Pure Potential

All About Careers - Town Planning

Remember Sim Cities? The computer game where you design and develop your own metropolises? Well, town planning is vaguely similar but with real people and real challenges. It’s all about planning the way our cities, towns and villages are developed and working to create the best possible environment for people to live and work in.

A career in planning could see you developing affordable housing, regenerating deprived areas, planning public spaces or developing shopping centres. You could  work in transport, tackling clogged up roads, or work towards making towns and  cities more eco-friendly. It’s not all about the urban areas –  some planners work on protecting the countryside, waterways and shorelines too.

The public sector is hungry for town planners, in particular local authorities, national park authorities, environmental, highway and water agencies. Otherwise, private organisations such as consultancies, major retailers and energy companies are all on the lookout for planners. You could even work in the third sector for charities such as the RSPB, Campaign to Protect Rural England and the National Trust.

So what makes a good town planner? You need to be fair, neutral and able to weigh up different interests objectively. Most employers require you to have an undergraduate degree in the very least. To become a Chartered Town Planner, you will need a Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) accredited degree from a university. In addition, you’ll probably have to complete further certificates, diplomas or a master’s in order to become a fully qualified town planner and a member of the RTPI. Town planners can earn up to £45,000, with senior consultants earning anything from £50,000 to £80,000, making all that hard work seem well worth it in the end!

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