Commissioning Officer

This role has a starting salary of £38,746 per annum, based on a 36-hour working week.

We are excited to be hiring a new Commissioning Officer to join our fantastic Early Years Commissioning team. The team is based in Quadrant Court, 35 Guildford Road, Woking but the role is hybrid, offering a mixture of visits to early years providers (focused on a quadrant of the county) community events, home working and office days at sites across Surrey.

It is an exciting time for childcare and early education with the biggest ever expansion of funded childcare starting from April 2024, and with that comes challenges and opportunities. The team works collaboratively with providers, schools, communities, and partners to support the sufficiency and sustainability of the early education and childcare sector in Surrey.

Rewards and Benefits

• 26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 30 days after 5 years' service
• 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 dependants 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

The Early Years Commissioning Team provide business advice to our local early years providers to enable them to offer the best quality childcare and education to the County's youngest children, whilst remaining financially sustainable.

We also have a focus on market management of the childcare sector in Surrey to secure sufficient, good quality early education and childcare places for families; with a particular focus on children that need extra support, such as those with additional needs, disabilities or those experiencing barriers to learning.

Put simply, our over-arching aim is to improve outcomes for all children and their families.

About the Role

A typical day for an Early Years Commissioning Officer might involve supporting a new nursery opening in the area, discussing some strategies to support them to market their provision, and providing information, support and guidance on business planning and financial forecasting - you might have to problem solve in helping them think of new ways to attract qualified staff and navigate the recruitment challenges in the early years sector.

You might also spend time talking with families in a locality or over the phone to understand their needs when accessing childcare, any barriers they may have experienced, and advising them on the funded early education entitlements which may be available to support them.

In-between visits and conversations you might be responding to email queries for your quadrant of the county and discussing these with the Senior Commissioning Officer via teams or together in the office, to develop an action plan or identify a training need.

You'll keep up to date notes of the conversations you've had as well as any follow up actions or areas where you need to gather more information.

Shortlisting Criteria

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

• Level 6 Qualification in Early Years or a similar related field, or significant experience in a related field
• A full driving licence and a vehicle you are able and willing to use to travel around the county
• The ability to work on and sometimes lead projects that have to meet outcomes within a set timescale
• A good knowledge and understanding of Early Years Funded Early Education Entitlements and Statutory Guidance, including Safeguarding responsibilities

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 12th February 2024 with interviews planned for week commencing 19th February 2024.

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

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.