£44,400 - £51,600 • Southwark Council • London
The role
Southwark Council’s Strategy & Communities Team is hiring for a Senior Policy & Public Affairs Officer – a pivotal role for an ambitious influencer ready to drive real change.
What sets this role apart?
- Influence that matters: You’ll be joining an award winning team that design and deliver powerful influencing strategies that tackle real-world barriers and champion the needs of Southwark’s residents.
- Work at the heart of power: Build meaningful relationships with MPs, think tanks, government departments and more – your work will directly shape public policy.
- Be the expert everyone trusts: Develop subject-matter expertise on Southwark’s top priorities and advise senior officers and politicians with confidence.
Your Mission, Should You Choose To Accept It
- Lead the development of policy and public affairs strategies across one or more of Southwark’s key priority issues.
- Collaborate with cabinet members and council officers to identify external policy changes needed to deliver on Southwark’s commitments.
- Craft and implement high-impact influencing strategies – from stakeholder engagement and media work to evidence gathering and events.
- Map key decision-makers and opinion formers and build Southwark’s influence within these circles.
- Represent the council in conversations with parliamentarians, think tanks, and regional or national bodies.
- Work across teams to offer expert public affairs guidance and maximise the impact of our external engagement.
- Produce top-tier communications, policy briefings, and persuasive outputs that cut through complexity.
- Stay ahead of the curve – monitor political and legislative developments and assess their impact on Southwark’s ambitions.
- Support cabinet priorities by delivering targeted policy work and cross-functional collaboration.
How will you make an impact as the Senior Public Affairs & Policy Officer:
- A strong grasp of UK politics and the socio-economic landscape affecting local government.
- Proven experience crafting and executing campaign or public affairs strategies.
- Deep understanding of how government and parliamentary processes work – and when and how to influence them.
- A natural relationship-builder, confident working with senior stakeholders inside and outside the organisation.
- Skilled writer – able to distil complex issues into compelling messages for diverse audiences.
- Strategic thinker with experience delivering political engagement plans and driving policy change.
- Organised, independent, and comfortable in a fast-paced environment with shifting priorities.
- This role offers flexible home working blended with travel into our London Bridge HQ.
Additional salary details
Southwark is a borough of ambition, diversity, and world-class culture, we are home to over 300,000 residents and some of London’s most dynamic communities. As we drive towards our bold Southwark 2030 vision, we’re reimagining how we deliver services, harnessing innovation, and ensuring every transformation makes a lasting impact.
This is your chance to lead high-impact policy and public affairs work, shape national and regional agendas, and elevate Southwark’s voice in the rooms where decisions are made.
About Southwark Council
Southwark Council is the largest local authority social landlord in London, managing 55,000 homes lived in by 40% of Southwark’s residents. We are home to over 18,300 businesses including iconic London venues such as The Shard, The Tate Modern and Borough Market along with many social enterprises and we have a young, diverse, and growing population.
At Southwark we are committed to making our borough just and fair and are taking positive action to tackle inequalities. Our residents and communities are our greatest asset and the passion we have for Southwark is shared by millions of Londoners who enjoy our outstanding cultural offer, use our hospitals and attend our universities.
Our refreshed borough plan and focus on Southwark Stands Together, (which is our work with Southwark’s communities and the council’s staff to tackle racism, injustice and inequality) underpins all that we do.
Benefits And More Information
https://jobs.southwark.gov.uk/...
Salary Range: £44,430 - £51,663
Recruitment timetable
Application Closing Date: 11.59pm on the 5th of May 2025
Interview Date: The 15th of May 2025
We are an organisation who is passionate about our people and understands that richness of diversity is a requirement to provide the best possible services to our communities.
This is demonstrated through our council-wide ambitious commitment to tackle racial inequality in our communities and workforce through our Southwark Stands Together initiative.
We particularly welcome applications from members of the black, Asian and ethnic minority communities to increase representation at senior management level in the Council.
Guaranteed Interview Scheme
Requirements
As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interviews for specific groups of people. To qualify, you'll need to meet the minimum requirements for the role, and identify with one of the below criteria:
- Members of the Armed Forces and veterans
- Are currently in care, or have previously been in care
- If you consider yourself to be disabled or if you have a long-term health condition.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role, in which case we will move the key dates for the process. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
Attachments
- Job Description & Person Specification