Interim Parish Clerk

Reigate & Banstead Borough Council; Reigate; Hybrid; GBP 34,000 - 57,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

LGPS pension

Annual leave

Discounts & cycle lease

Better leisure membership

Job summary

Reigate & Banstead Borough Council is seeking an Interim Parish Clerk to support the implementation of new parish councils. The role coordinates governance, finance and administration to enable effective operation from May 2027, working with councillors, officers and external partners.

The ideal candidate has proven clerking or locum experience in local government, strong governance knowledge, and excellent written and verbal communication.

Qualifications

• Experience in local government or public sector governance roles.
• Understanding of parish/town council governance and transparency.
• Ability to prepare agendas, reports and minutes clearly.
• Strong organisational skills and multi-priority management.
• Proficiency with records management and public-facing information.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate governance, financial and admin arrangements for new parish councils.
• Prepare constitutional documents, procedures, budgets and precepts.
• Plan meeting arrangements, records, publications and induction materials.
• Coordinate premises, assets, services and transitional arrangements.
• Support budget, audit, insurance and financial control processes.
• Maintain discretion, confidentiality and political sensitivity.

Skills

Parish governance

Budget & precept

Meeting administration

Communications

Records management

Tools

MS Office

Job description

The job requirements are detailed below. Where applicable the skills, qualifications and memberships required for this job have also been included.

Job details

Job title Interim Parish Clerk Job reference REQ001027 Date posted 24/09/2026 Application closing date 20/10/2026 Location Town Hall, Reigate Salary £46,455 - £57,139 per annum, dependent on experience Employment type Fixed term until 28 May 2027. The role is anticipated to be full time, 36 hours per week, although part-time options may be considered Contractual hours 36 Basis Full time Job category/type Democratic Services Attachments Blank Job description

Job Title: Interim Parish Clerk
Location of work: Town Hall, Reigate, with hybrid working arrangements expected in line with service needs.
Salary: £46,455 - £57,139 per annum, dependent on experience.
Basis: Fixed term until 28 May 2027. The role is anticipated to be full time, 36 hours per week, although part-time options may be considered.

About the Role
This is an important fixed-term role supporting Reigate & Banstead Borough Council with the practical implementation of new parish councils agreed through the 2025/26 Community Governance Review. The Interim / Locum Parish Clerk will act as a central point of coordination for the governance, financial and administrative arrangements needed to enable the new councils to operate effectively from May 2027.

Working with elected Members, senior officers, finance, legal, democratic services, communications colleagues and external partners, you will help prepare the core arrangements for the new parish councils. This will include constitutional documents, initial procedures, budget and precept planning, meeting arrangements, records, publication requirements, induction materials and liaison on premises, assets, services and transitional arrangements.

About the Person
• Experience of working as a clerk, deputy clerk, locum clerk, committee administrator or in a similar governance role in local government or the wider public sector.
• A sound understanding of parish or town council governance, formal decision-making, transparency, data protection and basic financial administration requirements.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to prepare clear agendas, reports, minutes, briefings and public-facing information.
• Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities, maintain accurate action logs and keep implementation activity on track.
• The ability to support initial budget, precept, audit, insurance and financial control arrangements.
• Good judgement, discretion, confidentiality and political sensitivity in a complex transitional environment.
• Confidence in building effective working relationships with councillors, officers, parish representatives, residents and partner organisations.
• Competence in Microsoft Office applications, email and records management systems.
• A flexible approach to working hours, including attendance at evening meetings when required.

Staff Benefits
In exchange for your expertise, experience and enthusiasm, we will offer support in continuing your personal and career development, in addition to providing a wide range of employment linked benefits.

We provide you with competitive annual leave, and contribute 22.10% towards the LGPS pension scheme. You will also have access to a range of discounts including local and high street stores, and salary sacrifice schemes including a cycle lease scheme, and ‘Better’ leisure centre membership.

Additional Information
For an informal discussion about the role, please contact the recruiting manager. Contact details will be confirmed before the advert is published.

We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer, supporting the guaranteed interview scheme for disabled and ex-armed forces candidates, who meet the essential criteria for the role.

Closing date: 20 October 2026
Interview date: to be confirmed.

We understand that some applicants may use artificial intelligence (AI) tools to assist with preparing their applications.
All submitted information—whether supported by AI or not—must accurately reflect the applicant’s own skills, experience, and qualifications.
Recruitment decisions will be based on how well applicants demonstrate these attributes during the interview and selection process.

Values and Behaviours
Our great working environment and the values and behaviours of every individual and team in the Council, help to evolve the culture of our organisation to become more commercial, innovative and embracing of change. Successful applicants to our career opportunities will be able to demonstrate they share the values and behaviours we seek in our organisation.

Local Government Reorganisation
Reigate and Banstead Borough Council is part of the government’s plans for Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) scheduled to take place in April 2027. This means the current two-tier system, where services are split between Surrey County Council and district and borough councils like Reigate, will be replaced with two unitary councils made up of East and West Surrey, which will handle all local services. Reigate and Banstead Borough Council will form part of the new East Surrey unitary authority.

Although this may lead to some uncertainty for anyone considering a role with us, this process will take some time and during that time we still need to provide services. When local government is reorganised, most staff will transfer to the new council(s) which may offer additional opportunities for career development and variety as part of a larger organisation.

Further information on LGR can be found here: Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and Devolution | Reigate and Banstead

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