Senior Town Planner

Job Title: Senior Town Planner
Location: Bristol or Exeter

Penguin Recruitment is delighted to be supporting a respected and growing planning consultancy in their search for a Senior Planner to join their expanding Bristol team.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced planning professional looking to take on a key role within a collaborative, multidisciplinary consultancy. Based in Bristol, you''ll work alongside an experienced team delivering a diverse portfolio of projects across the South West, with genuine opportunities to progress your career.

The Role

As a Senior Planner, you''ll take ownership of a varied project portfolio, providing commercially focused planning advice and guiding developments through every stage of the planning process. Projects include mixed-use developments, regeneration schemes, agricultural diversification projects, residential developments and community-led initiatives.

You''ll work closely with clients, consultants, local authorities and stakeholders, using your technical expertise to help unlock planning challenges while mentoring junior colleagues and contributing to business development.

Key Responsibilities

• Managing planning applications from feasibility through to determination.
• Providing strategic and commercially focused planning advice to clients.
• Preparing and managing planning appeals.
• Securing planning permissions and supporting Section 106 negotiations.
• Liaising with local authorities, stakeholders and multidisciplinary project teams.
• Building and maintaining strong client relationships.
• Supporting business development and identifying new opportunities.
• Keeping up to date with planning legislation, policy and industry developments.

Requirements

• Significant experience within a planning consultancy, developer, housebuilder or local authority.
• Strong knowledge of UK planning legislation, planning policy and development management.
• Demonstrable experience securing planning permissions on a range of development projects.
• Experience managing planning applications independently.
• Experience preparing and submitting planning appeals.
• Knowledge of related technical disciplines including highways, ecology, drainage or heritage.
• Degree or postgraduate qualification in Town Planning or a related discipline.
• MRTPI qualified or working towards chartership.
• Excellent communication, client management and stakeholder engagement skills.
• A proactive, commercially aware and collaborative approach.

What''s on Offer

• Opportunity to work on high-profile and community-shaping developments.
• A supportive, collaborative and progressive team environment.
• Genuine opportunities for career progression and professional development.
• Competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package.
• Flexible and hybrid working arrangements.
• Generous annual leave.
• The opportunity to take on greater client responsibility and help shape major projects across the South West.

Interested?

The hiring manager is looking to meet with suitable candidates ASAP so if you meet the above criteria, please contact Josh Jones on (phone number removed) or (url removed)