Category Specialist

Norfolk County Council; England; On-site; GBP 31,000 - 34,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government council is looking for a Category Specialist to join their Procurement Team to ensure quality service delivery and compliance with standards. Responsibilities include managing accreditation processes, maintaining contract data, and analyzing procurement performance. The ideal candidate will have strong organizational skills, experience in procurement, and proficiency in relevant software. This position offers a competitive salary, generous holiday entitlement, and various health and wellbeing benefits, promoting a flexible working environment.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Generous holiday entitlement

Health and Wellbeing services

Flexible working opportunities

Employee discounts programme

Local Government Pension Scheme

Tax-efficient car lease scheme

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage accreditation processes for new providers.
• Maintain accurate provider and contract data across council systems.
• Analyse procurement performance and resolve issues.
• Support annual price reviews and ensure correct invoicing.
• Provide guidance on procurement processes.
• Prepare reports for statutory transparency.

Skills

Strong organisational skills

Attention to detail

Ability to influence compliance

Experience in procurement

Data analysis skills

Confident with Excel and Word

Education

5 GCSEs (A–C) or equivalent

NVQ Level 3 in Procurement/Supply Chain Management

Tools

Excel

Word

Outlook

Teams

Liquid Logic

ContrOCC

Oracle

Job description

Category Specialist | 9375 | Permanent Contract | 37 hours per week | £31,537 to £33,699 per annum (Scale G) | County Hall, Norwich

Shape the future of social care and education services in Norfolk.

We’re looking for a Category Specialist to join our Procurement Team. In this vital role, you’ll help ensure that the Council works only with providers who meet defined standards, delivering value for money and quality outcomes for our communities.

What you’ll do

• Develop and manage accreditation processes for new providers.
• Maintain accurate provider and contract data across council systems.
• Analyse procurement performance, identify trends, and resolve issues.
• Support annual price reviews and ensure correct invoicing and payments.
• Provide advice and guidance to providers and social work practitioners on procurement processes.
• Prepare and publish reports to meet statutory transparency requirements.

What we’re looking for

• Strong organisational skills and ability to work independently.
• Excellent attention to detail and accuracy.
• Ability to influence and motivate compliance with processes.
• Experience in procurement and contract management, ideally within social care or education.
• Skilled in analysing data and presenting findings clearly.
• Confident using systems such as Excel, Word, Outlook, and Teams.

Essential Qualifications

• 5 GCSEs (A–C) or equivalent.
• NVQ Level 3 in Procurement/Supply Chain Management or equivalent experience.

Desirable Experience

• Knowledge of adult and children’s social care structures.
• Experience with systems such as Liquid Logic, ContrOCC, and Oracle.
• Familiarity with public sector procurement and NCC Contract Standing Orders.

Why join us?

• Make a real impact on services that support vulnerable people.
• Work in a collaborative, supportive team.

These are some benefits you can enjoy by working for Norfolk County Council

• Competitive salary
• Generous holiday entitlement
• Health and Wellbeing services including fast-track physiotherapy and a free counselling service
• Flexible working opportunities including flexi-time, part time, remote and hybrid working – dependent on your job role and business need.
• Financial benefits such as:
• ‘ Norfolk Rewards’ our employee discounts programme which helps you save money on almost anything, from everyday groceries and clothes, to holidays, new technology, gym membership, trips to the cinema and days out.
• A Blue Light card for Fire Service and Social Care Workers
• Relocation expenses (where applicable)
• An advance of your expenses if you travel for work
• Local Government Pension Scheme with generous employer contribution, life assurance, death in service payments and dependants’ pensions
• Tax efficient ways of getting extra pension and new bikes
• Access to our tax efficient car lease scheme for greener travel enabling you to lease a brand new, ultra-low emission vehicle (subject to eligibility)
• A payment if you refer someone you know to a hard to fill job

We want our people to be inspired and motivated to work well together, make the most of our workspaces, enjoy a healthy work-life balance, and deliver excellent services to Norfolk and its people. Flexibility is built into the way we work, with hybrid working a key feature for many roles. Our technology platform and equipment are first class, enabling you to connect and collaborate remotely. We ask that you have in place good Broadband connectivity.

Before you apply, we recommend reading the full Job description and person specification to help you demonstrate how you meet the criteria. You can also find information on our Terms and Conditions here.

Already a Norfolk County Council employee? See and apply for all internal and external vacancies via myOracle using your @norfolk.gov.uk or @nccal.ac.uk email.

We would like to make you aware that priority consideration for this post may be given to current employees who are at risk due to restructure within the organisation or are in a redeployment position.

Redeployment closing date: 8 December 2025 23:59

All other applicants closing date: 15 December 2025 23:59