Job Description:

Purpose of the job
To ensure the Councils meet their statutory duty to secure sufficient education provision across North Northamptonshire:

• Planning and reviewing of demand across the area
• Contributing to the commissioning and establishing of new places in consultation with other statutory bodies.
• Contributing to the development and on-going review of policies and procedures in respect of the planning and commissioning of 0-25 educational provision in line with established and changing national policies.
• Facilitate the conversion process whereby maintained schools become academies, operating independently from the County Council.

 
The Education Capital and Place Planning Officer will support the council’s delivery of its statutory duty to provide sufficient school places by identifying need and the determination of how school places should be provided through the delivery of new capital projects.
 
The post holder will support the improvement of the maintained schools estate and, in particular, in its decarbonisation and adoption of the DfE’s Good Estate Management System (GEMS) for effective use of their devolved maintenance funding. This will be achieved through leading and co-ordinating the delivery of an effective project management service team, including professional service consultants and contractors. As well as lead and co-ordinate on the delivery of school capital projects ensuring that specification, quality, deadline and budget targets and any other relevant requirements are met.

Principal responsibilities

1. Processing of funding agreements for education capital projects with legal team
2. Project manager support for new projects and new school builds
3. Preparing briefing notes as required on capital schemes for our strategic capital board and members
4. Preparing executive reports for new capital schemes for the executive as needed
5. To undertake a statutory school place planning role for the council. This will include regular liaison and partnership working with the Council’s Admissions Team, headteachers, planning and regeneration officers, developers and contractors.
6. To monitor the Council’s planning process and identify schemes where section 106 contributions are required. To ensure that a robust negotiating position is prepared using forecast data and robust costings of the physical education infrastructure required.
7. To be responsible for specific school capital projects within the capital programme. This will entail:

• Ensuring capital projects are delivered within key performance criteria relating to time, cost, value for money and sustainability
• managing project specific risks and issues ensuring these are recorded accurately and reviewed and resolved in a timely manner
• meeting deadlines for corporate project reporting on a monthly basis and specifically for the service Strategic Highlight Report and the Children’s Capital Programme Board
• To manage external project consultants including monitoring their contractual progress and deliverables and preparation of related documents
• To take the lead role in developing and delivering each projects communication strategy
• To take the lead role in organising and co-ordinating key project events and consultations both informal and statutory, including pre-planning application consultation. To ensure that the necessary publicity and information is provided as required and that adequate stakeholder consultation take place ensuring that all stakeholders are consulted and given the opportunity to participate in the process
• To deal sensitively with a range of complex and contentious enquiries from all stakeholders, dealing efficiently with any issues requiring immediate attention (including Members and MPs questions and Freedom of Information requests
• To keep abreast of new legislation, statutory guidance, central government policies, local authority policies and practices and internal and external factors relevant to the successful delivery of the Council’s Schools Capital Programme (e.g. Building Bulletins)
• To evaluate the performance of procurement and delivery methods used and contribute to the procurement strategy for the education capital programme
• To develop and support the service offered to maintained schools by developing schools’ Asset Management Plans to prioritise the use of devolved maintenance and capital funding in line with building condition priorities and, in particular, support decarbonisation of the schools estate by identify bidding opportunities for capital funding identified in each schools Heat Decarbonisation Plan.

General responsibilities applicable to all jobs

1. Demonstrate awareness/understanding of equal opportunities and other people’s behavioural, physical, social and welfare needs.
2. Comply with the Council’s policies and procedures including (but not limited to) safeguarding, financial regulations, promotion of equalities, customer care, agreed audit actions and health and safety (ensuring that reasonable care is taken at all times for the health, safety and welfare of yourself and other persons).
3. Understand the councils committment to Corporate Parenting and take responsibility to support this commitment. Enable the council to be the best corporate parents possible to children and young people in our current and previous care.
4. Carry out any other duties which fall within the broad spirit, scope and purpose of this job description and which are commensurate with the grade of the post.

This job description reflects the major tasks to be carried out by the post holder and identifies a level of responsibility at which they will be required to work.  In the interests of effective working, the major tasks may be reviewed from time to time to reflect changing needs and circumstances. Such reviews and any consequential changes will be carried out in consultation with the post holder.