The Role

Do you have passion and enthusiasm for the historic built environment?

Do you want to work in one of London’s most exciting historic environments, leading and advising on listed buildings and conservation areas?

If you answered yes, we want to hear from you!

About the opportunity:
We are looking to recruit a heritage Conservation Officer (18-months fixed term contract), ideally working towards full membership of IHBC, to provide support, guidance and advice to colleagues within the Planning Service and external stakeholders, including members of the public.

You will be based within the Spatial Planning and Design Team, where there is a small team of specialists dealing with conservation and urban design matters. This role is primarily related to heritage conservation matters, specifically leading on the review of Conservation Area Appraisals.

Who we are:
The London Boroughs of Richmond and Wandsworth have a strong reputation for protecting their historic environment. As a Conservation Officer, you will be one of Richmond’s and Wandsworth’s custodians of 85 conservation areas in Richmond and 46 conservation areas in Wandsworth. With hundreds of listed buildings (45 Grade I & over 100 Grade II*) as well as around 10,000 locally listed buildings and 20 Registered Historic Parks and Gardens across the two boroughs, you will have the opportunity to further develop a range of skills necessary for ensuring the best outcomes for the preservation and enhancement of the boroughs’ heritage assets.

This is an excellent platform for you to progress a professional career in the historic environment. 

You will:

• Assist with the delivery of a high-quality conservation and urban design service in line with national and regional planning policy guidance.
• Assist on and/or lead on the preparation and review of Conservation Area Appraisals and Management Plans.
• Be responsible for the application of conservation advice on a full range of development management case work.
• Assess, engage and set out clear and robust conservation guidance in an accurate and well written officer report based on an up to date and relevant evidence base.

About you:

• You are a fully qualified heritage Conservation Officer or planner and working towards membership of IHBC or the RTPI or equivalent professional body.
• You have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of Planning and Listed Building legislation, policy guidance and circulars, practice and case law.
• You have an ability to balance the demands of the development sector with the need to safeguard the boroughs’ heritage assets, while improving the urban realm.
• You have an ability to organise your own workload and work within agreed timeframes to maintain high quality decision making at speed and to achieve set deadlines and targets.   

At Richmond and Wandsworth Councils, we care more about how you work and what you achieve, rather than where you work on any given day. The difference you can make to our local communities is what really matters most to us; service delivery must always come first. We have carefully considered agile ways of working to provide the best experience for residents, stakeholders and our staff. Our agile working strategy actively supports and encourages a dynamic work environment and daily working experience, whether that is based around site visits, team collaboration in the office or working from home. This role is based in London and as a Conservation Officer you would need to be able to commute to Richmond and Wandsworth boroughs on a regular basis to get to know the historic environment and the specific Conservation Areas that you will be taking the lead on for undertaking Appraisals as well as to undertake other site visits such as in relation to planning proposals.

Your wellbeing and the flexible way in which you can work is and will remain a key priority for Richmond and Wandsworth Councils. We want you to thrive and feel empowered in your work!

We also offer a generous holiday allowance of 39 paid days (pro rata) including bank holidays and a wide range of learning and development opportunities.

In addition, we offer a comprehensive range of staff benefits such as membership of the Local Government pension scheme, childcare vouchers, new technology scheme, interest-free loans on annual travel cards, discounts with many leisure activities, restaurants, shops and other establishments.

Indicative Recruitment Timeline:

Closing Date: Sunday 17 April 2022
Shortlisting Date: Week commencing 18 April 2022
Interview Date: 3 May 2022

For an informal discussion please contact Andrea Kitzberger-Smith, Spatial Planning and Design Team Manager, 020 8891 7364.

Useful Information:

This recruitment will be anonymised.

The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. We strongly advise you to complete your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Please note that the advertised dates for interviews may change due to the current Covid-19 situation. If they do, we will let you know as soon as possible.

Your health and wellbeing is our top priority. Should you become unwell due to Covid-19 during the recruitment process we would very much appreciate receiving an update from you as soon as possible.

We particularly welcome applications from sections of the community who are currently underrepresented within our teams.

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences, recognising that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions to the Councils and can improve the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer.

Important Information:
Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils