Principal Planning Officer
Job description
Original text imported from Reed
Principal Planning Officer | Local Authority | London
Marks Consulting Partners are working with a London local authority to appoint an experienced Principal Planning Officer to join their planning team.
This is a senior-level position suited to a planning professional ready to take ownership of a varied and complex caseload, lead on major and strategic projects within the borough, and provide authoritative planning advice to internal teams, stakeholders, and external applicants.
To be considered, you will need:
- MRTPI qualification
- Proven experience in a planning role within a local authority environment
- Strong knowledge of UK planning legislation and policy
- Experience managing complex and major planning applications
- The ability to communicate confidently with a range of stakeholders and manage competing priorities
Key skills
AI-extracted from the job advert
Application advice
5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.
⭐ Highlight your MRTPI qualification prominently at the top of your CV as this is explicitly required for the role
📊 Quantify your planning experience: 'Managed 45 major applications annually, achieving 92% approval rate within statutory timeframes'
🏛️ Emphasise your local authority background and knowledge of borough-level strategic planning projects
🎯 Showcase specific examples of complex planning applications you've led, including S106 agreements and strategic developments
🤝 Demonstrate your stakeholder management skills with concrete examples of managing competing priorities between developers, residents and council departments
Suggested CV bullets
3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.
Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:
- •Led 38 major planning applications annually for London borough, achieving 89% approval rate within statutory 13-week timeframes
- •Managed strategic housing development project delivering 450 new homes, coordinating S106 contributions worth £2.8M
- •Provided planning policy advice to 12 council departments, reducing application delays by 23% through improved pre-application guidance
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Dear Hiring Manager,
Your Principal Planning Officer position with the London local authority represents exactly the senior planning leadership role I've been seeking. With my MRTPI qualification and extensive local authority experience managing complex planning applications, I'm well-positioned to take ownership of your varied caseload and lead strategic borough projects.
My background in local government planning has equipped me with deep knowledge of UK planning legislation and the skills to navigate competing stakeholder priorities while delivering authoritative planning advice to senior teams.
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Interview questions
10 questions generated from this advert.
Technical
- ›How do you approach assessing a major planning application against current local plan policies?
- ›What's your experience with Section 106 agreements and CIL contributions?
- ›How do you stay current with changes to UK planning legislation and policy?
- ›Describe your approach to managing pre-application advice for strategic developments
- ›What planning software and systems have you used for case management?
Behavioural
- ›Tell me about a time you had to manage competing priorities from different stakeholders on a planning application
- ›Describe a situation where you had to provide difficult planning advice to senior management
- ›Give an example of how you've led a strategic planning project from inception to completion
- ›Tell me about a time you had to communicate complex planning issues to non-technical audiences
- ›Describe a challenging planning application you managed and how you resolved any issues
STAR answer examples
Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.
Tell me about a time you had to manage competing priorities from different stakeholders on a planning application
Describe a situation where you had to provide difficult planning advice to senior management