Senior Planner

Salary details: £ - £

We currently have an opportunity for a highly motivated individual to join our innovative Planning Service as a Senior Planner, having a key role in the delivery of the Derbyshire and Derby Minerals and Waste Local Plans.

Derbyshire County Council's Planning Service prides itself on close collaborative working with its local planning authority partners, especially as part of the plan making process through the development of planning policy and climate change matters. The County Council, Derby City Council and the eight district and borough councils in Derbyshire, have a long and successful track record of working together to achieve shared objectives through the ‘Duty to Co-operate’. The County Council and Derby City Council have worked together for some time to jointly prepare minerals and waste local plans for Derbyshire and Derby. More recently, the County Council has become a member of the East Midlands Mayoral Combined Authority.

Derbyshire is an area of high quality natural and built heritage, incorporating the Derwent Valley Mills World Heritage Site and adjoining the Peak District National Park. The intrinsic importance of these assets is recognised in conjunction with their contribution towards quality of life, tourism and the economy. The County is covered by five Housing Market Areas, which illustrates the complexity of the housing market geography as well as the close relationships between neighbouring authority areas. The County is geographically, economically and socially diverse incorporating heavily built-up areas as well as sparsely populated rural areas, with contrasting levels of economic performance. The County has a wide and varied geology, which contributes to the national importance of the County in the extraction and supply of minerals, from high purity and specialist minerals to building stone, sand and aggregates. Parts of the County are covered by four strategically important areas of Green Belt.

 The County Council has an ambitious programme of investment and the Planning Service plays an important role in considering future infrastructure such as schools, cycle routes, new roads, libraries and bridges.

This is an exciting time to join our team, giving you the opportunity to have a strong influence on how we deliver our services. So, if you’re looking to work for a forward thinking and innovative authority, joining our team could be the perfect opportunity for you to make a difference.

 At Derbyshire County Council, we recognise that our workforce is our greatest asset, and we are currently looking for inspired and proactive people who are committed to new ways of thinking and working. We positively encourage staff to expand and grow their experience in the Service. In return, you will enjoy an excellent range of benefits at Derbyshire County Council.

Key responsibilities

• As Senior Planning Officer in the Strategic Planning Team, you will have a key role in the delivery of the Derbyshire and Derby Minerals and Waste Local Plans, which are produced jointly with Derby City Council. The Joint Minerals Local Plan is currently going through an Examination in Public, and you will play a key role in progressing the Plan to adoption and thereafter, an early review. The Joint Waste Local is at a relatively early stage, so you will have a key role in progressing the Plan towards submission to the Secretary of State. 
• You will also have the opportunity to assist with a wide-range of strategic planning and infrastructure matters, including assisting with the County Council’s developer contributions process; coordinating the strategic planning consultation process on national planning and infrastructure consultations, planning applications referred by district and borough councils and consultations on district and borough Local Plans; and assisting with the County Council’s input to Development Consent Orders for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects.
• You will assist the Principal Planning Officers in being able to provide effective leadership to ensure strategic planning is handled in accordance with legal requirements, Government and County policy and sound professional practice.
• The role will require attendance at meetings with senior elected members to brief members on planning policy matters; drafting reports for Cabinet and Cabinet Member meetings; and meeting with officers from across the other County Council departments on complex and potentially contentious planning policy and infrastructure matters.
• Derbyshire has an excellent and well-established network of Planning Officer Groups with our local authority partners, which are facilitated and coordinated by the Planning Service. You will have the opportunity to become an integral member of these groups to share knowledge, experience and good planning practice with our partners. You will also have the opportunity to represent the County Council on other specialist officer technical groups established by our local planning authority partners, such as the East Midlands Aggregates Working Party and East Midlands Regional Technical Advisory Body.
• Having the required qualifications and experience, you will have a detailed understanding of minerals and waste planning policy and wider planning and infrastructure policy at a national, strategic and local level. You will also have a genuine interest in planning policy, infrastructure planning, wider planning matters and the environment.  Additionally, there will be opportunity for you to assist in the development management process and other planning related work areas, such as specific project coordination groups.

What skills and experience do you need to have:

• A relevant degree and / or diploma granting eligibility for full membership of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI).
• You will be able to demonstrate a knowledge and / or interest in national, strategic and local planning policy, and infrastructure planning and development, supported by excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• You will need to be confident in dealing with people to ensure that a good quality customer service is provided to all customers and have excellent IT skills.
• You will also be able to demonstrate experience of collaborative working, particularly with local authority partners and other organisations.

These lists are not exhaustive, take a look at our comprehensive job profile for more detail.

What we offer you: 

• Flexi-time, allowing flexible working hours and up to an additional 2 days of leave per month
• Generous local government pension scheme
• Guaranteed incremental annual pay increases
• Cycle to work scheme
• A supportive working environment, including wellbeing programmes and employee networks
• Commitment and investment in your continuing professional development. 
• Our Derbyshire Rewards discounts and cashback platform and discounts at selected county leisure centres
• and much more!

Our Planning Team has offices in Matlock, Derbyshire, but we work on a flexible basis which includes options for home working.

Derbyshire County Council is going through a period of positive development and transformation so it’s a great time to join and drive change.

For an informal discussion about this role please contact Steve Buffery steven.buffery@derbyshire.gov.uk

Come and join us if you'd like to learn more about our current opportunities, meet the team and ask any questions. We look forward to meeting you.

To find out more about our Planning Service visit; www.derbyshire.gov.uk/planningservicesrecruitment 

How to Apply:

We are accepting CVs for this position so it’s easier than ever to apply! Just click on “Apply for this job”, register and upload your CV. Please include a covering letter outlining the reasons for your interest and your skills, knowledge and experience, taking account of the requirements set out in the job and person profile, we kindly ask that each document is no more than 3 sides of A4, font size 12 for each document.

We are committed to fostering an inclusive and diverse work environment. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and communities and with different abilities. We believe that diverse perspectives and experiences enhance our ability to address complex challenges and drive meaningful change.

Provisional Interview date: Week Commencing 8 December 2025

Apply now and take the first step towards a fulfilling career with us! By joining Derbyshire County Council you will have access to a range of amazing rewards and employee benefits, including our generous annual leave scheme, excellent local government pension and fantastic employee discounts. To discover more detail about the rewards and benefits available to you, click here

PLACE1

This role currently offers hybrid working options which will be to subject service needs, there'll be an opportunity to discuss working arrangements for this position at interview.

Important: Derbyshire County Council holds a sponsorship licence, but this role does not offer visa sponsorship. Please apply only if you already have the right to work in the UK without sponsorship, as applications that do not meet this requirement will be rejected.

We welcome applications from individuals who share our values — being Collaborative, Innovative, Empowered and Accountable. These values describe who we are and what we stand for as a council. They help shape our culture, encourage consistent behaviour and guide how we work together to make a positive difference for both our employees and the residents we serve.