Senior Project Manager

Job Description

Organisation: London Borough of Waltham Forest

Salary: PO6 £54,267-£57,402

Contract Type: Full time, permanent

Working hours per week: 36

Application Deadline: 02/09/2026

Proposed Interview Date(s): Interviews expected to take place week commencing 01/09/2026

Reference: 2243

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.

About the role:

As a Senior Project Manager, you will be at the heart of shaping and delivering the Council’s response to the national SEND Reforms. You will be responsible for driving forward Waltham Forest’s SEND reform plans, leading an integrated approach to programme delivery that will strengthen inclusive practice and support for children and young people in the borough.

Working in close partnership across key internaland external partners, including senior officers, schools, parents and young people, you will provide expert project management, insightful advice and constructive challenge. You will be comfortable in navigating complexity, balancing pace with rigour, and keeping delivery on track in a fast‑moving environment. This role will suit an experienced project manager who thrives on complexity, enjoys making the difficult doable, and is motivated by delivering meaningful, resident‑focused change at scale.

>> Click here to download the Role Profile <<

Key Responsibilities:

• Establish and maintain robust programme governance, including project plans, risk and issue logs, benefits plans and assurance mechanisms.
• Prepare and present high‑quality reports and recommendations for programme boards and members as required.
• Proactively identify and manage risks, issues and dependencies, escalating where appropriate.
• Build and sustain strong relationships with senior officers and partners including schools, parents and health partners.
• Act as a trusted adviser on project delivery and support services to evidence measurable impact for children, young people and families.

Qualifications and Requirements:

You will bring:

• Experience of leading complex projects in a large, fast‑paced organisation.
• Strong understanding of agile and traditional project management methodologies, tools and techniques.
• Excellent report writing and communication skills, with the ability to present clearly to audiences.
• Strong partnership working skills and the ability to develop and manage diverse partnerships.
• Exceptional planning, organisational and problem‑solving skills, with a proactive, solution‑focused approach.
• Educated to degree level or equivalent experience.
• A recognised project management qualification (e.g. MSP, PRINCE2, Agile certification) or equivalent professional experience.

Terms and conditions:

The below terms and conditions apply to this role:

• Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks;

• Satisfactory declaration of interest;

• 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 Ellie Miller, Programme Manager at ellie.miller@walthamforest.gov.uk

If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.

The Council’s preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method.

Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.

Fraud Awareness Notice
The London Borough of Waltham Forest only advertises vacancies via our official website and approved recruitment platforms (e.g. Jobsgopublic).

We will never ask for payment or request sensitive personal or financial information as part of our recruitment process.

If you are contacted by a third party claiming to represent the Council, please verify the vacancy via our official careers website before sharing any information.

If you have concerns about a job advert or communication, please report it to:
fraud@walthamforest.gov.uk