Senior Strategy Advisor

Senior Strategy Advisor

1x permanent role and 1x 12 month fixed-term contract (maternity cover)

Full Time

Up to GBP51,317 per annum

Location: Chelmsford, hybrid arrangement to include remote-working

Working Style: Anywhere worker

Closing Date: 8th February 2024.

Essex County Council (ECC) is one of the largest and most dynamic local authorities in the UK, serving a population of 1.5 million residents in the historic and beautiful county of Essex. ECC has an ambitious agenda for our place reflected in our strategy Everyone's Essex, the Essex Levelling Up White Paper and the work of the Essex Climate Action Commission. As a Senior Strategy adviser in Essex, you will work in the Council's Policy Unit, working closely with the Leader and Deputy Leader of the Council, other Cabinet Members, the Chief Executive and other senior politicians and officers. The Policy Unit is a high-performing team that has been shortlisted for LGC small team of the year. Its remit covers a range of exciting policy issues of national as well as local importance, including climate action, economic growth, public health and skills and education. The team also provides senior policy adviser support to our Cabinet Members.

The role:

There are two roles available: one permanent role, and one fixed-term role (maternity cover) for 12 months. There are options to tailor the role to reflect the skills and experience of successful candidates and to meet the business needs of the team. Broadly, we are looking for one person to work as a senior policy adviser in our Cabinet Office working closely with our elected Cabinet Members. This is similar to the role of a private secretary in Whitehall; and we are looking for another person to work on more cross-cutting policy and strategy issues, including the development of our next Council strategy through to 2030.

About you:

You will be highly credible with proven leadership and relationship building skills, and able to deliver impact across a broad range of policy areas and issues. You will be able to work effectively in a multi-disciplinary team with the ability to make sound decisions and drive progress in a complex and challenging environment. You will have a background in policy or strategy and an interest in at least some of the policy issues facing a county council. You will be able to develop effective strategies that are evidence based and that translate into effective delivery across the organisation. You will be comfortable working in a politically led organisation and able to engage effectively with politicians and senior officers. You will be motivated, proactive and able to deliver high quality work at pace.

Responsibilities:

• Policy analysis and development on relevant issues
• Effective management of relationships with politicians and senior officers across the Council and with partners
• Ensuring that policy development is in line with our overall strategic ambitions and has demonstrable delivery impact
• Ensuring that policy development is based on solid evidence and insight and draws on learning and best practice from across the sector, nationally and internationally

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

Essential:

• Experience of policy or strategy development and interest in some relevant policy issues.
• Strong written and oral communication skills with an ability to present complex material clearly and concisely.
• Potential to develop high influencing and negotiating skills and the capacity to build effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
• Strong inter-personal skills and the ability to effectively liaise with politicians and other senior leaders with the ability to influence relevant outcomes.
• Ability to deliver high quality outcomes at pace.
• Ability to connect strategy development with delivery in a way that is operationally literate.

Desirable but not essential:

• Knowledge of local government
• Knowledge and experience in relevant core policy areas such as economic development, environment, health and wellbeing, children's, families and education.

Please note that this is a politically restricted role.

To read more about us please visit: Chief Executives Office

Why Essex? Essex County Council has a location to be proud of. Our 1,300 square miles stretch from Constable Country to the Thames Estuary, from the dynamic M11 corridor to the traditional seaside resorts of Clacton and Walton. England's oldest town, Colchester, and two of its newest - Basildon and Harlow - are right here. Along with the City of Chelmsford, the county town, they form our major population centres. It means real choice and makes Essex the ideal place for your career. Read more about us here.

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We're committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process.

We're also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

What you should do next

If you are interested in finding out more about this role, please apply via the Working for Essex website.

As part of employment with Essex County Council (ECC) should your role require a DBS check you will be required to register with the DBS update service. The DBS update service ensures all registered DBS certificates are kept up to date and allows authorised parties to view the status of your certificate. This is an annual subscription, and you will be responsible for ensuring this is maintained. For further information on the DBS update service please go to

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

If you would like to be kept up to date on other relevant opportunities, blogs, news, events and industry related news at Essex County Council, please join The Essex Talent Community here .

If you have queries on this role or require anything further, please email

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