Service Lead Communities - 05802

Are you an experienced leader looking for an exciting opportunity to help shape and deliver services that make a real difference to local communities?

West Berkshire Council is seeking an outstanding Service Lead for Community Services. Reporting directly to the Service Director for Community Services, this pivotal leadership role will support the strategic direction, management and delivery of a diverse portfolio of community-focused services that enhance the wellbeing and quality of life of our residents.

This is an excellent opportunity to work at the heart of the organisation, leading key services, driving improvement, and working collaboratively with partners and stakeholders to deliver positive outcomes across West Berkshire.

The Role

As Service Lead for Community Services, you will:

• Support the Service Director in the strategic leadership, management and development of Community Services
• Lead the delivery and commissioning of a broad range of services, including community engagement and safe communities, libraries, culture, heritage, sport and leisure.
• Drive continuous improvement and innovation to ensure services remain responsive, efficient and customer focused.
• Work collaboratively with internal services, elected Members, community organisations and external partners to meet local needs.
• Provide effective leadership to professional teams, fostering a positive and high-performing culture.
• Monitor service performance, budgets and outcomes, implementing improvements where required.
• Represent the Council at partnership boards, regional networks and external forums.

The Ideal Candidate

We are looking for someone who can demonstrate:

• Significant experience of leading and managing community services within local government or a comparable public sector environment.
• Strong understanding of the opportunities and challenges facing community services and local communities
• Proven leadership skills with the ability to motivate, develop and inspire teams
• Excellent partnership-working and stakeholder management abilities.
• Experience of managing complex budgets and delivering value for money.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to make sound strategic decisions.
• Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the confidence to engage with a wide range of audiences.

Why Work for West Berkshire Council

• Flexible working wherever possible between the hours of 07.00-21.00
• Hybrid working wherever possible working 40% in the office
• Access to a wide range of training and development opportunities
• Generous Local Government pension scheme
• Family friendly policies
• A range of local discounts
• Wellbeing Programme including Employee Assistance Programme and employee benefits
• You will also be entitled to a generous annual leave entitlement starting at 30 days per annum (plus public holidays) Rising by an additional 5 days after 5 years' service.

Please note that the closing date is given as a guide. 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 to avoid disappointment.

Join us at West Berkshire Council and make a positive impact in our community while advancing your career.

Explore everything that a career with West Berkshire Council has to offer here: Working with Us

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact April Peberdy on 07917 627444 or email april.peberdy@westberks.gov.uk

Equal Opportunities

The Council supports Equal Opportunity of employment and positively encourages applications from people who fall within any of the nine protected characteristics under the Equality Act 2010.

How to apply

Please now complete a short online application form. You will then be able to upload your CV.

This role has been identified as public facing in accordance with Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016; the requirement to fulfil all spoken aspects of the role with confidence in English applies.

This post is a Sensitive Post for the purpose of the Local Government Housing Act 1989 and the post-holder is therefore restricted from engaging in any prescribed political activities. In summary, this means that you are prohibited from holding political office and from involvement in any political activity within or outside the workplace. Full details of the restrictions can be found in the Council's Policy and Guidance on Politically Restricted Posts.

This privacy notice applies to job applicants applying for vacancies with West Berkshire Council https://info.westberks.gov.uk/pnapplications

AI in Applications

We recognise that candidates may choose to use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to support the preparation of their job applications. When used appropriately, AI can be a helpful aid in structuring responses, checking clarity, and improving presentation.

However, applications must reflect your own skills, experience and understanding. If an application appears to rely excessively on AI-generated content, it may not meet the required standard and could be rejected.

We encourage all applicants to ensure their submissions are authentic, tailored to the role, and clearly demonstrate their own knowledge, experience and suitability.