Community Services job family

Roles at this level carry out a limited range of front-line operational activities related to citizen or community experience. Focus is on reacting to immediate demands as they arise.

Scope of Work

Role holders carry out all necessary duties and tasks to provide support and operational delivery of public services within the particular specialist area.

Role holders perform a range of simple, routine tasks within basic procedures and under regular supervision. Thinking involves reacting and responding to routine queries, issues or circumstances but any unusual or non-routine queries are referred to others.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Carry out a range of range of activities including the processing of incoming requests, responding to enquiries and all related administration within a routine or established process to deliver excellent customer service.
• Operate any equipment in a standardised way to achieve the required result.
• Receive and respond to everyday enquiries or needs from immediate service users, escalating requests outside own knowledge to the appropriate person or area to ensure that responses are in line with council procedure and meet the expectations of the community.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Good literacy and numeracy, ability to use simple processes or IT.
• Basic knowledge of relevant processes, equipment and tools within the specific service area.
• Awareness of the relevant service area.
• Basic knowledge of relevant processes and equipment within the specific service area.
• Ability to communicate with tact and courtesy, with experience of providing direction to the community when required.

Roles at this level carry out a number of straightforward front-line activities, within established routines in a specific area of community support, including educational support. Focus is following established processes, with some experience required in relevant community or customer services, or role holders will learn procedures on the job.

Scope of Work

Role holders will carry out basic community or customer support services related to a specific area of expertise. Role holders perform a range of simple, routine tasks within basic procedures and under regular supervision. Thinking involves reacting and responding to routine queries from citizen’s issues or circumstances but any unusual or non-routine queries are referred to others. Little latitude to plan outside of daily priorities, with an expectation to deliver within specific timescales. 

At this level the role usually requires courtesy and effectiveness in dealing with others. However, where understanding, influencing, empathising and communication with people are important to achieving objectives, jobs at this level, roles will operate within more defined routines and procedures or with less requirement for planning and organising. 

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Input information onto specific systems, meeting deadlines and objectives set by others, focusing on accuracy and timescales to ensure that activities are undertaken in line with service objectives and requirements.
• Organise information according to existing procedures, checking/matching data to ensure accurate records are maintained.
• Run straightforward or routine reports to support basic department procedures, and produce documentation using some non-standard formats, templates and pro forma.
• Receive and respond to incoming enquiries from the community, referring anything outside their knowledge base to the appropriate person to resolve issues effectively.
• Maintain excellent customer care standards, by providing information and advice to service users.
• Process requests and notify customers accordingly, including the responsibility for banking of cash and transactions.
• Support senior officers to develop, maintain and care for facilities such as customer service area and museum collections.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Good literacy and numeracy, ability to use standard process or IT.
• Knowledge of relevant standards and processes governing area of work.
• Some understanding of the area within which they are working to be able to provide advice and guidance to citizens.
• Ability to receive and process cash payments.
• Ability to use simple processes or IT systems and standard software packages.
• Ability to prioritise own work to meet deadlines.
• Communication skills required to resolve queries and issues as they arise.

Roles at this level deliver a range of front-line community (but largely operational) activities, including front line education support services. Focus is on responsiveness to service/delivery standards.

Scope of Work

Roles at this level are responsible for the day-to-day operation of community services or cultural services. This involves a range of complex and varied duties to ensure service users are provided with materials, information and advice, and a secure service point. The ability to supervise, train, guide and support staff is critical to ensure excellent customer care standards. 

Role holders provide support by interpreting instructions and making a choice (from an established set) of the methods or tools appropriate for the job. This is in order to deliver a specific service to a defined standard, clear specification or brief, to an agreed format and with specific (daily) deadlines. The role holder will be facing the community, and will come across a number of issues or requests that will need to be dealt with in a timely manner, and will be expected to hold an awareness and understanding of the activities of those around them in order to deliver a comprehensive and complete service to the citizens of Hertfordshire. 

Role holders will be working within clearly established policies and procedures and will need to apply a degree of interpretation and identification of alternative solutions. Communication skills will need to be good in order to respond to queries which may be technical in nature, and to liaise with a number of stakeholders in the community.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Provide technical and practical skills and services drawing on learning through formal training and/or experience to resolve customer queries.
• Maintain excellent customer care standards, ensuring the accessibility of services to all users.
• Ensure services are delivered to an agreed quality standard or specification to maximise service quality and customer experience.
• Accountable for the quality of the service provided to deliver an exceptional front-line service to the community.
• Respond to queries as and when they arise, to ensure that citizens are satisfied with the response delivered.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• GCSE or Vocational equivalent, strong numeracy and literacy, proficient use of processes or IT.
• Knowledge of relevant systems, procedures and standards, gained through broad training and/or experience in a similar service environment.
• Some limited work experience of the relevant customer service area or similar customer focused environment.
• Ability to receive and process cash payments.
• Ability to use standard IT systems and standard software packages.
• Able to plan own work over short timescales for routine or familiar tasks and processes.
• Ability to communicate with tact and courtesy with external stakeholders/citizens.

Roles at this level are responsible for the provision of specialist community related services, and role holders will be authoritative on procedures of some complexity and variety; and have an understanding of relevant methods, systems and processes and their importance to the overall work area. Carries out a range of complex operational activities to defined time, cost and quality requirements.

Scope of Work

Role holders provide support to front-line customer services, including providing specialist support in a front line educational setting, exercising specific and sometimes specialist skills. Although most work follows established patterns, initiative is needed to handle equipment, processes and case work, to resolve problems and queries and react to changing priorities based on experience and judgement and without the need to refer to others. In some areas/locations, this may involve the supervision of junior staff roles. The role holder will be expected to resolve queries or issues from citizens which may hold some complexity or will have situations which are escalated to them that will need escalated knowledge of the area within which they are working. Communication skills required to relay and exchange information with a wide range of stakeholders, or there will be an expectation to supervise an operational, customer facing team, holding them to account on delivery of activities.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Liaise with members of the community, diagnoses what the problem or issue is and how it can be tackled, then selects the appropriate method or solution to ensure that queries are resolved.
• Keep abreast of the workload and ensures that the schedule of activities are delivered to ensure that activities are undertaken in good time.
• Ensure services are delivered to an agreed quality standard or specification to maximise service quality and customer experience.
• Deal with situations as they arise from members of the community, with an expectation to follow up on outcomes if and when required to meet expected standards.
• Use knowledge of the relevant customer service area to guide less experienced colleagues in resolving issues as they arise.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• GCSE or Vocational equivalent, strong numeracy and literacy, proficient use of processes or IT.
• Understanding of specialised processes and methods gained through relevant training and experience.
• Prior work experience of the relevant customer service area or similar customer focused environment.
• Good understanding of relevant skills and techniques, systems, procedures and legislation. and how to apply them without reference to others.
• Ability to use IT systems and software packages to interrogate information and to process requests or payments.
• Able to plan own work over short timescales for routine or familiar tasks and processes.
• Ability to communicate with tact and courtesy with external stakeholders/citizens.

Roles at this level will lead a team to deliver specified, citizen facing, operational outputs within defined systems, procedures and standards. Delivers technically complex operational, customer facing activities to laid down standards. Roles may provide advice or guidance in a broad area of specialism, in a front-line educational environment, dealing directly with the public. 

Scope of Work

Role holders will aid the completion of routine, community facing activities within the confines of a specific service – as an individual contributor or providing light supervision of others, under managerial direction, working within specific frameworks and systems in place.

Role holders operate with limited guidance and instructions so that initiative and judgement are required to determine how to address and resolve daily problems that may arise either from the team or from citizens. There is discretion to determine short-term priorities for self (and maybe others). Contributions to development include identifying repeating trends from the community, and reporting back to managers on these issues, with evaluative thinking to propose improvements to current working methods.

Role holders at this level may also provide supervision to more junior members of the service – roles that are doing broadly similar tasks to their own, using good communication skills to deliver advice both internally and externally.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Plan own (and sometimes others) work preparing for specific tasks and prioritising immediate requirements for the day or the week, referring to more senior colleagues for scheduling non-standard work to ensure timescales pressures are met.
• Undertake straightforward analysis of issues that are raised in order to support the general improvement of services to the community.
• Ensure core requirements such as legal and consultation processes and procedures are fully met to protect the community and the council.
• Understand the impact of incidents that arise within the service (especially with the public) and raise issues of concern where necessary to ensure appropriate resolution and the ongoing delivery of service to established standards.
• Manage and oversee the purchase of stock or resources that may be required as part of projects or for displays/collections in cultural and community facilities.• May monitor and process financial information and review financial data.
• Assist service users in accessing information, data, and referrals to other agencies or to cultural collections, using a variety of means such as digital access systems.

 

Supervisory

• Supervision of those providing a routine service to the community, providing an escalation point to resolve more complex issues.

 

Individual

• Follows a clear brief supplied by others to carry out a range of tasks, linked to similar area of activity.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Good level of education: GCSE, A-level or Vocational equivalent. Relevant vocational qualification or technical training. May be working towards a professional qualification.
• Clear understanding of the relevant work practices, processes and procedures relevant to the area.
• Ability to supervising the work of others, holding team members to account on quality of work.
• Ability to review available data and identify cause and effect, and then chooses the best solution from a range of known alternatives.
• Ability to support and advise others using expertise.
• Good communication skills and the ability to help others understand how to access services, or to understand the reasoning behind council and partner processes.

Roles at this level determine how to organise resources to deliver a range of community facing operational activities at mid to low levels of complexity. Focus is on maximising performance against target and compliance.

Scope of Work

Role holders could either be an entry supervisory position or an experienced customer service/community facing operative, however both will require the ability to apply theoretical knowledge and experience of the service to deliver to the customer. Reasoned application of methods and systems will be required in order to deliver exceptional service to citizens, based on a thorough understanding of the service needs and capabilities.

Roles at this level may also determine how to organise resources to deliver a range of front-line education activities at differing levels of complexity or provides advice and guidance within a specific, specialist field, educational field. 

Time horizons are focused on hours to days. Role holders typically provide front-line delivery and are often visible to service users. In that sense they act as ambassadors for the council across the community. 

Whilst role holders will be required to provide advice on how the service could improve the role is not permitted to fundamentally change the processes or way of operation the service. Communication skills will need to be strong to be able to liaise directly with the community, providing advice and guidance in a particular area, and if required to supervise a small number of operatives.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Ensure a range of standard activities, for example, responding to queries, following up on issues, recording of results, and escalating where necessary, are scheduled and delivered according to agreed deadlines and standards to meet the needs of the community.
• Assess equipment and resources required to undertake tasks and ensures that they are both available and fit for purpose to meet the needs of the community.
• May monitor and control financial information and review financial data to contribute to management of budgets.
• Ensure that the workload assigned to the team is manageable and is delivered to a timely and satisfactory standard to meet operational KPIs.
• Keep abreast of any trends that emerge through monitoring the incoming work and outcomes to start to inform managers of any issues that may need proactive work.
• Enhance processes and procedures to improve customer quality and experience in order to benefit the end user.

 

Supervisory

• Assesses the workload expected and puts in place a schedule of activities, ensuring staff are clear what is required of them.

 

Individual

• Liaises with service users to review requirements and resolve problems – suggesting improvements to senior officers.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Recognised vocational qualification plus broad experience in area of expertise or degree qualified. May be working towards a professional qualification or be of graduate entry level with sound practical experience.
• Detailed knowledge of the practical application of specialised processes/procedures relevant to the role, typically gained through extensive practical experience.
• Sound and wide-ranging knowledge of a specialist service area.
• Understanding relevant regulations and legislations and policy frameworks.
• Understanding of the organisation’s political environment.
• Experience of delivering high quality services within the relevant service area e.g. Revenues or Welfare.
• Able to plan own work over short timescales for routine or familiar tasks/processes and provide planning and supervision for others where appropriate. Good analytical skills with the ability to identify trends or patterns.
• Good communication skills – experience dealing with the service users and citizens.

Roles at this level provide operational expertise and experience and respond to situations quickly and in line with regulations, service levels and standards to ensure optimum efficiency and performance.

Scope of Work

Role holders will be experienced customer service operatives with specialist knowledge within their core area of work. They may be responsible for managing the operational requirements of area such as libraries, records functions, or advice services.

Roles at this level may provide expertise and experience, using technical knowledge to educate others, responding to critical situations quickly and in line with regulations, service levels and standards to ensure optimum efficiency and performance, providing citizens of all ages with advice and education to aid their development. This requires and in-depth knowledge of the relevant service delivery practices, procedures and regulations, and potentially budgetary and people management responsibility, with a requirement to help to develop, implement and monitor service area plans and strategies. Working collaboratively with partners is critical to bring about change and ensure excellent customer care standards are maintained.Roles will often be visible to the public and work within established frameworks and procedures. However, within these, they will have the freedom to interpret them to solve problems. The focus is on delivering an excellent customer experience.

Communication skills are required to provide excellent advice and services to a wide range of stakeholders, both internally and externally to deliver resolutions to issues that arise.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Responsible for undertaking a number of activities, planning and managing their own work or the work of more junior team members, ensuring that solutions are delivered to the community in a timely manner.
• Select and apply the most appropriate level of advice and/or analysis for solutions, interpreting data and/or producing required outputs (e.g. reports) to deliver appropriate advice to relevant members of the community.
• Provide technical information, interpretation of existing policies and procedures to ensure that advice and guidance given to members of the community is in line with Hertfordshire overarching strategic direction.
• May oversee the activities of a small, operational team, providing routine support to the community in an area of low complexity.
• Review and analyse information within own area or discipline to identify potential risk or areas for improvement, escalating any issues as necessary to the relevant manager or senior stakeholder.

 

Managerial

• May supervise the day to day operational delivery and performance of a team.
• May monitor and control financial information and review financial data to contribute to financial planning.

 

Professional

• Develops and maintains effective relationships and communication with internal and/or external service users, providing expertise and technical assistance in a specialist area.
• Act as a technical reference for the team, providing guidance on the more complex issues and monitoring adherence to relevant standards.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Recognised vocational or professional qualification plus broad experience in area of expertise, and/or degree qualified. May be working towards a professional qualification or be of graduate entry level with sound practical experience.
• Detailed knowledge of own service area and relevant working systems, equipment and/or IT software, plus an awareness of council policies and services related to the role.
• Working knowledge of regulatory processes and policy frameworks.
• Appreciation and understanding of wider internal and external issues impacting own team/department.
• Understanding of the organisation’s political environment.
• Experience of co-ordinating and supporting service delivery in the relevant service area, understanding how activities impact elsewhere.
• Ability to organise own work over weeks and months, or plans ahead for others, taking account of priorities and the impact on other people.
• Good communication skills including experience dealing with the service users or residents and helping them to understand reasons for processes and policy, or using reason to guide and advise.

Roles at this level have accountability for achieving visible, measurable results either personally or through the leadership and supervision of a team. Focus is on maximising utilisation/productivity of allocated resources and/or reducing costs. Roles at this level may also have accountability for achieving visible, measurable results in the realm of community education.

Scope of Work

Role holders are highly competent citizen and community service professionals providing highly visible services within a specialist area across Hertfordshire. Whilst being accountable for the quality and professionalism of others, such as a team of junior professionals or technicians, roles also identify what needs to be achieved with a specific area and how this is going to be achieved. These challenges may often need complex analysis. 

Role holders at this level will require a level of technical, professional or specialist skill to provide direction and act as a technical reference to deal with escalated issues. They will be scheduling, reviewing and monitoring the work of a team and contributing to the short-term planning of the service area. They will generally have considerable freedom over technical and operational decision-making within well-defined policies and guidance.

Communication skills will be required to provide technical advice or guidance to members of the community, or to more junior members of the team.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Drive operational improvement in procedure or through teams to enhance citizen and community experience.
• Provide advice and guidance to team members on how to deliver exceptional community support directly to citizens.
• Responsible for taking the lead on small projects of work, to deliver immediate, improved services to the community, within area of specialism.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of continuous improvements in area of specialism and on wider improvement initiatives to support the quality/performance of community services and the delivery of fit for purpose initiatives.

 

Managerial

• Manage a team of staff taking responsibility for monitoring and feedback on their performance, recruitment and selection, guidance and advice and ensuring their development.
• Controls team activities to meet short term performance targets and schedules.
• May support the control of budgets to deliver service priorities and to ensure appropriate resources are available.

 

Professional

• Prioritises work and resolves day-to-day operating resource issues related to customer service/experience improvement.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Typically degree qualified (or equivalent) in relevant subject plus number of years experience in a similar role OR significant vocational experience, demonstrating development through involvement in a series of progressively more demanding relevant roles. Formal professional qualification (where relevant).
• Up to date and thorough knowledge and understanding of the work practices, systems, processes and procedures relevant to the role, and a good understanding of the council policies and services related to the role.
• Understanding of the wider issues facing the community in area of specialism and the public sector as a whole.
• Understanding of the organisation’s political environment and able to explain the formal political structures and decision making processes in the council.
• Working experience in leading and motivating teams in the service area.
• Organises own work over weeks and months, or plans ahead for others, taking account of priorities and the impact on other people.
• Excellent communication skills, with experience dealing with the public/citizens and providing direction to a team.

Roles at this level manage elements of highly complex community support to deliver complete solutions and expert advice in area of specialism to contribute to the delivery of solutions for the citizens of Hertfordshire and wider organisational benefits. Roles at this level may manage elements of complex community engagement and resulting education, to deliver complete solutions in complex areas, and expert advice in area of specialism to contribute to meeting the educational needs of a wide demographic area in Hertfordshire.

Scope of Work

Role holders will be expected to work on complex, or broader community issues with expectation to oversee the work of more junior professionals within community facing services, linked to a similar area of expertise. Role holders will need to navigate around a wide range of specialised procedures and adapt these to fit each local situation as they arise. Although frameworks, procedures and processes exist there is a requirement to feedback to the leadership team on what works, what doesn’t and what should be done in future to improve in the short to medium term to ensure that members of the community are supported and have all their needs met. Communication skills will be required to provide advice and technical guidance within specific area of specialism to the public, and to internal stakeholders, managing streams of activities, to use expertise in community services to deliver outputs, liaising with a number of stakeholders to deliver required outputs.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Manage a visible service to the community, providing a point of escalation for both citizens and more junior members of the team when necessary.
• Work with a number of partners, groups and providers to deliver complex or broad community support services to a number of stakeholders, internally and externally to support the needs of many.
• Identify and makes recommendations for improvements to ways of working and service design that will enhance the effectiveness and efficiency of services provided to the community.
• Build relationships with internal and external stakeholders/service users to deliver expert community support services across the organisation.
• Provide specialist advice to members of the community, in area of specialism, with a necessity to translate technical language into language that others can interpret and understand.
• Lead in development, implementation, monitoring and reviewing the service plan, and contribute to other plans in the department.

 

Managerial

• Determines work plans and co-ordinates input from others within a community facing service to meet specific objectives.
• Coach, mentor and manage the team to ensure that they continue to deliver excellent services and develop in their roles.
• Manage allocated budgets and other resources (such as equipment or buildings) to deliver the agreed results.

 

Professional

• Makes technical/professional recommendations which have noticeable impact on the community.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Typically professionally qualified and/or relevant degree (or equivalent), plus substantial experience or substantial vocational experience demonstrating development through involvement in a series of progressively demanding roles. Formal professional qualification (where relevant).
• Up to date and authoritative knowledge of the work practices, systems, processes and procedures relevant to the role, and able to apply this knowledge in new and varied circumstances.
• Detailed knowledge of legislation, regulations and practice in their area of specialism concerning community services including a general, broader understanding of the public sector and the issues that it faces.
• Organisation and political awareness, and the ability to understand the political implications for certain decisions and provide advice and guidance for political representatives.
• Experience of working directly with the community, presenting a professional service, representing the council in a technical field.
• Experience in developing service plans to improve service delivery.
• Ability to supervise or oversee the work of others, ensuring that the quality of work delivered to the community is of high quality.
• Ability to seek out and examine a range of information to identify patterns, trends and options, to solve problems.
• Ability to influence and provide specialist guidance and advice to others, including the ability to motivate others.

Role will provide management and leadership to teams engaged in complex work to ensure the delivery of effective and responsive community services. Roles are likely to focus on broader community issues which may cover a number of teams, with a necessity to identify broad solutions. This level could also include individual experts who provide specialist advice to the community, ensuring that local requirements are managed effectively. 

Focus is on the interpretation and tactical application of policy to suit local needs. Roles at this may level manage elements of highly complex community engagement and resulting education, to deliver complete solutions in complex areas, and expert advice in area of specialism to lead on meeting the educational needs of a wide demographic area in Hertfordshire.

Scope of Work

Role holders will be required to work within corporate strategies to develop and evolve citizen or community facing services – responding to customer need, insight and research. Solutions to problems will be designed to meet set service objectives in line with existing internal or external needs, but also conversant of adapting to changing citizen needs. In this sense role holders will play a role in helping the service evolve in terms of delivering outputs in the most effective and efficient manner.

The role holder will need to hold a vision of issues facing the community in a number of areas, to deliver effective and cohesive, long term solutions. Role holders at this level will be expected to resource services, manage and motivate a team and resolve complex problems. 

Excellent communication skills are required in these roles in order to liaise with the community, and with internal stakeholders to ensure that the needs of citizens in the community are met and exceeded.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Review and analyse specified matters, offering support to identify the best solution to issues from the community, as identified by other areas of the council, or directly from citizens to ensure that they are fully supported.
• Decide and apply agreed standards to community support services, identifying improvements and developments locally, that can be influenced by best in class externally to ensure that Hertfordshire get the most innovative and successful solutions.
• Translate defined deliverables and policies to lead the preparation, development, implementation and monitoring of service strategies, approaches and plans for the department or service area.
• Lead the delivery of the communities’ objectives through project management, commissioning/procurement of goods and services, and/or managing contracts and service level agreements.
• Keep abreast of issues facing the community and changing legislation and regulation, to develop proactive solutions and responses to citizens, delivering a joined-up response to consistently improve the service the community experiences.
• Represent the council with citizens and other external stakeholders, providing advice in a specialist area, supporting the delivery of solutions and improvements to a range of community facing services.

 

Managerial

• Manages a medium sized team, with responsibility for the delivery of this team to provide specialist community services to the organisation.
• Coach, develop and manage the team so that they continue to grow and develop.
• Manage and control of budgets to deliver service priorities.

 

Professional

• Provides specialist community services and advice to a particular area of the council, ensuring that they bring an external perspective and best practice to internal issues.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Typically professionally qualified/relevant degree (or equivalent), plus substantial experience. Management qualification (if required).
• Up to date and authoritative knowledge of the work practices, systems, processes and procedures relevant to the role, and able to apply this knowledge in new and varied circumstances.
• Expert understanding of regulations/legislation within their area of specialism and the wider public sector.
• Good understanding of best practice in the area of community relations, with the ability to translate this into local solutions.
• Good awareness of broader developments and emerging trends in their service area and the wider public sector.
• Experience in developing and implementing policies, and business plans.
• Experience in managing direct services to clients and users.
• Experience of commissioning and managing services, holding contractors, or external parties to account on the delivery of activities.
• Organisational and political acumen and the ability to understand the political implications for certain decisions and provide advice and guidance for political representatives.
• Ability to seek out and examines a range of information to identify patterns, trends and options, to solve multifaceted and complex problems.
• Ability to build and maintain effective networks and relationships and influence others.
• Ability to develop and review the implementation of annual plans for a work group or function, taking account of business and citizen requirements and reconciling competing demands.
• Excellent communication skills with experience of leading and managing a team effectively.

Under the direction of the Head of Service, roles will manage complex activities, to ensure the delivery of effective, value for money and responsive services. Role holders at this level may be managing multiple projects, services or specialist teams engaged in complex work, to ensure service objectives are met. Roles may also be, heavily involved and integrated into the service, influencing, and challenging to inform service planning, development, and associated budgets within their own area.

Roles at this level manage highly complex community engagement and resulting education, to deliver complete solutions in complex areas, and expert advice in area of specialism to lead on meeting the educational needs of a wide demographic area in Hertfordshire.

Scope of Work

Role holders will be senior level specialists within an area which will impact the community as a whole, leading teams across the Directorate within their field of expertise. Role holders at this level may provide ‘portfolio’ leadership for a range of small teams in related community service areas or may lead a large team. They will have considerable scope for operational decision-making and will be expected to resource services, manage and motivate teams and resolve complex problems to ensure that services are shaped, planned, and delivered. Role holders will use their specialist knowledge to contribute to council corporate policies, providing specialist advice on future and current solutions within the area of community services. Work at this level will typically be bound by existing strategic direction, however role holders would be accepted to use their insight to provide specific service improvement advice to current services. Excellent communication skills are therefore needed to influence and negotiate at a high level across the council, shaping and delivering services, ensuring that non-technical role holders understand the implications and opportunities within their field.

 

Accountabilities/Responsibilities

• Ensure the ongoing delivery of high quality, value for money and consistent services to communities, co-ordinating action plans in line with agreed service standards, and ensure that relevant targets, statutory and reporting requirements, and codes of practice are met.
• Develop and communicate operational plans in order to support the Head of Service/Strategic Manager to deliver the council’s strategic objectives and ensure that the required service standards are met.
• Set and manage the operational direction for the service area based on the organisation’s operating arrangements, giving tactical advice to service providers and partners to ensure the effective management of commissioned or provided services so that the highest possible levels of service quality are upheld.
• Drive partnership working and co-ordination with other authorities and external provides, to enable greater to identify opportunities for improved efficiencies and collaboration across projects and services, to ensure stakeholder satisfaction.
• Manage relationships with community groups and related stakeholders, acting as a subject matter expert, to review service performance and to jointly shape delivery of services.
• Provide advice and support to council Members and departments on specific issues and procedures for community services, to support decision making and ensure lawful and compliant council activity.
• Lead the implementation and co-ordination of medium to high scale projects, managing multi-disciplinary teams, to ensure delivery standards and enable continuous improvements in the service area.

 

Managerial

• Manage and maintain a highly competent and participative work environment, promoting professional standards through active leadership in order to develop outcome-focused delivery teams that understand their contribution to the service and wider council success.
• Manage the control of budgets to deliver service priorities.
• Monitor and review performance against set targets to ensure that training needs are identified and addressed, and work is delivered on schedule to maintain effective service delivery.

 

Professional

• Contribute to the development, recommendation, and implementation of policies to improve organisational performance and achieve service specific objectives.
• Provide or facilitate training and/or information sessions to departments and partner organisations to enhance their understanding of a relevant area of expertise or specialism.

 

Skills, knowledge and experience

• Typically professionally qualified/relevant degree (or equivalent), plus substantial experience. Management qualification (if required).
• Highly developed knowledge of the principles, theory and practice of specialist area.
• Expert understanding of regulations/legislation within their area of specialism and the wider public sector.
• Good understanding of best practice in the area of community relations, with the ability to translate this into local solutions.
• Good awareness of broader developments and emerging trends in their service area and the wider public sector.
• Experience in developing and implementing policies, and business plans.
• Experience in managing direct services to clients and users.
• Experience of commissioning and managing services, holding contractors, or external parties to account on the delivery of activities.
• Strong organisational and political acumen, combined with understanding of context and the politics present within the council, and with partners and providers.
• Ability to seek out and examine a range of information to identify patterns, trends and options, to solve multifaceted and complex problems.
• Ability to develop long term relationships and networks external to the council, to influence and change behaviour.
• Ability to develop and review the implementation of annual plans for a work group or function, taking account of business and citizen requirements and reconciling competing demands.
• Excellent communication skills with experience of leading and managing a team effectively.