About the Borough This special place in South West London between the capital and the country has been a Royal borough longer than anywhere else - it is where the first kings of England were crowned. Today it is a vibrant and diverse borough, with a long history and strong cultural and community heritage. Kingston's riverside location, fantastic retail offer, historic market place and church, parks and gardens all make Kingston town centre the vibrant space it is, and each of our district town centres (Surbiton, New Malden, Tolworth and Chessington) have something unique to offer. Situated in Zone 6, Kingston is among the best-connected town centres in London – with direct train links from Kingston and Surbiton stations to Clapham Junction and London Waterloo, as well as Wimbledon for an interchange with the London Underground and Tramlink. Kingston’s people are innovative and entrepreneurial, and have a strong sense of community pride. The borough has been home to great industry and creativity for many years, reflected in assets such as the Rose Theatre, the International Youth Arts Festival and Kingston University, which boasts more new graduate business start-ups than any other. We have seen tremendous generosity and compassion within our communities, particularly in response to COVID-19, which is a demonstration of Kingston’s key strength. The council offers a strong level of support to vulnerable groups and those who need additional support, which has also increased significantly as a result of the pandemic. Like most places, the average age of our population is rising as more people are living longer, so we are working closely with residents to help them maintain their independence and further improve the cost effectiveness of our service to meet the ongoing rise in demand. Kingston is home to people from diverse and interesting cultures and backgrounds, which helps to create the rich sense of community shared across the borough. In particular, Kingston has a large Sri Lankan Tamil community and is home to more people from Korea than any other part of the UK. About the Role The role reports directly to the Green spaces contract manager, and is responsible for development and delivery of the aims and objectives of the Council’s initial three year Greenspace strategy action plan, and associated green spaces projects. To use project management principles for the scoping, approval and delivery of projects that support the initial three year Green spaces strategy, Tree and woodland strategy and Allotment strategy action plans. To support the Community parks programme manager in the delivery of all capital projects from designing schemes, obtaining prices, applying for internal and external funding through to procuring services and project managing the delivery of schemes. To prepare bids to secure funding from a range of sources, both internal and external, in order to take projects forward in line with agreed plans. To assist the Green Spaces Officer with managing ongoing repairs and maintenance of parks infrastructure, including playgrounds. To raise the profile of the Green Spaces Service through effective use of the Council’s communications channels, working closely with the Corporate Communications Team and Council’s Customer Contact Centre. About Us The Green spaces team manages the operational delivery of the Council's grounds maintenance and arboriculture contracts, as well as the continued development and improvement of parks, open spaces and sites important for nature conservation. The post holders will primarily be responsible for delivering the aims and objectives of the Council’s Greenspace strategy action plan, and associated green spaces projects, which will include projects to enhance access and inclusivity, community participation, nature recovery and health and wellbeing. About You In order to successfully deliver the responsibilities of the role, you will need to demonstrate agility and adaptability in mindset and ways of working, with an understanding of the bigger picture in terms of the corporate context and external environment. Whilst an understanding or experience of working within parks and open spaces management is desirable, you could equally have strong project management skills and experience of working on projects from inception to delivery, including preparing and presenting funding applications. The role will bring you into contact with a wide array of stakeholders, statutory agencies, partnerships and community groups who you will need to engage effectively with in order to manage the changing demands of the role.