London Borough of Waltham Forest
**IINTERNAL APPLICANTS ONLY** Senior Programme Manager (Maternity Cover)
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London Borough of Waltham Forest
Salary: £68,784 – £72,399
Contract Type: Full-time maternity cover up to 12 months
Working hours per week: 36
Application Deadline: 18/10/2026 11:59PM
Proposed Interview Date(s): TBC
Reference: 2359
About Us
Bursting with culture, energy, and opportunity, the London Borough of Waltham Forest is a fantastic and exciting place to work.
We are a highly ambitious borough. Driven by culture and the innate creativity of our residents, we have developed new and innovative ways to build our communities. Our Council is relentlessly resident-focused, insight-led, digitally driven and commercially minded; a Council focused on meeting the needs of our existing and future residents.
London Borough of Waltham Forest is one of the Mayor of London’s Good Work Standard employers. This accreditation is a proof of our commitment to creating a healthy, fair and inclusive workplace. This includes fair pay and conditions, workplace well-being, skills and progression and diversity and recruitment.
The Council’s preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method.
About the Role
Reporting to the Head of Transformation, the primary purpose of the role is to lead, design and deliver complex transformation programmes.
You will have proven experience in providing strategic leadership and collaboratively working in political environments with senior leaders and responsible officers to ensure impact and delivery. You will work closely with colleagues across the Directorate and across the Council driving progress and accountability.
You will be an excellent communicator and problem solver. You will also have excellent programme management skills and experience in managing budgets, and resource allocation.
This is a fixed-term position to provide maternity cover, anticipated to last for 12 months. However, applicants should be aware that the duration of the contract may be subject to change. In the event that the employee currently on maternity leave decides to return to work earlier than originally indicated, the contract may be terminated with appropriate notice in accordance with the terms of employment.
Click here to download the Role Profile
Key Responsibilities
- Lead the definition, design and delivery of complex organisational transformation programmes; using innovation and creativity to meet the needs of residents
- Provide strategic direction and alignment to programme teams, ensuring the delivery of Mission Waltham Forest and associated outcomes for residents
- Develop and implement effective programme governance structures and robust oversight of delivery
- Provide the leadership to drive forward the Council’s transformational agenda with a focus on achieving sustainable outcomes and achieving financial sustainability
- Work collaboratively with senior leaders and responsible officers to ensure impact and delivery
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Qualifications and Requirements
To be considered for this position, you should meet the following requirements:
- Curious problem solvers ready to generate new ideas, insights and innovative solutions
- Ability to establish and maintain effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, bringing people with them on the design and transformation journey
- Proven experience in providing strategic leadership to design and deliver complex transformational change initiatives
- Ability to work effectively in political environments
- Able to deal with ambiguity
- Proven experience in leading and delivering complex transformational change initiatives
- Strong project management skills, including budget management and resource allocation
- Exceptional leadership and communication skills, with the ability to engage effectively and drive change at all levels
- Experience in local government or public sector transformation initiatives is highly desirable
Terms and Conditions
The below terms and conditions apply to this role:
- Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks
- Satisfactory declaration of interest
How to Apply
Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the ‘Apply’ button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
Contact Information
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the application process, please contact Charlotte Rayner, Senior Programme Manager at charlotte.rayner@walthamforest.gov.uk
If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.
Equal Opportunity Employer
Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives:
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- Promoting equality of opportunity
- Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage
- Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels
- Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all
Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.
To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy.
We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview.
For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us.
Fraud Awareness Notice
The London Borough of Waltham Forest only advertises vacancies via our official website and approved recruitment platforms (e.g. Jobsgopublic).
We will never ask for payment or request sensitive personal or financial information as part of our recruitment process.
If you are contacted by a third party claiming to represent the Council, please verify the vacancy via our official careers website before sharing any information.
If you have concerns about a job advert or communication, please report it to: fraud@walthamforest.gov.uk
Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.
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