The Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea
Principal Planning Officer
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Lead on complex development and enforcement cases in a unique urban landscape
where we're all in to shape balanced outcomes for our communities.
In your application, please express whether you would like to be considered for a DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT or PLANNING ENFORCEMENT role - or both!
Working Style
You'll be based in the Borough for three days a week, playing a key role in serving the local community. You'll be part of a dedicated team making a real difference to residents' lives.
What you’ll be doing
With three distinct roles available – two in Development Management, including our innovative Fast Track Team, and one in our Planning Enforcement Team - you will take on a vital leadership role within our service.
Development Management Team
If your focus is within the Development Management Team, you will lead on highly complex planning applications and major projects from the initial pre-application stage through to final determination. Your day-to-day work will involve evaluating development proposals, undertaking thorough site visits, and negotiating complex schemes often valued at many millions of pounds, which includes securing significant financial contributions through section 106 legal agreements.
Planning Enforcement Team
Alternatively, joining the Planning Enforcement function means taking charge of the borough's most complex enforcement investigations, assessing alleged breaches of planning control, and instructing planning solicitors to clear pathways for formal enforcement actions or legal prosecutions.
Common Responsibilities
Across all three positions, you will act as a key pillar of support, providing direct supervision, instruction, and technical mentoring to senior and planning officers within your team. You will review recommendations, exercise delegated powers, and ensure that all report drafting maintains exceptional standards of quality and accuracy.
You will routinely represent the Development Management service at planning committees—drafting, checking, and presenting articulate reports—and prepare comprehensive appeal statements to act as the Council’s expert representative at public inquiries, hearings, and in court. Strong relationship management is central to this role; you will actively engage with applicants and agents, guide statutory bodies, respond to councillor and resident enquiries, and proactively step up to deputise for your Team Leader during their absence to maintain high service delivery standards.
For further details, please review the Job Description and Person Specification [https://www.rbkc.gov.uk/pdf/jds/Principal Planning Officer - JD (06.2026).pdf]
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What you’ll bring
You must hold a degree in town planning (or an equivalent professional qualification) and be eligible for full membership of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI). This must be backed by significant planning experience, a substantial portion of which must have been gained handling major and complex applications within a development management or planning enforcement environment. You will bring an excellent working knowledge of current planning legislation, national policy, and formal appeal procedures, alongside practical experience supervising, mentoring, or leading other planning professionals.
Your technical background must be balanced by a highly methodical, structured, and thorough approach to detailed work, giving you the ability to prioritise and effectively manage a heavy workload under tight deadlines without impacting quality.
You must possess exceptional interpersonal skills and communication capabilities, enabling you to construct concise, persuasive arguments both in written reports and during formal presentations to committees and community forums. We look for collaborative professionals who can build mutual confidence, utilise coaching and mentoring to build capacity in others, and employ strong negotiation or conflict resolution skills to deliver constructive professional challenges whenever service delivery standards are not met.
Additionally, you should demonstrate an understanding of historic buildings and conservation areas, a commitment to equal opportunities, and a clear alignment with our core values of respect, integrity, and putting communities first.
Why join us
At RBKC, we’re all in – investing in our people, our communities and our future.
By joining our high-performing and ambitious planning service, you will work on some of London's most high-profile and architecturally unique development cases. We are deeply committed to your professional growth and leadership development, providing genuine avenues to shape how our services evolve and transform.
Our dedication to internal career progression is clear: three of our previous principal planning officers have recently been successfully promoted directly into team leader roles within the service. Alongside a competitive salary, we support your career with continuous professional development opportunities and a balanced, hybrid working model that ensures you can deliver high-quality outcomes for our community while maintaining your own personal wellbeing.
In your application, please express whether you would like to be considered for a DEVELOPMENT MANAGEMENT or PLANNING ENFORCEMENT role - or both!
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About us
Kensington and Chelsea is home to diverse communities, thriving businesses, and unique local places. Everything we do is focused on supporting our residents, strengthening our approach, and creating a fairer borough.
As a competent and caring Council, we take pride in our work every day, ensuring our services are delivered with care and competence. We listen to our residents, act with integrity, and work together to build a borough that is greener, safer, and fairer for all.
In this role, your daily work directly drives our 'We're All In' employer brand across the local landscape. Managing multi-million pound development proposals, growing a customer-facing fast track service, or resolving high-profile enforcement breaches requires a genuine 'get stuck in' mindset, whether you are collaborating with legal teams in the office, writing reports from home, or conducting site inspections out in the field. Balancing the statutory frameworks of planning law with the expectations of highly engaged residents, developers, and elected Members means it is not always smooth sailing, but every ounce of your dedication pays off when we achieve balanced, sustainable growth for our communities. By fully committing to this service, you will turn complex planning and legislative challenges into profound opportunities for service transformation, institutional growth, and collective resilience.
Interview Details
Interviews for these positions will take place in person at Kensington Town Hall week commencing 17th August.
Ready to join us?
We’re all in – are you? If you share our values and have the skills to contribute, we’d love to hear from you.
Please apply online explaining how you meet the requirements set out in the person specification and job description.
We reserve the right to extend or close this vacancy early without warning subject to the volume of suitable applicants.
We are committed to promoting equality and respecting diversity and welcome applications from all sections of the community.
We are a Disability Confident Employer – committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection process is inclusive and accessible.
We are committed to fair, transparent, and consistent pay practices.
New hires will normally start at the minimum of the pay scale. However, a higher starting salary may be negotiated where a candidate demonstrates exceptional skills, knowledge, or experience.
Employees receive annual salary increments until they reach the top of the pay scale, as well as any agreed cost of living pay awards.
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