Scrutiny Officer

This role has a starting salary of £38,746 per annum based on a 36-hour working week. This role is open to remote working meaning you aren’t required in the office 5 days a week. In support of our people and our greener futures strategies, we’d welcome a conversation with the successful candidate on what remote working may look like for you. This is a 6-month fixed term / secondment opportunity.

We are excited to be hiring a Scrutiny Officer to join our Democratic Services, putting you at the heart of Surrey County Council’s strategic decision making processes!

Rewards and Benefits

• 26 days’ holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years’ service and 30 days after 5 years’ service
• Annual leave allowance (for bank) or remove for term time
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Up to 5 days of carer’s leave per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days plus 1 team volunteering day per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources

About the Team

We’re a flexible, friendly team used to working together to solve problems and come up with new ideas. Our work can be high profile and subject to pressure so we always aim to support one another and share our knowledge and experience.

About the Role

You’ll be working with a wide variety of Members, Senior Officers and residents from across Surrey society on high profile work to drive improvement in public services. You will gain unique experience of political processes in a County Council, develop your research, report writing and political awareness skills as well as benefiting from regular training.

Working in the Council’s Democratic Services, you will provide support and guidance to Members in their local, strategic and civic roles. The role will involve day-to-day contact with county councillors and senior officers in organising committee business.

This is a challenging and varied post where your contribution will be key! You will be managing and co-ordinating the work of one of the Council’s scrutiny committees plus the Surrey Police and Crime Panel. This will include planning inquiries, carrying out research and collecting evidence, drafting reports and briefing papers, advising on policy options, and providing procedural advice to Members and officers. In addition to this you will also be responsible for managing task groups linked to the Council’s select committees.

Shortlisting Criteria

To be considered for shortlisting for this position, your application will clearly evidence the following:

• Excellent communication, negotiation and influencing skills.
• Strong political awareness and the ability to analyse problems and issues.
• Ability to manage a diverse workload to deadlines and agreed procedures.
• Ability to translate complex information into clear, concise reports.
• Sound judgement, political sensitivity and a creative, innovative approach to the job.

Contact us

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 07/01/2024.

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

This post has been designated as a politically restricted post in accordance with the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applications where:

• The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
• The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form

Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role. We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.