Community Cohesion Officer

Overview

Are you passionate about building stronger, more inclusive communities? Do you thrive on collaboration and making meaningful connections across diverse groups?

Buckinghamshire Council is looking for a proactive and dynamic Community Cohesion Officer to join our Community Safety Team. This is a unique opportunity to help shape and strengthen community relationships, promote social inclusion, and support efforts to tackle hate crime and extremism.

Contract: Fixed term contract/secondment until 30^th October 2026

About us

Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities, and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and to provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally. 

About the role

As Community Cohesion Officer, you will be at the heart of our efforts to promote harmony and resilience across Buckinghamshire’s communities. You’ll work closely with community-based organisations, councillors, public sector partners, and voluntary groups to:

• Build and maintain a network of stakeholders and identify gaps in community engagement.
• Lead initiatives that promote cohesion, including holding networking sessions and delivering training to stakeholders.
• Support communities in reporting hate crime and addressing extremism.
• Develop and deliver an action plan based on community needs and insights.
• Provide expert advice and guidance to internal teams and partners.
• Promote anti-racist and anti-extremism approaches through engagement and education.

This role is central to delivering the objectives of the Safer Bucks Board and will involve working with under-represented groups to build trust, confidence, and resilience.

Any-Desk:

As an ‘any-desk’ worker, you’ll need to be connected to our network to access digital folders and resources, but this can either be from home or an office location when required. You will be required to work from the office a couple of times a week, depending on your role and team requirements. 

About you

You will have:

• Significant experience working or volunteering in the voluntary and community sector, especially with diverse communities.
• Strong interpersonal and networking skills, with the ability to build trust and influence across a wide range of stakeholders.
• Knowledge of hate crime and extremism, and experience in developing community-led responses.
• Excellent communication and organisational skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deliver impactful projects.
• A collaborative, ambitious and trustworthy approach that reflects our organisational values.
• A full driving licence and the ability to travel across the county.

You’ll be someone who thrives in a dynamic environment, is solution-focused, and committed to making a real difference in the lives of Buckinghamshire’s communities.

Please refer to the job summary attached for full details about this role.

Other information

A full UK driving license required to be able to carry out the role.

For more information about this role, please contact Sarah McBrearty, Community Safety Manager at [email protected]

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).

For further information on filtering please refer to Nacro guidance and the guidance published by the Ministry of Justice (see, in particular, the section titled ‘Exceptions Order’).

We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.

Buckinghamshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk.

Our values

We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.

By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:

• a fair and inclusive culture
• the chance to really make a difference to those around you
• health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
• a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
• ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
• opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events

At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.

From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.

We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.

We recognise and reward you

Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.

https://jobs.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/working-buckinghamshire-council/