand for growth, both for housing and employment land. The Planning directorate works positively with developers, landowners and site promoters as well as our internal housing and economic development teams, amongst others, to ensure the right growth takes place in the right locations.
With over 28,000 homes on track to be delivered by 2030, the South Worcestershire Development Plan Review, which is in preparation includes a government target for an extra 11,000 new homes, as well as policies that will support business growth, rural communities, and the fight against climate change. As part of the emerging rail-based strategies, we are working to plan for and deliver four new strategic sites, including two new garden communities which we are committed to being carbon neutral settlements.
This is alongside a series of existing strategic sites with upcoming reserved matters applications due to be received in the coming months, a variety of major applications alongside an assortment of issues to be balanced in relation to minor and householder applications. The breadth of casework is vast stretching from rural hinterland and agricultural applications, to major urban extensions.
Exciting Opportunities - Career
There is never a dull moment in Malvern Hills and Wychavon Councils’ planning team and it is a great place to grow your CV and cement your planning experience. One of the strengths of the shared service is the well-resourced nature of the teams, including in Development Management, Policy and across our Specialist services such as heritage and urban design. Another strength of that team is that there’s always someone to learn from, who’s dealt with similar planning issues before, and who can support your
learning.
Similarly, there is always someone who will benefit from your experience and will seek your support. External learning and support for CPD is high on our agenda, and we are very receptive to listening to the suggestions of new starters who may join with bright ideas about service improvements.
Opportunities - Ideas to share with a collaborative team
We have fantastic opportunities to join an energetic, well-resourced and ambitious shared service. You’ll put your professional skills to work on a broad and challenging canvas. We’re absolutely committed to high quality design, sustainability, and the protection of our natural and built environment, as well as delivering the homes and employment locations that are residents, current and future need.
As skilled officers with a full or developing planning repertoire, you’ll develop an understanding of how to work collaboratively with our two sets of elected members, internal colleagues and external partners to deliver a great planning service.
Reputation of Wychavon And Malvern Hill District Council
Here is a fantastic testimonial from one of our Enforcement Officers in Planning: Why Work For Wychavon Council?
Social Media - Follow Us & Reach Out For All Opportunities
Website: https://www.wychavon.gov.uk/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/Wychavon?ref_src=twsrc%5Egoogle%7Ctwcamp%5Eserp%7Ctwgr%5Eauthor
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