Principal Planner

Principal Urban Designer

Final date to receive applications: 14 January 2026

Department: Marrons - Marrons - Master planning - Master planning - 2403

Employment Type: Permanent - Full Time

Location: Flexible

Reporting To: James Bush

Are you looking to propel your career in 2026? We are opening a hub in Manchester and are looking for a Principal Urban Designer to join the team!

We can offer you:

• A competitive salary with great benefits including private medical, 27 days holiday plus bank holidays and a bonus day off for your birthday
• A varied workload working on a variety of projects including residential strategic land promotion, urban regeneration and major mixed-use sustainable urban extensions across the UK.
• The opportunity to join a vibrant, forward - thinking team with the support of friendly, approachable partners who encourage and support your career development
• Hybrid working from either our soon to open Manchester hub (opportunity to work from our other North West hubs in the meantime)

We have big growth plans and are looking for people with the enthusiasm to come and be part of this and to develop a career with us. The Principal Urban Designer will play an active role within the Master planning & Urban Design team in the North West region.

• developing design solutions and strategies for a range of projects encompassing residential strategic land promotion, urban regeneration and major mixed-use sustainable urban extensions across the UK
• making significant contributions to major projects or managing a portfolio of smaller projects from feasibility through concept and sketch design including to outline planning
• preparing high quality visualisations from sketch through to illustrative and presentation standard
• producing high quality work and creative solutions for clients which are well researched and structured
• supporting the team and making an effective contribution to its leadership
• contributing towards seeking, wining, and delivering new work
• delivering excellent service to clients and providing clear and succinct advice whilst building strong relationships, managing expectations, and adding value to their business
• working with the wider team on the delivery of the business strategy and related activities for growth

• Previous UK based experience working in a planning or architectural practice on residential/mixed-use projects for national house builders or housing developers
• Degree in a design related course
• Good working knowledge of current urban design issues in a UK context
• A strong design flair with an interest in delivering high quality projects from a strategic masterplan level to the details of individual built area and urban spaces
• Competence in the use of the full range of design focused packages including Auto Cad, InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator and Sketch Up, as well as Microsoft Office suite
• Confidence and competence in drawing and sketching by hand
• The ability to work and manage projects, with a strong attention to detail

We embrace agile working and offer a blended approach to where and how we work.

We appreciate that people have different needs and preferences and we’re keen to be flexible, after all, we value what you do, not where you do it.

We have the following hubs across the UK:
Birmingham, Bristol, Edinburgh, Leeds, Leicester, Lincoln, London, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Sheffield, Solihull, Stratford upon Avon, Tunbridge Wells and will soon be opening our Manchester hub.

Additional information: Please be aware, for some vacancies, where we receive high numbers of applications we may need to bring the close date forward.

Due to the nature of the work undertaken, confirmation of employment will be subject to a variety of checks which will be carried out once an offer of employment is accepted. Details of the checks can be found here.

Equal opportunities

Marrons is a committed equal opportunities employer. We seek to attract, develop and retain talented people from a diverse range of backgrounds and cultures. We value and respect individuality and encourage a culture within our business where people can be themselves and be valued for their strengths and experiences. Everyone who either applies to or works for the firm is treated equally, regardless of their gender, age, ethnic origin, nationality, marital status, sexual orientation or religious beliefs.