Project Manager

Durham County Council; North East; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 60,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government council in England seeks an experienced Project Manager to lead initiatives within its Digital Programme. The ideal candidate will have a track record of delivering complex digital projects, particularly in customer service transformation. Successful applicants will be required to work on multiple projects and engage with stakeholders to enhance council services. A degree in a related discipline and strong leadership skills are essential for this temporary position until March 2028.

Benefits

Generous annual leave (27 days, rising to 32)

Membership of Local Government Pension Scheme

Flexible working arrangements

Qualifications

• Experience managing multiple complex digital projects.
• Strong track record in delivering major digital projects.
• Familiarity with Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems is advantageous.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage projects within the Digital Project Management Office.
• Support the council's digital transformation initiatives.
• Work on multiple projects concurrently related to Customer Service transformation.

Skills

Leadership skills

Stakeholder engagement skills

Customer focus

Organizational skills

Education

Degree in a related discipline

Job description

An exciting opportunity has arisen to be part of our Digital Programme and Communities Team within Digital Services as a Project Manager. If you have a strong track record in leading and delivering major digital projects, particularly those involving complex systems implementation, we’d love to hear from you. Experience with Interactive Voice Response (IVR) systems in a call centre environment may be a useful advantage. This vacancy is temporary until 31st March 2028.

WHAT IS INVOLVED?

As a project manager you will work within the Digital Project Management Office and have responsibility for leading and managing projects, to help support council digital transformation. We currently have an ambitious digital programme of work, and you will be required to work on multiple projects at any one time. Your work will initially be focussed to support on Customer Service transformation programme, which aims to develop a unified, customer-focused first point of contact operating model for the council’s front-line contact services.

If you are customer focused with strong leadership, organisational and stakeholder engagement skills, with an enthusiasm to put customers at the heart of what we do, then we would like to hear from you. We encourage you to contact Alli Walker via email at [e-mail] to arrange an informal discussion about the role.

WHAT WILL I NEED?

You must be educated to degree level or equivalent in related discipline and have experience of managing multiple complex digital projects. Please refer to the attached Person Specification for the full criteria. If successful, you will be required to apply for a Basic Disclosure.

INTERVIEWS

Interviews will be held on 29 January 2026. We operate a guaranteed interview scheme for applicants that can show they meet all the essential criteria and have indicated they have a disability, are a looked after young person, care leaver or a veteran.

OUR OFFER TO YOU

We offer a competitive rewards package that includes attractive salaries, a generous annual leave entitlement of 27 days (rising to 32 after five years’ continuous local government service), membership of the excellent contributory career average Local Government Pension Scheme, and a range of flexible working arrangements including hybrid working (home and office) where applicable. Rewards and benefits are subject to individual terms and conditions.

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY, AND INCLUSION

We are a proud equal opportunities employer and believe a diverse workforce brings fresh ideas and drives service improvement. We welcome applications from everyone and make employment decisions based on skills and ability. As a Disability Confident Leader, we actively encourage applications from disabled people and offer support throughout the recruitment process.

HOW TO APPLY

Please note, we do not accept CVs. All applications must be submitted online via the Northeast Jobs portal. Use the Person Specification section of the form to clearly demonstrate how you meet the essential (and where possible, desirable) criteria. Applications that do not evidence the essential requirements will not be shortlisted. For guidance on completing your application, visit our website. If you require assistance when applying for this role, please contact our Recruitment Helpdesk on 03000 26 27 27, or via email [e-mail]. All correspondence relating to your application will be sent from [e-mail]. Kindly check your spam/junk folder regularly to ensure you don’t miss any updates.

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