Senior Communications Officer (Best Start and Families First)

Overview

Are you a skilled communications professional with a passion for making a difference to the lives of children, young people and families?

Buckinghamshire Council is seeking an experienced and creative Senior Communications Officer to lead communications and engagement activity for our ambitious Best Start in Life and Families First programmes. This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in supporting transformational work that improves outcomes for children and families through high-quality early years support, earlier intervention and stronger partnership working.

Working within our Corporate Communications and Engagement Team, you will develop and deliver integrated communications campaigns, provide expert advice to senior stakeholders and partners, and create engaging content that helps bring complex programmes to life for a wide range of audiences.

If you are a proactive communicator who enjoys building relationships, influencing stakeholders and delivering impactful campaigns, we would 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. 

The Communications and Engagement Team provides strategic communications, campaigns, media relations, digital communications and stakeholder engagement support across Buckinghamshire Council.

We work collaboratively with services across the organisation to help residents, partners, staff and stakeholders understand the council's priorities and the positive impact of our work. We are a dynamic, supportive and forward-thinking team, committed to delivering high-quality communications that inform, engage and inspire.

This role will focus on supporting Buckinghamshire's Best Start in Life and Families First programmes, helping to ensure children, young people and families have access to the information, services and support they need.

About the role

As the lead communications adviser for the Best Start in Life and Families First programmes, you will develop and deliver strategic communications and engagement plans that support programme objectives and drive positive outcomes for children and families across Buckinghamshire.

You will work closely with programme leads, senior managers, elected members and partner organisations to provide expert communications advice and ensure messaging is clear, consistent and audience-focused.

The role offers a varied mix of strategic planning and hands-on delivery. You will:

• Develop and deliver integrated communications and engagement strategies and campaigns.
• Create high-quality content across a range of channels, including digital, social media, web, newsletters and stakeholder communications.
• Lead stakeholder engagement activities, events, workshops and consultations.
• Use audience insight, feedback and performance data to inform and evaluate communications activity.
• Support co-production with children, young people, parents, carers and partner organisations.
• Identify and manage communications opportunities and reputational risks.
• Build strong relationships across the council, partner agencies, health organisations, voluntary sector organisations and local communities.

This is a fast-paced and rewarding role that requires excellent judgement, creativity and the ability to manage multiple priorities simultaneously.

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 are looking for an experienced communications professional who can combine strategic thinking with excellent delivery skills.

You will have:

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Outstanding copywriting skills and experience creating content for a variety of audiences and channels.
• Experience developing and delivering successful communications strategies and campaigns.
• Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills.
• Experience evaluating communications activity and using insights to drive continuous improvement.
• The ability to simplify complex information into clear, engaging and accessible messages.
• Experience of managing multiple projects and competing priorities effectively.
• A collaborative approach and enthusiasm for working across teams and partnerships.
• Knowledge of digital communications, social media and audience engagement techniques.
• Political awareness and an understanding of the local government environment.

Experience of communications within children's services, early years, public sector or partnership settings would be advantageous.

Other information

For more information about this role, please contact Morwenna Bargrove, [email protected] for an informal discussion.

Closing Date: Monday 28th September 2026

Interview Date: tbc

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

Resources cover a wide range of specialisms, including Human Resources, Finance, ICT and Business Operations. Our main focus is supporting the other directorates to provide the best possible service to our residents. To do that, we have to make sure we have the right people in the right roles across the organisation. From our finance teams, working strategically to ensure the best value from public money; to HR keeping our employees healthy and happy, each service is vital in making sure Buckinghamshire Council has what it needs to run effectively and efficiently.

As well as providing high quality services to other areas of the Council, you could also be helping us build on the revenue which comes from our external clients. If you are ambitious, customer-focussed and bursting with new ideas, we want to hear from you.

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/