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Job Title: Change Manager
Starting Salary: £48,226 progressing to £53,460 per annum - Pay award pending
Hours: 37
Base Location: Farnham House, Stevenage with hybrid working. The role is expected to be present in the office 3-4 days a month. Ability to travel across Hertfordshire required, but driving licence not essential.
Contract Type: Fixed Term/Secondment for 2 years
Directorate: Childrens Services

About the team

The Improvement & Transformation Team work across the Inclusion & Skills and Education Directorates within Children’s Services, delivering projects and programmes that support the continuous improvement of services. In particular, we focus on Special Education Needs & Disabilities (SEND) and Inclusion, driving improvement work that leads to better outcomes for children and young people.

This is an exciting time to join the team, we are recruiting various project and programme roles to support delivery of the Hertfordshire SEND Reform Plan. You will work with partners across the SEND Local Area Partnership including local authority services, health, education, and parent carer representatives, delivering elements of the plan, enabling the partnership to deliver its commitments to reform the local SEND system, improve experiences for children and young people, and prepare for wider national reforms.

You will be joining a well-established and supportive team with a track record of forging partnerships and delivering high impact within SEND and Inclusion.

About the role

We are hiring a Change Manager to lead the development and delivery of a robust change management approach that complements SEND Reform Plan programme delivery, ensuring that stakeholders across the SEND Local Area Partnership are effectively engaged, supported and able to adapt to new ways of working.

You’ll work closely with other team members of the Programme Management Office and stakeholders across the SEND Partnership, ensuring that reform plan delivery is supported by strong change management, enabling stakeholders to adopt and sustain change effectively.

This role is ideal for someone who thrives in complex, fast moving environments, and enjoys problem solving. If you’re motivated by meaningful change and want to help shape the future of local services that support children and young people, we’d love to hear from you.

Key Responsibilities:

• Develop and deliver a comprehensive change management approach to support implementation of the SEND Reform Plan, translating programme objectives into clear change activity
• Work closely with the SEND Reform Programme Strategic Lead and wider team to ensure alignment between programme delivery and change activity
• Identify and assess the people, process and cultural impacts of reform across the SEND system
• Lead the design and delivery of a structured engagement and communications plan, ensuring stakeholders are informed, involved and supported throughout the change
• Work closely with partners across the Local Authority, NHS, schools and settings to build understanding and readiness for change
• Contribute to programme governance by providing insight on stakeholder engagement, risks to adoption and readiness
• Support development of clear, accessible messaging that explains what is changing and why
• Design and implement interventions to support adoption of new ways of working, including tools, guidance, workshops and learning approaches
• Work with services and system leaders to embed new practices and behaviours within day-to-day operations
• Identify barriers to change and develop practical solutions to support uptake and engagement
• Monitor and evaluate the effectiveness of change activity, using feedback and insight to adapt approaches over time
• Support the programme team to ensure that change is sustained beyond implementation and embedded into practice

About you

Essential:

• Significant experience of planning and delivering change management activity within programmes or transformation environments
• Strong understanding of change management principles, methodologies and tools, with the ability to apply them in practice to support adoption of new ways of working
• Experience of designing and delivering stakeholder engagement and communication approaches to support change
• Strong communication skills, with the ability to present clear, accessible messages to a wide range of audiences
• Strong organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver to deadlines
• Ability to use feedback and data to monitor progress and refine change activity
• Strong interpersonal skills, with a collaborative and solutions-focused approach
• Ability to operate effectively in complex and fast-paced environment
• Proactive approach, with the ability to take initiative and work independently within a programme structure

Desirable

• A recognised Change Management qualification
• Knowledge and understanding of SEND legislation, policy and the wider SEND system
• Experience delivering change within cross-sector partnerships

This role will be at the centre of SEND reform and improvement in Hertfordshire, as part of a growing team. It is a fast-paced area but very rewarding. This is a great opportunity to make a real difference to the lives of children and young people with SEND in Hertfordshire.

We welcome applications from candidates who currently reside in the UK with established proof of right to work documentation. We are not able to offer sponsorship at this time for this role.

This job role is Level 12. Please locate the job profile here: Job profiles: Project & programme

To hear more about this opportunity please contact erin.bradley1@hertfordshire.gov.uk for an informal discussion about the role.

Interview Date: 25th August (in the AM) & Wednesday 26th August (in the AM) - Face to Face, Stevenage

Benefits of working for us

How to apply

As part of your application, please upload your most recent CV. Ensure your CV is up to date with your employment history (including any employment gaps), and including any training/qualifications. We encourage you to include examples of where you have demonstrated the requirements/criteria in the advert / job profile to allow the panel to fully recognise your skills and abilities. You will have the opportunity to include a short covering paragraph within your application to give us a little more information about your skills, knowledge, and experiences.

Secondment
This role is open to secondments for eligible employees who work for HCC. If you wish to apply on a secondment basis, you must have your line manager’s approval before submitting your application. You will be asked to confirm this within your application form. If you are not eligible for a secondment (e.g., you are currently on a fixed‑term contract that would end before this positions ends) or you indicate that your manager cannot support a secondment, your application will be considered on a fixed‑term contract basis instead.

Additional information

We are changing
Hertfordshire County Councilis undergoing Local Government Reorganisation (LGR). If you are employed by Hertfordshire County on 1 April 2028, it is expected that most roles will transfer to the newly-created unitary councils on existing terms and conditions under TUPE (Transfer of Undertakings – Protection of Employment) principles.

LGR is one of the biggest changes we will face in a generation. It will reshape how we work and how services are organised and gives us a real opportunity to build something better. To find out more, visit https://www.hertfordshire-lgr.co.uk/

Disability Confident
We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer and guarantee an interview to anyone disclosing a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the post.

English Fluency
The ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post (for those whose language is a signed language the provision of a sign language interpreter who speaks English to the necessary standard of fluency will be required). Further information about the legal requirement can be found here.