About Us
West Sussex County Council is a diverse organisation that provides services to more than 850,000 residents every day. As part of the County Council, West Sussex Fire & Rescue Service is focused on the delivery of a prevention, protection and response service operating to the highest performance standards to ensure the safety of residents and visitors.
The Prevention Team works county wide to deliver targeted programmes to the most at risk and vulnerable members of the community. The programmes objectives are to reduce the number of incidents and their impact and to support communities to become safer and stronger.
For more information about West Sussex Fire and Rescue Service, please visit our Fire and Rescue Service page.
About The Job
Salary: £25,119 to £26,421 per annum
Working Pattern: Full time, 37 hours per week
Contract Length: Fixed term or Secondment, until 21/10/2025
Location: Bognor Regis Fire Station and working from home
Interview Date: 9th and 10th September
We are seeking a Programme Support Assistant who demonstrates enthusiasm and a proactive approach to their work, combined with a genuine commitment to supporting our prevention activities.
You will be a member of a small team that supports specialist staff in delivering education and engagement programs, as well as assisting operational fire crews in their work within local communities.
The team is responsible for booking and allocating work, including Safe and Well Visits, educational visits to schools, Firewise cases, and road safety/community safety initiatives, among team members and fire station personnel. The activities will vary from individual and small group sessions to larger events held in colleges and theatres.
While you will have primary responsibility for one key area of activity, it will be important for you to develop a comprehensive understanding of all the team's processes. You will be responsible for performing a variety of administrative tasks to support the Programme Support Officer. Your regular interactions will include schools, parents, and caregivers, as well as other fire and rescue services and professionals.
A positive can-do attitude combined with relevant experience is essential to be able to build effective working relationships and deal credibly and sensitively with our customers, senior managers and partners.
Experience and Skills
Key Skills:
1. Strong verbal and written communication skills to engage effectively with a range of people to create and maintain effective working relationships.
2. Ability to organise, prioritise and plan own workload to meet deadlines and targets.
3. Problem solving skills with the ability to anticipate problems and resolve issues independently.
4. Excellent IT skills in Microsoft Word, PowerPoint, Excel, use of Internet and other web-based applications, for the integral use of word processing, analysis and research of data.
5. Excellent literacy and numeracy skills to assist with purchasing and budget monitoring
Qualifications and/or experience:
- BTEC Higher, or equivalent qualification or experience
- Excellent working knowledge of IT systems demonstrated by relevant NVQ level 3 or equivalent qualification or experience.
Rewards and Benefits
As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance and are rewarded for the work they do.
In addition to working within a great team and a competitive salary you will have access to:
- 25 days annual leave + bank holidays with the ability to buy additional leave annually
- Access to a generous, defined benefit pension scheme
- A range of flexible working options
For a full list of the benefits offered to you as a West Sussex County Council employee you can find them on our Rewards and Benefits page.
Further Information
The reference number for this role is CPP00977.
Internal candidates wishing to apply for this role will be considered for a secondment position. Please can you therefore discuss and agree this with your manager before applying for this position.
To apply, please follow the links below upload your CV and complete the application explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to referencing and a health check.
West Sussex County Council is an equal opportunities employer committed to promoting an environment that is inclusive and free from all forms of unlawful or unfair discrimination and values the diversity of its people. We actively welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and take every possible step to ensure that no individual will be disadvantaged.
For information regarding your eligibility to apply for this role under our Disability or Veteran's Guaranteed Interview Scheme, this can be found on our application help page.