Senior Community Relations Manager

Sizewell C Company; Leiston; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 78,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Bonus up to 10%

Contributory pension up to 7.5% (empl)

Private medical cover

Extra holiday opportunities

Life assurance

Benefits portal with add-ons

Job summary

Sizewell C Company is seeking a Senior Community Relations Manager to support community relations throughout the Sizewell C construction. The role focuses on planning-related engagement and building trusted relationships with local authorities, politicians and communities.

You will work alongside planning, land, site delivery and civils teams to anticipate requirements, lead public consultations, and guide senior leaders through policy developments in a fast-moving infrastructure project.

Qualifications

• Around seven to ten years' experience in a senior community relations or external affairs role.
• Experience leading a community relations function or team.
• Strong experience working with local government on planning matters.
• Ability to tailor communications for diverse audiences with high attention to detail.
• Experience delivering public consultations.

Responsibilities

• Lead development and delivery of communications and public engagement for planning applications.
• Provide strategic direction to the community relations team.
• Build relationships with local authorities on planning matters.
• Anticipate requirements with planning, land, site delivery and civils teams.
• Represent Sizewell C at local authority planning committee meetings.
• Develop engagement plans for the new mayor and unitary authority leaders.
• Provide briefings on Local Government Reform and mayoral developments.
• Monitor changes in local planning policy to identify opportunities or risks.
• Support site delivery leadership in identifying where planning applications may be required.
• Manage external consultants when necessary; deputise for Head of READ.

Skills

Community engagement

Stakeholder engagement

External affairs

Local government experience

Planning & public consultations

Job description

Career Area: Sales, Communications & Marketing

Senior Community Relations Manager

Sizewell C's business is to design, finance, construct, commission, operate, maintain, and eventually decommission the nuclear power plant and related infrastructure at Sizewell C in Suffolk. Overall, whilst the Company is in the construction phase, the Boards' principal focus is on the development and construction of Sizewell C on time, on budget and to the highest quality and safety standards. The Company is maturing to meet all these requirements.

Sizewell C is economically regulated by OFGEM under the RAB model similar to other UK electricity distribution networks and Thames Tideway.

Sizewell C construction strategy is to replicate the design of Hinkley Point C, using the majority of the same supply chain, but innovating in the way it is delivered to achieve savings in time and cost of around 20%. The CCO will need to be guided by and incorporate lessons learned from the Hinkley Point C commercial delivery to achieve Sizewell C's ambition.

Following Financial Completion and Revenue Commencement, Sizewell C is fully funded and is owned by; The Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero representing HM Government, La Caisse, Centrica, EDF and Amber Infrastructure.

Location:

Sizewell Information Office, Leiston, Suffolk. 4 days per week in the office and travel to the Sizewell C site and Orwell Logistics Park as required

Contract:

Permanent, full time

Salary:

£60,000 to £78,000, + bonus + benefits including:

• Bonus up to10%
• Contributory pension scheme up to 7.5% employee/15% employer
• Private medical cover
• Opportunity to purchase extra holiday
• Life assurance
• Access to benefits portal where additional benefits can be purchased such as electric car schemes, discounted gym memberships, etc

Closing date:

Monday the 2nd of November 2026

The Opportunity

Are you an experienced community engagement or external affairs professional who understands how to build trusted relationships with local authorities, politicians and communities?

We're looking for a Senior Community Relations Manager to join our Regional External Affairs and Development team. This is a high profile role supporting community relations throughout the construction of Sizewell C, with a particular focus on planning related engagement, public consultation and local government relationships.

This is not a technical town planning role. We're looking for a senior communications, community relations or stakeholder engagement professional who has operated within or alongside local government and understands the sensitivities surrounding major infrastructure and planning environments.

Why Join Sizewell C?

Sizewell C is one of Britain's most important infrastructure projects. It will play a major role in strengthening the UK's energy security and supporting the transition to a cleaner energy future.

You’ll join the READ team within the CEO's Office at a pivotal stage of the project, helping Sizewell C navigate an increasingly complex external environment. With Local Government Reform and a new mayoral authority expected in Suffolk, this is an opportunity to influence how the project builds and maintains strong relationships with the organisations and communities around it.

Why Join Us as a Senior Community Relations Manager?

This is a genuinely influential role where you'll act as a key link between our planning, land, delivery and civils teams, local authorities, political stakeholders and local communities.

You'll lead community relations activity connected to planning requirements, guide senior leaders through emerging political and policy developments, and help ensure that engagement keeps pace with a fast moving construction programme. You will be one of three Senior Community Relations Managers and will be expected to work across multiple disciplines as well as leading on community planning matters.

The role sits within the Regional External Affairs and Development structure and reports to the Head of READ.

The Role

As our Senior Community Relations Manager, you'll:

• Lead the development and delivery of communications and public engagement activity supporting planning applications
• Work alongside other Senior Community Relations Managers to provide clear strategic direction to the community relations team
• Build strong, collaborative relationships with local authorities on planning related matters
• Work closely with planning, land, site delivery and civils teams to anticipate upcoming requirements and challenges and set a forward look plan
• Represent Sizewell C at local authority planning committee meetings
• Develop engagement plans for the new mayor, unitary authority leaders and other political stakeholders
• Provide senior leaders with clear briefings on Local Government Reform and mayoral developments
• Monitor changes in local planning policy and identify potential opportunities or risks for the project
• Work with policy colleagues on EN-1 and develop proactive community engagement plans
• Support the site delivery leadership team in identifying where planning applications may be required
• Manage external consultants when necessary
• Deputise for the Head of READ and support wider community relations activity across the project

About You

You'll bring:

• Around seven to ten years' experience in a relevant senior community relations, stakeholder engagement, external affairs or communications role
• Experience leading a community relations function or team
• Strong experience working within or alongside local government
• Experience operating in a planning environment connected to infrastructure, construction or major projects
• Experience planning and delivering public consultations
• A strong track record of engaging residents, politicians, local authorities and other external stakeholders
• The ability to tailor communications for different audiences and deliver difficult or sensitive messages with empathy
• Confidence presenting to senior, political and community audiences
• The ability to provide trusted communications advice to senior managers and technical teams and a high attention to detail and accuracy
• Political awareness and an understanding of how the planning system operates
• Experience managing multiple priorities in a busy and rapidly changing environment
• A high degree of integrity, credibility and confidentiality

Experience within nuclear is not essential. We're open to candidates from public sector, construction, major infrastructure, planning and civils environments, provided you bring strong senior level community engagement and local government experience.

A Rewarding Career with Real Impact

This is your opportunity to take on a visible and influential role at the heart of one of the UK's largest infrastructure projects. You'll help shape Sizewell C's approach to community relations at a time of significant construction activity and political change, while building the partnerships needed to support successful project delivery.

If you're an experienced community relations or external affairs leader who can combine political awareness, sound judgement and genuine empathy, we'd love to hear from you.

When joining Sizewell C, you may wonder why you are contacted by colleagues with an EDF email or see the EDF logo on portals that you access and/or documentation you receive; this is because we have partnered with EDF for the provision of a number of support services whilst we complete a successful transition out of the EDF group.

At Sizewell C we encourage and embrace diversity and how it can improve our experience and performance at work.It is a requirement that those who join us have the right to work in the UK. Whilst sponsorship may be a possibility that we can explore, we are fully committed to local recruitment where possible, and those already holding the right to work in the UK.

To be appointed to this role, you will need to meet the criteria for Security Vetting, which will, ordinarily, require you to have been a resident of the UK for at least three of the past five years.