Open Digital Programme Engagement Lead

EMEA3 Recruitment; Chichester; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 43,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Local government pension scheme

27 days holiday

Flexible working

Training & development

Staff discounts

Health & wellbeing

Job summary

West Sussex County Council is seeking a dedicated stakeholder engagement coordinator to support the delivery of a major digital programme. The role involves coordinating multi-level stakeholder engagement, managing communications, and mitigating risks in a high-scrutiny environment.

The post is fixed-term/secondment to 30 September 2028 with hybrid working from County Hall, Chichester and other locations. A full-time 37-hour week and a competitive benefits package are included.

Qualifications

• Relevant degree, or equivalent workplace experience in PR/public policy or change management.
• Knowledge and experience delivering multi-level stakeholder coordination.
• Excellent written communication and ability to tailor messages for diverse audiences.
• Ability to triage enquiries from political, public and industry stakeholders; identify reputational risks.

Responsibilities

• Coordinate multi-layer stakeholder engagement to support programme delivery.
• Ensure compliance with governance standards and value for money.
• Support communications for a high-scrutiny, complex programme during a transition period.

Skills

Stakeholder engagement

Public relations

Communication

Written communication

Risk mitigation

Financial governance

Education

Relevant degree in Public Relations or related field

Job description

The Opportunity

We are seeking a dedicated professional to coordinate multi layered stakeholder engagement in the successful delivery of communications for the programme.

The Opportunity

Salary: £39,862 to £42,839 per annum

Contract Type: Fixed Term/Secondment until 30/09/2028

Working Pattern: Full time 37 hours per week

Location County Hall, Chichester and hybrid working

Interview date: Week commencing 28th Sept 2026

Internal candidates wishing to apply for this role will be considered for a secondment position. Please can you therefore discuss and agree this with your manager before applying for this position.

OpenDigital is a county-wide programme led by West Sussex County Council to build the digital foundations of a modern, connected county.

It brings together digital infrastructure, connectivity, data and partnerships into a single, coherent programme that enables innovation, a future‑ready workforce and sustainable economic growth across West Sussex.

West Sussex County Council’s (WSCC) Digital Infrastructure Team delivers OpenDigital working with local and central government as well as the commercial telecommunications industry, academia and partners.

We require a motivated stakeholder engagement coordinator with communications skills to support the team to deliver a highly scrutinised and complex programme of activity at time of significant transition in local government.

About you

To be successful in the role you will need to:

• Relevant degree, or alternative qualification or accreditation in Public Relations, public policy, community/programme development or change management, or equivalent relevant workplace experience.
• Knowledge and experience of delivering multi-level stakeholder coordination to support wider partnership working and influence programme adoption.
• Highly developed communication and interpersonal skills, enabling effective engagement with a diverse range of stakeholders, including the ability to influence and persuade senior stakeholders.
• Excellent written communication skills, with the creativity and understanding to tailor messages to diverse audiences.
• Ability to triage correspondence and enquiries from a wide range of political, public, and industry stakeholders, identifying and mitigating communication or reputational risks to prevent escalation, unless escalation is necessary.
• Experience in financial management to ensure value for money and compliance with WSCC and local government governance standards.

For more information on the Key Skills as well as the Qualifications and/or experience required, please refer to the Job Description attached.

Working for us

West Sussex Councils recognise the importance of the county’s digital backbone in supporting its opportunities, innovation and prosperity.

WSCC’s Digital Infrastructure Team is nationally recognised as forward-thinking and innovative in developing and delivering digital infrastructure initiatives across multi-layered partnerships supporting inward investment and ensuring homes and businesses enjoy a modern, digital life.

As well as adding real value to our service users and our communities, as an employer we recognise our employees are central in being able to achieve this. To recognise this we want to help support your development and provide a great place to work ensuring you can fulfil your full potential, have access to a range of benefits including:

• an excellentlocal government pension scheme
• generous holiday entitlement of 27 days (plus opportunity to buy additional leave)
• arange of flexible working options, depending on your job role
• maternity, paternity, dependencyand adoption leave
• volunteering opportunities
• training and development opportunities, including coaching and mentoring
• a range of discounts giving our staff access to hundreds of offers; groceries, travel, cinema tickets, days out, leisure activities, high street retailers and the opportunity to save over £1,000 a year through our West Sussex Choices benefits platform (see ourStaff discounts pageif you are a business looking to offer a discount)
• health and wellbeing benefits including access to our Employee Assistance Programme,Mental Health First Aiders and Voluntary Health Cash Plans

For a full list this can be found at our Rewards and Benefits page.

Further information

The reference number for this role is EIE01561.

For an informal conversation or for further information regarding the role, please contact Jo Furber (Digital Infrastructure Relationship Manager) [e-mail]

For issues or queries regarding your application please contact [e-mail].

Internal candidates wishing to apply for this role will be considered for a secondment position. Please can you therefore discuss and agree this with your manager before applying for this position.

To apply, please follow the links below to upload your CV and Cover Letter. In your cover letter please outline your motivations for applying and explaining the skills and experience you can bring to the role (please refer to the key skills) ensuring that any gaps in employment are covered in your CV. Please ensure you have saved the job description attached to the main advert on our website as, once the job has closed, you may not have the opportunity to download again.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults.This post is subject to 3 years referencing and a health check.

Equity, inclusion and accessibility is very important to West Sussex County Council. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone, as this helps us build a diverse and talented workforce, that reflects the communities we serve. We ensure our approach to recruitment is flexible and supportive to enable all applicants to be at their best and to ensure they have the best possible chance of success.

We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that have a disability, are a veteran or are a care leaver. More information can be found on our application helppage.