Head of Highways & Transportation

Job Purpose

• As the Head of Highways and Transportation, you will be a key member of the Director of Operations Senior Management Team. You will collaborate with colleagues in the Operations Department and engage with internal and external stakeholders to deliver high-performing services aligned with the Council's vision, priorities, and pledges.
• You will oversee the strategic and operational management of all Highways and Transportation operations, ensuring the service meets national and local priorities in a customer-focused and efficient manner. As the lead advisor to the Council on Highways and Transportation services, you will cover Highways Asset Management and maintenance, Traffic Management, Transportation, and parking services.
• Your role includes significantly raising standards across our Highways and Transportation portfolio, contributing to improved outcomes across all aspects of the service. Additionally, you will ensure our services support the Council's emerging new ways of locality working.
• You will also establish and maintain strong links with Planning Services to ensure that transportation considerations are fully integrated into the planning and development process. This collaboration is crucial for creating sustainable and well-coordinated infrastructure projects that meet the needs of our growing community.
• On a day-to-day basis, you will be "hands-on", leading a team of professionals responsible for all elements of the Council's Highways and Transportation functions.
• You are specifically accountable for all service elements.

Reporting to the Director of Operations, you will provide clear leadership and support to your teams, fostering a culture of operational excellence. You will focus on innovative ways of working that enhance the service and reputation of the Council, ensuring our residents remain at the heart of everything we do.

• You will manage an annual budget of approximately £30 million (capital/revenue) and provide leadership and direction to your staff. Your expertise in compliance will be crucial in leading our statutory and regulatory requirements across strategic highways, transportation, maintenance, and planned works, ensuring safe operations. You will share knowledge and best practices, providing data and insights to foster a culture of compliance and adherence to statutory standards.

Key Accountabilities

-Provide strategic leadership and management for a portfolio of transport services aligned with Council priorities and financial targets.
- Develop and implement a coordinated strategic infrastructure delivery strategy, integrating all Council areas into long-term planning.
- Lead statutory and regulatory activities to maintain a safe, efficient, and effective transport network, ensuring compliance with policies and legislation.
- Ensure the service contributes to Council priorities and pledges, embedding the Council's culture, behaviours, and values.
- Provide expert technical advice on highways, transportation, and flood management to planning
applications and development proposals.
- Simplify complex legislation and provide strategic advice to senior leaders, including Elected Members, the Chief Executive, and the Corporate Leadership Team.
- Manage and deliver the Council's statutory compliance across Highways and Transportation services, incorporating performance monitoring and robust action plans.
- Take strategic responsibility for large revenue, staff budgets, and capital investment programmes, ensuring efficient service delivery.
- Proactively manage service budgets, forecasting expenditure and ensuring affordable plans align
with the annual budget and Medium-Term Financial Plan.
- Identify and secure external funding sources to deliver key strategic infrastructure projects.
- Work collaboratively with senior officers, elected members, partners, statutory bodies, and local authorities to achieve agreed outcomes.
- Coordinate and manage external consultants and partners, ensuring effective contribution and
understanding of roles and responsibilities.
- Engage with key local, regional, and national bodies to support strategic objectives related to
place-making.
- Lead the development and delivery of activities that contribute to local economic growth through
strategic infrastructure projects.
- Promote a "one Council" strategy to avoid siloed operations and achieve more effective
outcomes.
- Develop and deliver the highways capital programme and major projects through existing and
new contractual arrangements, ensuring oversight and sound financial management.
- Foster a culture of operational excellence with a strong customer focus, delivering value for
money services.
- Lead a risk-based approach to delivering strategic transport and infrastructure projects,
maximizing external funding opportunities.
- Oversee end-to-end commissioning of highways and transportation work streams, ensuring
robust contract management and performance monitoring.
- Lead, support, mentor, and coach operational staff, ensuring compliance with performance
management systems and HR policies.
- Role model the Council's priorities, ways of working, and values, ensuring they are embedded
across the service.
- Ensure equalities are embedded in all professional and managerial roles, adhering to Council
policy.
- Operate within the Council's governance, financial, and legal frameworks, providing strategic
advice to senior leaders.
- Participate in cross-organisational risk management and emergency planning activities.
- Manage data securely in compliance with legislation such as GDPR and the Freedom of
Information Act, promoting transparency.
- Be accountable for all quality and performance metrics related to commissioned property
maintenance activities.
- Integrate external best practices into service development and delivery.
- Provide performance reports to senior management, including insights, forecasts, trend analysis,
and efficiency opportunities.
- Lead and contribute to the delivery and implementation of specific capital projects as required.
Supplementary Accountabilities
- To be the council's lead technical officer on all aspects of Highways and Transportation services.
-To embed commercial awareness throughout the Highways and Transportation team to
recognise the impacts on its day to day work in unlocking better outcomes for our communities.
- Embeding and maintaing rigour of key service performance indicators and service outputs which
exceed local targets and contribute to the financail resilience of Swindon Borough Council.
- Through your visibility as a leader, provide clear direction and a motivational and inspirational environment for teams and individuals to develop.
- Chair project boards and working groups as required associated with the delivery of key
projects and strategic transport priorities for Swindon Borough Council and its partners.
- To carry out such other duties as may be expected by a senior officer at this level.
- To deputise for the Director of Operations and Corporate Director when requested.
- As a line manager, to ensure that the organisation's health, safely, equality, diversity and inclusion policies are fully implemented at all times and in all aspects of service delivery and employment.
- As a member of the Operational Senior Management team, adopt a collaborative and supportive
approach, maintaining up to date professional knowledge and providing advice and assistance to colleagues as required.
Knowledge & Experience
Candidates must have substantial knowledge and experience in the following areas of business and will be required to provide evidence of this:
- Significant senior management competence in managing operational services within Highways
and Transportation setting or related field with a proven track record of leadership and strategic planning within a local authority or similar public / private sector environment.
- A proven ability of successful change management, implementing and delivering new working
policies and practices alongside significant cultural and structural change that deliver improved
services for customers in a more efficient way.
- Ability to work across organisational and professional boundaries, to contribute to the
establishment of the desired organisational culture, to partnerships and to challenge inappropriate behaviour.
- Proven experience of successful financial management including budget formulation, including a
track record of improving services, managing complex budgets, involving a range of funding streams, and delivering value for money.
- A proven track record of establishing and sustaining a performance management culture,
supported by effective and efficient management information systems
- Able to deal with ambiguity and the pace of change within local government, confidently making
and standing by decisions in challenging situations and persisting with flexibility in the face of setbacks
- Track record of developing staff, building effective teams and leading multi-disciplinary
professional staff to achieve organisational aims and objectives
- Experience to lead and manage high-profile front-line services to our communities
- Experience of contract management and major public realm infrastructure scheme delivery
- Extensive experience of supporting decision makers, including Councillors and statutory consultees and strategic partner organisations to achieve positive outcomes
- Ability to make site visits throughout the Borough and attend meetings outside the Borough.
Qualifications
- Educated to degree level or equivalent qualification with considerable relevant senior
management experience in an appropriate related Highways and transportation setting.
- Membership of, or eligibility for membership of, a relevant professional body such as ICE, CIHT,
IHE or equivalent knowledge and practice gained through experience
- Management qualification
- Evidence of continuing professional development, leadership and personal
- Competent working knowledge of Prince 2 Practioner or knowledge of "programme and project
management techniques" within a similar digital environment
Decision Making
- The postholder has delegation of powers as head of Highways and Transportation services to
make significant, complex, decisions and must be aware to manage corporate risks.
- The postholder must take effective decisions quickly and act on their own initiative in order to
resolve problems. Effective delegation across the team will be essential to empowering the team
to provide efficent customer focused services.
- The postholder must be able to quickly get to the heart of issues and accurately assess and manage risk
- The postholder must shows creativity in using intellectual capital and resources to deliver cost effective services
- The postholder will be accountable for the successful operational delivery of the services and by
extension to cross council transformational priorities.
- Through developing and reviewing Highwys and Transportation strategies, the postholder must
ensure decisions taken are based on clearly defined needs of the council (and our wider
community) ensuring both short, mid and long term requirements are planned for.
Creativity and Innovation
- Constantly reviews ways of working and identifies opportunities to improve the quality of work of the service
- Identifies creative solutions to Council-wide issues and takes action to implement them
- Shows creativity in using resources to deliver cost effective services, engaging external experts
where relevant, and looking beyond the boundary of current service delivery
- Continually identifying, evaluating and implementing innovative new areas of partnership
working where it is beneficial to Swindon
Job Scope
Number and types of jobs managed
To lead and co-ordinate service delivery and
performance in the following service areas;
- Public Transport & Low Carbon Strategy
- Traffic Management and Transport Policy
- Highway Project Delivery
- Highway Technical Design
- Operational Highway Team
- Transport Development Management
- Highway Asset Management
- NEC term service contract
- Professional Services Contract
The total service staffing headcount is c.200 via 5 direct reports. The postholder will also convene cross-service and multi discipline boards to develop polices to support strategic Highways and Transportation services.
Typical tasks supervised/allocated to others
- To visibly lead the day to day running of the highways and transportation services and associated statutory elements.
- Detailed budget monitoring
- Implementation of staffing and performance matters including recruitment and retention of staff.