District Library Manager, South Cambridgeshire

Our benefits

We value our colleagues in Cambridgeshire County Council and have developed a number of benefits in addition to the basics like annual leave, sick pay, pension and mileage…

• A comprehensive wellbeing package to cover all aspects of wellbeing, both in and out of work, which can also be accessed by your family
• Buy up to 4 weeks additional annual leave (pro-rata) through our salary sacrifice scheme
• Take your bank holidays flexibly to better suit your personal circumstances
• Make Additional Voluntary Contributions (Shared AVCs) to your pension with tax and National Insurance savings
• Access to development opportunities, apprenticeships and qualified coaches to support your personal and professional growth
• Paid volunteering hours each year so you can make a positive impact on our community during your normal working day
• Access to Peer Support Groups through our IDEAL staff equality, diversity and inclusion network
• Opportunities to nominate and receive Employee Recognition Awards
• An Our Cambs Rewards account, giving you access to in-store and online discounts as well as our Car Lease and Cycle to Work schemes

Take a look at our Employment Benefits Brochure attached to this advert to find out more.

About the role

We are seeking to appoint a District Library Manager for South Cambridgeshire for 30 hours per week, on a fixed term basis until March 2028.

Are you ready to lead Cambourne Library, newly refurbished and at the heart of one of the fastest-growing districts in the country, while playing a key role in shaping the future of public library services across South Cambridgeshire?

We are seeking a dynamic, people-focused operational leader to champion South Cambridgeshire Libraries. From our hub library in Cambourne to our libraries in Bar Hill, Comberton, Cottenham, Great Shelford, Histon, Linton, Papworth, Sawston and Willingham, you'll lead a service dedicated to achieving the council's vision of creating a healthy, fair and sustainable Cambridgeshire.

This is an exciting time to join South Cambridgeshire Libraries. The district is experiencing significant growth and development, creating a unique opportunity to shape how library services respond to the needs of existing and new communities. You will play a leading role in supporting the continued development of library services across the district, including preparations for the opening of Darwin Green Library and the development of a new library at Northstowe.

Through your leadership, you'll help promote culture and creativity, support community health and wellbeing, expand access to trusted information and digital services, and inspire a love of reading through engaging and inclusive programmes.

About the role

This is more than a management role. It's a chance to influence how library services evolve within one of Cambridgeshire's most ambitious growth areas.

You'll lead a diverse team across ten libraries, ensuring our spaces remain welcoming, inclusive and responsive to the needs of local communities. Whether you're overseeing daily operations, developing partnerships, supporting new service initiatives or contributing to strategic planning, your work will directly impact how residents access knowledge, culture, information and support.

Based at Cambourne Library, you'll work across the South Cambridgeshire library network and be a key member of the Library Leadership Team, working closely with the Head of Libraries, Archives and Culture. This varied role combines operational leadership with strategic development. One day you might be supporting the delivery of a community project, leading service improvements or mentoring staff; the next, you could be developing partnerships with local organisations, contributing to plans for new libraries, or helping shape the future direction of library services across a rapidly growing district.

What will you be doing?

We're proud of our libraries and our reputation as a sector-leading library service, but we're always looking for new ways to improve, innovate and reach more people. We're seeking a confident and collaborative leader who can support and inspire teams, identify opportunities for service development, and help ensure our libraries continue to meet the evolving needs of South Cambridgeshire's communities.

A key part of the role will be providing leadership across a network of libraries that are largely single-staffed, ensuring colleagues feel supported, connected and empowered to deliver excellent services locally. You'll work closely with and support two Area Library Managers, helping to build a positive culture, develop talent, and create a resilient and adaptable workforce across the district. In addition, you will also act as a point of contact for our Community Managed Libraries across Cambridgeshire.

As a member of the Library Leadership Team, you'll play an active role in shaping and delivering the Library Strategy, contributing both operational expertise and strategic insight. You'll work collaboratively with colleagues across the service to develop new approaches to community engagement, improve access to services, and ensure libraries remain relevant and responsive to changing community needs.

About you

This is a role where you’ll see the impact of your work every day. Working in a fast-paced and rewarding environment, you’ll contribute to library strategy and be part of a supportive, forward-thinking team. You’ll also benefit from flexible hybrid working, ongoing professional development, and the chance to shape services that truly matter to our communities.

About you

You’re a natural leader, someone who brings people together, builds trust, and gets things done. You’ve managed teams before, ideally across multiple sites, and you know how to balance operational demands with long-term vision. You’re confident using data to inform decisions, and you’re comfortable navigating change.

You don’t need to have worked in libraries before, but you do need to understand what excellent public service looks like, and be committed to helping deliver a high-quality, cost-effective library service that responds to the needs of local communities. If you’ve got experience of leading a team in a customer-focused environment and you’re passionate about making a difference, we’d love to hear from you.

For a full list of the requirements of the role, please refer to the attached Job Description & Person Specification.

When completing your supporting statement, please emphasise how your knowledge, skills and experience meet the job description with a focus on:

Awareness of current issues, challenges, developments and opportunities in the library sector.

Evidence of a range of leadership qualities and skills necessary to recruit, build, motivate, lead and manage the performance of a large team of staff.

Excellent interpersonal skills with staff and volunteers, including active listening, problem solving, patience and understanding.

Ability to implement and realise corporate priorities/strategy, taking account of political and external influences, and to use influencing and negotiating skills.

Demonstrate ability to make effective use of Microsoft Office 365 suite, especially Teams, Excel and PowerBI.

Proven ability to interpret key performance indicator data to inform decision making. Ability to present and report on data in a clear and concise manner.

Appointment to this post will be subject to the outcome of an Enhanced Disclosure obtained through the Disclosure and Barring Service.

We’re committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Want to know more?

For an informal chat about the role, contact Gary Porter, Head of Libraries, Archives and Culture, at gary.porter@cambridgeshire.gov.uk or 07770227096.

Interview arrangements: Interviews are expected to take place on Wednesday 7th October at New Shire Hall, Alconbury.

About us

Cambridgeshire is a great place to work and live with a diverse population, an urban centre in Cambridge, historic Isle of Ely, Huntingdon and St Ives as well as more rural landscapes.

Our four values are central to our culture, driving everything we do.

We are proud to serve the diverse communities of Cambridgeshire and want our workforce to be reflective of this diversity, which we firmly believe benefits our colleagues, the organisation and our communities. If you don’t meet every single requirement in the job role but think this could be you, please don’t be put off. We are committed to building a workplace that is compassionate and inclusive as well as diverse, so if you think you could be a good candidate for this role please consider applying and speak to the recruiting manager if you have any questions.

Our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy, along with our employee network 'IDEAL' and self-organised peer support groups help us to foster an inclusive, supportive and safe working environment where people feel valued, respected, and empowered. We collect relevant diversity data for monitoring as part of the recruitment process to understand the diversity of our applicants and monitor any trends throughout the recruitment processes so that we can take meaningful action.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We fully support providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process, as well as when you join us, and we encourage candidates to contact the Hiring Manager, whose details can be found in the advert, to discuss any adjustment needs. Through a Guaranteed Interview Scheme, we will offer an interview to all applicants who disclose a disability and meet the essential criteria for a job vacancy. On your application form you can indicate you are disabled. Some examples of reasonable adjustments during the recruitment process could include additional time to complete an assessment or printing a document on pastel coloured paper with larger font size and line spacing. We would value talking about what might be possible to enable you to join us and thrive, so if there is something that would help you to do your best during your journey with us, please get in touch.

Visit our jobs and careers section to find out more about our wide range of learning and development opportunities; apprenticeships; our wellbeing package; staff benefits; our commitment to equality, diversity and Inclusion.

https://www.cambridgeshire.gov.uk/council/jobs-and-careers