project_manager_for_suffolk_design_guide_job_pack_march_2018_-_copy

Job DescriptionMain Purpose of Job: To be the lead officer, on behalf of the Suffolk Growth Programme Board, to:  Oversee the preparation of a Suffolk Design Guide SDG and develop a pro

Job Description

Main Purpose of Job:

To be the lead officer, on behalf of the Suffolk Growth Programme Board, to:

 Oversee the preparation of a Suffolk Design Guide (SDG) and develop a programme for the SDG to be adopted by all Suffolk Local Planning Authorities

 Develop and deliver a training programme for local planning teams and members to ensure the SDG process and outcomes are embedded across the Suffolk System.

 Develop and enable the onward development and delivery of a training programme

to be led within the local planning teams for communities engaged in the

preparation of neighbourhood and other community led plans.

Our Values

You will be expected to work in line with our values which are:

Proud - Believing in who we are, what we do and where we live

Dynamic - Transforming the future with you in mind

Truthful - Honest and clear in all we do

Good Value - Delivering outstanding services, smartly &

economically

United - Whoever we work with, we work as one team

Key Responsibilities:

1 To commission and manage consultants in connection with the development of the Suffolk Design Guide, ensuring the project develops as envisaged and delivers an outcome that can be adopted by all Local Planning Authorities

2 To lead and manage the project as part of a single team approach that will include

point of contact to ensure a coordinated and effective interaction between all

parties.

3 Working alongside consultants and the Growth Programme Partnership Manager undertake engagement and briefings to provide support, advice and guidance on the development of the Suffolk Design Guide

4 To prepare and deliver presentation material and reports for the Growth Programme Board, Growth Portfolio Holders and other Member presentations as required.

5 To promote and adhere to the workplace values of our organisations.

Line Manager: Growth Programme Partnership Manager (GPPM)

Political Restriction:

This post is politically restricted under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989 and postholders are prohibited from seeking public election, holding political office, writing or speaking publicly on matters of political controversy.

Note: This is a description of the job as it is constituted at (March 2018) but, as the organisation develops, it may be necessary to vary

the duties and responsibilities from time to time It is the practice of both Councils to periodically review Job Descriptions to ensure that they relate to the job as being performed or to incorporate whatever changes may be necessary It is both Councils' aim to reach agreement to such reasonable changes with the postholder but if agreement is not possible the Councils reserve the right to insist on changes to the Job Description after consultation with the postholder.

Personal Specification

Knowledge and

Experience  Sound knowledge and

experience of the UK planning system

 Experience of managing external consultants and working with a partnership client group to deliver outcomes

 Good understanding of the role design can have in delivering communities that work for all

 Experience in managing in a customer focussed

environment

 An understanding of planning issues and experience of planning policy

Skills and Abilities:  Ability to assist, train and

motivate staff and Members (leadership)

 Ability to communicate effectively both in writing and orally with different (and often competing) audiences

 Excellent presentation skills

 Ability to relate effectively with other officials, external agencies, elected members and the public

 Ability to work independently with minimum supervision, but work well as part of a team

 Ability to prioritise workload and demonstrate time management skills

 Ability to meet deadlines and

to work effectively under pressure

 Ability to manage external consultants to remain on brief, whilst recognising where flexibility can deliver an improved outcome

 Computer literate

 Ability to think logically and analytically

Education and

Training  A recognised qualification in a

related or relevant discipline (e.g project management)

 A planning qualification / RTPI membership

Values:

Ability to

demonstrate an

understanding and

apply our values

which are

embedded in all our

roles

Proud - Believing in who we are, what we do and where we live Dynamic - Transforming the future with you in mind

Truthful - Honest and clear in all we do Good Value - Delivering outstanding services, smartly &

economically

United - Whoever we work with, we work as one team Other

Requirements  Must be able to work from

any Suffolk local authority office with a willingness to travel

 Must hold a current / valid full driving licence and own a car which is available for business use as driving will be required

 A commitment to supporting training and development initiatives

 To promote and adhere to the workplace values of our organisations.

I n v i t a t i o n t o Q u o t e

P L A N N I N G B Y D E S I G N

D E V E L O P I N G A S U F F O L K

D E S I G N G U I D E &

I M P L E M E N TAT I O N

P R O G R A M M E

M A R C H 2 0 1 8

Introduction

Suffolk Local Authorities have been awarded funding by the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government (MHCLG) to develop a Suffolk Design Guide We are looking to take this work forward as part of our wider inclusive growth agenda that is being delivered through the Suffolk Growth Programme Board (SGPB)

The work

We are looking to commission consultants to work with us over a 12 month period to develop and embed a Suffolk Design Guide (SDG) The project is as much about developing a written product that can be used by planners, developers and community groups to help shape our places as it is about delivering a programme of training and skills development for our local teams, members and neighbourhood groups We are interested in exploring how good design can support the way our communities will function in the future and deliver the widest range of social and economic benefit to all

Specifically we need the work to cover:

two initial background papers It is up to the consultants on the process they adopt to develop these topic papers however we would expect a high degree of consultation during this phase of the work and phase (ii) – the development of the Guide You should balance your inputs to ensure you have ensure background evidence to demonstrate a sound review

of existing approaches but have retained sufficient days (indeed the majority of days) for developing and testing ideas for the SDG

Paper 1: a concise overview of Suffolk LPAs current approach to design

 E.g WDC’s development of masterplanning approaches to

deliver dementia friendly concepts

Paper 2: a review of UK design guides and design panels identifying best practice and lessons for Suffolk This should include, inter alia:

BRE and others regarding the development of lifetime homes

may be of benefit, bearing in mind that the focus of the work is on moving forward, not a research piece that is looking backwards

ii Development of Suffolk Design Guide: based on the topic papers, a draft SDG will be

produced We expect the consultants to engage with all Suffolk planning authorities,

neighbouring authorities, Sport England, Public Health England, BRE, MHCLG and other relevant stakeholders in the development of the Guide

Further discussion to take place on exactly what the guide will look like but key points of note:

a The SDG concept should promote the development of well connected places to embrace the healthy lifestyle of Suffolk and our ageing population

b SDG has to be a “live” document / developed almost as a checklist for developers e.g we’ve met that criteria, but need to consider these additional ones

c The SDG should be designed to be interactive and tablet friendly

d SDG cannot add to the planning burden – has to be developed as a streamlining / signposting document Should refer to existing policies e.g sustainability

assessment, landscape character assessment and identify how the SDG draws from these and adds to them Potential to use the SDG to prioritise certain elements of the planning & development process

e SDG must be future proofed – how will it capture the design issues that have not yet been considered (e.g 15 years ago bin stores were not a major consideration in the design of housing developments, now they are How might electric vehicles / driverless cars change design requirements and how can these best be forecast?)

f SDG has to be applicable across all of Suffolk, Ipswich urban areas and new

settlements in the rural locations

g SDG has to reflect current local plans and future policies and must be responsive to the NPPF as it develops

h The SDG is not simply a document – it has to be a process for implementing good design through the planning process The development of the Guide must include reference to Design Panels and how these can best be used across Suffolk

programme of training events for members and staff A full programme will be worked up but initial costings should allow for up to 25 events, workshop style, allowing for say 10-15 participants per session

a Initial events to be held June: outlining work programme and approach to design

b Further workshops to be held on a bi-monthly basis for members / staff

The training programme should be worked up in consultation with the University of Suffolk and their new architectural course Longer term there is scope to explore options for developing a centre of excellence in planning design in partnership with the University

iv Developer / community engagement: to make the SDG work the project manager will lead

on engagement with developers and communities The developer engagement will be supported by the consultants if required with a decision taken once the contract is

commissioned This engagement will feed into the thinking on Design Panels, their use and adoption as part of the SDG

The community engagement is likely to take the form of neighbourhood seminars / drop-in sessions

You should outline your thoughts on this element of the work in your response and identify how many additional days you would allocate to the task if required The Board has the option to draw on an additional fund to support community engagement which if we wish to access will need to be supported by a detailed plan

Study output

We do not want to be prescriptive about the study output as the development of a Suffolk Design Guide is not simply the production of a hard copy document Rather we see the Guide being developed as a process of policy development, training programmes, engagement opportunities and the creation of design panels as needed

We will require the Guide to be tablet friendly as well as accessible in hard copy format

Budget

There is a total budget of £120,000 for this work over the full term of 12 months from Contract

Commencement, exclusive of VAT but including expenses

Your proposal should include a detailed breakdown of your fee, showing day rates per member of staff and days per task

Study management & timetable

The study will be managed by a project manager reporting to an officer group representing the Suffolk Growth Programme Board

An indicative timeline is set out below and you should use this as a guide, however you should allow for some flexibility in your approach as we may identify issues that we wish to explore further during the development of the Guide

Commission

contract

Topic Paper 1:

Suffolk’s current

approach to design

Topic Paper 2: Best

Practice – UK

Design Guides

Draft the Suffolk

Member & staff

capacity building &

training

Establish developer

/ community

engagement

Project Group

meetings

Submission of tenders & evaluation

All tenders must be received by 12pm on Wednesday 18th April Please submit your tender through the East Suffolk website

All questions on the tender should be submitted through the website no later than 12pm Thursday 12th April and responses will be posted by 5pm on Monday 16th April

Tenders will be evaluated based on:

innovative approaches to interactive guides (40%)

member training programmes (40%)

If required interviews will be held week commencing 23rd April in Ipswich

Further information

All enquiries should be made via the East Suffolk portal and responses to questions raised will be posted on this site