Heritage Consultant

Location: Bourne End, Buckinghamshire

Salary: Competitive plus other benefits

Penguin Recruitment is delighted to be supporting a Town Planning and Heritage Consultancy in their search for a Heritage Consultant. They have a long track record of helping clients and landowners successfully apply for planning permission and deliver their property development projects. With a strong focus on commercial and residential planning, most of their clients are businesses, including major hotel, restaurant and coffee shop groups, house builders, land promoters, breweries, banks, sports and leisure operators, retailers, property developers and private healthcare organisations. They also work for public sector clients, including housing associations.

They are now seeking a knowledgeable and enthusiastic Heritage Consultant to help grow their successful heritage consultancy services. The successful candidate will provide expert advice on heritage and archaeological matters to colleagues and clients. You will work closely with planning colleagues, developers, architects, and local authorities to ensure projects align with heritage and planning legislation, national planning policy and best practices.

Key Responsibilities:

• Provide specialist advice on heritage and archaeology matters to clients, ensuring compliance with planning policies and legislation.
• Prepare Heritage Statements, Archaeological Desk Based Assessments, Impact Assessments, and other supporting documentation for planning and listed building consent applications.
• Assess the significance of historic buildings, sites, and landscapes and provide recommendations to client to enhance or preserve significance or minimise potential harm.
• Liaise with local planning authorities, Historic England, and other stakeholders to negotiate heritage-related planning matters.
• Conduct site visits and heritage appraisals to assess potential impacts of proposed developments to a variety of heritage assets.
• Advise on conservation best practices, including material choices and repair methods to assist clients in managing change to their heritage assets.
• Keep up to date with relevant legislation, policy changes, and best practices in heritage and archaeology.
• Support clients through the planning process, from pre-application advice to post-consent conditions.
• Work efficiently and effectively, delegating work of an appropriate level of complexity to more junior staff to maximise cost-effectiveness and ensure more junior members of staff expand their experience.
• Proactively seek and secure new instructions from existing and new clients to the business. This will involve searching out new contacts and sources of work and devising and undertaking strategies to secure new fee-paying work, including delivering CPD to key contacts.
• Attend networking and other similar events to promote the Company and seek new leads and instructions. Consider initiatives to promote the Company and input to the wider marketing of Walsingham Planning.
• Create LinkedIn content as requested to celebrate your success, the companies success for promote areas of interest to your role.
• Maintain accurate Coretime records.
• Maintain monthly and quarterly Fee Forecasting spreadsheets and quarterly WIP Reports.

Key Skills & Experience:

• A degree in Archaeology, Architecture, Planning, or a related discipline.
• Experience in a heritage consultancy, planning consultancy, or a similar role.
• Experience in writing appeal statements and attending hearings.
• Strong knowledge of UK heritage legislation, including the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990 and the National Planning Policy Framework (NPPF).
• Experience in preparing heritage assessments and statements.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to present complex information clearly to clients, stakeholders and local authorities.
• Strong analytical skills with attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple projects and work collaboratively within a team.
• Membership of CIfA or IHBC is desirable.

Why Join Them?

• Join a supportive and expert team of planners and heritage professionals.
• Competitive salary and benefits!
• Opportunities for professional development and career progression.
• 3 days office based, 2 days working from home.