Salary and grade
: £42,576 per year, Grade 6
Duration of role
: Fixed term contract for 17 months
Hours per week:
37 hours per week
Location
: The designated office base is Abbey House, Abingdon. The councils operate in a truly flexible, and hybrid way where the focus is on outcomes not where you work.
Closing Date:
24/09/2024
About the role and what we're looking for
Our Garden Communities service works across South Oxfordshire and Vale of White Horse District Councils. The Garden Communities service collaborates on delivery of all three garden communities in South and Vale: Berinsfield Garden Village (BGV), Dalton Barracks Garden Village and Didcot Garden Town (DGT). The role will support transitioning the Garden Communities programme from strategic planning to project implementation. This work contributes to meeting our committed targets of delivering 15,000 new homes and 20,000 new jobs. This role will support the Berinsfield Garden Village Team to deliver a wide range of new and existing projects to help shape all three of the garden communities. The work of the team is multi-disciplinary and covers a variety of projects including active travel and wayfinding, advancing the green agenda, the built environment, placemaking, public art, community facilities, community development and stewardship.
Main duties and responsibilities
- Assist in planning, execution, and completion of project within the specified timeline and budget
- Monitor project progress and provide regular updates to the project managers and stakeholders.
- Identify potential project risks and work with the project manager to develop mitigation strategies.
- Monitor and report on project risks and issues throughout the project lifecycle.
- Facilitate communication and coordination between project stakeholders, including community groups, government agencies, contractors, and team members.
- Organize and attend meetings, preparing agendas, taking minutes, and following up on action items.
- Prepare project documentation, including reports, proposals, presentations, and correspondence.
- Maintain accurate records and ensure all project documents are properly filed and accessible.
- Provide comprehensive administrative support, such as scheduling meetings, managing calendars, and handling project-related inquiries.
- Prioritising a varied workload and completing projects and tasks to meet appropriate deadlines independently.
- Continuously seek opportunities to improve efficiency of processes and procedures to secure the best outcomes for project delivery.
- Promote a positive image of both councils.
- Responsible for procuring consultants to ensure projects are delivered on time and in budget.
- Work with the Community Development Officer to support the planning and execution of community engagement activities, including consultations, workshops, and events. Gather feedback from the community and incorporate it into project planning and implementation.
- Responsible for identifying and preparing funding bids for external grant funding opportunities to help future delivery of various projects – this includes collation, analysis and presentation of data and research from a range of sources.
About you
Your essential skills, knowledge and experience
- Proven experience in supporting various projects, preferably within a multidisciplinary team (minimum of two years).
- Experience in engaging and managing relationships with various stakeholders, including community groups, government agencies, and contractors.
- Experience in providing comprehensive administrative support, including preparing reports, managing documentation, and coordinating meetings and meeting minutes.
- Experience in planning and coordinating public or board meetings, workshops, or community events.
- Experience with supporting community engagement or public consultation related to projects.
- Experience in gathering and analysing data to inform project decisions and evaluate project outcomes.
- Educated to degree level or an equivalent level of experience.
- Full and current driving licence.
- If you have the following experience or qualifications – it's a bonus
- Knowledge and experience in one or more of the following technical areas: active travel, biodiversity, landscaping, environment, planning, health, and wellbeing, placemaking, development, and regeneration.
- Local government experience and political awareness.
Your style and behaviours
- Ability to communicate and collaborate, seeking the views and opinions of others.
- Ability to identify problems and provide practical solutions.
- Analytical thinking to assess complex situations.
- Ability to prioritise and manage multiple tasks and projects.
- Committed to providing excellent service to internal and external stakeholders.
- Seeks opportunities to improve processes and outcomes.
The benefits we offer
- A basic 25 days annual leave per annum, rising to 30 days after five years. You also have all the bank holidays to look forward to and time off between Christmas and New Year.
- Flexible working and annualised hours – a flexible approach to work that our employees love!
- Salary pay awards
- A generous career average pension scheme which includes life insurance of three times your salary
- The opportunity to purchase a bike through Cyclescheme
- We give you two days per year to volunteer within the local community.
- A range of resources, support, and activities to help you maintain your wellbeing including a monthly wellbeing hour in addition to annualised hours (the ability to work flexibly as long as, over the course of the year, you complete your contracted hours) and annual leave.
You may have experience in the following roles: Project Coordinator, Programme Officer, Community Development Officer, Planning Officer, Regeneration Officer, Development Coordinator, Urban Planner, Infrastructure Development Officer, Public Consultation Coordinator, etc.
REF-216 352