Planning Assistant - Community Infrastructure Levy

Dorset is a beautiful and iconic area, with historic market towns and miles of stunning coast. But it’s also a place of growth and innovation.  Our Infrastructure & Delivery Planning team works to make sure that funding is provided by developers to contribute to the costs of vital infrastructure.   We’re looking for a Planning Assistant who will work in our specialist customer hub as a dedicated support officer for this team.  It’s a chance to influence the future of Dorset.

What's in it for you?

You’ll be supporting the Infrastructure and Delivery Planning team, which helps to ensure that the right infrastructure is provided alongside development, through the operation of the Community Infrastructure Levy and Section 106 planning agreements with developers.  You’ll also be part of our specialist customer team, so you will have plenty of advice and support around you in the job. 

Your key area of work will be supporting the processing and administration of Community Infrastructure Levy payments.  You will gain knowledge and expertise in this area of work and be able to deal with detailed queries.

The role is a chance to learn more about planning, infrastructure delivery and finance, and to make a difference in enabling infrastructure provision for the communities of Dorset.

Our office base is Dorchester but we are all set up for working from home as well, and collaborate virtually as well as face to face.  Employee benefits are generous and include a local government pension, flexible working and continual learning and development.

What you can expect to be doing

In this role you'll be assisting a team dealing with the collection, monitoring and spending of financial contributions from developers towards the funding of local infrastructure.

The role includes responding to customer queries; sourcing legal agreements for property transactions; handling requests for financial compliance and taking payment to recover costs; measuring floor areas on plans to assist with the calculation of CIL liability; checking planning application data to ensure that the right developments are recorded as CIL-liable; checking building control information to ensure that milestones for payments are met; and monitoring parish CIL information.

It's a great opportunity to use existing financial and administrative skills, develop expertise in a specialist area of planning, and to shape the future infrastructure provision of the area.

About you

We're looking for someone  who is confident with IT, spreadsheets and data, with good attention to detail, a thorough approach and the ability to follow precise instructions.  Ideally you will have some knowledge or understanding of the planning process but you will be able to learn on the job. 

You'll be educated to at least GCSE standard, preferably to BTEC HNC qualification or equivalent, and ideally have some work experience in a related field such as planning, administration or accountancy.

Finally, you'll enjoy collaborating and working within a team, and have an affinity with our values: Respect, Openness, Together, Accountability and Curiosity.

Travel between council offices may be required for meetings, training or to maintain effective links with operational teams and to support monitoring, so a driving licence is essential and access to a car would be preferable

 This vacancy is being advertised internally to:

At Dorset Council, it's not just about the work we do, it's about how we do it. Hear directly from our employees about what makes Dorset Council special in this short video:

At Dorset Council, we are working together to create a fairer, more prosperous, and more sustainable Dorset for everyone, now and in the future.

We:

• provide essential services that support over 300,000 residents
• work in partnership to make a real difference
• value every role and the impact it has on our communities
• support our employees to grow, develop, and thrive

You will:

• be part of a team that works together for a better Dorset
• have access to a range of benefits and support
• receive training and development opportunities to help your career progress

We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation where different skills, perspectives, and backgrounds strengthen both our council and the communities we serve.

We welcome applications from everyone and are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. If you declare a disability and meet the essential criteria for the role, we will offer you an interview. We also want our recruitment process to be accessible, if you need any reasonable adjustments, just let us know on your application.

This role is UK-based, and we will need to confirm your Right to Work as part of the appointment process. We use generic job descriptions and person specifications, so the job title in any attachments may differ from the advert. If needed, we will provide additional details in a context statement.

If you’re passionate about making a difference, we’d love you to join us.

Find out more about how to apply.