The Friday Five 14.12.18
A round-up of five of the best, most interesting, significant or unusual jobs on Planner Jobs this week.
1. ALL SQUARE
What?
Planning officer, Three Rivers District Council, Herts
Where?
Purpose built council offices a hop and skip from the high street in Rickmansworth, Herts.
The job
Working in the planning enforcement team, the role includes "a combination of handling of pre-application enquiries, assessing planning applications and subsequent appeals, undertaking enforcement investigations and project work.
"On the fringe of London and close to the Chiltern Hills AONB, the District is experiencing significant development pressure, with a variety of planning applications. The district has an excellent built and natural environment, many conservation areas, listed buildings and major areas of green belt and areas of outstanding natural beauty."
Rickmansworth is a small town of 23,000 within Three Rivers District, so called because it lies at the confluence of the rivers Chess, Gade and Colne. The Three Rivers district has a population of 91,000.
Fun fact
Rickmansworth is home to the Royal Masonic School for Girls, originally founded in St Pancras in 1789 to provide for the daughters of freemasons who had fallen on hard times. Nowadays the school is open to all, though it retains many of its traditions – for example, the girls still perform a 'school drill' based on callisthenics, which ends with the pupils in the configuration of the Masonic emblem of a square and a set of compasses.
2. GO OFF THE RAILS
What?
Town planners, HS2
Where?
HS2 offices in Euston, London (a two-minute walk from Euston Station, where HS2 will terminate - of course).
The job
"The largest infrastructure project in Europe, HS2 offers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for you to be part of something that will invigorate the nation’s economy and create thousands of jobs.
"You’ll take the planning lead on route and build aspects of HS2. We intend major regeneration around new stations and surrounding areas, so you’ll help us to shape an exciting future for communities across the UK.
"With a focus on Phase 1 of the HS2 project, your role will be integrated into our delivery teams. This means you’ll be right in the heart of developments that will deliver a new era of rail, while improving communities and boosting the economy."
HS2, in case you didn't know, is a new high speed railway to connect London, Birmingham, the East Midlands, Leeds and Manchester, using 330 miles of track and trains running at more than 200mph. Phase 1, London to Birmingham, is scheduled to open in 2026.
Fun fact
A huge new station at Old Oak Common in West London will act as an interchange for HS2, Crossrail, and Great Midlands services. The site has functioned as a railway depot for more than a century and was originally built with four electrically operated 65ft turntables in vast sheds. Each apparently had 28 tracks spanning from it, able to accommodate locomotives up to 75 feet (22.9 m) in length - which prompts a question: how does a 65ft turntable turn a 75ft locomotive?.
3. HOW DO YOU LIKE THEM APPLES?
What?
Principal planning officer, Herefordshire Council
Where?
Plough Lane, Hereford, a business park on the outskirts of Hereford city centre.
The job
Working in the major applications team, "you will process a varied caseload of major and complex planning applications supporting the council's growth agenda as set out in the core strategy. You will be a member of the RTPI, with broad experience and a proven track record with a delivery mind set."
Hereford is a historic cathedral city just 16 miles east of the border with Wales. The county of Herefordshire itself is one of the most rural and sparsely populated in England. Largely agricultural, it's famous for its apple and pear orchards and its cider. It's no surprise, therefore, that you'll be based almost next door to the Hereford Cider Mill where Bulmer's cider is made.
Fun fact
H P Bulmer's was founded in 1887 by Henry Percival Bulmer, the twenty-year-old son of the local rector at Credenhill, using apples from the rectory orchard. He is said to have taken his mother's advice to make a career in food or drink, "because neither ever go out of fashion". In 1889, Henry's elder brother Fred turned down the offer of a post as tutor to the children of the King of Siam to join the fledgling business. The business remains close to the original orchard.
4. CAN YOU GUESS WHAT IS IN IT TODAY?
What?
Senior planning officer, South Downs National Park Authority
Where?
The smart South Downs Centre in the pretty market town of Midhurst, West Sussex.
The job
"We are looking for a good all-round planner ideally with experience of neighbourhood planning to work within our consultancy service as part of a close knit team of people providing planning advice, running consultations, analysing information and helping to write plans for communities outside of the National Park.
"Alongside this there will also be a need to work on a caseload of planning applications, including working with the major projects team to advise prospective applicants."
South Downs National Park is England’s newest, covering 628 square miles in southern England, from Winchester in the west to Eastbourne in the east. It incorporates the chalk hills of the South Downs, parts of the Western Weald, historic villages and towns and has a population of 108,000.
Fun fact
The village of Wivelsfield Green, within the National Park in East Sussex, is thought to be the inspiration behind the 1960s children's classic Camberwick Green. Its neighbouring settlements, Plumpton and Chailey are reputed to be behind the associated children's shows Trumpton and Chigley - between them they make up the 'Trumptonshire Trilogy'. Gordon Murray, puppeteer and creator of all three, died in 2016, aged 95.
5. ALL ABOARD!
What?
Strategic development manager/town planner, Oxford Bus Company (p/t)
Where?
The firm is based on a business/retail park a few miles outside Oxford, in Cowley. Presumably you can get a bus to work.
The job
"Oxfordshire needs to accommodate more housing. These unmet housing needs will be situated in neighbouring districts and it is therefore essential that this housing is provided to meet the needs for sustainable transport - and buses in particular.
"For this to happen we require a town planner to identify both strategic and local planning development opportunities and ensure appropriate infrastructure, developer contributions, CIL and public transport provision is provided in these new developments."
The Oxford Bus Company was founded in 1881 and originally ran services with horse drawn trams. It has the motto "We're all about Oxford".
Fun fact
The first omnibus service in the United Kingdom was started by John Greenwood between Pendleton and Manchester in 1824. Greenwood's innovation was to offer a service which did not require booking in advance, and which picked up and set down passengers en route.
Over the next few decades, horse bus services developed in London, Manchester and other cities, with double deck buses introduced in the 1850s. Even with railways and trams, the horse-drawn bus continued to flourish, and by 1900 there were 3,676 horse-drawn buses in London.
Photos | iStock, Shutterstock
