Planning Officer – Development Management

Planning Officer – Development Management

Location: Kent
Salary: Up to £43340 PA DOE
Contract: 6-Month Temporary Contract
Working Hours: 37 Hours Per Week
Hybrid Working: Minimum 1 Day PW in Office
Start Date: 14th September 2026

Service Care Solutions are currently working on behalf of a Local Authority in Kent to recruit a Planning Officer for a temporary 6-month contract.

This is an excellent opportunity for a Planning professional to join a busy Development Management team, managing a varied caseload of planning applications and contributing to the delivery of an effective and customer-focused planning service.

The Role
As a Planning Officer, you will be responsible for:

• Managing and processing a caseload of planning applications
• Assessing applications, plans and supporting documentation
• Acting as a case officer for allocated planning applications and pre-application enquiries
• Liaising with applicants, agents, developers, consultees, objectors and other stakeholders
• Preparing delegated reports and recommendations
• Drafting and preparing reports for Planning Committee
• Presenting applications at Planning Committee where required
• Providing planning and pre-application advice
• Assisting with planning appeals
• Identifying potential breaches of planning control and working with the Enforcement team
• Undertaking site visits and maintaining accurate planning records
• Managing your own workload and meeting deadlines and performance targets

The successful candidate will play an important role within the wider Planning and Development service, working collaboratively with colleagues while delivering a professional service to customers and stakeholders.

About You
To be considered, you will ideally have:

• A degree, or equivalent qualification
• Eligibility for, or current progression towards, an RTPI-supported postgraduate planning qualification
• Experience handling planning applications and/or enforcement cases
• Knowledge of planning legislation, planning policy and development management processes
• Experience working within planning controls and regulations
• Strong report writing and presentation skills
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• The ability to organise and manage your own workload effectively
• Experience working to tight deadlines
• Good IT skills, including Microsoft Office and computerised planning systems
• The ability to undertake site visits throughout the borough
• Access to a vehicle, as this is an essential car-user role

Experience of working within a Local Authority Planning Service, together with experience dealing with planning appeals, would be advantageous.

If you are an experienced Planning Officer or Development Management Officer looking for your next opportunity please contact Josh on 01772 208967 or joshua.hull@servicecare.org.uk