Ellie Fleming recently joined the team at Calton Planning + Development for a 4-day planning placement work experience. In her blog post, she covers what she feels has helped from academia, what bridges there are still to close between theory and practice, and her top tips for any students thinking about exploring planning.
From Geography Graduate to Planning Consultant: How I Got Here
I didn’t embark on my university journey dreaming about becoming a town planner. Instead, I completed a four-year undergraduate degree in Human Geography at the University of Edinburgh. I later went on to pursue a Masters in Urban Planning at Dundee University. After speaking with planning professionals, I quickly realised this is a very common route into the profession. Which is perhaps no surprise given the close relationship between the two disciplines. Human geography is rooted in understanding how people interact with place and space, while planning applies that understanding to the built environment and the shaping of future communities.
Although my experience to date has been entirely academic, it has provided a strong foundation for this placement. The Masters in particular has strengthened my report-writing skills. It also helped me develop both a theoretical understanding of the built environment and a broader awareness of planning systems, planning theory, and the history of town planning.
A Snapshot into the Planning Placement:
Public Consultation Work:
- Monitoring the consultation responses
- Preparation of public consultation response tracker
- Analysis of responses for input to Statement of Community Involvement
LDP Process
- Review of LDP timelines
- Monitoring relevant committee updates
Certificate of Lawfulness Applications
- Preparing a cover letter to support Certificate of Lawfulness Application (CLEUD) submission
- Review of relevant legislation as per the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 1992, Class 23
- Review of site plans
- Drafting requisite planning applications on ePlanning Portal
What Does a Planning Work Placement Actually Involve? Real Experience at a Scottish Consultancy
Throughout the placement, I built on my academic understanding of the Scottish planning system and gradually developed a more practical grasp of how planning works in reality through day-to-day placement work.
Involvement in public consultation gave me valuable insight into the kinds of concerns local communities raise in response to new development proposals. In turn, it highlighted the wide range of issues that must be considered as schemes progress. Importantly, what concerns are materials considerations. For example, adverse impacts on transport routes, biodiversity or flooding; a possible reduction in house value is not a planning matter.
One of the clearest differences between academia and practice became apparent when monitoring Local Development Plan (‘LDP’) processes. At University, the planning system can appear relatively linear. In practice each council progresses at its own pace, with different priorities, different website structures, and different outcomes at key stages such as gate checks. Learning to navigate that variation was challenging at times. Particularly as workloads shifted from one authority to another, but it gave me a much more realistic understanding of the profession.
Drafting a covering letter for a Certificate of Lawfulness submission was also a particularly useful experience. It allowed me to engage directly with the relationship between architectural drawings, permitted development rights, and council requirements, and to see how these elements come together in a formal planning document.
Top Tips for Bridging Academia into Practice
- Log onto Councils’ planning portals and read through their LDPs.
- Read through Councils’ committee reports to better understand the process stages.
- Familiarise yourself with the differing layouts of LDPs between Councils and take notes of the differences and similarities.
- Understand that practice is not linear. Different setbacks will be exposed through the process, but through collaboration and knowledge, the end target can be achieved.
Key Skills and Career Lessons from a Town Planning Work Experience Placement
On a final note, my placement at Calton Planning + Development provided a valuable insight into the realities of daily life in planning and the wider professional working environment. It gave me the opportunity to develop a much broader understanding of the planning sector. While also strengthening my professional conduct through engagement with both private and public stakeholders. The experience improved my time management by requiring me to balance a range of planning tasks. It also showed me how to present knowledge clearly and apply it in practice through reports, spreadsheets, and other project work.
One of my favourite elements was the collaborative work. The mentoring from both Emily and David brought me up to speed with the pace and expectations of planning consultants. Their confidence and guidance enabled me to gain fundamental knowledge that I can take forward into the future.
I strongly encourage any students who may be in a similar position at this stage of their careers to follow the tips highlighted.
Top Tips for Students
- Reach out and collaborate: planning is an active, engaging work environment that is connected to different interest groups and individuals. Take any chance you get to speak with planning groups to help your career.
- Be open-minded: it is a broad discipline that covers many different areas. Some tasks may not be entirely your passion, but being exposed to these areas helps strengthen your knowledge for the future.
- Trust your knowledge: planning deals with heavy topics, debates and problems. Whilst it can seem daunting early in your career, you should remind yourself that your skillset is not invalid. You have the ability and voice to bring good discussions to the table.
Apply for a Planning Work Placement at Calton Planning + Development
Are you a geography, urban planning, or built environment student looking for a work placement at a planning consultancy in Scotland? Ellie’s experience is a great example of the hands-on, real-world learning that a placement at Calton Planning + Development can offer. Whether you’re in the early stages of your Masters or approaching graduation and keen to build practical experience before entering the profession, we’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with our team to discuss how we can support your development and help bridge the gap between your academic studies and a career in planning.