Band 2 Planning Inspector

About This Role

Lead Local Plan examinations and planning appeals for communities across England, ensuring work meets required standards and deadlines. This role offers flexibility to manage time around hearings and deadlines.

Responsibilities

• Lead Local Plan examinations, gateways, and planning appeals, including public events as an individual inspector or as part of a panel
• Act as a proactive role model for the Inspector Profession, demonstrating best practice and embodying the Planning Inspectorate’s Core Values
• Contribute to wider organisational initiatives and projects, supporting the delivery of operational and strategic objectives
• Champion continuous improvement, helping to develop new ways of working, systems, and processes that enhance performance, service delivery, and customer satisfaction
• Support and develop fellow Inspectors, through coaching, mentoring, training, preparing materials, delivering sessions, and quality-assuring reports and decisions
• Represent the organisation at external events, sharing good practice and promoting key Planning Inspectorate messages
• Prepare for examinations, reviewing evidence, drafting questions, and liaising with Programme Officers or panel colleagues
• Lead hearings in person or virtually, conducting site visits, or managing an entire examination for a smaller site allocation plan
• Write clear, well-structured recommendation reports, prepare training materials, or undertake advisory visits
• Work on planning appeals under Section 78, including written representations, hearings, and inquiries

Requirements

• Full / Chartered membership of a professional body relevant to the work of an Inspector
• Experience of working in at least one of the following areas of expertise: planning, relevant area of law, transport, engineering, relevant area of health, environmental impact assessment, heritage, building/landscape design, energy, minerals, waste or water, survey
• Experience of a high-level of or personal responsibility for decision making based on evidence, relevant facts, tests, enquiries on complex matters
• A demonstrable record of acquiring knowledge quickly, identifying and actively pursuing personal continuous professional development (CPD) training needs and maintaining and developing professional skills and capability
• A demonstrable ability to plan for and manage what may be challenging public events (such as hearings, inquiries and/or examinations), in which there may be high levels of public interest and engagement
• Effective interpersonal and verbal communication skills, with the ability to interact authoritatively but sensitively with a diverse range of people
• A demonstrable ability to work both independently and as part of a small, collaborative team
• Demonstrate ability to make decisions under pressure, effectively using your own initiative
• A demonstrable ability to assess, understand, critically analyse and weigh up complex and detailed information and evidence from multiple sources, in order to identify the issues on which you will need to focus your attention and reach robustly reasoned conclusions
• A demonstrable ability to write clear, accurate and concise decisions / reports that reach logical, convincing, well-reasoned and evidence-based conclusions to deadlines

Skills

* Required skills

Benefits