Network Permit Officer

The Opportunity

Salary: NJC Grades 6 to 8 £27,254 to £35,412 per annum (G6 £27,254 - £28,598pa / G7 £29,540 - £32,061 pa / G8 £32,597 - £35,412 pa)
Contract Type: Permanent
Working Pattern: 37 hours per week, full time
Location: Temporarily based at County Hall or Drayton Depot - Chichester, due to the temporary closure of Durban House, Bognor Regis.
Interview date: w/c 01/09/25

Do you have experience in Highways, Transport, or Planning, or are you keen to learn?

Do you enjoy being part of a customer focussed service?

We have several fantastic opportunities to join our growing service. As a Network Permit Officer, you will be part of a team within our Network Management Service, who oversee all street works and road work activity. The Network Management Service guarantees the work is planned, inspected, processed, and carried out in accordance with regulations. We have one vacancy in the TTRO (Temporary Traffic Regulation Orders) Team and two vacancies in the Co-ordination Team. Please indicate within your application which team would be your preference.

Your role is vital in the planning, coordinating, monitoring, and inspecting of the street and road work activity of public utility companies, the County Council, and other contractors. This ensures all road works are carried out within the boundaries of a strict legal framework and with a view of ensuring any disruption caused by the works is kept to a minimum.

This is a customer focussed role, where you will also work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders, keeping them up to date of street work activity, any changes to schedules, fines, and extensions. You will be handling sensitive information, where confidentiality and knowing how to handle data is key.

This role provides an excellent opportunity for career progression, spanning three grades with increasing responsibilities, as shown below.

Key responsibilities of the role include:

Grade 6

• Working with customers and communities to find solutions to problems.
• Providing technical and operational support to a wide range of customers.
• Answering queries, ranging from contractors undertaking works to members of the public.
• Coordinating and processing applications such as small-scale utility works, roadspace booking forms, and licencing applications.
• Participate in joint meetings and site visits, supporting with checking sites and preparing plans and drawings.
• Reconciling financial payments to keep records up to date.

Grade 7

• Providing technical support for the team and customers.
• Creating reports and maintaining records in the Geographical Information System (GIS) database.
• Coordinate and process applications such as medium scale utility projects, roadspace booking forms, and licencing applications.
• Undertaking regular site surveys, such as checking sites, technical interpretations, and preparation of plans and drawings.
• Issuing Fixed Penalty Notices.
• Carrying out computer-based designs using Computer Aided Design (CAD) or GIS.

Grade 8

• Traveling independently to various meeting venues and attending site visits across the county, including roadside visits, sometimes in unfavourable weather.
• Being the main contact point for street work activity, such as requests being planned, scheduled, and carried out.
• Identifying, investigating, and resolving short- and long-term issues that arise from inspection reports.
• Influencing and persuading third parties to complete information on time, using tact and diplomacy when advising others.
• Using databases such as Confirm (Highways Asset Management database) and SAP (financial system).
• Producing regular reports, estimates, and forecasts, and raising and chasing invoices/payments.

For more information on the Responsibilities, Key Skills, Qualifications and/or Experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached. Please refer to the key skills in your application form as these will be used for shortlisting criteria.

About You

We are looking for people who know how to motivate themselves with flexible approach to work and a "can do" attitude. You will be a team player, liaising and collaborating with colleagues and customers on a regular basis, and providing an excellent Highways service.

If you have integrity, openness, and an awareness of others, we would love to hear from you.

About Us

The Traffic Management Act 2004 places a duty on the County Council as the local highway authority to manage the road network. The Network Management Service is responsible for meeting the Council's network management duty to keep traffic flowing.

Making sure the road network operates as smoothly and efficiently as possible is a key service for the Council. We know that works must take place on our roads, whether by the highway authority, utility companies or developers. It is important that these works are properly planned, managed and carried out in a way that creates the least impact on other road users.

Benefits

As an employer we recognise that it is our employees that are central to everything we do. We aim to create a supportive and dynamic working environment where employees can achieve their full potential, achieve a healthy work-life balance, and are rewarded for the work they do.

For a full list this can be found at our Rewards and Benefits page.

Upon joining us you will have access to a range of benefits including the following:

Further information

The reference number for this role is EIE01447.

To apply, please follow the links below to upload your CV and Application Form.

In your application form, please outline your motivations for applying and explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role (please refer to the key skills) ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable adults. This post is subject to three years referencing, and an occupational health check.

Equity, inclusion, and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application help page.

EC