Service Manager - Environmental Services - REQ005826

INTERNAL ONLY VACANCY. This post is open to existing Leeds City Council employees only. Applications will not be considered from external candidates.

Job title: Service Manager - Environmental Services

Salary: PO6 £51,356 - £54,495

Hours: 37

Contract: Permanent

An opportunity has arisen for a permanent Service Manager role in Environmental Services.

As an Service Manager in Environmental Services you’ll thrive on working in a fast paced environment, dealing with different challenges and priorities in a service that affects every single resident in Leeds every day.

It’s not just about emptying the bins, or keeping the streets litter free. It’s about working with people, being proud of what we do and looking after each other and the environment

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.

Key requirements

As our next Service Manager you will bring to the role:

A leadership style that values people and builds trust, recognising that strong services are built on engaged and supported teams
Proven management skills and an ability to inspire, lead and support a team of staff to be 100% customer focused
An ability to develop solutions that address inequalities in how our services are delivered and accessed, and in how we support our colleagues/workforce
Exceptional communication & engagement skills with an ability to build positive and trusting relationships
A real commitment to your responsibilities in relation to managing health, safety and wellbeing strategies and policies
The ability to build strong relationships and work collaboratively with elected members, trade unions, partners, communities and colleagues to deliver shared outcomes.

Why Join Us

Leeds is a vibrant and ambitious city with a strong sense of purpose and pride. This role offers the opportunity to lead one of the city’s most important frontline services, delivering improvements that residents see and experience every day. You will play a key role in shaping the future of household waste management services in Leeds while contributing to the wider ambitions of the council to deliver a cleaner, greener and more sustainable city for everyone.

The attention and interest on how we collect, recycle and dispose of the city’s waste has never been greater. This is an opportunity to bring your transferrable experience and skills to the management of Environmental Services in Leeds; the second largest council in the UK.

Environmental Services cover a wide range of functions and altogether has over 830 staff – spanning operational, back-office, supervisory and managerial roles. As our next Service Manager you’ll be deployed in the Refuse service which is responsible for emptying the black, green and brown bins across the whole City 6 days a week. As a service we typically empty over half a million wheely bins EVERY WEEK in Leeds from the 360,000 households we serve.

The role is currently deployed in the Refuse section of the Service, but can be required to work anywhere across the Services portfolio which also includes the Cleaner Neighbourhoods Team, City Centre Cleansing, the Enforcement Team and the Household Waste & Recycling Centres.

What we offer yo

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
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

To apply, please complete an expression of interest (EOI) which should detail how you meet the essential requirements of employee specification contained within the Job Description. Please ensure your EOI is no more than 2 sides of A4.

Email your EOI to hayley.thackwray@leeds.gov.uk

If you require any adjustments to enable you to apply for the role, please let us know.

If you have any queries or would like an informal chat about the role please contact Hayley Thackwray, Head of Service; hayley.thackwray@leeds.gov.uk

We welcome applications from everyone and actively seek a diverse range of applicants from all backgrounds and cultures. We particularly encourage applications from, but not limited to, women, carers, veterans as well as LGBT+, ethnically diverse, disabled and care experienced people.

This role is based in the UK. Home Office guidance states that candidates must evidence their right to work in the UK prior to commencing employment, 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, you must consider your own eligibility for sponsorship for a particular role through the Skilled Worker visa route before applying. To be eligible for sponsorship you'll usually need to be paid the standard salary rate of at least £41,700 per year or meet one of the other eligibility criteria. Ensure you are eligible before applying.

Job Description

Job Purpose:

As a member of the Environmental Services Leadership Team and as directed by the Chief Officer, the post holder will provide effective leadership and management in one or more of a range of functions that sit under Environmental Services. This will relate to outcomes in Refuse Services, Household Waste and Recycling Centres and Services, Waste Management Services (inc Contracts, Performance, Engagement and Business Support), Cleaner Neighbourhoods Team, City Centre Cleansing and Environmental Enforcement (inc Waste Crime).

According to deployment, the role will include leading service teams and developing and delivering agreed service outcomes on:

Policies and performance management;
Management of a contracts and procurement programme;
Household waste collection operations and allied services
Recycling and reuse operations and facilities
Environmental enforcement
Street cleansing and allied services
The best use of support services, including comms/engagement

Responsibilities:

To demonstrate effective leadership and management in line with the Councils values and standards.
To ensure the Council-wide ambitions, values and vision are well recognised and can be seen through the behaviour and reputation of the team.
To lead service planning, development and commissioning at a team level, ensuring service delivery is fully effective at securing outcomes.
To ensure value for money considerations are accounted for in service reviews, design and delivery.
To work with other services to ensure service and team boundaries do not inhibit well co-ordinated operational working, to mutual benefit.
To lead cultural and operational change within teams.
To have overall responsibility for team performance.
To proactively develop and maintain positive relations and engagement with Trade Unions, to foster good industrial relations and informed service improvement.
To be responsible for all staff management issues including recruitment and selection, attendance management, supervision, individual performance, grievance and disciplinary issues etc.
To investigate and use a range of service delivery models as appropriate, according to those delivering best value for money and achievement of outcomes.
To resolve a range of challenging situations faced by residents and businesses through effective mediation and negotiation skills.
To help foster a strong team ethos across senior operational managers in Environmental Services , bound by common issues and opportunities.
To be the primary link between the service and the key partners (both internal and external).
To determine the priorities for the team, with reference to the corporate and Directorate priorities, local need and Council values.
To maintain a good awareness of the national policies and expectations of services and to respond to those in balance with local priorities.
To be responsible for the management of resources and service delivery to agreed budgets. Also, to assist in the development of and lead the delivery of any efficiency targets set.
To anticipate and facilitate the movement of resources to deal with service failure or reputational issues. This in relation to both local or city-wide and team specific or wider Environmental Services
To lead the team-level preparation and development of budgetary provision and make recommendations on budget management and financial planning.
To attend Community Committee meetings, sub groups, Ward Memberand public / business meetings to represent the service as required.
To forge and maintain good relationships with key stakeholders e.g, Community, Private Sector and Voluntary Sector Groups to ensure that local priorities are identified and tackled in an efficient manner.
To be responsible for the provision of adequate data and intelligence on service inputs and impact.
To promote and build the reputation of the team and service at a Council-wide level.
To be accountable for ensuring compliance with any governance requirements relating to the work of the division including those relating to procurement, financial management and ensuring the safety and wellbeing of staff and customers.
To actively promote and support Leeds City Council policies on equal opportunities and to create a culture that ensures equality and values diversity.
To deputise for JNC managers as required.
To undertake any other duties commensurate to the grade, as required.

EMPLOYEE SPECIFICATION

In order to fulfil the standard requirements of the post, post holders must meet the following requirements. Candidates for selection for the post will only be shortlisted for interview if they can demonstrate in their application that they meet these requirements. The following are considered to be essential requirements for the post.

Relevant leadership experience in a service or operational area
Commitment to continued professional development
Ability to manage and monitor performance effectively and set clear objectives for the review of individuals and service level performance
Ability to coach and mentor staff to develop a culture of high performance
Ability to translate service plans into clear objectives
Understand and promote policy of equal opportunities and diversity both in service delivery and employment
Enable all diverse communities to make use of council services
Personal integrity with a commitment to fairness, equality and diversity
An understanding of and commitment to sustainability in service delivery
To be able to demonstrate a knowledge of legislation, regulations, policies, inspections and performance information applicable to the relevant business area
To be able to demonstrate examples of managing services, imp[lamenting change, and achieving quality transformational outcomes
Taking ownership for informed decisions and delivering quality outcomes
Ability to manage change programmes, improve service quality, and support a culture that drives up standards and performance
Ability to take forward initiatives and policies from development to implementation using project management methodologies
Experience of working effectively with others to delver cross sector or cross service projects
An understanding of community issues relevant to the area of service delivery
Good understanding of the public sector and its relationship with the private and third sector
Experience of managing services to meet customer needs
Evidence of experience and commitment in relation to the engagement of residents, customers, communities and stakeholders in decision making processes
Ability to put the Corporate Vision and Values into practice through agreed policies and strategies
Experience of making effective contributions to internal and external meetings, networks, forums, including those at a local and regional level
Ability to develop productive working relationships that command respect, trust and confidence
Ability to ensure meaningful engagement with staff
A willingness to lead by example to promote excellence
Ability to produce comprehensive high quality reports and business cases
Ability to present information to diverse audiences
Ability to resolve conflict and demonstrate effective advocacy
Ability to collate and analyse complex information to inform decisions
Understand and ensure compliance with the legal, financial, governance and control framework including risk management
Demonstrate understanding of the need to balance the corporate orientation with operational responsibilities and accountability
Demonstrate ability to develop business focussed solutions to service and corporate problems
Understanding of Local Government political systems and experience of working on politically sensitive issues
Understanding of public sector issues including the impact of Government and legislation on council strategy and service
Ability to develop, manage and contribute to partnerships involving various stakeholders to gain ownership of a shared vision
Evidence of credibility whilst working collaboratively across services and with partners to deliver excellent services and outcomes
Ability to develop and maintain constructive relationships with Trade Unions including understanding of consultation, negotiation and collective bargaining
Experience of developing productive working relationships with Elected Members that command respect trust and confidence

Essential behavioural and other characteristics

Understand and embrace Leeds City Council values and behaviours and codes of conduct
Committed to continuous improvement in all areas and work towards delivering the Leeds Ambitions of health and wellbeing, inclusive growth, thriving strong communities, and a resilient sustainable city
Able to understand and observe Leeds City Council policies and procedures
Carry out duties having regard to an employee’s responsibility under Health, Safety and Wellbeing
Participate in appraisal, training and development activities to ensure up, to date knowledge and skills
Be aware of and support difference and ensure equality for all working in an anti-discriminatory manner, upholding equality and diversity of Leeds City Council
Recognise and appropriately challenge any incidents of racism, bullying, harassment, victimisation, and any form of abuse, reporting any concerns to the appropriate person
Flexible and adaptable to change to assist other services as required commensurate to grade.
The Council has adopted a flexibility protocol and the role will be expected to work within these parameters

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