Commissioning Officer

Our benefits

We offer a wide range of benefits to our employees, these include:

• Generous annual leave entitlement starting at 28 days annual leave per year, 29 days for senior managers (pro rata, depending on how many hours per week you work), plus bank holidays. An additional 5 days, linked to continuous service, and ability to purchase up to 6 weeks additional leave per year.
• Cycle to Work scheme. 
• Local Government Pension Scheme plus immediate life cover (3 times your annual salary from day one) and ill-health protection.
• Employee discounts with local and national retailers, days out, finance, health and beauty, travel and eating out plus lots more.
• Car Lease scheme
• Payment of professional subscription / membership - If your job description requires that you are registered with or are a member of a professional body, WNC will pay for your professional subscription or membership fees.
• Employee Assistance Programme - We have an employee support programme run by Health Assured, an independent, external organisation. Health Assured is available for you and your immediate family members, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year and includes telephone counselling, legal advice, bereavement support and medical information.
• Ongoing training and development opportunities.
• A variety of flexible working options to support your work/life balance, including full or part time, term time, 9-day fortnight, etc. (subject to business needs).
• Our West Ways of Working – We want our workforce to thrive, and we equip our employees with the right technology to support hybrid and collaborative working, on or off site, depending on the role.
• Making a difference - If you want to use your skills and experience with an organisation that are genuinely invested in making a difference, are committed to improving people's lives, and whose success has a direct impact on the wellbeing of your family, friends and people in your local area, then West Northamptonshire Council is the place for you.

About the role

There is an exciting opportunity to join the Strategic Commissioning Team at West Northants Council. You will be part of a dynamic team that work hard to develop and commission a range of high quality, diverse and responsive care and support services to meet local need for our adult population. We are looking for someone with experience in either social care or commissioning to join our team.  As Commissioning Officer you will support commissioning to implement commissioning strategies, contribute to the needs analysis, market testing, and review of all adult social care commissioned services. In return you will receive support and recognition for your contribution to improving the lives and wellbeing of residents in West Northants.

For further queries, please contact Susan Freeman, Commissioning Quality and Outcome Manager - Susan.Freeman@westnorthants.gov.uk

What will you be doing?

You will be working alongside commissioners to engage with providers, people who access support and other local stakeholders to assess needs, review current services and continue to support development of the market to meet current and future need. With the support of the Commissioning Managers, you will be asked to lead projects requiring you to build relationships with other partners/organisations to ensure delivery of the actions and outcomes required. You will liaise both internally and externally to continually review and further develop provider services. A significant part of your role will be benchmarking with other local authorities and data analysis. Part of your role will also require you to develop team processes and protocols to ensure the team continues to run smoothly. 

About you

You will be educated to degree level or be able to demonstrate experience of working at that level in social care or commissioning. There is a need to have strong communication skills enabling you to engage with people who access support services as well as interacting across all partner organisations. You will be able to demonstrate the ability to lead projects and have delivered successful outcomes. Being able to organise and prioritise your own workload and meet deadlines within a pressured environment is essential. Most importantly you will have a passion for monitoring and delivering high quality services to support people to live their best lives possible.   

About us

We’re a new council, following one of the largest shake-ups in local government reform in recent history. As a new authority, we’re embarking on an exciting journey to deliver exceptional services for our residents, customers and communities.  

Our vision at West Northamptonshire Council is ‘to make West Northants a great place to live, work, visit and thrive’. We truly stand by this and work hard every day to make this a reality. Our corporate values, THRIVE, stand for: Trust, High Performance, Respect, Innovate and Empower, they underpin everything we do and how we deliver services. 

Hear more from our Chief Executive, Anna Earnshaw, about what it's like to work at West Northants Council https://youtu.be/lV0EfeUF4aU 

At West Northants Council, it’s about our people. People who thrive with ambition, bubble with new ideas, demand better ways of working, caring about every detail, and who never shy away from a challenge. Our culture is a gateway for new experiences. A place to forge new opportunities. To empower you in your career and unite you with like-minded people.

When potential is unlocked, talent thrives.

Choose a career that offers you a true sense of achievement, fills you with pride and challenges you in a positive way, every day.

West Northants Council, where careers thrive.

Should you require the Job Description in another format or language, please contact: Careers@westnorthants.gov.uk