Passenger Transport Planner

• Do you have experience in the world of social care, transport planning or with children/vulnerable adults or working in a school?
• Are you proactive, with a genuine eagerness to seek out opportunities for enhancing passenger transport?
• Are you able to think creatively and craft innovative solutions to challenges?

If the answer is yes, we want to hear from you!

Salary: £29,540 to £ 32,061 per annum (Grade 7) to £ 32,597 to £ 35,412 per annum (Grade 8)
Contract Type: Permanent
Working Pattern: Full-time (37 hours per week)
Location: County Hall, West Street, Chichester, PO19 1RQ
Interview Date: week commencing 25 August 2025

We are looking for a Passenger Transport Planner to join to join The West Sussex Transport Coordination Group, a vital part of the Transport and Network Operations within the Highways, Transport & Planning directorate.

We are looking for someone who has experience in transport planning and/or working within the social care world and understands the support that vulnerable adults and children may need with their transport issues. You'll need to enjoy the variety that this role can bring, in one moment you may be talking to a distressed family member about their child with special educational needs and next moment you could be liaising with a supplier about a future arrangement. You'll need to be able to deal with these competing demands and remain customer focused to deliver a professional service.

A typical week requires a minimum of 2 days attendance to the office, the remainder of the week working from home or one of our satellite offices. This is led by the needs of the service. Final arrangements to be confirmed with the successful candidate.

About the Job

As a Passenger Transport Planner, you will deliver a professional, customer-focused service, ensuring the provision of pragmatic and resource-efficient passenger transport solutions for a diverse range of customers.

There will be some key responsibilities likely to feature in this role, including:

Grade 7:

• Being the essential contact point for answering technical queries from residents and suppliers about transport arrangements.
• Delivering a professional, customer focused service, ensuring the provision of pragmatic and resource efficient passenger transport solutions for a range of customers.
• Scheduling passenger transport services by coordinating with various providers, including bus and rail companies, taxi firms, and community transport organizations, as well as utilising West Sussex vehicles, such as school buses.
• Addressing unexpected issues that may arise, such as a newly vulnerable individual requiring transportation on short notice.
• Negotiating with firms to discuss route pricing and encouraging them to provide competitive pricing.
• Investigating operational and service complaints by visiting the Depots, engaging in meaningful conversations with the dedicated drivers and escorts involved, and connecting with the end users to truly understand their experiences

Grade 8:

• Utilising your creative thinking abilities to identify coordinated passenger transport solutions for both complex long-term and short-term challenges, ensuring that the services provided are suitable and deliver value for money for the Council.
• Planning and designing passenger transport services through collaboration with various providers, including bus and rail companies, taxi firms, and community transport providers.
• Delivering the most appropriate transport solutions with a willingness to listen and understand needs but also understanding the challenges of meeting statutory obligations within a limited budget.
• Allocating and schedule necessary transportation, including the deployment of West Sussex vehicles, to ensure that service delivery requirements are met in the most cost-effective manner within the approved group budget.

If you have excellent communication skills, attention to detail, and thrive in a fast-paced environment, we want to hear from you!

Skills and experience

Grade 7:

• A Level qualifications or an equivalent qualification, or has relevant demonstrable experience.
• A good understanding of various aspects of passenger transport planning and a basic knowledge of passenger transport issues in West Sussex.
• Previous experience of working in a role involving coordination, logistics or planning.
• Knowledge of the health and safety legislation, which affects the service.
• Sound and accurate IT knowledge, particularly Microsoft Office applications.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to influence, negotiate and confidently build relationships with a wide variety of stakeholders at all levels.

Grade 8:

• HNC or a degree in a relevant field, such as Geography, or an equivalent qualification or demonstrable relevant experience.
• Good literacy and numeracy skills with the capacity to analyse data from surveys to produce reports based on findings.
• Sound and accurate IT knowledge, particularly Microsoft Office applications.
• Strong communication skills with the ability to confidently influence, negotiate and work effectively with external stakeholders.
• Previous experience in passenger transport planning or in roles that involve coordination, logistics, or planning.
• A solid understanding of passenger transport issues in West Sussex, along with a grasp of national priorities and strategies.
• Keen understanding of budgetary constraints and is adept at engaging in discussions and negotiations about pricing with suppliers.
• Having a good understanding of the school system, term dates, EHCP processes and SEND.

For more information on the Key Skills as well as the Qualifications and/or experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.

Rewards and Benefits

We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do.

For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our Rewards and Benefits page.

Further Information

The reference number for this role is EIE01442.

Does this sound like the opportunity for you? Click apply below, upload your CV, and complete the application form, explaining how you meet the key skills in the attached job description and experience you can bring to the role. Please ensure all that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV.

Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to right to work within the UK, enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, satisfactory references, and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application helppage.

EC