Area Manager

Sheffield City Council HQ; Sheffield; On-site; GBP 42,000 - 54,000; Full time

Job summary

Sheffield City Council is seeking an Area Manager to support its Parks and Countryside Service in delivering safe, welcoming, high-quality parks across the city. You will lead operations, manage staff and contractors, and oversee budgets while engaging with a wide range of stakeholders.

The role focuses on expanding green space improvements, biodiversity, and community-focused park development, with flexible working options considered to suit service needs.

Qualifications

• Background in operational management, horticulture, grounds maintenance or similar field.
• Experience managing staff and contractors to deliver parks projects.
• Financially competent with ability to manage budgets and resources.
• Proven ability to engage with councilors, stakeholders, volunteers and residents.
• Commitment to developing Sheffield's parks and green spaces and meeting local needs.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage day-to-day operations across parks and green spaces.
• Supervise staff and external contractors to deliver high-quality maintenance.
• Develop and implement strategies to improve biodiversity and park health.
• Engage with councillors, community groups and residents to reflect local needs.
• Monitor budgets and allocate resources effectively.

Skills

Operational management

Horticulture

Grounds maintenance

Staff management

Contractor management

Budget management

Job description

Area Manager

Increasingly known as the Outdoor City, Sheffield is one of the greenest cities in the Country with 4130 Hectares of green space managed and maintained across 752 sites by the Parks and Countryside Service. We are looking for an Area Manager to support the service in its goal to ensure that every area of the city has access to safe, welcoming, high-quality parks and green spaces.

We have embarked on an ambitious programme of green space improvements which are already having a very real impact on both the quality and the health and wellbeing value of our parks and green spaces. We are excited by the changes needed because of the increasing focus in our city and the country of nature on biodiversity and are clear on the role we will play in delivering these changes.

Ideally you will have a background in operational management, Horticulture, Grounds Maintenance or a similar field and experience or passion for green space management.

We are looking for someone who is:

• Driven and can work unsupervised.
• Experienced in managing staff and contractors
• An excellent communicator who can engage with a wide range of councillors, stakeholders, volunteers, residents, and fundraisers alongside other council teams
• Financially competent, able to manage budgets and resources
• Able and committed to developing Sheffield's parks and green spaces and responding to local needs

We are investing in our workforce and are promoting opportunities to our under-represented groups. We value equality, diversity and inclusion and are focused on increasing the diversity of our workforce, particularly the number of Black, Asian, Minority Ethnic, Disabled and LGBTQ+ people, so that our teams reflect the communities in the city we serve. We are also supporting staff with unpaid caring responsibilities to work flexibly.

It is a great time to join us and we welcome your application.

Under the Guaranteed Interview scheme, applicants who are disabled, care leavers, or armed forces veterans will be guaranteed an interview if they meet the essential criteria and indicate their eligibility on the application form. Sometimes, if lots of people apply, we might not be able to interview everyone who qualifies for the Guarantee. In these cases, we'll interview the candidates who best meet the essential criteria for the job.

Full-time employees work 37 hours for 52 weeks of the year and we offer a generous holiday entitlement. We are open to discussions about a wide range of flexible working opportunities which benefit you and the Council, including reduced hour contracts, working part time or as a job share.

If you are appointed to this role, your starting salary will be at the bottom of the grade. If you provide payslip evidence that your basic pay is greater than the bottom of the grade, we will consider starting you at the point of minimum advantage within the grade.

Equality of pay is extremely important to us. All roles at Sheffield City Council are going through an evaluation process which may result in changes to some pay arrangements from 2026. Find out more on our Sheff news page.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all individuals, ensuring a safe and supportive environment for everyone and where appropriate to the role the successful applicant will be required to undertake relevant safeguarding checks.