Economic Development Team Assistant

Economic Development Team AssistantGBP23,151.00 per annum, 37 hours per weekFixed term, 2 year contractWitney/Agile & Homeworking

West Oxfordshire District Council is dedicated to maintaining and enhancing West Oxfordshire as one of the best places to live, work and visit in the UK. The Council has an ambitious Council Plan focussed on a range of important priorities including climate action, strong local communities, and a vibrant district economy. We want to deliver excellent modern services whilst ensuring the financial sustainability of the Council.

Are you passionate about improving people's quality of life and enabling support for businesses and market towns in West Oxfordshire to thrive? We are looking to recruit a key role to assist the Economic Development Team in their work to help enhance the economic wellbeing and foster a sustainable and resilient local economy.

You can help us achieve this as a business-friendly Council committed to making our district a thriving and prosperous place for entrepreneurs and businesses, where local people and visitors can enjoy the beauty and heritage of our landscape, built, farmed and natural environment.

Some of our Council priorities and focus for action are:

• Working with partners to deliver business support for existing businesses and start-ups
• Supporting a vibrant local economy which gives residents the opportunity to prosper and fulfil their ambitions through secure jobs and exciting careers, entrepreneurship and developing new skills to participate in and contribute to the local economy
• Working with market towns to implement town partnerships

About the role

You will be assisting the work of the Economic Development Team in delivering the Council's priorities across the district, including a focus on business support and working with market towns and the implementation of town partnerships.

You will also support the delivery of government funded interventions including the UK Shared Prosperity Fund and Rural England Prosperity Fund as well as externally funded programmes.

For more information about this role please see the Job Description attached to this advert.

You will need

• Knowledge and competency in using a range of technology and software packages including Microsoft and Google;
• Proactive and self-motivated with a sense of what is practical and achievable
• Knowledge, understanding or experience of project management and administration
• Equivalent to 5 NVQ level 1 or GCSE including Maths and English

Special Conditions

• There may be a requirement to work at other Publica Group (Support) Ltd and/or client locations to meet the needs of the business
• You will be expected to work reasonable additional hours in line with the needs of the service
• Full UK Driving License
• Ability to travel/ access to a vehicle for work purposes

For more information about this role please see the Job Description/Person Specification.

You will be employed by Publica Group Ltd which was created by four partner Councils (West Oxfordshire District Council, Cotswold District Council, Cheltenham Borough Council and Forest of Dean District Council) to deliver more efficient and improved services.

Publica is a unique place to work - we are a local government organisation with a twist! Publica wants to transform the way local services are delivered.

What can we do for you

• Agile working allowing a mix of home and office working
• Flexible working arrangements (depending on the role)
• 27 days paid annual leave (pro rata if you are working part time) plus bank holidays and an extra two volunteering days off a year for you to support a charity of your choice
• Health cash plan giving you cash back on health, dental and eye care
• Pension scheme with a good employer contribution of 5% of your earnings
• Employee Assistance Programme 24/7, providing positive, preventative and supportive advice and counselling to deal with everyday events and issues
• Cycle to work scheme
• Salary sacrifice car lease scheme with huge tax and NI savings to be made on electric cars
• Access to digital financial advice (covering your pension scheme, mortgages and other finances)
• Generous sickness cover above statutory entitlements
• Additional income protection, covering 50% of your salary for potentially a further five years if you are unable to work due to sickness or injury
• Life assurance, currently four times your annual salary
• These are just a handful of the benefits that you can enjoy when you join us!

To apply for this position please click on "apply now" within this page and submit your CV and supporting statement. Please tell us about your skills, knowledge, qualifications, experience and how they meet the criteria listed above and in the job description/person specification. It's important that we're a good fit for each other, so let us know what's important to you and why you want to work for Publica Group Ltd

Your application will not be considered if you have not provided a supporting statement, in addition to your CV.

Accredited of the disability confident scheme, we guarantee to interview all disabled applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the vacancy/ies - Please state this within your covering statement or in a separate email.

Our organisation is committed to safeguarding the welfare of vulnerable adults, young people and children. Safer recruitment practices are applied to all job vacancies

Safer recruitment practices are applied to all job vacancies. Successful candidates will be required to complete a pre-employment medical questionnaire; provide references; proof of identity; nationality and immigration status; three years' employment or education history (if applicable) and, in some cases, verification of criminal record.