Assistant Support Officer; Planning

16 hours a week

Fixed-Term contract until end of March 2028

Castle House,Newcastle-under-Lyme

The borough of Newcastle-under-Lyme is situated in North Staffordshire on the border of Shropshire and Cheshire.

The council is proud of its record in the determination of applications with high levels of performance at deciding applications in time and we are looking for a highly motivated support officer to join our team.

You should have good time management and communication skills, be able to prioritise potentially conflicting tasks, attention to detail and work to deadlines.

You will provide administrative support to the planning officers and other members of the team but also to applicants and agents seeking to make planning applications or enquire about development.

The post will also involve validation and processing of householder planning applications, Tree Preservation Orders and Trees in Conservation Areas applications; providing factual information to applicants and agents over the telephone or in writing in connection with such planning applications, processing of enforcement complaints, planning appeals and providing advice to people to help them on development matters and support the efficient operation of the service.

The post allows for some homeworking and equipment for this will be provided for the post holder.

There will also be an expectation for some time in the office to be part of regular team meetings and catch up sessions.

• Experience of working in an administrative/technical role
• 5 GCSEs at grade 4 (or above) including English and Maths
• Experience of working with a range of ICT products will be of assistance and a good working knowledge of Microsoft Office is essential

Newcastle-under-Lyme is a borough with big ambitions. We’ve already started our transformation, however, we still need to find better ways of doing things because we are determined to do the very best we can for our communities.

If our vision is to be the best, then we need the best people working for us. Our people are at the heart of what we do and have the freedom to innovate, grow and develop. We recruit people who share our vision and values ; people who have the drive to deliver our ambitious council plan.

Our historic borough is a place of marked contrasts. We are the home of a world class University at Keele, a leading light known internationally for its research and sustainability record, which stands side by side with former mining communities including some which register amongst the most deprived areas in the country. Our borough is also a mixture of urban centres, affected by some of the same social issues facing our neighbouring city, Stoke-on-Trent, but also outstanding rural landscapes in our less populated villages.

Our plans and priorities aim to address the needs of all our communities.

We reward our people with a competitive range of benefits including:

• access to the local government pension scheme
• minimum 24days annual leave plus5 extra days after 5 years' service
• flexible working options and family friendly policies
• local and national high street discounts
• free car parking
• wellbeing support including £12.50 per month Jubilee2 membership
• green travel scheme including cycle to work and electric car salary sacrifice
• free employee 24 hour employee assistance and counselling services, flu vaccination service and health checks
• development and training opportunities

For an informal discussion about the post, please contact Sarah Jones, Technical Support Team Manager, or Rachel Killeen, Development Manager on  .

5pm on Friday
30

October 2026.

Should we receive a large number…