Highways Specialist Lead (A130)

Highways Specialist Lead (A130)

Temporary, Full Time

Up to £650 per day, Umbrella (Inside IR35)

Location: Chelmsford

Working Style: Anywhere worker

Closing Date: 3rd August 2025

We are currently seeking an experienced Highways Specialist Lead for a temporary appointment lasting three months. This role offers the opportunity to engage in meaningful collaboration with Council teams, with an expectation of attending the office 1 day per week.

Essex is an ambitious County, with an equally ambitious agenda. It has an extensive group of assets, with the Essex Highways service being responsible for managing and maintaining one of the largest highway networks in the country: 5,100 miles of roads and around 4,000 miles of footways.  

Essex Highways is a delivery partnership between Essex County Council (ECC) and our contractual provider delivering all highway services. The postholder will work alongside Members and senior officers to have primary responsibility regarding the transition of the A130PFI from existing provider to ECC.  

You’ll be a strategic thinker with strong commercial awareness, a passion for innovation, and the ability to influence, negotiate, and build impactful relationships with external partners. Skilled at uniting diverse expertise, you’ll drive collaboration to deliver outstanding outcomes for Essex residents, businesses, and highway users.

To read more about our business area, please visit Climate, Environment and Customer Services

Accountabilities

• Lead the transition of A130 PFI maintenance responsibilities from an external provider back into ECC, ensuring continuity and compliance with the PFI contract requirements.
• Collaborate effectively across internal and external stakeholders, applying commercial thinking to support the transition.
• Apply professional expertise to develop and translate contractual requirements, ensuring legal compliance and appropriate risk management.
• Leading on the key dependency with the Fairglen project, problem resolution and senior Member and officer engagement
• SME knowledge of PFI contract operation including supplier perspective, supplier management, and risk management
• SME technical knowledge of roads / pavements
• ECC nominee for project side of the contract entering agreements and making decisions on behalf of ECC; signs off narratives on the initial inspections
• Operational decision making to progress with work of the ECC team
• Strategic direction/ programme management and project team leadership, with a key responsibility to assess quality of the Handback reports received at the end of July and decide ECC’s next steps
• Chair of the Oversight and Advisory Board; represents A130 at Steering Board
• Risk owner for A130 risks, working through the mitigations and escalating where appropriate

The Experience You Will Bring

• Educated to RQF level 6 (Bachelor’s degree) or equivalent by experience with professional accreditation from any of the following; Institute of Highways & Transportation; Institute of Civil Engineers, Institute of Highway Engineers, or other relevant bodies.
• Significant and demonstrable post qualification experience within a Highways a Transportation environment with track record of successful delivery of contracts, schemes, projects and services.
• Excellent leadership skills with the ability to build a highly performing and motivated team from diverse backgrounds.
• Excellent influencing skills – able to build strong collaborative relationships across the Council and partners with ability to see the big strategic picture and think long-term.

Why Essex?

As one of the largest and most dynamic UK local authorities, Essex offers a stimulating public service environment. Covering over 1,420 square miles and serving 1.8 million residents, we’re committed to transformational change and delivering better quality at lower cost. Recognised in the top three of the latest IMPOWER index for productivity, we ensure everyone matters in Everyone's Essex. With flexible working options and a focus on innovation, whether you are looking to develop your career or contribute to the local community, Essex is the ideal place for you. 

What you should do next?

To apply, please submit your CV along with a supporting statement outlining your suitability for the role.

Essex County Council is proud to be a Disability Confident Leader. We’re committed to interview all disabled applicants who choose to apply under our Job Interview Scheme if they meet the minimum requirements of the job. Please speak to our Recruiters if you require any reasonable adjustments during the process. We’re also committed to interview all veterans and care leavers, who meet the minimum requirements of the role for which they are applying.

At Essex County Council, we value integrity and ethical behaviour. We kindly ask that you embrace our code of conduct and the Nolan principles, including throughout the recruitment process. Your commitment to these standards helps us maintain a positive and respectful workplace for everyone.

Essex County Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and vulnerable adults, and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.

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If you have queries or require anything further, please email saide.orwell@essex.gov.uk  

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