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Pathways to Planning provides local planning authorities with a pipeline of talented, supported new planners , and the LGA is now able to offer councils salary bursaries to cover part or all of a graduate planner’s salary to help create new positions in their planning teams.
The LGA writes: [NB: see web page for links]
Pathways to Planning is a graduate recruitment programme run by the Local Government Association (LGA) which delivered more than 80 new planners to almost 60 local planning authorities in its first year.
The next cohort of Pathways to Planning offers English councils:
- specialist marketing and recruitment services to shortlist a diverse pool of candidates for a September 2025 start
- a bursary of at least £5,000 to enable every Pathways graduate’s postgraduate study and MRTPI accreditation
- a salary bursary to cover part or all of a graduate planner’s salary (bursaries to be allocated in a competitive process)
- development opportunities and a community of support for your graduate to support retention
- no fee to take part: councils pay each graduate planner they employ a minimum of £24,000/pa.
Councils can now sign up or express an interest in taking part in Cohort 3 of the Pathways to Planning programme, hiring graduates who will start work in September 2025.
If your council is interested in taking part, but you need more information or are unsure how to fund graduate salaries, please sign our expression of interest form. You can indicate on the form if you would like to receive information about our salary bursary selection process. Councils will have until 21 March 2025 to express interest in receiving a salary bursary. All councils who express interest in receiving a salary bursary will be invited to complete a simple assessment in the coming weeks. These applications will be evaluated after 21 March 2025, with outcomes given to councils by early April 2025. For more information about our salary bursaries and what it means to participate in Pathways to Planning, please read?our guidance document.
If you have salary funding for at least one graduate planner role, you can sign up directly to the programme now to secure your place. Please read?our guidance document?to ensure that the programme will work for your council before signing up. We will not evaluate salary bursaries through the sign-up form: please see the expression of interest form above.
We are holding workshops for councils who are interested in finding out how Pathways to Planning can help their planning team on Teams on the following dates:
- Wednesday 26 February, 10.00 – 11.00am
- Monday 3 March, 1.00 – 2.00pm
- Thursday 13 March, 10.00 – 11.00am
- Monday 31 March, 10.00 – 11.00am
For more information, to book your spot at a workshop, or to request an individual call with our programme manager if you are unable to attend a workshop date, please contact the Pathways to Planning team at?pathways.planning@local.gov.uk.
Frequently Asked Questions [see website for links]
- What is the cost for my council?
- How does the bursary work?
- What training will trainees receive as part of the programme?
- What is the expectation of Pathways to Planning on the amount of time for study leave?
- How long will trainee contracts last?
- Can I take on more than one trainee?
Information for applicants
If you are a graduate and are interested in applying for the programme, visit the dedicated website for applicants at pathwaystoplanning.org.
