Planning Technician

• This role offers hybrid working, allowing you to work from home and from one of our offices by agreement, once training has been completed.
• 28 days’ annual leave, plus bank holidays.
• Take on a supporting, front facing role within our planning service.
• This is a permanent position.

What will I be doing?

Here at Somerset Council our Planning Technicians are the front face of the Planning service, supporting the day-to-day operations of the Planning Service. You will be the first point of contact for our service users, alongside maintaining our records in bespoke planning systems.

Your day-to-day work will involve:

• Evaluating planning applications, plans and reports to validate and process applications into our electronic database, including plotting sites on our GIS software.
• Reading/redacting and recording planning comments, ensuring compliance with GDPR.
• Responding to enquiries from members of the public and stakeholders in writing, on the telephone or in person across a range of planning matters – including planning permission in accordance with legislation and general advice on the planning process.
• Undertaking general technical duties to support the service.

What kind of experience or qualifications do I need?

We offer ongoing supporting, training and guidance to help you be the best you can be. But it will really help if you:

• Have good IT Skills, with knowledge of Microsoft Office Tools and Dynamics.
• Have experience of using Databases.
• Have experience working within a team, whilst also being able to use your initiative with strong problem-solving abilities.
• Are well organised, able to work with accuracy at speed and possessing the ability to cope with a variety of tasks and to prioritise competing demands.
• Have excellent communication skills.
• Have some knowledge of the planning system.
• Are educated to A-Level Standard (or equivalent) along with 5 GCSES at grade C/4 or above, including English and Maths.

We’re proud to be here for the people of Somerset. And that means everyone in Somerset. An important part of this is ensuring that we are as diverse and inclusive as the people and communities we serve.

We welcome applications from a diverse range of backgrounds and experiences to enrich our team. You can always contact the hiring manager for a chat if there’s anything you want to talk about before you apply.

What\’s in it for me?

We are proud to offer an environment that is supportive and rewarding, working as part of a team who are passionate about the work they do to improve the lives of people in Somerset.

We offer great training and development opportunities, with supportive management. As well as this, we have some fantastic employee benefits available:

• We promote a healthy work-life balance and offer flexible working arrangements wherever possible, including working from home.
• Generous annual leave allowance, with the opportunity to purchase additional leave.
• Staff discounts in gyms.
• Employee Assistance for the times you may need some support and a variety of employee wellbeing services.
• Auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme and optional pension enhancement through our Additional Voluntary Contribution scheme.
• A Flexible Benefits Scheme via salary sacrifice to obtain a cycle for work and health screenings.
• My Staff Shop offering discounts in shops, online shopping, restaurants, cinema tickets, insurance benefits and more.

Anything else I should know?

The salary for the Planning Technician role is Grade 12, £27,711 – £31,067 per annum.

For an informal chat about the role, you can contact Julie Harcombe (01823 219537).

When completing your application/ CV please provide your full employment history and ensure that any gaps in employment are explained. Please start with your current or most recent employment.

If you have everything you need, just hit the apply button. We can’t wait to hear from you.

Supporting documents and information

Please read any attached documents before applying for this job

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