Staff blogs

I started at Buckinghamshire County Council as a Customer Service Advisor in 2019 after graduating from university, where I studied history. The Contact Centre at Walton Street was always such a friendly and supportive environment, and the team were helpful in getting me up to speed. Before joining, I’d never been in contact with the council and had no idea about the scale or variety of the services that we offer. For that reason, Customer Services was an excellent way to get familiar with such a large organisation, as it exposed me to the breadth of customer queries and the variety of services across the council.

In April 2020, as the Covid-19 pandemic was raging, Buckinghamshire Council became a unitary authority. Suddenly, Customer Services were not only getting to grips with former district council tax, planning, and other services but also with requests for food parcels, community help, and public health queries. Looking back, that was a particular challenge during my time here, but as always, Customer Services were resilient in the face of an enormous amount of change.

In 2021, I joined the Digital Team as a Content Editor. My role involved checking for broken links, going through the website feedback, and creating web pages for services across the council. At this point, the Digital Team were working hard on the migration of website content from 5 different legacy websites. My prior experience in Customer Services provided me with a unique perspective on the terminology customers commonly use. With the support of my team, I was able to dive in and rapidly acquire the skills necessary to identify ‘user needs’ and create content accordingly, all while adapting to an agile work environment. A standout moment in this role was the opportunity to overhaul the Council Tax section of our website, a task that was initiated after identifying key areas that users found challenging.

My experience in customer service and digital fields paved the way for my transition into the role of a CRM Content Developer within the web forms team in April 2023. This period was marked by significant changes, including the introduction of a new CRM system named ‘Abavus’. My primary responsibility was to overhaul the council’s contact form, ensuring that all services had a smooth and efficient online contact method. Having firsthand experience with phone queries, I recognized that many of them could be addressed through the website or existing online forms. This realization underscored the need to reserve phone lines for individuals without online access or those who might be digitally excluded. Consequently, our objective shifted towards promoting digital channels to those with digital literacy, while maintaining a readily available phone line for those who truly needed it. As of October 2023, I have been working as a Senior Content Editor back with the Digital Team where I’m excited to get involved with more digital improvement projects.

I started my career as a TV presenter in Mauritius for two programs. After a year, I returned to the UK and studied Media at the University of Bedfordshire. My first job after university was as an Account Manager for Macmillan's Nature Publishing Group, where I worked on their French accounts for a year. I then moved on to Westminster City Council, working as a Customer Service Advisor in their Contact Centre. Over the course of 10 years, I held various roles, including supporting training and development and eventually becoming a One Stop Manager. I transitioned into a Business Readiness Manager role, focusing on process improvements and efficiencies. My final project involved shifting the One Stop Services out into the Community, which led to my redundancy. After a short break for motherhood, I joined Buckinghamshire Council as a Team Leader in the HR Operations team. From there, I became a HR Business Partner Associate, providing strategic support to corporate services. Following a restructure, I moved into the Corporate Commercial team as a Customer Experience Lead. Eventually, I returned to HR as an HR Consultant in the Consultancy and Advisory team.

As an HR Consultant, I ensure fair and consistent application of people policies and procedures, while also delivering training to managers and participating in improvement projects to enhance customer access to our services.

The most rewarding aspect of my job is the meaningful connections I establish with managers and employees. Seeing the positive impact of my support in resolving issues brings me a great sense of fulfilment. Through these interactions, I have formed valuable connections and friendships across the organisation.

My career pathway at Buckinghamshire showcases the available development opportunities. We have an online training platform and access to Mindtools which I use for my own development. I completed a HR Partnering Apprenticeship resulting in a CIPD qualification through the Council. I've been lucky to have supportive mentors at the Council for my professional growth. I also get involved in projects aligned with my interests, expanding my network.

I left the police after 30 years, looking for a new challenge that allowed me to use the skills I had developed over that time. I initially became a driving instructor but the lack of social interaction and team engagement I was used to led me to look for a different path in my life. I was very lucky that a friend who was working for the council at that time made me aware of an opportunity within Client Transport to become part of their Compliance team.

When I was 18, I moved from Scotland to join the Metropolitan Police. It was a huge decision at the time, but one that I am very thankful I made. I was a police officer throughout the 80s, 90s, and 2000s, so I have seen a fair few things and changes in my time. I was lucky enough to serve my time in uniform in several different areas of London before moving to the Territorial Support Group, but my greatest achievement was spending 12 years on the world-famous Flying Squad dealing with serious and organised crime.

My current role as Senior Compliance and Safeguarding Officer is very busy but extremely rewarding. The Compliance team is responsible for over 1,200 daily transport contracts that take students, including those with special needs, to and from school, as well as vulnerable adults to their placements. That equates to about 8,000 people being transported around the county every weekday. The team is responsible for ensuring all drivers and passenger assistants are adequately trained and have had the necessary checks completed before working on our contracts. We also handle the investigation of any complaints or safeguarding concerns that are raised. We provide safeguarding and specialist training for all staff working on our contracts, and if that wasn’t enough, we are out every morning monitoring the contracts at schools to ensure everybody is doing what is being asked of them.

The Compliance team makes a massive difference to people’s quality of life when it comes to providing transport for their children and loved ones. It can be such an anxious time for parents and families but hopefully, the work we do every day builds trust and reassurance in the service we provide.

I initially joined the council as an apprentice in Business Administration, working in the Corporate Business Support team. The role provided me with invaluable opportunities to kick-start my career. In just six months, I was offered a full-time position as a Business Support Administrator in the Fostering team, where I successfully completed my apprenticeship. After gaining solid experience in business support, I craved a new and exciting challenge. I then transitioned into the role of Project Support Officer within Adult Social Care. This opportunity allowed me to further enhance my project support skills, eventually leading me to secure a rewarding position as a Project Coordinator a year later. Through this role, I had the privilege of collaborating with diverse teams and professionals at various levels, which not only piqued my interest in engagement work but also facilitated the development of my personal design and IT skills.

As I advanced within my service area, I eagerly transitioned into a role centered around community engagement and user experience. This career move marked a significant milestone by allowing me to take on leadership responsibilities and directly interact with residents accessing social care services. Alongside fostering my design skills and managing websites, I had the opportunity to chair meetings in challenging circumstances and discuss sensitive topics. I dedicated a year and a half to this role and utilised my experiences to apply for a Business Officer position within the Strategy, Improvement, and Governance team.

Currently, I hold the position of Project Manager within our Adult's service, where I am leading a significant project. My primary objective is to identify cost savings within an overspending budget. Additionally, I am responsible for evaluating existing processes and implementing improvements, a task that truly captivates my interest. Furthermore, I am simultaneously spearheading two other projects while actively participating in cabinet member updates and reporting.

Throughout my career, I have fortunately been surrounded by colleagues and managers who have consistently demonstrated support for professional growth. This support has played a crucial role in propelling me rapidly into my current position. Notably, the availability of extensive training opportunities has been consistently remarkable. I have found immense encouragement in the fact that whenever I set a goal, there is a genuine commitment from my superiors to provide support to achieve it.

The council is an exceptional workplace, offering numerous opportunities for personal growth through a variety of avenues such as new positions, training programs, apprenticeships, E-learning, and much more. It serves as an ideal environment to enhance your skills, allowing you to contribute directly to work that significantly impacts the lives of our residents.