15 Apr Why local councils struggle to attract permanent town planning staff?
It has been a massive issue for as long as I can remember. The hunt for good quality mid-management and managerial level town planners in the public sector is as tough as ever. Sure, councils generally don’t struggle massively with the hiring of Planning Assistants and Planning Officers but when it comes to Senior Planning Officers, Principal Planning Offers, Team Leaders and Head of Development Management and Planning Policy roles there is a dearth of suitably qualified applicants.
It’s the same when the brief becomes more niche. For example; at county level for Transport or Minerals and Waste specialists, or at a local level when specialist CIL, enforcement, public inquiry or just simply major projects experience is required, then the quality of the candidate shortlist drops significantly.
I’m often amazed by the councils that just post an advert, set a close date, often without a dedicated contact name or number and hope for the best. Unsurprisingly, many find that when the closing date comes about then there is not much to choose from and sometimes nothing at all. Three months later you hear that the department has hired a bunch of expensive contractors. Why not get the process right first time. Do it well, ONCE!
The leading councils have a multi-faceted approach to recruiting permanent Town Planners. Custom built microsites, portals, digital advertising and flexibility over the person specification can allow an internal team to increase their chances of success. What is still lacking is their ability or inclination to directly target individuals and to proactively market the role direct to the passive candidate. After all, the internal recruitment department at the council is not a headhunting department.
This is where a specialist firm like ours comes in. We take the roles directly to the perfect applicants and pursue these until closing date. We don’t just wait for candidates to come to us but we go to them and give planners options on roles that they may have otherwise just dismissed or not seen. We also source from the private sector and have helped many people move back in to the public sector. Most importantly we are there to help them through the process of changing roles. Dedicated hotline and information available at our fingertips that candidate need and expect.
With 19 years recruitment experience in this industry and over 10 years at Lewis Davey I am here to help, so if you are looking to hire in to your planning teams this summer give us a call before you post adverts and hope for the best. We want to show you how we can make things run a lot smoother for you in the recruiting of permanent town planners for your council.
Call Shaun on 01202 237567 or email shaun@lewisdavey.com for more information
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