Contract Manager (Grant Funded Program)

Hackney is one of the most dynamic and progressive local authorities in the UK. We are a resilient, vibrant, and creative borough in the heart of London, with strong, diverse communities and a powerful set of shared values.

About The Role: Are you a purpose-driven, collaborative, and efficient individual seeking to make a tangible impact within the public sector? The London Borough of Hackney is looking for a Contract Manager to join our Climate, Homes and Economy Directorate, within the Employment, Skills and Adult Learning service. This role is crucial for the effective coordination and delivery of the Council’s £3 million per annum “Jobs and Skills for Londoners” and Adult Skills funding provision. You will play a key role in developing, maintaining, and promoting a robust contract management regime, ensuring compliance with grant funding regulations, and driving continuous innovation and improvement. You will need to be adept at working to deadlines within a complex grant-funded service.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manage contractual performance and risk, monitoring delivery across commissioned Employment, Skills and Adult Learning programmes.
• Interpret and manage external provider performance data, including KPIs and PIs, ensuring data accuracy.
• Draft, review, and negotiate contracts with Adult skills providers, ensuring clear terms and conditions and compliance with relevant grant funding regulations.
• Regularly review provider performance against contractual agreements, tracking key performance indicators.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders, communicating contract details and addressing any concerns.
• Monitor contract budgets, ensuring cost-effectiveness and managing contract variations.
• Prepare regular reports on contract performance, identifying areas for improvement, and presenting findings to relevant stakeholders.
• Oversee analysis for continual improvement of service delivery and improved value for money.

About You:

We are looking for someone with:

• Knowledge and experience of managing and reporting on the performance of skills initiatives, including progress against milestones and outputs.
• A strong record of successfully leading programmes and projects, ideally within a grant-funded or public sector context.
• Strong contract management and monitoring skills, including the ability to develop early warning systems for under-performance and/or non-compliance.
• Ability to develop and deliver a range of KPIs and quality assurance measures.
• Demonstrated performance management techniques, including the ability to develop, negotiate, and challenge outcomes and goals.
• Experience in managing and prioritising a complex workload, balancing organisational and service-led demands.
• Proven experience in procurement commissioning, partnership working across the public sector, and managing project budgets.

If you are a purpose-driven individual, thrive in a collaborative and efficient environment, and are adept at working to deadlines within a complex grant-funded service, we encourage you to apply. Join us in shaping a better Hackney!

We operate a fair and open anonymous selection process. Therefore, we do not accept supporting statements or CVs. As part of the application process, you will need to complete a number of competency-based questions. These questions allow you to demonstrate your suitability for the role and provide examples of your skills, knowledge and experience outlined in the job description.

Closing date for applications: 16 July 2025 (22.59)

Interview and assessment date: W/C 11 Aug 2025

We are also working towards our vision, which is to be a place for everyone; where residents and staff can be proud; a place that celebrates diversity and where everyone can feel valued, included and involved. In order to achieve this, we look for people who are: Proud; Ambitious; Pioneering; Open; Proactive; Inclusive.

Hackney Council works to eradicate discrimination on the basis of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, and sexual orientation. We also recognise that people can be disadvantaged by their social and economic circumstances, so we will also work to eliminate discrimination and disadvantage caused by social class. We also welcome those interested in flexible working. We particularly welcome applications from disabled people, as this group is currently underrepresented in our workforce.