Personal Coach - Career Progression

Surrey County Council; Leatherhead; Hybrid; GBP 34,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government organization in Leatherhead seeks a Personal Coach to guide vulnerable young people towards education, training, or employment. This hybrid role supports NEET individuals and requires effective communication and a passion for youth development. The ideal candidate will have experience in career guidance and a strong understanding of related legislation. Apply to make a difference in the lives of local young people.

Benefits

26 days' holiday

Employee Assistance Programme

Generous pension scheme

Lifestyle discounts

Paid volunteering days

Qualifications

• Experience of delivering careers information, advice, and guidance.
• Good understanding of further education and training landscape.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Relevant experience in supporting young people.

Responsibilities

• Support vulnerable young people in finding education, training, or employment.
• Work closely with schools and employers to facilitate success.
• Manage a caseload and document interventions.

Skills

Experience delivering careers guidance

Knowledge of Raising Participation Age legislation

Strong communication skills

Experience working with young people

Education

Good standard of education

Job description

• Location: The Mansion, Leatherhead, Surrey, KT22 8DP

Description

We are committed to the development of our workforce. This position is only available to applicants who already work for Surrey County Council. We thank you for your interest in our roles and would encourage you to review our vacancies which are open to all.

The starting salary for this position is £33,552 per annum based on a 36-hour working week.This is a 12-month fixed-term contract or secondment opportunity.

We are excited to be recruiting a Personal Coach, who will offer advice and guidance to vulnerable young people in Surrey, helping them to identify an appropriate education, training or employment destination. This is a very special position, and a fantastic opportunity for the right person. This is a hybrid role with the assigned office base near the centre of Surrey at the Mansion in Leatherhead.

If you're someone who can put the aspirations and ambitions of Surrey's young people at the heart of all you do - we are excited to tell you about a new opportunity in our team!

Rewards and Benefits

• 26 days' holiday (prorated for part time staff), rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• An extensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave per year
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• A generous local government salary related pension
• Lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, shopping and many more
• 2 paid volunteering days per year
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources

About the Role

Working as part of the Participation Service you will play a key role in supporting young people who are NEET (not in employment, education or training) or at risk of becoming NEET to identify and progress to an appropriate post-16 destination. This will involve working closely with parents/carers, schools, further education and training providers, employers and other relevant professionals.

As a Personal Coach, you will support young people by working face to face, manage a caseload, recording interventions and reporting on progress. You will need to be comfortable using action plans, skills assessment tools and aptitude tests to enable progress towards agreed goals.

We're looking for someone that can bring their passion for engaging and motivating young people to life; developing strategies, advocating on behalf of our young people and challenging attitudes or barriers which may impact on their successful transition.

Shortlisting Criteria

To be considered for shortlisting for this position, your application will clearly evidence the following:

• Experience of delivering careers information, advice and guidance, with a good knowledge of Raising Participation Age legislation
• Good understanding of the further education and training landscape and local labour market
• A good standard of education and excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, as you will need to be comfortable and confident communicating with parents and carers, young people and professionals
• Relevant experience in this area and evidence of recent career development
• Experience of working with parents and carers, young people and families

As part of this role, you will need to travel throughout the county visiting schools, training settings and homes.

Contact Us

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 28/09/2025 with interviews to follow.

We look forward to receiving your application, please click on the apply online button below to submit.

An enhanced DBS 'Disclosure and Barring Service' check for regulated activity (formerly known as CRB) and the Children's and Adults' Barred List checks will be required for this role.

Local Government Reorganisation (LGR)

Surrey County Council is preparing for Local Government Reorganisation which will allow us to implement the Government led policy of devolution, which is all about giving more powers to local areas.

Currently, Surrey has a two-tier council system, with 11 district and borough councils and a county council, all responsible for different services. All these councils will be reorganised into a smaller number of new unitary councils which will come into effect in April 2027. At this point, this role will be transferred, with all existing terms and conditions intact into one of the new unitary councils.

The Surrey Way behaviours are a guide that supports our council to work together effectively and deliver our best for our customers and communities, and for each other. Discover more about our behaviours.

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description. OurLife at Surrey handbook also provides insights of the culture at Surrey and how as a valued employee, you can help shape our Council.

Our Commitment

Surrey County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. A guaranteed interview will be offered to all disabled applicants where:

• The candidate has evidenced the minimum criteria for the role through their application
• The candidate has chosen to share that they have a disability on the application form

Our application form and onboarding process will provide an opportunity to request any reasonable adjustments for the interview and/or the role. We want to be an inclusive and diverse employer reflecting the community we serve and particularly welcome applications from all underrepresented groups.