Assistant Planning Technical Services Officer

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In order to apply for this vacancy please use the Apply Online link below. No CVs or applications from Agencies accepted.

Assistant Planning Technical Services Officer

Post Number: 44643 & 44645

Salary: Starting from £26,403 to £28,142 per annum

Grade: Grade 3

Hours: 37 hours per week

Place of Work: Worthing Town Hall/Hybrid

Closing Date: 9th October 2025

Interviews: TBC

As Assistant Planning Technical Services Officer you will support the Planning Technical Services team by ensuring that all technical and administration procedures, regarding the formal registration of planning applications submitted to the council, are efficiently and accurately completed. You will also provide general administrative support to the Development Management Planning Officers and the Planning Enforcement team when required and deal with general enquiries received by the department as whole.

The role therefore involves assisting customers, agents and members of the public in interpreting the planning system, relevant planning regulations, drawings and technical information and provides an exciting opportunity to gain experience and knowledge of the planning system. The department is also looking to improve its digital offer to residents and stakeholders and therefore this role would be of interest to candidates who are interested in identifying digital improvement in service provision.

In this role, you will have the opportunity to be involved in the following day to day running of our planning department’s administration team:

• Support the Planning Technical Services Officers by ensuring that all technical and administration procedures regarding the formal registration of planning applications submitted to the council are efficiently and accurately completed.
• Provide technical and administrative support to Development Management and Planning Enforcement.
• Calculating, evaluating and determining the correct planning fee for planning applications in accordance with the Town & Country Planning (Fees for Applications) Regulations.
• Preparation and publication of the weekly list of planning applications. Identifying the relevant advertising required for each application; identifying and preparing the site notices required in accordance with the Town and Country Planning (General Development Procedure) Order and the Councils Codes of Practice.
• Assist customers, agents and members of the public in interpreting the planning system, relevant planning regulations, drawings and technical information when answering telephone, written and reception enquiries. Process householder or other minor applications in accordance with relevant legislation when required.
• Provide a one-stop service to meet the needs of your internal and external customers, ensuring the provision of an accurate, timely and cost-effective service within nationally/locally agreed performance targets, while maintaining accurate registers and systems in accordance with statutory/agreed requirements.

If this sounds like the role for you, we look forward to receiving your application!

At Adur & Worthing, we are committed to supporting care leavers, in accordance with the Children (Leaving Care) Act 2000 and the Children and Social Work Act 2017. To that end, we operate a guaranteed interview scheme for anyone meeting the essential criteria of the role they are applying for. In order to be considered for this, you will need to be a care leaver under the age of 25 at the time of application. Please confirm that you are a care leaver in the "Showing how you meet the person specification and job description" section of the application form.

As a Disability Confident employer, we will ensure that a fair and proportionate number of applicants declaring a disability, that meet the essential criteria for this position, will be offered an interview.

Staff are our most important asset and we therefore have a benefit package which reflects our continuing commitment to our employees. This includes:

• Generous leave entitlement; a minimum of 26 days + Bank Holiday entitlement
• Local Government Pension
• Training & development
• Occupational Health
• Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
• Employee resource groups/networks
• Buddy Support Programme
• Flexible working options

We are committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community - a place where we can all be ourselves and succeed on merit. Staff work in a supportive and safe environment, recognising their responsibility to value and respect each other’s contributions. Standards of conduct must be of the highest level to ensure that no-one is harassed, bullied or victimised. We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, staff engagement forums and are keen to hear from applicants from a variety of different backgrounds.