Senior Democratic Services Officer

Kirklees Council are advertising this role on behalf of South Yorkshire Pension Authority

We have an exciting opportunity to join our small, friendly, and forward-looking Governance team in this well-respected, award-winning organisation managing a £11 billion pension fund.

If you’re looking for a role involving variety, challenge and autonomy, where you will lead on the coordination and delivery of a high-quality democratic support service to our Authority and Local Pension Board members, then this could be the role for you.

Who we are:

We are both a local authority and a pension fund and we’re unique within the Local Government Pension Scheme as the only democratically accountable single purpose pension organisation in the UK. As a local government body, we have a public sector ethos and place a great deal of importance on our organisational Values and Behaviours – which are all about being honest and accountable, professional, progressive, and empowering.

We have a culture that encourages work-life balance, and we offer flexible working hours and hybrid office / home working. Our Barnsley office provides a state-of-the-art working environment; and with on-site parking and located within 10 minutes’ walk of both the train and bus stations, it makes us easily accessible. At SYPA we are big on your professional development, you’ll have a learning and development plan, and we’ll support you to keep your CPD updated.

What you’ll be doing:

As our Senior Democratic Services Officer, you will play a pivotal role at the heart of the organisation.

You will be central to driving the highly effective operation of the decision-making arrangements and scrutiny processes of the Authority, providing an excellent democratic support service to all our Authority and Local Pension Board members.

You will be responsible for employing and developing a suite of processes and procedures to manage the work programmes, agenda and minutes production, and recording of decisions taken at the formal Authority, its committees and the Local Pension Board. You will support all the members of these bodies throughout the municipal year, and you will be involved with identifying member learning and development needs, taking responsibility for co-ordinating the scheduling and provision of relevant training.

In addition to the key relationships you’ll have with our members, you will of course work closely with the Director and Senior Management Team, as well as with managers and other colleagues across the organisation. Externally, you’ll liaise and collaborate with the democratic services teams of the four Councils across South Yorkshire, our partners in the Border to Coast Pensions Partnership and other relevant stakeholders.

What you’ll be able to offer:

You’ll bring your considerable experience and expertise in democratic services to this role to make it a success. You’ll either hold a relevant professional qualification or membership already (such as from the Association of Democratic Services Officers) or be able to demonstrate equivalent knowledge built through experience and a willingness to undertake further accredited training and/or a qualification.

Your background must involve working within the public sector, and it would be advantageous if your knowledge and experience has been developed from working in Local Government (with or without specific LGPS experience).

Naturally, it is vital that your written and oral communication and interpersonal skills are highly developed and effective to meet the demands of this role supporting our members and the democratic process. You will have demonstrable skills in minute taking and attention to detail.

Similarly, you will need to evidence a highly developed range of ICT skills and practical experience of using various systems, including meeting management software and Microsoft Office products – Outlook, Word, Excel and Teams in particular.

What's in it for you:

- We have a generous annual leave policy that offers between 28 days and 36 days annual leave depending on length of service, plus all statutory bank holidays and you can accrue and take up to 13 extra days leave per year by utilising Flexitime.
- Our working hours are 35-hours per week Monday to Friday. All our Authority, Committee and Board meetings currently take place during the daytime.
- We have several work-life balance policies including a Flexible Working Hours policy (Flexitime) which allows you to work your contracted hours to suit both you and the team that you are working in, as well as offering hybrid working enabling you to work from home for up to 3 days per week, subject to successful progress during probationary period.
- You’ll automatically be enrolled into the LGPS (Local Government Pension Scheme) which provides a salary-related pension, to which the employer contributes.
- Salary sacrifice schemes for Additional Voluntary Contributions to pensions and for lease cars are also available.
- We offer a range of wellbeing initiatives including regular webinars on health & wellbeing, fresh fruit, tea, coffee, and employer provided flu vaccination vouchers each year. We also organise regular social and charity events.
- We also offer a 24/7 confidential helpline, access to workplace counselling and Occupational Health.
- Access to a range of benefits and discounts through the Wider Wallet scheme.
- A salary of £39,152 to £41,771
- Centrally located modern office for public transport links and staff on-site parking available.

Interview Date – Monday 3rd November 2025

We reserve the right to bring the closing date forward should enough quality applications be received prior to the current closing date.

We will be shortlisting throughout the duration of the campaign therefore early applications are encouraged.

For an informal conversation and to learn more about the role, please contact Joanne Stone – Head of Governance and Corporate Services by email at jstone@sypa.org.uk or on 01226 666418.

To apply, please click here https://shorturl.at/38z5e

We do not accept any unsolicited submissions from agencies.

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