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The Friday Five 04.01.19

Published on: 4 Jan 2019

A round-up of five of the best, most interesting, significant or unusual jobs on Planner Jobs this week.

Orford Ness [square]1. ANOTHER FINE NESS

What?

Multiple positions, East Suffolk Council.

Where?

In a BRAND NEW "super-district" council replacing Suffolk Coastal and Waveney Councils on 1 April 2019. East Suffolk council will be England's biggest district council, as well as its newest. You'll be based in either Lowestoft or Melton.

The job(s)

A chance to be in at the start of something new in a  variety of roles:

Area planning and enforcement officer

  • Senior planning and enforcement officer x2
  • Ecologist
  • Infrastructure contributions and spend manager
  • Major projects officer x2

The new council will cover a large swathe of east Suffolk, stretching from Felixstowe in the south to the Broads in the north and encompassing areas of outstanding natural beauty, attractive coastline, nature reserves, historic villages, the large town of Lowestoft and the busy port of Felixstowe. 

To find out more about the new council visit the East Suffolk Council website.

Jobs are based in either Lowestoft, a large town of 71,000, or the village of Melton, a few miles from Ipswich.

Fun fact

Orford Ness, a 10-mile long shingle spit that hugs the East Suffolk coast was a military testing site for much of the 20th century. During the 1950s and 60s it was home to the Atomic Weapons Research Establishment which used two dramatic 'Pagoda' labs to test the resilience of nuclear missiles components. The site is now owned by the National Trust and is an internationally important nature reserve.

Find out more and apply:

Temple to Shakespeare [square]2. TO PLAN OR NOT TO PLAN?

What?

Town planner, The Archadia Practice, an expanding architectural practice in Hampton Middlesex. Applications close on 6 Jan!

Where?

An office virtually on the station platform in Hampton, a smallish town in south west London, just along the river from Hampton Court Palace.

The job

"An exceptional opportunity exists for an ambitious and experienced town planner to join a well-established architectural consultancy seeking to diversify its professional offer. In addition to providing traditional town planning services to existing clients, a key part of the role will be to grow the business by identifying new land and urban regeneration opportunities for general needs and specialist housing.  We envisage this role being the start of the creation of a bespoke planning team."

Established more than 20 years ago, Archadia specialises in housing for older people and people with disabilities. Hampton itself borders an attractive stretch of the River Thames which includes riverside walks and Hampton Court Palace. It's also next to the Bushy Park (a royal park) and neighbours Kingston-upon-Thames. All in all, a pleasant place to live and work.

Fun fact

Hampton was once home to the 18th-century actor-manager David Garrick who revolutionised the performance of Shakespeare by introducing a naturalistic style of delivery, more akin to modern acting, than the declamatory style which had reigned to that point. Garrick's house still exists, as does the Temple to Shakespeare on the riverside, which was once accessible via tunnel from the house. The temple is open to the public on Sunday afternoons.

Find out more and apply

Taedonggang beer [square]3. TWO PINTS OF LAGER AND A BALLISTIC MISSILE PLEASE

What?

Planning officers and senior planning officers, Wiltshire Council.

Where?

Possibly at one of four offices, but most likely Wiltshire County Hall, a handsome purpose-built building in the county town of Trowbridge, Wiltshire.

The job

"Our planning policy team is part of one of the country’s largest local planning authorities, and we are driving the regeneration and sustainable development of locations throughout the county.

"Planning officers: We are offering an exciting opportunity for planning officers to join a vibrant team responsible for the preparation, monitoring and review of the development plan in Wiltshire, including neighbourhood planning.

"Senior planning officers: As a senior planning officer, you will be influential in shaping planning policies for Wiltshire on a range of challenging subject matters across urban and rural environments.

"You will take a lead role in either progressing the review of the council’s minerals and waste planning policy framework working collaboratively with Swindon Borough Council or leading on sustainability appraisal for our local plan review."

Fun fact

In 2000, the long-established brewing company Ushers of Trowbridge closed its operation and sold its brewing equipment to a state-owned North Korean brewery - the Taedonggang Brewing Company, in Pyongyang. Though the export was initially held up by concerns that the equipment could be used for chemical weapons manufacture, the equipment has been producing beer in North Korea since 2002.In 2009, a commercial for Taedong River Beer was broadcast on state-run Korean in a rare move. It shows technicians sampling the beer and beer bottles floating in space, while shooting froth like exhaust vapour from a missile.

Find out more and apply

The tibia of Boxgrove Man [square]4. A BIT OF HOMO PLANNERENSIS?

What?

Principal planner West Sussex County Council

Where?

Purpose built offices on the fringe of Chichester city centre.

The job

"The principal planner is one of the lead professionals in the planning policy and infrastructure team and deputises, as appropriate, for the team manager. The purpose of the role is to work on a range of land-use planning policy matters including responding to planning policy consultations. This includes strategic and local planning policy issues, in particular liaising with the district and borough councils about the preparation of their local plans and the potential implications for county council services and functions. It also includes working on the key neighbourhood plans that are prepared by the town and parish councils." 

West Sussex is an attractive, largely rural, county on the south coast of England that includes much of the South Downs. With a population of more than 800,00, its largest towns are Crawley, Worthing and Horsham. According to the Met Office, its the sunniest county in the UK.

Fun fact

The oldest hominid remains yet found in Britain were unearthed at Boxgrove, a few miles from Chichester, in 1993. The leg bone belonged to a pre-Neanderthal man who lived and hunted in what was then a coastal area around half a million years ago. Aged about 40, he was a powerfully built six-footer from the hominid species Homo Heidelbergensis. This is not the oldest evidence of human activity in the UK, however - 800,000-year-old footprints were recently discovered at Happisburgh in Norfolk.

Find out more and apply

WWI war nurses in France by Olive Edis [square]5. A SENSE OF HISTORY

What?

Planning officers, North Norfolk District Council.

Where?

Modern purpose-built offices just outside the small coastal town of Cromer, Norfolk.

The job

"Based in sunny Cromer on the inspiring North Norfolk coast, these local authority roles offer a fantastic opportunity for you to experience a rural district and enjoy a lifestyle shaped by the sea and sand! We’re looking for like-minded, driven planners who enjoy working within a multi-disciplinary service, dealing with a diverse range of applications and taking the lead on a variety of exciting projects and helping us to shape the future of North Norfolk."

Cromer, 20-odd miles north of Norwich, stands between stretches of coastal cliffs up to 70 metres high, which are rich in ancient fossils. It's just a few miles north of Happisburgh, where 800,000 year old human footprints were found in 2013 (see previous entry).

Fun fact

Mary Olive Edis, who set up her first photography studio in Sheringham in North Norfolk, was appointed Britain's first female war photographer and photographed British Women's Services and the battlefields of France and Flanders between 1918 and 1919. Her war photographs remain in the Imperial War Museum collections.

Find out more and apply

Photos | iStock, Johann Zoffany (Temple of Shakespeare), Merkurix (Taedonggang beer), Ethan Doyle White (Boxgrove Man legbone), Imperial War Museum (Olive Edis photograph)