Democratic Services Officer

Ashford Borough Council; England; Hybrid; GBP 25,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

An established industry player is seeking a motivated individual to join their Democratic Services team. This role involves preparing agendas, reports, and minutes for committee meetings, ensuring effective communication and documentation. The ideal candidate will possess excellent organisational and interpersonal skills, alongside a strong command of written and spoken English. The organisation values employee wellbeing, offering flexible working arrangements to support a healthy work-life balance. With a competitive remuneration package and opportunities for personal development, this position is perfect for those looking to make a meaningful contribution to local governance.

Benefits

Excellent salary linked pension scheme

Generous annual leave with flexi time

Free life insurance

Supportive relocation package

Opportunities for training and development

Qualifications

• Ability to work under pressure while maintaining accuracy.
• Experience in producing minutes, agendas, and reports.

Responsibilities

• Prepare agendas, reports, and minutes for committee meetings.
• Assist with digitalisation of meeting management.

Skills

Organisational Skills

Interpersonal Skills

Written English

Spoken English

IT Skills

Education

Experience in Democratic Services

Understanding of Local Government Procedures

Tools

Microsoft Office

Job description

We are looking for someone who would like to develop a career in Democratic Services and has excellent organisational and interpersonal skills to support our provision of an effective Democratic Services to the Council. We would also welcome applications from experienced Democratic Services Officers.

You will be responsible for preparing agendas, reports and minutes, in respect of Committee meetings along with:

1. Assisting with the digitalisation of meeting management.
2. Preparing agendas for corporate projects.
3. Attending project meetings and producing notes/reports of those meetings.
4. Keeping records up to date.

It is essential that you have the ability to work under pressure whilst maintaining accuracy, have a high standard of written and spoken English and excellent IT skills (particularly Microsoft Office packages) along with:

1. Excellent organisational and interpersonal skills.
2. The ability to produce minutes, agendas and other text-based documents.

There is a requirement that you will be able to attend evening meetings and provide cover at busy periods for which additional remuneration is provided. It is desirable that you have previously worked in a Democratic Services environment or with Elected Members and have an understanding of Local Government procedures. However, we would welcome applicants that may not have worked in a local authority before but believe they have the relevant skills. Training can be provided for the right candidate through the Association of Democratic Services Officers.

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Danny Sheppard on 01233 330349.

Click to view a Job Description.

When Applying: Please ensure that you have received confirmation of a submitted application once completed. For any assistance in completing the application form, please email [e-mail].

Hybrid Working: We are an organisation that puts people first and understands how important employee wellbeing is. We want to help you to balance your working life and home life and offer flexible ways of working to help structure your life in a positive and productive way; both at home and in the office. This maximises personal development and collaborative working.

Competitive remuneration package: We offer an excellent salary linked pension scheme, generous annual leave with flexi time, free life insurance, supportive relocation package and opportunities for training and development.

We welcome applications from the Armed Forces Community.