Countryside Stakeholder Engagement Officer
This role has a starting salary of £38,746 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week. We're on the lookout for a confident and positive individual to join us as our Countryside Stakeholder Engagement Officer. This role provides an exciting opportunity to work with people from a range of backgrounds including community groups, charities and a range of other services across Surrey County Council. Understanding the people we want to reach aren't always available during traditional working hours, there may be a need for some occasional evening and weekend work. Why work with us? Making a difference: Your work will make a positive impact in areas such the climate change agenda, biodiversity and improving the wellbeing of communities around Surrey. Learning and development opportunities: In our dynamic environment, every day is a learning experience. You'll have the chance to grow professionally, acquiring new skills and knowledge to support your professional development. Supportive team: SCC operates in a diverse, dynamic, and exciting environment. Through cross team working you will collaborate with experienced colleagues, subject matter experts, and receive peer to peer support for your project. Competitive compensation: You will benefit from excellent development opportunities, 26 days annual leave (rising to 28 days after 2 years' service) with the option to buy additional annual leave, the Local Government Pension Scheme and the opportunity to join our car lease scheme. For more information about the wide variety of benefits you can take advantage of please visit our website. The Team The Visitor Services team are dedicated to ensuring residents and visitors have a great experience across Surrey's Countryside Estate, from finding information before they arrive to the memories they keep long after they've left. The team covers a broad spectrum of areas including communications and engagement, activities, events and even filming. The Role The Countryside Stakeholder Engagement Officer will act as a visible point of contact for the public and our partners, presenting the Council in a positive and approachable way. They will coordinate responses to queries, drive engagement with countryside initiatives, cascade communications and work to gain broader representation beyond traditional audiences. This post will line manage the Countryside Liaison Officer, with both roles offering cover for each other as necessary. In addition to working with some of our established forums and partnership groups, this role will also focus on proactively reaching out to community leaders to co-design new partnership projects that support our objectives and give residents a feeling of civic pride and custodianship of the countryside. People can be very passionate about countryside issues, and not everyone will share the same point of view. The successful candidate will use their positive attitude and problem-solving skills to find solutions to problems, manage expectations and reach workable compromises. Work location The role works flexibly through a mix of office, site, and home-based working with an expectation to attend our countryside base in Merrow (Guildford) at least one day a week. To support work with partners and other stakeholders you will be required to attend meetings around the County, so a full driving licence is essential for this role. About you As the Countryside Stakeholder Engagement Officer you will possess excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, displaying empathy, influence and tact, with the ability to tailor your approach to the audience you are working with. You will have a track record of working with a range of partners who have different interests, creating outcomes that work for everyone involved. You will be well organised with strong project management skills, and a team player with a 'can do' attitude who is able to use their initiative to progress projects. Understanding that things don't always go to plan, you won't get flustered under pressure but will use your problem solving and conflict resolution skills to find a way forward. You will also be able to display an understanding and knowledge of Countryside issues. As part of the application process, you will be asked to upload your CV and answer the following questions: 1. Tell us about a time you used your stakeholder management skills to overcome a significant problem and what you learned from the experience. 2. Tell us about the project or programme you have delivered which you are most proud of. 3. Describe the qualities you possess that makes your application for this role stand out above other applicants. Answers to these questions will be scored and used for shortlisting purposes. The full role profile can be found at the bottom of the advert; please refer to this when writing your answers. At Surrey we work together openly and honestly to provide our residents with an excellent service that is inclusive and respectful of all. We offer a wide range of benefits that allow you to develop within your career without having to sacrifice your work/life balance.You can read more about our benefits, vision and values on our website by clicking apply.
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