Southend-on-Sea City Council is a Unitary local authority, providing vital services to meet the needs of the local community. We employ around 1,800 staff who work alongside our partners and local communities to deliver the council’s vision of being part of a modern, vibrant coastal city that values its heritage. Southend itself is a vibrant place to live and work, offering coastal living alongside excellent and fast transport links into London.

Working for Southend-on-Sea City Council offers a challenging and rewarding career in local government within a collaborative and innovative environment.
As a Unitary Authority, we are responsible for all local government functions ranging from regulatory services, transport, public health, and parks through to planning, social services, community safety and education, so we offer a wide range of career opportunities. The diversity of our economy and communities and investment in a number of exciting regeneration projects makes our Council a great place to work, learn and make a difference.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Service Manager – Park Strategy to lead the service in an interim capacity (3 months).

You will be leading a friendly team responsible for the maintenance and upkeep of the development of parks and open spaces, ensuring a welcoming place for both residents and visitors alike. This role gives you direct responsibility for the management of a range of services, including day-to-day management and development of arboriculture, biodiversity, policy development and planning.

As a service manager, you will lead, develop and manage operational services across Southend-on-Sea’s parks and open spaces. You will ensure that staff and resources are deployed effectively, in ways which maximise efficiency, value for money and compliance with legislation and service objectives. You will co-ordinate, manage and successfully implement a variety of strategic and operational parks and open spaces activities. You will provide strong leadership and direction to staff, developing their skills and knowledge, managing performance and encouraging a culture of collaborative and customer-focussed working. You will oversee the maintenance, development and operation of parks and recreational facilities. You will lead, mentor and inspire a dedicated team of parks and recreational professionals.

As a service manager, you will be expected to drive initiatives that promote environmental sustainability, community engagement and also provide robust advice and information on matters of greenspace management. In this role, you will ensure appropriate conduct at all times and maximise financial and environmental sustainability whilst ensuring compliance and adherence to all relevant health and safety standards.

Although this contract is offered on a hybrid basis, the post holder will predominantly be out and about visiting various sites.

To be successful in this role, proven experience in managing parks / recreational services / Greenspace service / operation management etc. is essential for this role. It is essential that you possess excellent people management skills and that you are able to foster effective partnership working with team, the community and key stakeholders.

Strong leadership, communication and organisational skills is crucial to being successful in this role. You need to have extensive demonstrable experience in management of a similar service within the area of green space and a thorough knowledge of parks and open space operations, conservation, maintenance and management principles.

Qualification in horticulture, parks or landscape management and equivalent/commensurate experience is essential for this role.

Your application will not be considered if you do not have a full and clean driving licence and access to your own vehicle, as you will be required to travel across sites.

If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV. Please note that applications for this vacancy may close before the advertised date, so you are advised to apply as soon as possible.

The Council is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications regardless of race, sex, disability, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity, age, or religion or belief.