Democratic Services Officer in Bristol

Job description

Permanent, Full Time 37 hours per week. However, please note that some council meetings take place outside of normal office hours.

Do you have an interest in local democracy, good governance, decision-making and administration? If so, a fantastic opportunity has arisen for two enthusiastic team players with attention to detail and high-quality written work to join our busy Democratic Services Team. Full training will be given to the right candidates on all technical aspects of the role.

As a Democratic Services Officer, you will play a key role in supporting the Council’s governance and decision-making processes. Within the Council’s Legal and Democratic Services Directorate, you will help to ensure that formal decision-making is open and transparent and provides clear accountability for the use of resources in delivering the Council’s priorities.

You will have the ability to communicate effectively both verbally and in a written format to establish excellent working relationships with colleagues, Councillors, officers, partner organisations, communities, and local people to ensure that decision-makers have all the information they need and that meetings run smoothly and in line with local government legislation and the Council’s Constitution.

These include meetings of full Council, which sets the authority’s budget and policy framework, Development Control Committee which makes decisions on applications from large scale developments to smaller projects and the Audit Committee which reviews the Council’s work and holds decision-makers to account.

The Team also runs the Independent School Appeals service for the Council and some academy schools and you will ensure that admission appeals and exclusion reviews are undertaken within the relevant legislative framework.

Why Bristol City Council? At Bristol City Council, we go that extra mile for our people; we offer a work environment which is fast moving and supportive, giving you the chance to use your skills and develop new ones within a high-profile organisation. For the majority of our roles hybrid working arrangements are available, giving teams the opportunity to work in a way that suits them, balancing service need and individual choice – mixing both home and office working.

Join us and you’ll receive an excellent rewards package including flexible working and flexitime, membership of the Local Government Pension scheme, and a generous annual leave allowance. In addition, you’ll be working in a supportive environment where you’ll have the chance to make Bristol a better place and contribute to its future.