Planning Officer Review

I deal with a variety of planning applications and have my own task list. I look at planning applications and determine whether they would receive planning permission or not. I have to speak to applicants and planning agents/architects on a regular basis and communicate frequently with Councillors. I also help mentor other trainee planning officers.

I have learnt lots of skills. Most importantly I have learnt how to read plans for a planning application, I have also learnt how to read and understand Planning Policy. I have developed my communication skills as well as my written skills as I have to write written reports daily.

I enjoy that every planning application is different and that I work within a Team that is very forward-thinking. The area I cover is predominantly in the countryside and covers an area of outstanding Natural Beauty which is nice. I enjoy my work as it challenges me and also gives me a goal to aim for in the future. I can see progression.

My at work learning programme was very structured at the beginning with very clear training and development goals. The planning profession can be complicated so this was essential. We were given work place mentors who helped shape our progression and enabled me to learn quickly and reach my ability. I was given my own task load from the beginning which really helped me learn.

I have recieved a lot of support from my employer throughout the whole process. My trainee manager was/is incredibly helpful and they have always been on hand regardless of workloads or what any issue was. There is a clear want and desire to help all the trainee planning officers progress.

I have received some/little support from my training provided when working towards my qualification. I have received significantly more in my second year than I have in my first year. Tutors/lectures are always willing to help when you need a question to be asked but sometimes the initial outlay for the task or training can be confusing.

My qualification has enabled me to know what specialist area of the planning profession I would like to merge into. It has also helped me with getting a better understanding of the more complicated aspects such as planning policy. It has also helped me understand the many varieties of roles that are available in the profession.

There are some extracurricular activities but it is not well known or well advertised. As the workplace is a public authority, this requires payments/costs to be paid for by myself which is sometimes not possible. The pandemic has made this particular area more difficult particularly when there was limited offers/options already.

Yes

Because it is a place where I feel like I have job security and it is a place that makes me feel like they will help me achieve my professional goals, even if this is not necessarily with the company in the future. They are open, honest and forward thinking which is vital when working in any work place.

The advice I would give is that although training/degrees/apprenticeships are hard work and require a lot of additional effort, make sure you think about this before applying for any role. The benefits significantly outweigh the hard work and it is important to think of your future, not just the here and now.