Ministerial Action Plan on Planning Resources October 2024

The demands on the planning system have grown significantly over the last decade and continue to grow. In recognition of these increasing demands, the Minister for Housing, Local Government and Heritage, Darragh O’Brien TD and Minister of State for Local Government and Planning Alan Dillion TD, have published a ‘Ministerial Action Plan on Planning Resources’.

The Ministerial Action Plan provides a detailed roadmap to increase the pool of planning and related expertise needed to ensure a planning system fit for future needs. It sets out 14 high-level actions that provide a coordinated pathway to ensure a sustainable pipeline of planning and related expertise into the future, addressing the areas of education, recruitment and retention, as well as measures to encourage greater innovation and efficiency.

There is a focus on the needs of the public sector in the first instance, including the Local Government sector. The plan also takes into account the needs of a growing private sector that is critical to the operation of the system.

The key actions are summarised as follows:

• Increase the up-take of undergraduate and postgraduate places on accredited planning courses in Ireland
• Increase the number of student places available on accredited planning courses and explore potential for new planning courses
• Develop new education pathways towards professional planning
• Introduce a coordinated graduate planner recruitment campaign(s) for the local government and public sectors
• Design and action a focused and targeted programme to support the restart of planning careers in the public sector and address barriers to re-entry
• Implement a focused programme targeting graduate planners and related professionals who have completed their education in Ireland but are now abroad to encourage their return
• Implement a focused and effective relocation scheme to encourage and support the return of experienced planners who have completed their education in Ireland but are abroad
• Run an impactful and targeted recruitment campaign in the UK and European Economic Area to attract professional planners to Ireland
• Ensure the addition of the profession of planner to the Critical Skills Occupation List
• Undertake a review of the qualification requirements for planning posts within the Local Government sector to ensure that the sector can attract as wide a pool of talent as possible
• Examine current recruitment methods for professional planners and related professionals within local government and public sector
• Identify opportunities to enhance retention of professional planners and related professionals within local government and public sector organisations
• Undertake a comprehensive and strategic analysis of the longer-term requirement for professional planners and related professionals
• Identify opportunities for innovation and efficiency and report with recommendations for action

A Steering Group was established in April 2024 to oversee and coordinate development and implementation of the Action Plan. The Steering Group includes representation from the Department of Further and Higher Education, Research, Innovation and Science, the local government sector, Regional Assemblies, An Bord Pleanála, Office of the Planning Regulator, Infrastructure Providers and Third Level Sector. The Irish Planning Institute have recently been added to the Steering Group.

Funding has been secured in Budget 2025 to support delivery of the Ministerial Action Plan and working groups will be formed in the coming weeks to progress grouped actions of the plan on a priority basis.