Highways Development Officer

Job Title: Highways Development Officer
Location: Hybrid working with base at Hertford & Stevenage
Salary Range: £27,344 p/a + £2,807 MEP progressing to £30,151 p/a + £1,869 MEP (Level 8) or £30,151 p/a + £2,758 MEP progressing to £32,909 p/a + £3,389 MEP (Level 9) or £33,820 p/a + £3,441 MEP progressing to £37,261 p/a + £3,217 MEP (Level 10)
Hours: 37 per week
Contract: Permanent

Diversity: We are an inclusive employer and value a diverse workforce

Hertfordshire truly is the County of Opportunity. Housing growth in the County is presently anticipated to a level of 100,000 homes. An exciting opportunity has arisen for a transport planner/ engineer with a focus on providing highway responses to consultations on planning applications to join our Highways Development Management team. As part of the Whole Client Service team including WSP you will work closely with officers reviewing and assessing impacts on the highway network, which result from proposed developments and providing formal responses to the Local Planning Authorities. Great communication skills will be particularly useful in this role as you will interact on a daily basis with a wide range of stakeholders including district council planning officers, developers and their transport consultants, as well as councillors and HCC officers.

Purpose of the job:

• Considering, evaluating and reporting upon the transport implications of planning applications informally at pre-application stage and formally as part of the statutory response period when submitted
• Ensuring that all assessments and responses of planning applications comprehensively consider sustainable travel issues
• Ensuring other team members and key stakeholders are involved/consulted as early as possible, creating positive working relationships both internally and externally
• Providing support to the process of negotiating with developers and their consultants on contributions to transportation infrastructure arising from development proposals and ensure these are properly secured through the completion of appropriate legal agreements (Level 10)
• Supports and contributes to the continued improvement of the team’s performance
• Represent the County Council at appeals (written reps/informal) (Level 10)
• Assisting Senior Highways officer/s to deliver various projects taking a lead on larger scale projects (Level 10)
• Mentoring other staff Members at Level 8 & Level 9 (Level 10)

Challenges and opportunities:

This role is a fantastic opportunity for an individual with relevant experience to further their knowledge in the highways sector where you will be considering development proposals involving local schemes and making Hertfordshire cleaner, greener and more sustainable.

Key benefits of the role include:

• Opportunity to be involved with shaping future highway infrastructure provision to support the Government’s growth agenda both at a local and strategic level
• Working with a diverse range of internal and external stakeholders to deliver a quality service
• Gain an understanding of planning and highway law, including the Town & Country Planning Act 1990 and Highways Act 1980

Technical skills and qualifications required for the role:

For Levels 8 and 9:

• A degree in Civil Engineering or Transport Planning, or equivalent experience
• Clear, decisive and persuasive communication skills, both written and verbal, demonstrating the ability to adjust to the target audience
• Ability to work effectively and competently with people at all levels in the organisation
• Effective time management and strong organisational skills
• Ability to work to deadlines, independently and see tasks through to completion
• Good appreciation of the political context within which the service operates

For Level 10, in addition we are seeking:

• A good depth and breadth of technical knowledge in the Highways sector
• Knowledge of the planning process
• Traffic and transportation design familiarity/experience
• An understanding of transport related and regeneration issues, in particular knowledge of good practice national design guidance to promote sustainable, accessible and active travel

Are you interested in a career in highways and transportation planning and do you have a desire to influence sustainable development, and ensuring the impacts of growth are well managed. If yes, we would like to hear from you, this is an exciting opportunity for you to work in a challenging but very rewarding role.

Closing Date: Sunday 15th October 2023
Interview Date: Week commencing Monday 23rd October 2023

For an informal discussion and more information please contact: Matt Armstrong matthew.armstrong@hertfordshire.gov.uk, Rosemary Chatindo rosemary.chatindo@hertfordshire.gov.uk or Manjinder Sehmi Manjinder.sehmi@hertfordshire.gov.uk