Consultant Town Planner ( Policy)

AECOM · Bristol, England, United Kingdom

  • Junior
  • Full-time
  • Posted 2026-09-23
  • Confirmed live on 25 September 2026

Apply at AECOM

Job description

Job Description
Due to a significant increase in planning policy project wins and new opportunities, we are looking to recruit a consultant planner with opportunities to be based at our offices in London - Aldgate, Bristol, Leeds or Manchester whilst also taking advantage of our flexible hybrid working model
You will be joining a great team; you will have an interesting and diverse workload and you will be given the opportunity to make the most of your abilities.  
You will work on key planning policy projects, working alongside multi-disciplinary teams and engaging directly with clients and stakeholders to secure successful planning outcomes. There will also be opportunities to work on infrastructure and development projects within the Planning team. Hybrid and flexible working arrangements are available, as well as reduced hours.
Here’s what you’ll do:
Planning Strategy and Expertise

• Carry out research and analysis for planning policy projects

• Assist on elements of policy projects, including supporting local authority policy and strategy development, local plan evidence studies, strategic growth studies, infrastructure strategies and other policy and strategy commissions.

• Assist in formulating strategic planning advice to other client and internal teams.

• Provide effective representation for the organisation, developing and managing relationships with clients, local authorities and other stakeholders through project work and through attendance at conferences and other networking events.

• Sharing technical knowledge and excellence.

Project Management

• Assist Project Managers to ensure projects are delivered successfully on budget and within programme timelines.

• Assist in coordinating multi-disciplinary teams for seamless project execution.

• Implement and uphold quality assurance and health and safety principles.

Business Development

• Contribute to the business development strategy where required

• Assist in the preparation of commercial tenders to secure new opportunities.

Does this sound like something you can do, and do well? If so, read on…
About our team
AECOM is a top ten UK planning consultancy by size, employing around 70 Chartered or Licentiate Planners. The AECOM Planning Practice projects include some of the largest, most complex and high profile development and regeneration projects in the UK for both public and private sector clients. We are a dynamic planning team and work closely with colleagues in other related disciplines, including masterplanning, landscape, environment, sustainability, transport and economics.  Examples of our project work include:

• Sub-Regional Spatial Plans - AECOM is a leading provider of sub-regional growth studies and evidence base for plans and policy (including our strategic planning work in the OxCam Arc, Thames Estuary, Hertfordshire and the East Midlands). For many years, we have also been thought leaders and enablers for new communities and Garden Towns (including research for MHCLG, Local Government Association and Town and Country Planning Association).

• Local Plans – Providing local planning authorities with local plan evidence and support is a key area in the policy team. We have worked on the local plans of over 100 authorities in the last decade. This includes the full range of evidence base studies, secondments, critical friend support and coordinating multi-disciplinary teams to provide evidence to inform and test planning policy at all stages of plan-making.

• Strategic Masterplans - We have masterplanned new Garden Communities totalling almost 100,000 homes (with current examples including Southern Manydown in Basingstoke and Naas North West Quadrant in Ireland). Our work continues to create places where people want to live and invest over the long term.

Joining AECOM will provide you with opportunities for career progression within a positive culture where learning and development is actively supported and promoted. 
Come grow with us.

Qualifications
Ready to push the limits of what’s possible?
Experience

• Relevant experience of contributing to planning policy and strategy development in a consultancy or public sector role.

Client & Stakeholder Relations

• Client focus, with good interpersonal skills and a collaborative working approach.

• A business development mindset, ideally with some experience of work winning and developing relationships with existing and new clients.

Skills

• Ability to produce high quality technical reports and excellent communication skills.

• Ability to work on your own initiative and under pressure.

Quality & Commitment

• High level of commitment to quality.

Education & Professional Memberships

• Degree in Town Planning or a related discipline, and membership of the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) or equivalent professional body, or working towards membership.

Additional Information
Interested in the role or curious about life at AECOM? F

Prepare for the interview

Nothing collected for this employer yet. The Blind 75 is what technical screens draw from; practise it here, with a coach, in Java or Python.

More at AECOM

All open software jobs