Principal Planning Officer
Watford, Hertfordshire

Watford is an urban borough in South West Hertfordshire; The borough has excellent transport links with mainline rail connections to London. Watford is the centre of a sub region serving around 500,000 people living within a 20 minute travelling time catchment. As part of the London commuter belt, Watford is strongly influenced by London which brings the benefits of a buoyant economy.

At a glance

- £1.4bn local investment happening – mix of public and private funding
- 5 major development and regeneration projects happening
- 3,500 registered businesses
- Higher than average working age population
- Skilled workforce
- Affordable local housing market
- Home to many major international head offices

The role:

As Principal Planning Officer within our successful Development Management Team, you will be responsible for leading on complex and exciting development schemes, through pre-application, application and delivery. You will be working to secure the best quality developments for Watford and deliver the aspirations of the award winning adopted Watford Local Plan. You will be responsible for representing the Council at the Watford Place Making Panel, at appeal proceedings and presenting to the Council’s Development Management Committee. The role does not have direct line management responsibilities, however, you will be determining applications under the Council’s scheme of delegation and contributing towards to the professional support and development of the team.

We are an organisation that actively supports agile working, building on the outstanding success of flexible working practices developed during the pandemic. Our Town Hall is within easy walking distance of our fantastic town centre with access to a wide range of shops, cafes and bars, as well as award winning open spaces such as Cassiobury Park. With local connections to the Metropolitan line, London Overground and other mainline services at Watford Junction, we are ideally located for convenient commuting from both London and across Hertfordshire. We look forward to working with you.

What we offer:

- Up to 2 years fixed term contract
- Salary of £43,391 - £47,452 per annum (inclusive of local weighting allowance)
- 28 days’ holiday per annum (rising to 33 days for long service)
- Pension scheme with generous employer contribution
- Flexible and agile working
- Learning and development opportunities
- Season ticket loan
- Cycle-to-work scheme
- Discounted leisure centre membership
- Employee volunteering schemes
- Access to a branded shopping discounts platform and discounted activities and days out

Closing Date: 11 June 2024

For an informal discussion please contact Alice Reade, Development Management Lead.

A basic Disclosure check or DBS enhanced check (as applicable) will be carried out for this post.

This vacancy is being advertised by Webrecruit. The services advertised by Webrecruit are those of an Employment Agency.