The Role

The Councils’ Emergency Planning Unit is looking to recruit a dedicated, motivated and passionate individual to the role of Emergency Planning Assistant.

This role offers the chance to get involved in a varied program of work, engaging with people across the Councils, external organisations, and the public to ensure we’re ready to respond and recover should the worst happen.

You’ll use your experience of project management, critical thinking, training delivery, research, risk assessment, or partnership working to ensure the Councils are prepared for emergencies such as flooding, fires, severe weather, utilities outages, terrorism, as well as internal business continuity incidents.

Job Purpose:

Reporting to the Senior Emergency Planning Assistant you will be working to put arrangements in place so the Councils are prepared to respond effectively to emergencies internally and in the community. This requires detailed planning, delivery, testing and exercising of plans and response structures to ensure they are fit for purpose in the event of a major incident.

The post is in the Emergency Planning Team, part of Environment and Community Services. It is primarily based in Wandsworth, with hot-desking facilities available in Twickenham.

You will:

• Assist in reviewing, developing and amending the Councils’ Emergency Plans and Procedures. 
• Liaise with police, fire service, health services and others on aspects of emergency planning and business continuity, including designing and delivering training and exercises
• Engage in the oversight and assurance of service Business Continuity plans
• Be required to participate in the Councils’ 24-hour response rota by being on-call standby at specific times.

Please review the attached Job Profile for the full responsibilities of this varied role.

To be shortlisted to interview for this position your application will clearly evidence:

• Experience of maintaining good relationships with stakeholders.
• Strong organisational skills and an ability to bring new ideas to the team.
• Ability to interpret guidance and develop action plans.
• Confidence working in a project delivery environment with rapidly changing priorities.
• An understanding of the aims and objectives of emergency planning and business continuity.
• Familiarity with the Joint Emergency Services Interoperability Principles (JESIP) and Civil Contingencies Act (2004).
• Experience of using the Microsoft Office packages including, but not limited to, Word, Excel and Power Point.

Training is available and you’ll be supported by the rest of the team, so although a background in Emergency Planning would be an advantage, it is not essential if you have a keen interest and the right transferable skills.

For an informal discussion about the role please contact Joanna Robb, Head of Emergency Planning at Joanna.robb@richmondandwandsworth.gov.uk

If this is the right next step for you and you’d like to join our team, we look forward to receiving your application.

How to apply?

Please register, submit your profile and a supporting statement addressing how you meet the requirements of this role. If you are having difficulty in applying online, please contact the Recruitment Team at recruitment@richmondandwandsworth.gov.uk to see if we can offer alternative arrangements for you to apply.

We welcome applications from all sections of the community who are keen to join our team.  We are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone.

Why choose us?

We can offer you working arrangements that will enhance your work-life balance, including a generous holiday allowance of 31 days plus bank holidays. We’re very supportive of staff development and learning opportunities.

In addition, we offer a comprehensive range of staff benefits such as membership of the Local Government pension scheme, childcare vouchers, new technology scheme, interest-free loans on annual travel cards, discounts with many leisure activities, restaurants, shops and other establishments.

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences. We recognise that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions to the Councils and can improve the way we deliver services. We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer.

Recruitment Timeline

Closing Date: Sunday 2nd April 2023

Shortlisting Date: Week Commencing 3rd April 2023  

Interview Date: Week Commencing 17th April 2023

Useful Information:

The closing date is given as a guide. We reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications has been received. We strongly advise you to complete your application as soon as possible to avoid disappointment.

Please note that the advertised dates for interviews may change due to the current Covid-19 situation. If they do, we will let you know as soon as possible.

Your health and wellbeing is our top priority. Should you become unwell due to Covid-19 during the recruitment process we would very much appreciate receiving an update from you as soon as possible.

We particularly welcome applications from sections of the community who are currently underrepresented within our teams.

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to making our recruitment practices as inclusive as possible for everyone. We are committed to promoting equality and diversity and developing a culture that values differences, recognising that employees from a variety of backgrounds bring important and positive contributions to the Councils and can improve the way we deliver services.

The application process for this campaign will be anonymised.

We are proud to be a Disability Confident employer.

Important Information:

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Richmond and Wandsworth Councils