Pathways to Work Projects and Contracts Manager

Projects and Contracts Manager

Barnsley is a place of possibilities, a place that fosters and grows ambition, enabling everyone to be the best they can be. Skills and employability play a vital role in our strategic ambition to ensure that the Barnsley economy is more diverse, more inclusive, and fairer than ever before. Join us in achieving our dynamic vision that everyone acquires the skills they need to participate in our economy and our society and that no one is left behind.

Providing the strategic oversight and support to our new, innovative, and exciting independent enquiry, the ‘Pathways to Work Commission’, we are looking for a talented Projects and Contracts Manager. The Commission will be led by small group of independent national experts who will assess what can be done to ensure the whole education and employment system can best equip our residents and businesses for changing times. Key to your role will be enabling the Commission to be action focussed with clear practicable outputs and engendering timely and wide ranging commitment from Barnsley Council and all stakeholders to adopting and delivering on forward looking recommendations.

As part of the Employment and Skills Service, you’ll be managing the programme of transformational work of the Commission. Via stakeholder engagement, helping to determine how Barnsley can best be prepared to benefit from the significant social, technological, and environmental changes within our economy. In this varied and exciting role, workstreams will include:

• Putting a project plan in place for the Commission.
• Promoting the work of the Commission to a wide range of stakeholders.
• Convening all commission meetings and coordinating the hearing of evidence from a range of sources.
• Convening local Advisory Group for contextual knowledge and experience.
• Building engagement with the Commission across the borough.
• Capturing data (both quantitative and qualitative) to illuminate the findings of the Commission.
• Analysing and bringing the findings together in a significant report.

As Project Manager you provide drive and energy to the Commission, alongside supporting stakeholders. Experience in employment and skills strategy and policy is essential. You will manage and mentor a Project Officer and allocate work where necessary. Your excellent project skills will enable you to support and challenge progress effectively, ensuring we deliver good quality, inclusive and collaborative projects on time.

You will need to bring with you your project skills and experience, so that you can hit the ground running. In this role, your talent for communication and negotiation will be as important as your skills in organising and problem solving. You will need to prioritise your workload effectively, provide consistent and high-quality reporting and build and support effective relationships with managers, colleagues, and partners across the Borough.

Here at Barnsley, we live and work by four important values: honesty, teamwork, excellent service, and taking pride in what we do.  We want people with a ‘can do attitude’ and a positive outlook, someone that will work independently, be part of our small but growing team, with supportive and empowering ethics.

Working for Barnsley Council:

• We’re an award-winning council and one of the biggest employers in the borough supporting around 243,000 people.
• You’ll receive great pay alongside an excellent pension scheme. We work flexibly helping you to adjust your hours and take time off when you need it. Work-life balance is important to us all and at Barnsley Council, we help you to achieve this at work and at home.
• There’s so much happening in our thriving borough and your talent and skills will help us make Barnsley the place of possibilities.
• We’re an equal opportunities employer and have a responsibility to remove any barriers in our recruitment process. However, if you do experience any barriers, please tell us. Let us know your needs and we'll do what we can to support you. For further information please see our Equality and Diversity page.

To find out more about joining our team at Barnsley Council and help with your application, visit barnsley.gov.uk/Jobs.

Please email Tom Smith (tomsmith@barnsley.gov.uk), leaving your name and contact number if you would like further information or an informal discussion.