Service Director Regulation, Housing & Customer Contact

Bedford, England, United Kingdom

1/13/2025

At the heart of the country, Bedford Borough is one of the UK’s most historic as well as exciting and upcoming places with proposals to deliver major national and internationally acclaimed projects. A key growth area at the centre of the London Oxford Cambridge region, Bedford Borough is renowned for its food & drink R&D and manufacturing sectors, creative, life science, electronics and engineering industries. It is also a great place to live and work with surrounding picturesque villages, high attaining public and private schools, thousands of acres of open green spaces and the River Great Ouse embankment and promenade at the centre of Bedford.

We are aiming to recruit an exceptional individual to join team Bedford and play a central role in realising the Boroughs bold and ambitious strategy to deliver high-value and transformational projects and services, including business investments by some of the largest (top Fortune 100) companies in the world, town centre regeneration, a potential international tourist attraction which is linked to multi-billion-pound infrastructure projects and transformational programmes designed to improve opportunities for our residents.

Your role will focus upon Regulatory Services (including Planning, Environmental Health & Trading Standards, Licensing, Community Safety and Resilience), Housing & Homelessness and Customer Contact across the Council. You will be responsible for the bottom-line service delivery of the services within your remit. Reporting directly to the Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Director of Environment and having three Heads of Service reporting directly to you, you will be part of a strong team with a range of specialities and experiences which will enable and encourage a positive learning environment across the directorate.

To succeed, you will need to hold a suitable professional qualification and be an experienced and highly motivated leader, with a passion for delivering regulatory outcomes with a positive and productive focus. You will also have a track record of developing creative solutions to improve service delivery, and strong budgeting and financial management skills to ensure value for money. The need to be flexible is essential as is your commitment to personal development.

There has never been a more exciting time to live and work and Bedford, where you will play a key role with accountability for delivering one in a generation projects which will have a long-lasting legacy.

For further discussions about this exciting opportunity please contact Craig Austin Deputy Chief Executive and Executive Director of Environment on 01234 276774 or via email craig.austin@bedford.gov.uk

Closing Date: 26.1.25

Technical interview (virtual): 29.1.25

Member panel interview (in person): 6.2.25

When you are ready to apply, click on ‘Apply for Vacancy’; you will be asked to upload a CV and answer some application questions. Good luck with your application.