Senior / Principal Planner - Hybrid Location: Cheshire | Hybrid Contract: Full-time preferred Salary: £50,000 – £60,000 benefits The Role A specialist countryside planning consultancy is seeking a Senior or Principal Planner to join its growing team. This role offers the opportunity to lead a wide range of rural and countryside planning projects, combining technical planning expertise with practical, real-world problem solving. You will take responsibility for projects from first enquiry through to decision, working closely with clients on matters that are often complex, personal and commercially important. The work spans everything from rural diversification and estate planning to housing schemes, commercial development and strategic land promotion. Key Responsibilities Leading planning projects end-to-end with a high degree of autonomy Developing clear, robust planning strategies and explaining the reasoning behind them Acting as the primary point of contact for clients Preparing high-quality planning applications and supporting documentation Managing negotiations with planning officers and external consultants Supporting colleagues and drawing on team expertise through a collaborative delivery structure Helping clients make confident, well-informed decisions about their land and businesses About You Experience delivering planning projects independently within consultancy, local authority or development environments Strong judgement, curiosity and a problem-solving mindset Excellent written and verbal communication skills Emotional intelligence and confidence working directly with clients Ability to explain complex planning issues clearly and practically Comfortable taking responsibility while working within a supportive team Respect for clients, colleagues and the countryside A purely rural background is not essential. MRTPI, RICS or equivalent experience is valued but not required where professional maturity, capability and clear thinking can be demonstrated. What We Offer Competitive salary package, commensurate with experience Highly varied and interesting workload Significant autonomy balanced with strong team support A structure that supports growth at a pace suited to your experience Work that genuinely makes a positive difference to people, businesses and places Apply now or send your CV to Marta – marta@zodiacrecruitment.co.uk