Associate Programme
Hire an Associate
Work with us to recruit talented, motivated placemaking professionals looking to develop a career in the public sector.
Why hire an Associate?
Talent
Recruit a placemaking expert
Our candidates are highly-skilled individuals with a broad range of expertise, ready to take on a new challenge and hit the ground running in a new public sector role.
Support
Sector knowledge
We bring a wealth of experience in placemaking and local government, so when recruiting, we know how to find the right people for the right jobs.
Process
Inclusive recruitment
We have designed a unique recruitment process that embeds good inclusion practices to create diverse cohorts and teams.
We offer a unique route for Authorities looking to find high-quality placemaking professionals to build additional in-house expertise.
Public Practice is uniquely positioned to act as a facilitator between local authorities struggling to find the right skills for their team and built environment professionals seeking to transition into the public sector but finding the process difficult to navigate.
As a not-for-profit, our service is an affordable alternative to recruiting through private agencies. In addition, if you choose to keep an Associate on beyond the end of their placement, we do not charge a retention fee.
Who can hire an Associate?
We recruit for a broad range of placemaking disciplines and support applications from any of the following public sector organisations:
- Local authorities
- Groups of more than one local authority
- Development Corporations
- Publicly-led delivery vehicles
- Hospitals or other public bodies
What's included?
What are the costs?
Authorities are required to pay a programme fee of £3,000 (+VAT) to cover recruitment costs and the additional training and support provided throughout the programme. This fee is only payable once an Associate starts in post.
How do I hire an Associate?
Authorities can contact us at any time of the year when they have a suitable role they would like to recruit to.
We maintain and update a pool of quality candidates every six months. Our candidates are assessed via a three-stage process. They are eager to join our programme and take on a public sector role.
Once we’ve reviewed your role against our requirements and candidate pool, we will propose candidates to you that we believe are best suited for the job. It’s then up to you to perform a final stage interview.
Below is an overview of how the process works; we've also written a short article 'How does an Authority recruit an Associate?' explaining it in more detail.
Step 1
Tell us about the role
If you are working with us for the very first time, book a call with our Recruitment & Partnerships Manager, Daniel Davis, to discuss your recruitment needs.
Step 2
Expression of interest
Submit an Expression of Interest form online. Fill in the form with details of the role you would like to hire. We will review your EOI, and confirm whether the role is suitable for matching with our candidate pool.
Step 3
Provide more details on the role
Once we have confirmed the suitability of the role, we will ask that you complete a comprehensive Job Submission Form to allow us to proceed with issuing our SLA, and the matching process.
Step 4
Agreement signing
Once you complete the Job Submission Form, you will be issued with our Service Level Agreement within 5 working days. Agreements must be signed in order to be matched with a candidate.
Step 5
Meet your match
Meet your matched candidate. If we are able to propose a match for your role, you will be required to meet the candidate directly before confirming your decision.
Step 6
Confirm your match
Once the match is confirmed, you will be responsible for making formal offers and starting your Authority's standard onboarding process to ensure the successful candidate starts in post.
Speak to us
Discuss our recruitment services
Daniel Davis
Recruitment and Partnerships Manager