Stoke-on-Trent is a unique place – forged through its industrial past, built on layers of enterprise and craftsmanship, and with a strong sense of personal and collective identity. It is also a city of parks, open spaces and waterways, with excellent connectivity to the West Midlands and the North West. The council has recently developed a bold new strategy, centred around creating an environment in which people and institutions can work together to improve the wellbeing of all residents and tackle longstanding inequalities. This is not a ‘top down’ approach; rather, we want to work in step with our residents to ensure a community-led development of prevention, support and enterprise activity.

THE ROLE

We are committed to delivering our ambitious programme for transforming and improving the aspirations and opportunities for the residents of Stoke-on-Trent City Council. And that’s where you come in. As the Assistant Director Operations and Regulatory Services, you will contribute strongly and consistently to the council’s ambitions to be a green city with a beautiful natural environment, including our network of parks and open spaces.

We are looking for an accomplished leader to support the delivery of our vision and strategy for the council through the provision of high quality operational and regulatory services, against agreed priorities and standards, with a strong focus on continuous improvement and value for money. You will be responsible for our environmental services, highway operations, waste management, markets management and a wide range of other crucial services and regulatory responsibilities.

Strong experience and background in managing environmental sustainability including waste collection and disposal, streetcare and greenspace, and tackling environmental crime to keep the city safe, clean and looking good is essential to this role.  The role also covers highway operations, fleet management, parking, CCTV and security, licensing and transport, plus emergency planning. We are open to all backgrounds and specialisms, but it is essential that you are experienced in operational management and regulatory services.

To be successful in this role you will need to support the Director in translating strategic vision and priorities into operational plans, monitoring their progress on a regular basis, identifying exceptions and risks and putting in place appropriate strategies to address issues. This includes developing optimum models of service delivery based on business intelligence and implementing best practice to ensure that services are adaptive and responsive to changing needs and circumstances.

Finally, as a senior officer, you will provide confident, visible, strategic and values-led leadership and direction. You will demonstrate effective political awareness and leadership qualities with the aptitude to promote a culture of close collaboration and working strategically.

You will also act as an ambassador for the council, promoting and enhancing the authority’s image as a Member-led authority ambitious for the city, supporting the formation of strategic alliances and developing effective working relationships on a local, regional and national basis.