Communications & External Affairs Director London, England
Job description
The Palace of Westminster is one of the most iconic and significant buildings in the world. It is home to one of the busiest parliaments, with more than a million people, including 100,000 school children, passing through its doors each year. The Palace is a Grade 1 listed building and, with Westminster Abbey and St Margaret’s Church, forms part of the UNESCO Westminster World Heritage Site. The challenge of maintaining and restoring the Palace is huge. There has been no overall renovation of the building since the partial rebuilding in 1945-50 and some of the services are even older. The Restoration and Renewal (R&R) Programme has been established to tackle the significant work that needs to be carried out to protect and preserve the heritage of the Palace of Westminster and ensure it can continue to serve as home to the UK Parliament in the 21st century. This is the most complex renovation of a heritage building ever undertaken in the UK. The Delivery Authority is responsible for developing and delivering the work to the scope, budget and timescale agreed by both Houses of Parliament.
After a recent change in governance structure we are recruiting for a Communications and External Affairs Director. The postholder will collaborate with the R&R Client Team (which is a joint department of both the House of Commons and the House of Lords), Parliamentary communications teams and other House teams to develop and deliver a new communications and engagement strategy for the R&R Programme. They will be the lead for the Delivery Authority in its external affairs including media relations and digital & social media content and support the R&R Client Team with parliamentary engagement. They will develop proposals for re-engaging the Delivery Authority’s supply chain and its activities around the benefits of the Programme to the Nations and Regions of the UK for small and medium sized businesses and in relation to heritage skills. We are looking for an outstanding communicator and strategic thinker, someone who is politically astute and has proven ability to make decisions and give objective advice. The successful candidate will be someone who has excellent interpersonal skills and an ability to influence at a senior level. You will be a responsive and empathetic leader who is able to build, develop and strengthen your team.
The Restoration and Renewal Delivery Authority is committed to valuing diversity and promoting equality, and we particularly welcome applications from groups which are currently under-represented in senior leadership appointments.
Saxton Bampfylde Ltd is acting as an employment agency advisor to the Restoration and Renewal Delivery Authority on this appointment. For further information about the role, including details about how to apply, please visit www.saxbam.com/appointments using reference OZZYB. Alternatively telephone +44 (0)20 7227 0880 (during office hours).
Applications should be received by noon on Friday 17 th March. For more information about the Programme and the role please click here
Successful candidates will be required to complete security vetting to a CTC Security level obtained through the Parliamentary Security Department (PSD). Candidates are required to pass these checks before a start date can be confirmed. Applicants should also be aware that, depending on the role applied for, if they have resided outside of the UK for a total of more than two of the last five years, they may not be eligible for vetting
