We Are St Helens Borough Council.
Located at the heart of England’s North West and with a varied mix of cultural and leisure facilities and unique industrial heritage, St Helens offers great opportunities as a place to live and work. St Helens Borough Council plays a key role in the Liverpool City Region and wider area, and has an acknowledged reputation as providing excellent planning services.
We are dealing with an exciting range of planning challenges, balancing needs for major new development linked to the Council’s growth agenda, against the protection of the Borough’s greenspaces and other environmental assets. We have recently adopted our ambitious new Local Plan.
We are looking for a Principal Planning Officer on a temporary basis to cover maternity leave of a colleague for one year. You will play a key role – dealing with a caseload of major and complex applications for employment and residential development, you will help shape great places and deliver developments which contribute to the environment and economy of the borough.
The successful candidate will provide line management to junior members of staff and help support and develop them as well as stepping in to support the Development Control Manager as and when required.
The successful candidate will have a degree and post graduate qualifications in planning or a related discipline, together with several years’ experience in planning related roles in local government and/or private practice.
There is a requirement to demonstrate clear understanding of the development management function within a local authority and the range of stakeholders involved in decision taking. Effective and productive communication and negotiation with colleagues, consultees, applicants/agents, councillors and members of the public is an essential and significant part of the role.
The role involves dealing with conflicting demands and deadlines and accordingly an ability to prioritise and manage tasks in a professional and efficient manner is also required.
Whilst we are seeking a Principal Planning Officer, we would consider appointing to a senior planner position depending on experience. This role would also be responsible for a case load of major applications but would not have the same line management and mentoring responsibilities.
In line with our new ways of working, this role is hybrid and will involve working from home with occasional working in our agile hub at Atlas House and Town Hall in St Helens Town Centre.
Interested to Find Out More?
You can review our full job description details, and person specification information here.
You are also welcome to contact us for a chat before applying, please contact:
To discuss this exciting role please contact Joe Nanson (Development Control Manager) at joenanson@sthelens.gov.uk or 01744676112
Thank you for your interest in working for us. If you are experiencing issues with applying online, you can contact a member of the team at Recruitment@sthelens.gov.uk and a form will be sent to you to complete.
Please note we reserve the right to close the advert early should we receive a sufficient number of applications and encourage you to apply early, to avoid disappointment.
Equality & Diversity
St Helens Borough Council respects and values the individuality that every employee brings. We encourage applicants from diverse backgrounds, who share our values, our commitment to inclusion, and who will help us on our journey to transform our organisation. Further information about Equality & Diversity at St Helens Borough Council can be found here https://www.sthelens.gov.uk/equality
St Helens Council is a Disability Confident Employer. This means that the Council guarantees an interview to disabled applicants who demonstrate that they meet the essential criteria for the job, as detailed on the Person Specification, and will, for qualifying disabled candidates, make reasonable adjustments within the interview/selection process.
NOLAN Principles of Conduct in Public Life.
All Council employees are required to abide by the ethical standards embodied by the 7 Nolan Principles: Selflessness, Integrity, Objectivity, Accountability, Openness, Honesty, and Leadership.
