Planning Assistant (Infrastructure Maintenance)

Network Rail; Bletchley; Hybrid; GBP 27,000 - 32,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

28-day annual leave

Pension schemes

Travel discounts

Private Healthcare

Volunteer or carers leave

Rail travel subsidies

Gym Pass

Benefits platform

Job summary

Network Rail is seeking a Planning Assistant to support the Delivery Unit Planning team in coordinating access, resources and possessions, ensuring maintenance activities are planned safely and efficiently.

Based at Bletchley, this hybrid role involves working with internal and external stakeholders to deliver a reliable railway for passengers and freight, handling faults, schedule changes and reporting while staying calm under pressure.

Qualifications

• Knowledge of access planning processes and systems.
• Knowledge of relevant standards and procedures.
• Knowledge of the operational railway environment.
• Good geographical knowledge.
• Good interpersonal, communication and organisational skills.

Responsibilities

• Support the Delivery Unit Planning team with day-to-day planning activities.
• Assist in producing possession plans and resource schedules.
• Process access and resource planning requests in line with agreed procedures.
• Maintain accurate planning systems, records and documentation.
• Coordinate and optimise resources to support efficient maintenance delivery.
• Provide support for plan changes and emergency works.
• Build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Prepare reports and planning information as required.

Skills

Access planning

Standards & procedures

Railway environment

Geography knowledge

Interpersonal skills

Job description

Who We Are

Join Network Rail ! Where People and Connections Matter

At Network Rail, we're dedicated to keeping passengers and freight moving safely and efficiently across the country. When you join us, you're not just part of a team- you're part of something that matters to millions. We believe that our people are at the heart of what we do, and every role plays a vital part in building a better, more connected railway.

We're committed to creating a diverse, inclusive workplace that reflects the communities we serve. To discover more about our ED&I commitments click here. We value flexibility and understand the importance of a healthy work-life balance. As a Disability Confident Leader, we'll do everything we can to accommodate any needs throughout the recruitment process.

Safe behaviour is a requirement of working for Network Rail. Applicants should be able to demonstrate their awareness of our safety vision.

West Coast South: Keeping Britain Moving

Stretching from Crewe to London Euston, West Coast South is part of Europe's busiest mixed-use railway-moving millions of passengers and 10% of the UK's freight each year. With over 1,000 miles of track and 64 stations, it's a vital link between major cities and local communities.

As part of the North West & Central region, we serve 1.3 million passengers daily and move 700,000 tonnes of freight weekly-covering a quarter of the national network.

About The Role

Every day will be different, but you can expect to be involved in the following activities:

As a Planning Assistant, you'll support the Delivery Unit Planning team to coordinate access, resources and possessions, ensuring maintenance activities are planned efficiently, safely and effectively. You'll work closely with a wide range of internal and external stakeholders, helping to deliver a reliable railway for passengers and freight customers alike.

This is a fantastic opportunity to develop your planning and coordination skills in a fast-paced environment responding to faults, defects and unplanned work at short notice, so the ability to remain calm under pressure and react quickly to changing priorities is key. From supporting emergency works and schedule changes to maintaining critical planning systems and producing reports, you'll be at the heart of operational delivery, helping the team respond to challenges and keep the railway running smoothly.

Key Responsibilities

• Support the Delivery Unit Planning team with day-to-day planning activities.
• Assist in producing possession plans and resource schedules.
• Process access and resource planning requests in line with agreed procedures.
• Maintain accurate planning systems, records and documentation.
• Coordinate and optimise resources to support efficient maintenance delivery.
• Provide support for plan changes and emergency works.
• Build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Prepare reports and planning information as required.

Additional Role Requirements

This role will be based out of Bletchley DU.

Hybrid working: For positions that permit hybrid arrangements, employees are expected to work from a Network Rail location for 60% of their weekly hours, typically 3 days for full time roles, pro-rata for part-time

What's In It For You

Salary : Band 6, Circa £26,988 - £32,289, dependent on experience. For more information about our pay framework refer to your pay.

Here Are a Few Of The Benefits We Offer

• 28-day annual leave with the option to buy and sell days
• Choice of pension schemes
• 75% discount of leisure travel for you and your family
• Private Healthcare
• 5 days paid volunteer or carers leave
• Up to 75% subsidised Rail and Underground travel
• Gym Pass -access to gyms across UK
• My Benefits platform- giving national and local retail discount

Our aim is to ensure your candidate experience is as positive as possible. If you require reasonable adjustments at any point, simply let us know and we'll do our best to assist you.

Some of our roles require face to face Drugs & Alcohol testing. We will share further details with you as part of your formal offer.

All offers of employment are conditional upon satisfactory completion of pre-employment checks. Click here for more information

Your Experience And Skills

In order to be successful in this role, we would like you to have/to be:

• Knowledge of access planning processes and systems
• Knowledge of relevant standards and procedures
• Knowledge of operational railway environment
• Good geographical knowledge
• Good interpersonal, communication and organisational skills

We would also like but it isn't crucial to have/to be:

• Knowledge of maintenance processes and techniques
• Knowledge of Maintenance Planning Systems