Job titlle: Senior Communications & Engagement Officer
Salary: PO2 £39,862 - £42,839
Hours: 37 per week
Contract: Fixed‑term – 2 years (with the option to extend if required)
Location: Leeds / hybrid working
Leeds City Council is delivering a 3.5‑year Customer Transformation Programme (CTP) – a major, whole‑council transformation to modernise how customers access services, improve experiences for residents and colleagues, and deliver significant, recurring savings as an Invest to Save initiative.
We are building a skilled, multidisciplinary internal delivery team and are now recruiting a Senior Communications & Engagement Officer to play a pivotal role in enabling the success of this programme.
This is a high‑impact role, central to embedding new ways of working, supporting workforce transition, and driving customer and colleague adoption of digital, service‑led change.
About the role
Working as part of the Customer Transformation Programme, you will lead the design and delivery of a coordinated communications and engagement approach that supports service redesign, workforce change and sustained customer behaviour change.
You will work closely with programme leadership, service teams, HR and corporate communications to ensure messaging is clear, timely, inclusive and aligned across a complex change landscape. The role spans both internal and external communications, supporting leaders and managers through change and helping customers understand and adopt new ways of accessing services.
This role is critical to ensuring the programme achieves its outcomes – not just in terms of delivery, but in building understanding, confidence and trust across the organisation and the city.
What you’ll be responsible for
Drawing directly from the Communications & Engagement work package, you will:
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Lead the development and delivery of an integrated Communications & Engagement Plan aligned to programme phases.
- Deliver clear and consistent programme narratives and key messages that maintain senior leadership alignment and support service‑by‑service change.
- Plan and deliver targeted stakeholder engagement, working with senior leaders, managers, frontline colleagues, trade unions, partners and community groups.
- Support HR‑led workforce change and consultation communications, ensuring messaging is clear, sensitive and builds trust.
- Design and deliver customer digital adoption campaigns that support a shift of simple contact to online channels.
- Work closely with service teams to deliver wave‑based communications aligned to agreed priority services.
- Track, measure and report on communications effectiveness, using insight and feedback to continuously refine approach.
- Ensure alignment with other organisational change programmes, supporting a coherent and joined‑up change experience for colleagues and customers.
What you’ll bring
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Proven experience in communications and engagement roles within large‑scale transformation or change programmes.
- Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with experience working across senior leaders, operational teams and partners.
- The ability to translate strategy into clear, practical communications that support measurable change and adoption.
- Experience supporting or working alongside workforce change and organisational development activity.
- Confidence working in complex environments where multiple changes are landing concurrently.
- A strong commitment to public service values, inclusion, accessibility and continuous improvement.
What we offer
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The opportunity to play a central role in a transformation programme for Leeds.
- The chance to make a tangible difference for customers and colleagues by modernising customer contact and supporting delivery of the Council’s Medium Term Financial Plan.
- A collaborative working environment alongside skilled internal teams and a strategic delivery partner, with opportunities for knowledge transfer and professional development.
- Flexible, hybrid working arrangements.
How to apply
Please complete the online application form.
Read our guidance for further advice on completing your application.
If you have any queries about the role please contact Danielle Clayton, Head of Communicatons and Marketing, by email
[email protected]
We welcome applications from everyone and actively seek a diverse range of applicants from all backgrounds and cultures. We particularly encourage applications from, but not limited to, women, carers, veterans as well as LGBT+, ethnically diverse, disabled and care experienced people.
This role is based in the UK. Home Office guidance states that candidates must evidence their right to work in the UK prior to commencing employment, either as a UK or Irish citizen, under the EU Settlement scheme or having secured any other relevant work visa.
If you do not have the right to work in the UK, you must consider your own eligibility for sponsorship for a particular role through the Skilled Worker visaroute before applying. To be eligible for sponsorship you'll usually need to be paid the standard salary rate of at least £41,700 per year or meet one of the other eligibility criteria. Please ensure you are eligible before applying.
Job description
Job purpose
Communications and marketing senior officers play a pivotal role in the communications and marketing team, bringing professional knowledge and skills, and taking a proactive approach that ensures excellence.
Senior officers will lead the delivery of communications and marketing work that supports the best council and best city priorities.
They will be responsible for planning the communications and marketing team’s work and ensuring agreed work is completed to a high standard.
Senior officers will develop and maintain systems and ways of working within the team to ensure a consistent and professional service.
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Act as both an individual lead and as the lead for project teams to deliver work on behalf of the communications and marketing team.
- Demonstrate a proactive attitude and approach, and use judgement and insight to reach decisions.
- Provide professional advice across all communications and marketing disciplines, based on a high standard of competency across the insight, ideas, implementation and impact stages of the competency framework, and with a strong focus on outcomes.
- Work with colleagues to prioritise the team’s workload, ensuring efficient use of resources and appropriate levels of support for council and city priorities.
- Support the smooth running of a professional communications and marketing service by embedding and updating consistent ways of working across the team.
- Develop and maintain strong working relationships with internal and external partners and suppliers that help the council and team to meet priorities while spending money wisely.
- Represent the council and the communications and marketing team at internal and external meetings and events.
- Lead on the development and embed the consistent use of the procurement framework for communications and marketing spend both in the team and across the council, in line with the organisation’s financial rules.
- Lead on a programme of support for graduate placements in the communications and marketing team, including training on professional skills, mentoring, work shadowing and other appropriate routes.
- Manage work placements into the communications and marketing team to ensure that resources are in place to deliver a programme that meets both team and individual objectives.
The duties outlined are not meant as an exhaustive list and will also comprise any other duties within the spirit of the post commensurate with the job evaluation outcome for this post.
Degree/professional qualification or equivalent job-related experience.
Essential requirements It is essential that the candidate should be able to demonstrate the following criteria for the post. Candidates will only be shortlisted for interview if they can demonstrate that they meet all the essential requirements.
The post holder should demonstrate the following within the context of the key role duties and responsibilities, meeting core competencies and working towards the key competencies at the officer level of the communications and marketing competency framework:
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Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to engage, influence and negotiate and to form positive relationships at all levels;
- A proactive approach, using professional judgement based on insight and innovation;
- An inclusive approach and a commitment to equality and diversity;
- Contributes to own health and wellbeing and promotes the health, safety and wellbeing of others
- Commitment to their own continuing professional development.
- Considerable experience gained working in a marketing, PR, communications or relevant related environment.
- Good level of knowledge of the operations of a marketing, PR or communications function.
- Good level of understanding of marketing, PR or communication issues facing large local authorities and the public sector.
- Thorough knowledge of marketing, PR and communications methodology.
- Experience of delivering multiple projects to tight deadlines.
- Experience of producing clear, accurate copy within tight deadlines and the ability to communicate in plain English.
- Experience of working in a team environment but with the ability to work individually without supervision.
- Ability to brief for large-scale marketing, PR or communications projects.
- Ability to produce marketing, PR or communication strategies and plans, reports, articles and news releases which are clear and articulate.
- Ability to prepare and present written and verbal information in a concise and accurate manner to a wide range of audiences.
- Ability to contribute effectively to a wide range of corporate projects from a marketing, PR and communications perspective.
- Able to demonstrate excellent communication skills both written and oral, confidence and the ability to present to a variety of audiences both internal and external to the organisation.
- Computer literate with ability to use relevant software packages.
- Demonstrable experience of dealing with matters, which are highly sensitive and confidential.
- Ability to work to specified work programmes and timetables, prioritising effectively.
- Ability to make swift decisions and judgements.
- Interpersonal skills.
- Ability to foster and maintain useful contacts internal and external to the council.
- Ability to contribute to partnerships involving various stakeholders to achieve positive outcomes.
- Ability to develop productive working relationships that command trust and confidence.
- Ability to work effectively with others to deliver cross-service projects.
- Ability to manage competing priorities whilst delivering on a range of projects and adapting to changing circumstances and priorities.
- Willing to abide by the council’s equal opportunities policy in the duties of the post, and as an employee of the council.
- Able to offer persuasive professional and creative advice.
- Able to build relationships with service staff and play an influencing role.
Essential Behavioural and other Characteristics
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Understand and embrace Leeds City Council Values and Behaviours and codes of conduct.
- Committed to continuous improvement in all areas and work towards delivering the Best City Ambition of Health & Wellbeing, Inclusive Growth and Zero Carbon
- Able to understand and observe Leeds City Council equality and diversity policies.
- Carry out all duties having regard to an employee’s responsibility under Health and Safety Policies.
- Willingness to actively participate in training and development activities.
- Flexible and adaptable to change to assist other services as required commensurate to grade.
- Participate in appraisal, training, and development activities.
- Be aware of and comply with Leeds City Council policies and procedures.
- Be aware of and support difference and ensure equality for all working in an anti-discriminatory manner, upholding, equality & diversity policies of Leeds City Council.
- Recognise and appropriately challenge any incidents of racism, bullying, harassment, victimisation, and any form of abuse, reporting any concerns to the appropriate person.
- The Council has adopted a flexibility protocol and the role will be expected to work within these parameters.
Desirable requirements It is desirable that the candidate should be able to demonstrate the following criteria. Candidates are not required to meet all the desirable requirements however these may be used to distinguish between candidates.
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Experience of developing, leading and motivating a team.
- Experience of carrying out project work and using project management techniques and preparing reports.
- Experience of, and ability to, manage budgets.
- Ability to manage suppliers, internal and external, in line with procurement guidelines.
- Experience of developing integrated marketing, PR or communications strategies which demonstrate clear, actionable and measurable outcomes.
- Experience of using information and research across a wider marketing, PR and communications network to ensure joined up working and the use of corporate planning and performance data to develop strategies and activity.
- Experience of building influential networks and enabling effective communication and engagement with others in a wide range of settings.
- Experience of directing and coordinating resources to deliver against marketing, PR and communication requirements.
- Ability to plan, implement and monitor complex marketing, PR or communications campaigns.
- Ability to demonstrate the necessary confidence, gravitas and authority to represent the communications team at a senior level in the organisation and to contribute to business development.
- Evidence of strong brand and identity management through different channels and understanding of the implications for customer experience, employer brand and reputation management.
- Demonstrable experience of using market research, customer insight and intelligence to inform marketing, PR and communications activity and strategies.
- Able to demonstrate an understanding of the role of the media and be able to support the press, media and issues management function.
- Degree or professional qualification.
