JOB DESCRIPTION Organisation : London Borough of Waltham Forest Salary: PO9 £61,980 - £65,478 Contract Type: Full-time/Permanent Working hours per week: 36 Application Deadline: 15/02/25 Proposed Interview Date(s): 18/02/25 Reference: 1619 INTERNAL CANDIDATES ONLY About Us: Bursting with culture, energy, and opportunity, the London Borough of Waltham Forest is a fantastic and exciting place to work. We are a highly ambitious borough. Driven by culture and the innate creativity of our residents, we have developed new and innovative ways to build our communities. Our Council is relentlessly resident-focused, insight-led, digitally driven and commercially minded; a Council focused on meeting the needs of our existing and future residents. London Borough of Waltham Forest is one of the Mayor of London's Good Work Standard employers. This accreditation is a proof of our commitment to creating a healthy, fair and inclusive workplace. This includes fair pay and conditions, workplace well-being, skills and progression and diversity and recruitment. The Council's preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitmentwalthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method. Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice. About the role: As the Libraries and Community Front Doors Operational Manager, your role is to lead the library service in achieving Waltham Forest's strategic goals, policies, targets, and objectives, while meeting operational and financial requirements. You will be responsible for planning, developing, and delivering a high-quality, professional service within the designated area. Additionally, you will support the development, management, and delivery of Council services, overseeing staff involved in service delivery and support. Your role will also focus on ensuring the Council optimizes service outcomes while managing costs effectively. >> Click here to download the Role Profile Key Responsibilities: Strategic Leadership & Service Delivery Lead Library service to meet Waltham Forest's strategies, policies, targets, and objectives. Develop and implement long-term strategy for Library Services. Ensure library service meets operational, financial, and statutory requirements. Community Engagement & Needs Assessment Understand community needs through focus groups and surveys. Ensure services are responsive to national and local policy changes. Use customer feedback to guide service developments and improvements. Budget & Financial Management Support budget management and financial requirements of the library service. Identify and grow income streams within the service. Stakeholder Relations & Political Acumen Build strong relationships with senior managers and local Cllrs, staff, community groups, and external stakeholders. Use political judgment to align library services with Council's values. Team Leadership & Staff Management Manage the well-being and performance of a large customer service team. Foster a high-functioning, engaged management team aligned with the Council's values. Promote inclusive leadership and encourage idea generation among staff. Health & Safety Compliance Ensure health and safety policies, training, and reporting are adhered to across all library buildings. Diversity & Community Inclusion Lead efforts to ensure library services are equitable and cater to diverse community groups. Set up forums to listen to and respond to the voice of the customer, ensuring access and awareness Qualifications and Requirements: Operational & Strategic Leadership Significant experience in managing customer-facing service areas, with the ability to translate organisational goals into actionable operational objectives, long-term plans, and measurable outcomes. Proven track record in leading strategic change and improvement initiatives, including digital innovations, to enhance service quality and operational efficiency. Extensive experience in Library and asset management. Stakeholder Engagement & Communication Strong experience in building and maintaining effective relationships with senior managers, external stakeholders, and partners. Ability to provide expert advice and guidance on complex issues, influence decision-making, and promote collaborative working across a variety of internal and external teams. Complex Problem Solving & Risk Management Expertise in managing complex and high-risk issues within established policy and regulatory frameworks. Demonstrated ability to use expert judgment to mitigate risks, resolve problems, and ensure the consistent delivery of high-quality services. Team Leadership & Staff Development Proven ability to lead and motivate a high-performing management team, fostering a culture of trust, innovation, and customer-centric service delivery. Experience in promoting inclusivity, supporting staff development, and managing teams across multiple locations. Educated to degree standard or equivalent Relevant professional qualification Terms and conditions: Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks; Satisfactory declaration of interest; Continued professional body registration; Suitable driver's license; As a public authority, we must ensure that members of staff in public-facing roles are able to speak fluent English. This means that they must have a command of spoken English, with confidence and accuracy, sufficient for the effective performance of their role. This requirement does not refer to any particular English language qualifications, regional or international accents, dialects, speech impediments or the tone of conversations. It does not require staff to speak only in English. How to Apply: Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the 'Apply' button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy. We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible. Equal Opportunity Employer: Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value. To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy. We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview. For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us. Contact Information: If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact Emma Appleford-John, Head of Libraries & Registrars at emma.appleford-johnwalthamforest.gov.uk If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitmentwalthamforest.gov.uk .