Redaction Officer

Buckinghamshire Council; Aylesbury; Hybrid; GBP 30,000 - 40,000; Full time

Job summary

Buckinghamshire Council is looking for a detail-oriented Redaction Officer to manage Subject Access Requests (SARs) and ensure compliance with data protection laws. This role is pivotal in balancing individual rights with the Council's obligations while providing an efficient information access service.

Benefits

Flexible working arrangements

Employee Assistance Programme

Discounts on local services and shops

Generous Pension Scheme

Discounted gym memberships

Qualifications

• Demonstrable experience managing and responding to SARs.
• Strong knowledge of UK GDPR and Data Protection Act.
• Experience in high-volume and time-sensitive environments.

Responsibilities

• Lead on the redaction and processing of Subject Access Requests.
• Liaise with social care teams to ensure compliance.
• Maintain records of requests and decisions for audit readiness.

Skills

Attention to detail

Communication

Organizational skills

Judgment under pressure

Education

Experience in local authority or public sector

Tools

Redaction tools

Microsoft 365

iCasework

Job description

Buckinghamshire Council is seeking a highly motivated and detail-oriented Redaction Officer with proven experience in handling Subject Access Requests (SARs) and other information rights requests in accordance with statutory requirements, including the UK GDPR, Data Protection Act 2018 and the common law duty of confidentiality.

This is a 12-month fixed-term contract or secondment opportunity, based at our Walton Street Office in Aylesbury (2 days in-office, 3 days remote).

About us

Joining Buckinghamshire Council means becoming part of a large, diverse unitary authority where you can make a meaningful impact, work on complex and rewarding challenges, and grow your career in a supportive, forward-thinking environment. Buckinghamshire Council is committed to promoting transparency while safeguarding the privacy of individuals. As a Redaction Officer, you will help deliver a lawful, fair, and efficient information access service that reflects our dedication to data protection and public trust.

About the role

As part of the Information Governance Unit, reporting to the Information Governance Manager, this role will be central to delivering our legal obligations relating to access to personal information - primarily focused on complex social care SARs. You will play a vital role in balancing the rights of individuals with the Council’s duty to protect sensitive data.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead on the redaction and processing of Subject Access Requests, ensuring responses are accurate, complete, and provided within statutory deadlines.
• Apply data protection principles and exemptions appropriately, in line with legal requirements and local authority policies.
• Liaise with services—particularly social care teams—to identify and retrieve relevant information, ensuring compliance and protecting third-party rights.
• Maintain detailed records of all requests, decisions, redaction and exemptions to support transparency and audit readiness.
• Collaborate with colleagues across the Information Governance team to ensure consistent and legally compliant request handling.
• Provide advice and support to council departments on best practices in redaction, SAR response, and information governance.

Any-Desk:

As an ‘any-desk’ worker, you’ll need to be connected to our network to access digital folders and resources, but this can either be from home or an office location when required. You will be required to work from the office a couple of times a week, depending on your role and team requirements.

About you

We are looking for someone with proven experience managing and responding to SARs and other information rights requests, who thrives under pressure and can apply sound judgment in high-volume, time-sensitive environments. Knowledge of Freedom of Information and Environmental Information Requests would be an advantage.

Skills & Experience

• Demonstrable experience processing Subject Access Requests (SARs) and other information rights requests in a local authority, legal, or public sector setting.
• Strong working knowledge of relevant legislation, including the UK GDPR, Data Protection Act 2018, and an understanding of the Freedom of Information Act, and Environmental Information Regulations.
• Skilled in the use of redaction tools and proficient in Microsoft 365.
• Experience working with case management systems such as iCasework is advantageous.
• High level of attention to detail and ability to apply legal exemptions accurately and proportionately.
• Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and meet statutory deadlines.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with confidence to engage effectively with internal services, external stakeholders and data subjects.
• Ability to work independently while contributing to a supportive and collaborative team environment.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).

We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.

Our values and culture

We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.

By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:

a fair and inclusive culture

• the chance to really make a difference to those around you
• health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
• a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
• ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
• opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events

At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.

From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.

We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.

About the Business Unit

The Assistant Chief Executive directorate is central to Buckinghamshire Council’s journey to establish itself as one of the best councils in the country. With a clear focus on service improvement through transformation and a drive to build better relationships with the local community, the directorate is fast-paced; but extremely rewarding. Our teams are not only proactively delivering on projects and plans but also reacting to developing situations. If you are ambitious, innovative, and would relish the opportunity to influence change - a role within our service area could be your next career move.

The team includes exciting areas of work, including a brand new localities model – delivering 16 community boards across the county to make it easy for our residents to engage with us as we work together to plan for the future. Other teams include our Policy and Communications and Legal and Democratic Services teams – innovating the way we communicate with our colleagues, Members and the local community, and role-modelling best practice through policy, planning and legal services. If you think you can help us achieve our goals, and want to be a part of this exciting journey, we would love to hear from you!

We recognise and reward you

Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.