Flood Risk Project Officer

Role Responsibility

The Flood and Water Management Team at Kent County Council has an exciting role for someone who wants to help manage flood risk and tackle the impacts of climate change. Kent is at significant risk of flooding, which disrupts lives and the economy, this is increasing due to climate change. The Flood and Water Management Team helps to deliver on Kent County Council is commitment to reducing flood risk and mitigating the impacts of climate change to improve outcomes for residents, businesses, and the environment in Kent.

The Flood and Water Management team leads on the management of local flood risks, flooding from surface water, groundwater and ordinary watercourses. Through our Local Flood Risk Management Strategy, we have an ambitious programme to deliver projects that help us understand and manage the these flood risks, enhance the resilience of local communities and improve the local environment. Our projects include understanding and quantifying the risks of flooding, assessing the options to manage them and the benefits these provide, to delivering schemes that manage the risks. We utilise a range of techniques to manage flood risk, including nature-based solutions, conventional engineering and innovative techniques.

We collaborate with a wide range of partners on flood risk management and associated issues, including Water Companies, Environment Agency, Internal Drainage Boards, District and Borough Councils, Parish and Town Councils, local and national environmental NGOs, farmers, and other community stakeholders. We work closely with communities and stakeholders to improve their understanding of flooding and how they can help to manage it.

The Flood and Water Management team are currently looking for a Flood Risk Project Officer to lead the delivery of a range of projects on our programme. You will be responsible for managing our projects, working alongside our consultants and contractors to ensure they are on time and on budget and are developed in a way that is safe and enhances the environment. You will bid for funding for projects, where this is relevant, develop business cases and update funding partners on projects. You will work with local communities and their representatives to help them understand their flood risk and what can be done to manage it. You will liaise with partners and stakeholders to ensure they are kept informed and understand how our projects are progressing.

About You

As you will be overseeing a range of projects, we expect you to have good project management skills, able to manage your time and prioritise your workload effectively, and to proactively identify issues that need to be resolved. You will be working with a range of partners on technical projects, you will need good collaboration skills and be able to communicate complex issues to a wide audience. You will apply your knowledge and experience of the flood risk management and understanding of the water environment to shape our projects and ensure they deliver our objectives. You will have a degree in a relevant environmental field or appropriate equivalent experience and be confident dealing with technical details of flood risk management.

This post is considered by KCC to be a customer-facing position. The Council therefore has a statutory duty under Part 7 of the Immigration Act (2016) to ensure that post holders have a command of spoken English/Welsh sufficient for the effective performance of the job requirements. The appropriate standards are set out in the Job Description/Person Specification.

Contact Details

For more information about the role, please contact Max Tant, Flood and Water Manager, max.tant@kent.gov.uk, 03000 413466.

About the Company

KCC is committed to building a workforce which reflects the diversity of the county's working residents, encouraging applications from people of all ages, abilities, genders, sexual orientations, ethnic backgrounds and faiths, and aspires to create an inclusive workplace where everyone can be themselves at work.

Please note – if you are interested, please apply as soon as possible as the closing date for this advert may be earlier than stated should a number of suitably qualified candidates apply.