CANDIDATE INFORMATION BOOKLET - ASSISTANT PLANNER

Longford County Council is one of Local Authorities in the Republic of Ireland. The
Council has responsibility for the delivery of a wide range of services which are
necessary to the physical, economic, social and cultural life of County Longford, with a
focus on making Longford an attractive place to live, work and invest.
The following comprise the areas of service delivery in Longford County Council:
• Economic & Community Development • Fire & Emergency Services
• Local Enterprise • Environment
• Planning • Finance
• Cultural & Recreational Services • Information Services
• Infrastructure • Corporate Services

• Water Services • Human Resources

• Housing

This is an opportunity to gain employment in the role of Assistant Planner with
Longford County Council.
Longford County Council is committed to a policy of open and fair
recruitment, in line with good practice, recruitment & selection standards,
employment legislation and relevant circulars from the Department of
Housing, Local Government & Heritage.
This Candidate Information Booklet is intended to provide information on the
post of Assistant Planner and the selection process and candidates are
advised to familiarise themselves with the detailed information in advance of
submitting their application.
Candidates should satisfy themselves that they are eligible under the
Qualifications to apply for the post of Assistant Planner.
Where a candidate provides false or misleading information or has
deliberately omitted relevant information on their application form this may
result in their disqualification from the competition.

CANDIDATE INFORMATION BOOKLET - ASSISTANT PLANNER

Should a candidate decline an offer of employment or having accepted an offer of
employment relinquish it prior to commencing in the post, they will be deemed to have
withdrawn their application from the competition.. Feedback
Candidates shall be notified of the outcome of each stage of the selection process as soon as
possible.
If, following the interview, a candidate is placed on a panel they shall be informed of their
position on the panel. Details of marks attained in the interview process will be provided
upon receipt of written request.. Deeming of candidature to be withdrawn
Candidates who do not attend for testing and/or interview when and where required by
Longford County Council and/or the Testing Company, or who do not, when requested,
furnish such evidence as required by Longford County Council within the specified
timeframe, regarding any matter relevant to their candidature, will be deemed to have
withdrawn their application from the competition.. References
Applicants are required to advise the names of two responsible persons to whom they are
well known but not related.
In advance of any offer of employment, Longford County Council reserves the right to seek
both written and verbal references from current and previous employers, educational
institutions or any other organisations with which the candidate has been associated.
Longford County Council reserves the right to determine the merit, appropriateness and
relevance of such references and referees. Information sought from referees shall be
structured around the requirements of the job and the job description, person specification
and/or competency profile provided.. Verification of Education Qualifications
Prior to appointment, the candidate will be required to present the original parchment of
their certificate, diploma and/or degree and any other supporting documentation required

by the Council*, to the Human Resources department in order to verify their qualifications.

• Non-Irish Qualifications must be accompanied by a determination from Quality and

Qualifications Ireland (QQI) to establish their comparability against the Irish
National Framework of Qualifications, overseas qualifications must also be
accompanied by a translation document.

THE ROLE

An Assistant Planner is responsible for working as part of a team implementing programmes
of work in the Planning Department and for providing a multiplicity of planning services and
related services. Assistant Planner positions are multifaceted and may include some or all of

the following key service areas:

• Development Management.
• Planning Enforcement.
• Forward Planning and Sustainable Development
• Gathering and analysis of Statistics on Development.

THE DUTIES OF THE OFFICE ARE TO GIVE TO THE LOCAL AUTHORITY AND

(a) to such other local authorities or bodies for which the Chief Executive, for the purposes
of the Local Government Act, , is Chief Executive and
(b) to any other local authority or body with which an agreement has been made by the
local authority or by any of the authorities or bodies mentioned in sub-paragraph (a) of this
paragraph
Under the general direction and control of the Chief Executive or of such other officer as the
Chief Executive may from time to time determine, such appropriate planning and ancillary
services of an advisory, supervisory or executive nature as may be required by any local
authority or body hereinbefore mentioned in the exercise and performance of any of its
powers, functions and duties, including servicing all committees that may be established by
any such local authority or body, and the duty of assisting any appropriate officer, in the
supervision of the planning or ancillary services of any of the foregoing local authorities or
bodies and, when required to do so, to perform the duty of acting for the appropriate
professional officer of higher rank during the absence of such officer of higher rank.

ASSISTANT PLANNER DUTIES INCLUDE BUT ARE NOT LIMITED TO THE FOLLOWING:

• Assess planning applications and pre-application proposals against the Councils

policies and provide recommendations and policy responses to these as required

• Assist in the preparation, implementation and monitoring of development plan /

local area plans/planning schemes and assist in the preparation of reports on these

matters for the Chief Executive and appropriate Committees of the Council.

• Assist in the preparation of planning studies including EU funded research projects.
• Assisting in monitoring and reporting on implementation progress, including

gathering / analysis of development and market activity.

• Liaise and work with constituent planning authorities and other public authorities on

all aspects of implementation.

• Assist and provide advice to Chief Executive, appropriate Committees of the Council,

individuals, groups and so on, on planning related issues.

• Assist in the procurement and management of consultants and any other associated

duties as may be assigned from time to time

• Assist in the identification of and undertake opportunities for continual

improvement

• Contribute positively and engage with the Planning Departments continual

professional development programmes.

• Participate & take part in the duties as required as part of the Organisational

response to Climate Action and Just Transition to promote & ensure capacity
building, empowering change and delivering action
These duties are indicative rather than exhaustive and are carried out under general
guidance.

responsibilities.

• Manages time and workload effectively.
• Maintains a positive and constructive and enthusiasti

attitude to their role.

• Understands and implements change and demonstrate