Senior Contract Manager

Overview

Are you an experienced contract management professional with a track record of delivering high-value public services?

Buckinghamshire Council is seeking a Senior Contract Manager to lead the operational and strategic management of one of the Council's most important frontline service contracts. This role provides leadership for a multi-million-pound Waste Collection and Street Cleansing contract serving communities across Southern Buckinghamshire.

As part of our senior management team, you will be responsible for maximising service outcomes, driving continuous improvement, ensuring value for money, and maintaining excellent relationships with contractors, Members, senior stakeholders and partner organisations. This is a unique opportunity to influence the future direction of waste services while playing a key role in delivering environmental and sustainability objectives for Buckinghamshire.

Why Join Us?

This is a rare opportunity to take ownership of a high-profile, strategically important contract and help shape the future of waste and environmental services within Buckinghamshire. If you are an experienced contract leader with the ambition to deliver meaningful outcomes for residents and communities, we'd love to hear from you.

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. 

Buckinghamshire Council delivers a wide range of essential services that support residents, businesses and communities across the county. Our Southern Waste Team is responsible for ensuring high-quality waste collection and street cleansing services while driving innovation, efficiency and environmental performance.

We are proud of our ambitious approach to service delivery and are looking for a leader who shares our commitment to excellence, collaboration and continuous improvement.

About the role

Reporting to the Deputy Head of Southern Waste Collection and Street Scene Services, you will provide decisive leadership to a management team responsible for managing a major statutory waste collection and street cleansing contract.

You will lead the planning, development and delivery of contract management activities, ensuring services are delivered safely, efficiently and in accordance with agreed performance standards. Working closely with contractors and internal stakeholders, you will identify opportunities for service enhancement, manage risks, oversee complex contractual matters and ensure the Council continues to achieve excellent outcomes for residents.

The role carries responsibility for a budget of approximately £14 million per annum, direct management of senior officers within the team and significant influence over the strategic direction of waste services across the authority.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead the operational and strategic management of the Southern Waste Collection and Street Cleansing contract.
• Drive contract performance, compliance and continuous service improvement.
• Develop effective contractual relationships with delivery partners, contractors and stakeholders.
• Lead negotiations and resolve complex operational and contractual issues.
• Monitor performance against contractual KPIs and ensure agreed standards are consistently achieved.
• Identify, assess and mitigate operational and contractual risks.
• Provide expert technical advice on waste management, industry developments and emerging legislation.
• Commission and evaluate research, consultations and service reviews to inform future policy and service planning.
• Manage and develop a high-performing team, promoting a positive and inclusive culture.
• Lead projects and transformation initiatives that improve efficiency, customer outcomes and environmental performance.
• Manage a £14m budget, ensuring robust financial management and value for money.
• Contribute to service planning, budget setting and wider strategic priorities as a member of the senior management team.

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

We're looking for an accomplished leader with substantial experience in waste management, contract management or a related professional field.

You will bring:

• Significant experience managing large-scale waste collection, street cleansing or environmental services contracts.
• A proven track record of delivering excellent contract performance and service improvements.
• Strong commercial awareness and experience managing sizeable budgets and resources.
• Excellent leadership skills with the ability to motivate, develop and inspire teams.
• Outstanding communication, influencing and stakeholder management abilities.
• Experience of working with senior officers, elected Members, contractors and external partners.
• Sound understanding of waste management legislation, policy and industry developments.
• Experience of managing risk, resolving complex issues and leading change programmes.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to translate data into actionable solutions.
• A relevant degree or significant equivalent professional experience in waste or environmental management. Membership of the Chartered Institution of Wastes Management (CIWM) is desirable.

Other information

Working Arrangements

This role requires a minimum of three days per week office or depot based, with regular attendance at operational sites across Southern Buckinghamshire. Due to the nature of the role, a full driving licence and business-use vehicle insurance are essential.

Flexibility will also be required to respond to operational issues and emergencies outside normal working hours when necessary.

For an informal discussion about this opportunity, please contact the Rebecca Newbutt, Head of South Waste & Street Scene Services.  Rebecca Newbutt

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

• All unspent cautions and/or unspent convictions

For further information on how long it takes for cautions and convictions cautions to become spent, please refer to our guide on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (updated 2023) | Nacro

We understand that candidates may use AI tools to assist with their applications. While we welcome innovation, we expect all submissions to reflect your own experience, skills, and achievements accurately. Please ensure your application is truthful and demonstrates your personal capabilities, as this will be assessed during the selection process.

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.

Our values and culture

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.

About the Business Unit

Our Communities directorate works across the county to deliver a number of the key customer-facing services that our residents, businesses and visitors rely on every day. 

This directorate includes a wide range of services, including:

• collecting and disposing of waste and recycling
• maintaining our roads and Rights of Way network and parking
• ensuring the delivery of school transport, and supporting sustainable travel including public bus services and School Crossing Patrollers
• managing Country Parks
• leisure facilities, museums, theatres and libraries, as well as developing our Cultural Strategy
• Licensing, Environmental Health and Trading Standards
• Cemeteries and Crematoria

The customer is central to how we develop and deliver all of these services, which help promote our rich and vibrant culture and special environment. 

We are looking for enthusiastic, ambitious and committed individuals to join our team and help us to continue to make Buckinghamshire a great place to live, work and visit. This is an exciting time for us as we bring together the services previously run by five separate councils before Buckinghamshire Council was created. Whilst making major changes to contracts affecting residents across Bucks, we continue to focus on delivering great customer service. You will join us on our journey of continuous improvement - whether that’s through developing strategies and ways of working or delivering services on the ground, every person in Communities is a valued member of the team.

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/