Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Manager

Essex County Council is seeking a Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Manager in Braintree. The role involves leading a team to design educational programs on waste reduction, managing projects to support council services, and promoting sustainability initiatives. Candidates should have experience in the waste industry, strong leadership skills, and a commitment to tackling climate change. Flexibility in working hours is required, including occasional evening and weekend work.
Position: Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Manager, Braintree
Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Manager, Braintree

Braintree District Council has an exciting opportunity for a Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Manager to join the team.
The Role:

The climate crisis is one of the most significant issues to face our society, our environment, and the planet. The post holder will lead on designing educational sessions for residents, schools, and community groups and will role model excellent customer service for residents. Managing the team, you will identify and deliver projects that support the delivery of Council services.

To be successful in this role you will be confident and experienced in managing people, with the ability to establish credibility at all levels. A genuine commitment towards the environment, tackling climate change, and preventing waste is essential, ideally with a qualification in this field. Experience of the waste industry is essential, along with knowledge of research and data analysis. You will have excellent interpersonal and organisational skills and proven IT skills, including systems development.

You will need to be flexible with working hours which could occasionally start as early as 6:30 am when liaising with the refuse and recycling collection crews. Occasional evening and weekend working may also be required to attend evening meetings/talks and weekend events. Candidates should possess a full clean driving licence and access to their own vehicle for business use.
Key Responsibilities:
• Manage the work of the Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Team and support them in managing their workloads, ensuring accountability/responsibility for various tasks.
• Undertake staff performance reviews, sickness absence interviews, disciplinary and capability investigations, including giving formal presentations to panels.
• Actively maintain continued self-development of industry knowledge through effective forums and regularly attending networking opportunities.
• Act as the representative for waste minimisation and recycling within the Council.
• Take ownership of the recycling rate for Braintree District, with continued analysis throughout the year, both for reporting purposes and to inform initiatives designed to achieve targets.
• Lead the team in promoting waste minimisation initiatives and identifying and delivering projects that support the Council's vision.
• Develop and manage the ongoing delivery of the Council's waste reduction, reuse, and recycling initiatives.
• Manage and lead the Waste Minimisation & Sustainability Team to educate and inform the public and other key stakeholders via consultations and public engagement.
• Review and redesign current implementation model throughout the service and, where necessary, implement and design processes ready for approval by the senior management team.
• Work with the Council's Street Scene Enforcement Team to bring about appropriate enforcement action where education, advice, and guidance have failed.
• Design educational sessions for team delivery to schools and community groups to increase awareness of the impact of climate change, waste minimisation, and recycling.
• Utilize approved project management tools to ensure that all projects are delivered on time and within budget and support data analysis and performance reporting.
• Respond to resident and other stakeholder enquiries and complaints regarding proposed strategy, service, or policy changes and offer complex advice on a range of waste management issues.You:

Relevant qualification in Environmental Science, Sustainability, Waste Management (or equivalent) or be prepared to work towards a qualification. Relevant experience working in the waste industry. Experience in research and data analysis, including presenting to key stakeholders. Current waste Industry membership. Experience in managing teams with effective results and development (Essential). Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to communicate at all levels.

Experience in ability to work autonomously and part of a team, using own initiative. Experience of building and managing partnerships and collaborative relationships. Well-developed knowledge of waste management and environmental…