Democratic Services Officer

Help us shape local democracy. Are you interested in local issues? Do you enjoy administration and making sure the correct procedures are followed? We’re looking for a proactive, confident and calm individual with a high level of tact and discretion to work in our Democratic Services Team. You’ll be creating agendas, writing minutes and organising the workloads of some of our committees, so you’ll need to be highly organised, adaptable and interested in local community issues. You don’t need experience as a Democratic Services Officer, but we are looking for someone who has experience of working with boards, panels or working groups and knows how to organise a group of people.

About the Role

• Managing work plans, creating agendas and drafting minutes for a selection of committees and boards.
• Using modern digital meetings infrastructure such as video webcasting to increase participation.
• Events organising, such as booking rooms, organising equipment and refreshments and managing attendance lists.
• Providing meetings procedural guidance to committee members and members of the public.
• Support councillor training events.
• Support councillors with administration requirements (this might include assisting with IT issues and the adoption of new technology such as AI).
• Working during evenings in line with our committee timetable.

About You

We are looking for someone who:

• Has direct experience of supporting boards, panels, committees or working groups.
• Can operate with tact and discretion in a political environment.
• Has excellent administrative and planning skills.
• Has some experience of events management.
• Has an understanding of local government and our purpose.
• Has a high level of computer literacy, including Microsoft 365, virtual meetings infrastructure, and can adapt to new technologies quickly.
• Is calm, confident and solutions-focussed when under pressure.
• Is able to juggle multiple priorities and meetings deadlines.

We will support your growth within the role through training, coaching and mentoring — because we believe in developing our people.

This is a politically restricted post

What we offer:

• Financial: An attractive basic salary within a clear pay structure
• Holiday Entitlement: 22 days annual leave (increasing to 27 days after 5 years continuous Local Government service) plus three additional days in December and bank holidays.
• Employee Assistance Programme: The Council has partnered with Health Assured to provide staff with access to EAP (Employee Assistance Programme) to assist in balancing everyday life with the requirement of work and home.
• Free staff parking.
• Pensions: Membership of the Local Government (CARE – Career Average (Revalued Earnings) Pension Scheme – Employer contribution of 19.7%.
• Hybrid: The Council operates a hybrid working model with minimum 2 days working in the office. (This is additional to in person attendance required at committee meetings).
• Personal Development: Invaluable training opportunities for continuing professional development.
• Take a look here at all the additional benefits that we offer.

Equal Opportunities

Tunbridge Wells – Working for Equality. We welcome applications from all sections of the community.

Safeguarding

The Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employee and volunteers to share this commitment.