Principal Planner / Associate Director in Bristol

Join to apply for the Principal Planner / Associate Director role at Marrons. Are you a dynamic and talented Planning professional looking to take the next step in your career? Do you want to work for an ambitious consultancy and contribute to our ongoing growth? If so, we’d love to hear from you!

Marrons has a fantastic opportunity for a Principal to Associate Director level Planner to join our growing team in Bristol. Our planning teams focus on strategic planning projects, mainly planning applications and land promotions for residential development, and we work closely alongside our colleagues in development economics, design and heritage.

We can offer you:

• A competitive salary with great benefits including private medical & payment of relevant subscriptions
• A culture of trust, empowerment and autonomy over your work
• The chance to work on a variety of projects including land promotions and planning applications for a range of sites and clients.
• The opportunity to join a growing team within an established planning firm, and to help influence our business strategy for the South West and Thames Valley.
• Hybrid working with the flexibility to define working patterns that work for you in and outside the office

Marrons has grown rapidly over the past 5 years to become a top 15 UK planning consultancy, with a team of 50+ town planners across our regional hubs. We also provide complementary socio-economic, heritage, masterplanning and architectural services. We seek ambitious planners to join our team to help drive forward projects and support business development activities.

The opportunity:

Our whole team are vital in helping to achieve our ambitions, helping to lead projects, build client relations and champion the Marrons brand. As a Principal Planner / Associate Director, you will continue to develop your career working collaboratively with colleagues within our multi-disciplinary consultancy, alongside having ample opportunities to build client relationships and start developing your own workload. This is an ideal opportunity for a candidate who is able to demonstrate experience within the region and has a strong desire to develop their own client base, to support the future growth of the business.

You will be involved in projects from day one, working closely with colleagues, clients and other consultants to manage schemes from initial advice and strategy, represent clients at local plan examinations and appeals, to achieving planning permission and negotiating associated conditions, and planning obligations. There will also be opportunities to publish thought pieces and knowledge‑based press releases to promote you and the business.

The key duties will be:

• Advising on development potential of land and buildings
• Assisting with preparing planning applications and appeals
• Providing policy advice and research to formulate planning strategies
• Drafting representations to plan consultations and examinations
• Assisting in identifying land opportunities
• Working with clients and other consultants to deliver development

You will need:

• A relevant Planning qualification and previous experience within the local region
• Membership of the RTPI
• An in-depth understanding of the planning process and systems
• Excellent writing skills with a strong eye for detail and high level of accuracy
• Excellent communication skills and a friendly approachable manner
• Drive, commitment, enthusiasm and a team player approach

Whether you are an experienced Principal Planner ready to step up and assist with leading major projects or an experienced Associate Director looking to expand your capabilities in a new role, we are keen to speak with you. This role offers the right candidate some excellent future prospects.

Benefits, Agile Working and Additional information:

We embrace agile working and offer a blended approach to where and how we work. We appreciate that people have different needs and preferences and we’re keen to be flexible, after all, we value what you do, not where you do it. We have the following hubs across the UK: Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, London, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Sheffield, Solihull, Stratford upon Avon & Tunbridge Wells.

Equal opportunities:

Marrons is a committed equal opportunities employer. We seek to attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures. We value and respect individuality and encourage a culture within our business where people can be themselves and be valued for their strengths and experiences. Everyone who either applies to or works for the firm is treated equally, regardless of their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.