Temporary Families and Communities Officer

Job title Temporary Families and Communities Officer Job reference R1862 Date posted 28/09/2026 Application closing date 11/10/2026 Location West Suffolk Salary Salary range £42,123 - £47,665 per annum plus excellent employee benefits package Contract type Temporary for two years Contractual hours 37 Basis Full time Department Families & Communities Attachments Blank Job description

West Suffolk council is committed to supporting families and strengthening communities to enable them to become more resilient. Over this last year alone we have seen so many brilliant examples of local communities and people working together to improve things and support each other. We are looking for a talented individual to join our Families and Communities team to continue this work.

We are looking for a confident, self-motivated officer to provide support to the Lakenheath Pride in Place Board chair and day-to-day programme management of the Lakenheath Pride in Place 10-Year Vision and 4-Year Investment Plan including procurement, financial oversight, compliance and performance management.

What you will need

• A strong professional track record of working in partnership to make a real difference to local communities.
• Excellent relationship building, communicating and influencing skills.
• An in-depth understanding of community development approaches.
• Experience, or an awareness of, working in a political environment.

We are looking for a strong team player who will identify opportunities to improve outcomes for our communities. You will have the drive and skills to work independently yet contribute to the delivery of the council’s wider agenda. You will also have experience to demonstrate that you understand the value of working with a wide range of partners (public, voluntary and private sector) to improve the quality of life in the area.

The successful candidate will work at least three days a week in Lakenheath.

Please refer to the job description and person specification for full details of this exciting opportunity.

Why work for us?

Our benefits include:

• Holiday entitlement of 25 days, increasing to 29 days after 5 years (pro rata if part time) plus bank holidays (with an option to buy up to 10 extra days each year subject to approval)
• Generous pension scheme – contribute between 5.5% and 6.8% (depending on your salary) and the council will contribute 16.4%
• Life assurance – a payment of three times your annual salary
• flexible working options to enable work/life balance
• agile working - ability to work in the office and from home
• access to a unique employee benefits package which includes discounts and cashback on supermarkets, high street shops, holidays, mobile phones, electrical goods, savings and loan schemes and many other products and services
• Salary sacrifice benefits including Cycle to Work scheme, Tusker Leased Car Scheme and SmartTech (buy the latest tech products interest free and repay through your monthly salary)
• Rail and bus staff discounts
• A range of Health and Wellbeing initiatives including an employee assistance programme
• Discounted membership at Abbeycroft Leisure centres
• A culture of learning inspiring staff to focus on continuous learning
• Modern office accommodation.

For more information:

For an informal discussion and further information please contact Lesley-Ann Keogh (Service Manager - Families and Communities ) on 01638 719238 or Lucy Pettitt (Head of Service - Families and Communities ) on 01284 757002.

Closing date: Sunday 11 October 2026

Interview date: Tuesday 20 October and Friday 23 October 2026

West Suffolk Council has been rated in the top 10 district councils for climate action (Climate Scorecards 2023) and as a member of UK100 has demonstrated its commitment to a rapid transition to Net Zero with Clean Air in our communities. The council has declared a climate and biodiversity emergency and is committed to working towards net zero emissions by 2039.

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