Executive Assistant

Executive Assistant

Reference number: SC07150

Location: London

Schedule: Full-time

Salary Range: (Full time equivalent) £44,430 – £51,663

Contract Type: Permanent

The role

You'll be the essential link that keeps the senior management team connected and running smoothly. You'll work closely with the Head of the Chief Executive’s Office, senior officers, and Cabinet Members across the council, and see first-hand how the organisation runs at the highest level.

What you’ll do:

• In our fast-paced, high-stakes environment, you’ll provide first-class, efficient support that keeps the leadership team operating at their best.
• You’ll oversee a range of administrative and office functions, ensuring the smooth operation using your attention to detail, organisational skills, and proactive approach.
• Handle confidential information with the utmost discretion and integrity.
• Attend and minute high-level meetings, ensuring all details are accurately captured.
• Coordinating complex calendars, facilitating crucial meetings, or acting as a key point of contact across the council, your role will be pivotal in driving our mission forward.
• Liaise with external bodies and manage communications with a professional and sensitive approach.
• Manage and prioritise multiple tasks, meetings, and events with exceptional organisational skills and initiative.

How will you make an impact:

• A track record of delivering high-quality outcomes for Senior Leadership or Chief Executive gained in Local or Central Government.
• Demonstrated ability to align Admin support with strategic Planning goals, making a tangible impact.
• Provide administrative support for financial systems such as raising purchase orders, monitoring budgets, and ensuring appropriate sign off.
• Skilled in providing a performance-focused supporting role, implementing effective strategies, systems, and procedures to drive continuous improvement.
• You will be discrete and able to deal with sensitive and confidential information professionally, as well as a high degree of attention to detail.
• A focus on continuous improvement, have a growth mindset and a collaborative, can-do attitude.
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment, maintaining meticulous attention to detail while meeting deadlines.
• Enjoy a balanced approach with flexible home working, alongside occasional travel to our London Bridge HQ.

We are looking for motivated and enthusiastic applicants to work as an Executive Assistant for our Corporate Management Team at Southwark Council. The ideal candidate will be a quick-thinker, proactive, a willing team member and able to adapt to changing priorities daily. They should be able to work with the utmost discretion and with a good awareness of political sensitivities.

A flexible approach to workload with the ability to work under your own initiative, forward thinking and can demonstrate a solid administrative experience is required. Knowledge of public services and policies is desirable but not essential.

We are looking for applicants who can prioritise competing workloads and remain flexible with a level head under pressure. If you are looking to grow your career in Local Government then this dynamic role involves regular communication with a wide range of people, coordinating calendars, and providing project-related support to the Corporate Management Team and other senior stakeholders.

About Southwark

As a council, we are successful, passionate, and forward thinking. We are committed to tackling injustice and inequalities and rebuilding our local economy following the pandemic, ensuring that our residents and businesses are central to everything we do.

As a diverse central London borough, Southwark faces a range of challenges, which we aim to address through the delivery of the Borough Plan. We are looking for candidates to join our team to help us continue to make Southwark an inclusive borough for all our communities.

Southwark Council is an Equal Opportunity Employer, and we welcome applicants from all backgrounds. We monitor our recruitment practices to check that we are employing people in a fair and non-discriminatory way. We also publish annual workforce reports. We are proud to have a workforce that reflects the diversity of our borough.

Benefits and more information

• Working for Southwark Council – Southwark

Recruitment timetable:

• Application closing date: 11.59pm on the 26 January 2025.
• Interview date: W/C the 3 February 2025.

Application Process

If you are interested in applying for this role, please submit a CV and complete the application forms detailing your suitability for the role. The Job Description and Person Specification can also be found at the bottom of this page under attachments.

We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities.

This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together initiative. We particularly welcome applications from members of the black, Asian, and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the criteria below:

• Members of the Armed Forces and veterans.
• Are currently in care or have previously been in care.
• If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition.

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role, in which case we will move the key dates for the process. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

Attachments

• Job Description & Person Specification