Location: Farnley Hall/Merrion House/various
This is a unique opportunity to support with and influence the development and further enhancement of Leeds City Council’s extensive portfolio of parks and green spaces.
The Service as a whole manages around 4,000 hectares of green space, 7 major parks, 63 community parks, and 156 nature conservation sites.
Within this service, the Commercial & Estates team has an income target of over £10 million per year, working across our 10 cafés and shops, 2 zoos, 101 allotment sites, a farm, and the largest local authority plant nursery in the country at the Arium.
Leeds City Council is one of the largest employers in the region with over 14,000 employees. We seek to recruit and develop talented individuals who embody our council values and ambitions.
About you
Working within the Green Spaces Commercial & Estates team, you will live and model values and behaviours to help us achieve our ambition to become the best city council in the country.
As Senior Project Officer, you will be able to demonstrate the following in particular:
* Degree or relevant demonstrable skills or experience in a related service area;
* Experience of managing non-complex projects or sub-projects within large scale multi-disciplinary projects, and coordinating the associated commercial approach;
* Drive, energy, resilience and self-management skills as well as integrity, openness and awareness of others in delivering non-complex projects;
* Ability to find and implement creative and innovative solutions to complex problems in a project environment;
* Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence and negotiate to form positive relationships with a variety of stakeholders.
About the role
The Commercial & Estates team is responsible for the management and development of the Council’s portfolio of commercial outlets and visitor attractions within its green spaces.
Your role will have an important commercial emphasis through identifying opportunities, securing funding, and delivering projects and initiatives to maximize income from across our estate.
This will include researching best practices, identifying funding opportunities, developing business cases and funding applications, as well as project management of the delivery of projects and schemes.
Your role will involve consultation with internal and external stakeholders and working with relevant specialist teams to develop technical proposals or communications and marketing plans in support of service initiatives, as well as monitoring and reporting on their ongoing impact and effectiveness.
What we offer you
We take pride in offering the best employee experience, with benefits including:
* a competitive salary and annual leave entitlement plus statutory holidays
* membership of the West Yorkshire Pension Fund with generous employer contributions
* flexible and hybrid working arrangements subject to service requirements
* a clear career pathway and continuing professional development opportunities
* a range of staff benefits to help you boost your wellbeing and make your money go further
How to apply
Please complete the online application form.
Read our guidance for further advice. Please check your information carefully and ensure you complete all sections before submitting your application.
If you have any queries or would like an informal chat about the role, please contact Sonya McDonald, Head of Commercial & Estates, on tel. 0113-378-8693 or email sonya.mcdonald@leeds.gov.uk.
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults.
We promote diversity and want a workforce that reflects the population of Leeds. Leeds City Council is recognized in Stonewall’s Workplace Equality Index 2024. We are also an Age-friendly Employer, a Mindful Employer, and a Disability Confident Leader.
All new Leeds City Council appointments are made subject to the satisfactory completion of a six-month probationary period.
This role is based in the UK. Employment is conditional on confirmation of the right to work in the UK - either as a UK or Irish citizen, under the EU Settlement scheme, or having secured any other relevant work visa. If you do not have the right to work in the UK and the role does not meet eligibility for sponsorship, please consider carefully whether you meet the eligibility to apply.
Job Description
Job Purpose:
We are at the forefront of the council’s strategy for a sustainable city. Since declaring a climate emergency, Leeds City Council has invested hundreds of millions of pounds in our plans to end the city’s contribution to climate change and to improve the city’s resilience against future climate hazards. Working as part of the Green Spaces Commercial & Estates team, you will live and model values and behaviours to help us achieve our ambition to become the best city council in the country.
The Service, as a whole, manages around 4,000 hectares of green space, 7 major parks, 63 community parks, and 156 nature conservation sites. Within this, the Commercial & Estates team has an income target of over £10m per year, working across our 10 cafés and shops, 2 zoos, 101 allotment sites, a farm, and the largest local authority plant nursery in the country.
Your role will be important in supporting the achievement of our Best Council ambitions to be efficient and enterprising; become more financially sustainable and resilient, safeguarding public funds while achieving value for money; have a modern, efficient, sustainable estate; promote a more competitive, less wasteful, more resource-efficient, low carbon economy. In particular, your role will have an important commercial emphasis in terms of identifying opportunities and delivering initiatives to maximize income from across our estate.
The post holder will be responsible for leading limited complexity projects or service development initiatives and supporting professional and management functions in respect of these projects, as well as supporting the authority to meet a range of statutory and regulatory undertakings in relation to procurement, planning, and highways and supporting the provision of advice to elected members and directorates on related commercial or other activity.
The Senior Project Officer will be able to demonstrate relevant skills and experience in project or relevant service area management and will be responsible for leadership functions of non-complex projects, or the management of a sub-project within a complex project.
Further responsibilities also include supporting the management of projects on behalf of the council, utilizing and coordinating resources from across the Council, and contributing to innovation in project and service development.
Responsibilities:
* Support and deliver non-complex projects or service development initiatives or complex sub-projects, planning, organizing, coordinating, delivering, and monitoring sub-projects and workstreams to ensure agreed outcomes within a context of budget pressures and funding restrictions.
* Support the management of these projects and service development initiatives and the application of project management tools, techniques, and controls, ensuring the delivery and improvement of services which meet the needs of our communities and stakeholders.
* Provide advice on project matters across the authority to senior officers and other stakeholders.
* Contribute to effective joint working within the council.
* Provide direction and support to colleagues, clients, and immediate line reports, creating an organizational culture of shared accountabilities, learning, and continuous improvement.
* Contribute to new ways of working and to partnership working and relationships with key clients both internal and external to the council, to improve corporate priority outcomes and to ensure that developments and improvements remain focused on delivering outcomes for local people.
* Promote and support positive solutions to achieve diversity and equality of opportunity in all aspects of service delivery, community engagement activity, and human resource areas.
* Support effective consultation and communications with colleagues, clients, councillors, partners, and other stakeholders in accordance with council policy.
* Support open, responsive, and accountable government, ensuring good governance compliance with financial and procurement procedures.
* Manage all aspects of risk and be responsible for the safety of staff, clients, and contractors in accordance with all statutory obligations and relevant health and safety policies.
* Manage non-complex projects and/or sub-projects of complex public sector projects, contributing to key project documentation and effective project decision-making, data analysis, reporting, governance, and delivery.
* Support the matrix management of resources within projects across the council.
* Advise colleagues and internal clients on the project delivery of non-complex projects including coordinating associated commercial input and interfaces with other professions such as legal, finance, and technical.
* Manage and lead the identification and mitigation of risks and issues in all projects.
* Provide advice to the council on standards for the delivery of non-complex projects and complex project sub-projects through the development of project initiation/pre-procurement documentation for the feasibility, project initiation, expression of interest, and outline business case stages of a project, including undertaking options appraisal and developing pre-procurement strategies for the presentation of projects to the market.
* Lead the development and implementation of project management tools and techniques including developing business cases.
* Support the identification and pursuit of relevant funding opportunities, completing applications and supporting the development of bids to external bodies to support the council’s objectives.
* Act as a mentor for the council in disseminating project ideas and best practices to clients and other project management professionals.
* Implement standardized project management methodologies including managing the organization of projects, development of objectives, benefits realization, risk, issues, actions, configuration logs, scope, resources, programming/planning, costs, reporting, and change.
* Support the undertaking of stakeholder consultation, developing communications and stakeholder plans in relation to the council’s projects.
* Support the delivery of complex multi-competing workstream projects (e.g. complex public sector procurements) in accordance with the council’s governance and management arrangements.
* Provide support to the formulation of bids to Government agencies in relation to complex public sector projects in accordance with the council's asset management priorities.
* Ensure compliance with statutory undertakings.
* Ensure safety and safeguarding requirements are complied with.
Qualifications:
The following are essential:
* Degree or relevant demonstrable skills or experience in a related service area.
* Relevant demonstrable skills or experience at a level equivalent to IPMA Level C and/or APM PMQ qualification.
* Experience of supporting complex multi and competing workstream projects or service development initiatives.
* Experience of managing non-complex projects or sub-projects within large scale multi-disciplinary projects, and coordinating the associated commercial approach.
* Demonstrate drive, energy, resilience and self-management skills as well as integrity, openness and awareness of others in delivering non-complex projects.
* Ability to present complex information in a clear and concise manner using a variety of presentational forms.
* Experience of working in a multi-disciplinary project environment and coordinating inputs from across a project team.
* Experience of supporting multi-disciplinary and occasionally geographically dispersed teams.
* Experience of successful management of change programmes which reflect service needs, provide value for money and maintain quality.
* Ability to find and implement creative and innovative solutions to complex problems in a project environment.
* Excellent communication skills with the ability to influence and negotiate to form positive relationships with a variety of stakeholders.
* Ability to employ a range of management tools and techniques which focus on achieving results in terms of outcomes for staff and customers.
* Experience of delivering a high level of customer satisfaction through leading non-complex projects or service development initiatives.
* Knowledge, understanding and experience of performance management and programme/project management to drive service improvement.
* Understanding and practical experience of complex public sector projects or service development initiatives and the associated commercial approach from feasibility to service delivery.
Essential Behavioural & other Characteristics:
* Committed to continuous improvement in all areas and work towards delivering the Best City Ambition of Health & Wellbeing, Inclusive Growth, and Zero Carbon.
* Able to understand and observe Leeds City Council equality and diversity policies.
* Carry out all duties having regard to an employee’s responsibility under Health and Safety Policies.
* Willingness to actively participate in training and development activities.
* Flexible and adaptable to change to assist other services as required commensurate to grade.
* Participate in appraisal, training, and development activities.
* Be aware of and comply with Leeds City Council policies and procedures.
* Be aware of and support difference and ensure equality for all working in an anti-discriminatory manner, upholding, equality & diversity policies of Leeds City Council.
* Recognize and appropriately challenge any incidents of racism, bullying, harassment, victimization, and any form of abuse, reporting any concerns to the appropriate person.
* The Council has adopted a flexibility protocol and the role will be expected to work within these parameters.
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