Assistant Editor (BBC South West) in Plymouth

Department: BBC Nations, BBC South West

Location: Plymouth.

Salary: £52,300 - £60,300 depending on relevant skills, knowledge and experience. The expected salary range for this role reflects internal benchmarking and external market insights.

We’re happy to discuss flexible working. If you’d like to, please indicate your preference in the application – though there’s no obligation to do so now. Flexible working will be part of the discussion at offer stage.

Purpose of the Role

BBC South West prides itself on first‑class coverage of news stories from across Devon, Cornwall and the Channel Islands. Our stories are seen and heard across BBC Spotlight, our four radio stations and our digital output and social media feeds.

We have an exciting opportunity for a part‑time Assistant Editor to help us deliver creative, impactful journalism across all platforms. The Assistant Editor produces our flagship 1830 TV news programme, plans longer‑term content for all platforms and delivers major editorial content across all our output.

Why Join the Team

The South West is a very diverse region, with several urban centres, rural landscapes and a large coastline. We want to recruit a leader who understands the audiences we serve. You’ll get what matters to the different communities which make up the South West – from the bustling cities of Plymouth, Truro and Exeter, to towns like St Austell, Bideford and St Helier as well as those in rural isolated locations across Bodmin Moor and Dartmoor.

Your Key Responsibilities and Impact

• You will ensure the quality of stories is of the highest standard and will be responsible for editorial standards across all of our platforms – ensuring our journalism adheres to BBC guidelines at all times.
• People skills are essential, and you must have significant experience of managing, developing and leading large teams.
• You will have significant experience delivering multi‑platform journalism.
• Forge key relationships both externally with contributors, and internally with our teams, with a focus on staff development.
• Work collaboratively with our teams across the region as well as other BBC locations, to ensure that we are representing all the areas that we serve.
• Place huge value on diversity, both within our team and our output.

Your Skills and Experience

Our ideal candidate will be an experienced leader and journalist with a clear track record of decision‑making in daily news journalism and long‑term planning.

• You will have extensive knowledge of news and current affairs in general, and an understanding of the stories that matter to people living and working in the South West.
• You will need the ability to work unsupervised and to tight deadlines and have experience of taking editorial decisions quickly and independently.
• You will have experience of working across digital, TV, audio and social media platforms and a good understanding of how to make our content travel further.
• You will have extensive experience of leadership, management, and collaborative working across teams.

Essential Criteria

• Significant management and leadership experience.
• Exceptional editorial and legal judgement.
• Experience of working collaboratively across all platforms.
• An understanding of the South West and its communities.

If you can bring some of these skills and experiences, along with transferable strengths, we’d love to hear from you and encourage you to apply.

Benefits

• Fair pay and flexible benefits including a competitive salary package, a flexible 35‑hour working week, 25 days annual leave with the option to buy an extra 5 days, a defined pensions scheme and discounted dental, health care and gym.
• Excellent career and professional development.
• Support in your working life, including flexible working which you can discuss with us at any point during the application, selection or offer.
• A values‑based organisation where the way we do things is important as what we do.
• Benefits may vary if you are joining on an FTC basis or on an orchestra conditions contract.

Learn more about life at the BBC and our values in our candidate pack.

This is your BBC

At the BBC you can create and innovate in an inclusive environment while contributing to some of the world’s best loved content, and the BBC’s mission to inform, educate and entertain.

Find out more about the BBC

Life at BBC

We have a working environment where we value and respect every individual’s unique contribution, so all our employees feel that they can belong, thrive and achieve their full potential.

We want to attract the broadest range of talented people to join us. The more diverse our workforce, the better able we are to respond to and reflect our audiences in all their diversity.

We welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio‑economic background, religion and/or belief.

Find out more about diversity, inclusion and belonging in our strategy below.

Disability Confident

We are a disability confident employer. If you need to discuss adjustments or access requirements for the interview process, or to carry out this role, please contact us via email and we’d be happy to discuss: reasonable.adjustments@bbc.co.uk

BBC Group and Public Services, Broadcasting House, Portland Place, London, United Kingdom, W1A 1AA. BBC Studios Distribution Limited, company no: 01420028, registered address: 1 Television Centre, 101 Wood Lane, London, United Kingdom W12 7FA.