Senior Planning Technician

Civic Recruitment Limited; Greater London; On-site; GBP 30,000 - 42,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work arrangement

Remote work

Job summary

Civic Recruitment Limited is seeking a Planning Service Support professional to provide technical, financial, administrative and customer-focused excellence across the Planning Service. You will handle complaints, FOI/EIR requests, maintain records and assist with financial monitoring, ensuring statutory compliance and high-quality customer service.

The role supports service improvements, digital transformation, and commercial initiatives while coaching colleagues and working flexibly across the

Qualifications

• Educated to A-Level standard or equivalent qualification and/or relevant work experience.
• GCSE English and Maths or equivalent.
• Experience with FOI, EIR, GDPR and information governance is desirable.
• Strong organisational and administrative abilities with attention to detail.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate complaint investigations and manage inquiries within deadlines.
• Coordinate and respond to FOI, EIR, GDPR requests and information governance tasks.
• Maintain accurate records and support financial administration and reporting.
• Support planning casework, validation, and consultation activities where required.
• Coach and support Planning Technicians and junior team members.

Skills

Organisational skills

Administrative support

Microsoft Office

Customer service

Information governance

FOI & GDPR knowledge

Education

A-Level or equivalent

Business Administration qualification

Information Governance training

Tools

Databases

Record management systems

Job description

London Arena, United Kingdom | Posted on 22/07/2026

At Civic Recruitment and Limited, we know that individuals are more than just fixed expenses; they are the cornerstone of every thriving organisation.  That’s why we are passionate about transforming recruitment in the public and private sectors.

In the modern job market, organisations in both public and private sectors face significant workforce challenges. Public sector entities, such as local councils and central government departments, often struggle with lengthy recruitment processes, limited access to qualified candidates, and stringent budgetary and regulatory constraints. Private sector businesses, on the other hand, encounter high turnover rates, difficulties managing a mix of permanent and temporary staff, and challenges in sourcing specialised talent for niche industries. These sector-specific obstacles, coupled with the universal complexities of payroll management, create a pressing need for efficient workforce solutions.

Civic Recruitment Limited addresses these challenges with innovative recruitment and payroll solutions tailored for diverse organisational needs. Recognising the critical hurdles organisations face, the company leverages its expertise to streamline processes, reduce recruitment times, and alleviate administrative burdens. With an extensive database of over 1 million pre-screened candidates, Civic Recruitment Limited is well‑positioned to cater to the specific needs of both public and private sectors.

Job Description

6 months contract with a Local Authority

Job Purpose

To provide comprehensive technical, financial,administrative and customer-focused support across the Planning Service,ensuring the efficient management of complaints, Freedom of Information (FOI)and Environmental Information Regulations (EIR) requests, financialadministration, information governance, and service improvement activities.

The postholder will play a key role in supporting planningoperations by coordinating complaint investigations, managing informationrequests, maintaining accurate records, undertaking financial monitoring andreporting, and supporting the delivery of high-quality customer services. Therole will also contribute to service improvement initiatives, commercialactivities, and the development of effective processes that enhance thecustomer experience and support statutory compliance.

Key Responsibilities

Complaints and Customer Service

• Managethe end-to-end administration of Planning Service complaints, includinglogging, acknowledgment, monitoring, tracking deadlines, and coordinatingresponses.
• Qualityassure complaint responses to ensure consistency, accuracy, and compliancewith service standards.
• Coordinateresponses to Member, MP, Ombudsman, and other escalated enquiries.
• Monitorcomplaint trends and provide performance reports and recommendations forservice improvements.
• Ensureimprovement actions arising from complaints and customer feedback areimplemented and monitored.
• Communicateeffectively with residents, applicants, planning professionals, electedMembers, and other stakeholders.

Freedom of Information and Information Governance

• Coordinateand respond to FOI, EIR, GDPR and related information requests.
• Liaisewith officers and departments to gather information within statutorytimescales.
• Maintainaudit trails and records relating to information requests.
• Undertakedocument review and redaction of sensitive and confidential information inaccordance with legislation and Council policies.
• Monitorperformance against statutory response deadlines and produce regularmanagement reports.
• Supportfinancial administration across the Planning Service.
• Monitorincome and expenditure, including cost recovery activities.
• Raisepurchase orders and process invoices in accordance with financialprocedures.
• Undertakedebt recovery and payment monitoring activities.
• Completereconciliations and produce financial management information reports.
• Supportcompliance with audit requirements and financial controls.
• Superviseand coach colleagues undertaking financial administration tasks.

Planning Service Support

• Maintainand update planning records and management information systems.
• Providetechnical and administrative support to planning casework and operationalprocesses.
• Assistwith validation and consultation activities relating to planningapplications where required.
• Supportchargeable planning services and ensure associated income is accuratelyrecorded and reported.
• Manageupdates to Planning Service webpages and customer-facing information.
• Contributeto service improvement projects, digital transformation, self-servicedevelopment, and commercial initiatives.

Training and Team Support

• Providecoaching and on-the-job training to Planning Technicians, apprentices,junior officers, and new team members.
• Supportcolleagues through knowledge sharing and the development of bestpractices.
• Workflexibly across the Planning Service to meet changing service demands andpriorities.
• Participatein appraisal, performance management, and continuous professionaldevelopment activities.

Compliance and Performance

• Ensurecompliance with planning legislation, information governance requirements,Council policies, financial regulations, and customer service standards.
• Maintainaccurate and confidential records.
• Monitorand report on service performance indicators.
• Contributeto achieving departmental targets and objectives.
• Experiencein administrative, technical, customer service, or business support roles.
• Experiencemanaging complaints, enquiries, or customer correspondence.
• Experienceof working with databases, record management systems, and Microsoft Officeapplications.
• Experienceproducing reports, performance data, or management information.
• Experiencehandling confidential and sensitive information.
• Experienceof financial administration, including purchase orders, invoicing,reconciliations, or income monitoring.
• Experiencecommunicating with a wide range of stakeholders, both internally andexternally.
• Experienceworking within a Planning, Local Government, Regulatory, or Public Sectorenvironment.
• Experiencemanaging FOI, EIR, GDPR, or information governance requests.
• Experienceundertaking document redaction and information disclosure processes.
• Experiencesupporting planning application processes.
• Experiencesupervising, coaching, or mentoring colleagues.
• Experienceworking with financial management systems and debt recovery processes.
• Experiencecontributing to service improvement or process review projects.

Qualifications

• Educatedto A-Level standard or equivalent qualification and/or relevant workexperience.
• GCSE(or equivalent) Grade 4/C or above in English and Mathematics.
• BusinessAdministration, Customer Service, Information Governance, Finance,Planning, or Local Government qualification.
• ILM,NVQ, AAT, or equivalent professional qualification.
• Freedomof Information, GDPR, Data Protection, or Information Governance training.
• Planning-relatedqualification or experience working towards one.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

• Excellentorganisational and administrative skills.
• Strongcustomer service and communication skills.
• Abilityto prioritise workload and meet competing deadlines.
• Stronganalytical and problem-solving skills.
• Abilityto interpret legislation, policies, procedures, and technical information.
• Highlevel of accuracy and attention to detail.
• Strongnumerical and financial administration skills.
• Proficiencyin Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, Word, Outlook, and databasesystems.
• Abilityto handle sensitive information confidentially.
• Abilityto produce professional reports and written correspondence.
• Abilityto work independently and collaboratively within a team environment.

Additional Information

• Hours: 35 hours per week
• WorkingPattern: Two days per week in the office and three days remote workingfollowing successful completion of training.
• Thesuccessful candidate will be expected to work flexibly across the PlanningService to support operational requirements and service priorities.
• Therole involves regular interaction with members of the public, planningapplicants, developers, elected members, solicitors, consultants, externalorganisations, and internal stakeholders.
• Ongoingprofessional development and participation in performance management andappraisal processes will be required.
• Allduties must be carried out in accordance with Council policies,procedures, financial regulations, information governance requirements,and health and safety standards.
• ClosingDate: Applications closing soon – early applications are encouraged