What we offer

The scheme provides you with a secure future income, independent of share prices and stock market fluctuations.

It also provides protection for you in the event of redundancy or ill health and for your family in terms of survivor benefits.

Whilst you pay a contribution based upon your earnings, the council also makes a contribution of typically equivalent to around 15% of your salary.

Take a look at all the benefits of the pension, who can join and how much it costs to enrol.

Read more on the LGPS website.

The council are committed to ensuring services are delivered in the most efficient and customer-focused way, whilst providing opportunities for employees to work more flexibly.

We recognise that flexible working offers real benefits in support of our workforce and in the delivery of effective, efficient and value for money services.

Flexible working options provide the opportunity for flexibility in relation to the time during which employees are required to work their contractual hours, and number of hours they work, subject to the requirements of the individuals jobs and services.

Flexi-time allows employees a degree of choice about when they work their contracted hours. As long as they agree this with their manager in advance, they can vary their start and finish times within a set time of 7.30am to 6.00pm.

Please note: Flexi-time arrangements are made in line with the requirements of the service and may not be appropriate for all service areas.

Job sharing is a contractual arrangement, with a working pattern where two or more people share the responsibilities and benefits of one full-time position.

Please note: Not all jobs will be suitable for job sharing. Job share arrangements are made in line with the requirements of the service and may not be appropriate for all service areas. They may also be dependent on the council being able to fill the remaining hours of the post.

Compressed working hours give employees on full-time contracts the opportunity to work their contracted hours over a shorter number of days than the standard working week. The policy allows for a ‘9-day fortnight’.

Please note: Compressed working arrangements are made in line with the requirements of the service and may not be appropriate for all service areas. Compressed working can not be used in conjunction with flexi-time.

Part-time work is when an employee works fewer hours per week than a standard full-time contract.

Please note: Not all posts will be suitable for part-time working and all requests will be considered carefully by the manager in line with the needs of the service.

A variation in hours gives employees the opportunity to request an increase or decrease to the total number of hours they work on a daily, weekly or monthly basis.

Please note: Not all posts will be suitable to allow for a variation in hours, and all requests will be considered carefully by the manager in line with the needs of the service. Hours can not be increased to more than full time hours and any decrease may be subject to the council being able to fill the remaining hours of the post.

Special leave allows an employee to deal with personal issues at short notice and/or emergency situations where requests for time off cannot be planned and do not fall under other Council policies.

Special leave may be considered in any one annual leave year up to a maximum of the equivalent of 1 working week with pay and a maximum of the equivalent of 3 working weeks without pay.

The council is eager to support extended breaks from work in the interest of retaining the valuable skills and knowledge of its staff in the longer term.

Please note: Any career break will be without pay and for an agreed period of time up to one year.

The council offers a generous entitlement for maternity, paternity and adoption leave which is greater than the statutory minimum subject to eligibility.

Eligible employees may also be entitled to shared parental leave subject to eligibility.

Employees are able to take up to three days' paid leave in a 12-month period to attend assessment and training prior to being approved as a foster carer.

Up to one further paid day will be provided to attend a fostering panel. This will be pro-rata for part-time employees.

Eligible employees responsible for the upbringing of a child are entitled to take up to 18 weeks unpaid leave for the purpose of caring for the child subject to qualifying service.

Leave is to be taken in one-week blocks unless the child is disabled when individual days can be taken.

Eligible employees who are members of the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) and age 55 years or over, are eligible to request to take flexible retirement and access their pension, by reducing their hours or taking a lower pay grade.

Term-time working is when an employee works during school term times and does not work during school holidays. The employee receives a pro-rata salary, but this is paid all year round in equal installments.

Please note: Not all posts will be suitable for term-time only working and all requests will be considered carefully by the manager in line with the needs of the service.

You can apply to have time off work to undertake certain public duties, some of which will be on a paid basis, others unpaid. Example of public duties include jury service, election work and retained fire fighters.

Reasonable time off is allowed to attend appointments such as doctors, hospital and dentists.

The council offers a generous annual leave entitlement that varies dependent upon your pay grade and length of service.

Annual leave at the council is calculated in hours which allows for more flexibility for employees when they take leave. The annual leave year runs from the 1 April to the 31 March.

In addition to annual leave employees are currently entitled to eight public holidays, two extra statutory days and one concessionary day per year (pro rata for part time employees).

For most employees, where there is not an operational requirement to work during this period, the two extra statutory days and the concessionary day will be taken between Christmas and the New Year to enable a Christmas Closedown.