Wiltshire council is a friendly, welcoming place to work, with a 'One Council' ethic. That’s why we focus on getting the things that matter to our people right – things such as flexible working, support for career development and rewards and benefits.
Council Benefits
- Holidays – you’ll receive 26 days' annual leave, rising to 31 after 5 years and then 32 after 40 years’ service, plus public and bank holidays
- Ability to purchase up to 20 extra days of annual leave
- Local government pension scheme – all our new employees are assessed against criteria and automatically enrolled into the scheme (unless you choose to opt out). If you already have continuous service or a pension with a different local authority this can be transferred to our scheme
- Truly flexible working, roles are hybrid between home and the workplace where applicable, and flexibility also includes:
- flexi-time scheme (for most roles)
- compressed or part-time hours
- job shares or term-time contracts where appropriate
- Discounts and cash back from well-known major supermarket chains, high street retailers and on holidays and entertainment
- Subsidised rail – we can offer you 25% discount on rail season tickets
- Local discounts with retailers and service providers
- Salary sacrifice schemes which save tax and national insurance - including cycle to work and purchasing additional pension contributions
- Discounted leisure membership
- Occupational health – offers a variety of employee wellbeing services to support a healthy work/life balance and lifestyle, including health screening and smoking cessation sessions
- Free seminars on managing your finances and planning for retirement
- Family friendly policies - we have a range of family friendly policies to support staff balance work and responsibilities outside of work including maternity leave, shared parental leave, adoption leave, maternity support and paternity leave, ordinary parental leave and carers leave.
- Development - Our HR / OD team have built an impressive suite of learning and training activities that provide a rounded and learner-centred experience. This includes a new learning management website that enables you to manage your own learning online
- Car pool – if you need a car for a business trip you can book a car. Our fleet includes fully electric vehicles and ultra-low emissions cars and electric charging points
- Car share scheme – if you share your commute with another employee you can benefit from reduced travel costs, while helping to reduce the number of cars on the roads
Flexible working
We positively encourage flexibility - wherever possible giving you the option to work in a way that works best for you.
Other flexible working options include:
• flexi-time scheme (for most roles)
• compressed or part-time hours
• job shares or term-time contracts where appropriate
We've invested heavily in new technology to support this flexibility. For example, using tablets helps our social workers to cut travel time and make administration quicker and easier.
Benefits
Our EPIC Values
Leadership
You lead by example through your behaviours and professional approach to work; inspiring your colleagues and driving for results.
Commitment to equality and inclusion
We are firmly committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and to the principles of inclusion and diversity in both employment and the delivery of our services. Read our statement of commitment to equality and inclusion.
We are a Includability Committed Employer (accredited) and Inclusivity is a key element of ‘Our Identity’.
Our Inclusive Workforce Strategy outlines our approach and commitment to diversity and inclusion. Staff led and leadership supported staff networks and allies help us shape and build an inclusive workplace.
D&I learning and development including mandatory manager courses diversity workshops.
We are a ‘corporate parent’ for children and young people who are Looked After in Wiltshire - to ensure that their voices continue to be heard and understood by Members and officers and that that these opinions are fully reflected in practice improvement.
Smokefree sites
Our hubs, libraries, leisure centres, depots and other council-owned sites have been officially smoke free since 1st October 2019. Vaping will be permitted on-site where appropriate, as this is evidenced by Public Health England to be 95% less harmful than smoking.
Career development
We want you to reach your full potential at Wiltshire Council. Whatever your role, we’ll encourage you to develop new skills and expertise, build on your strengths and address your weaknesses.
We’ll give you as much ownership as possible over your own development and career journey. You’ll have a personal development plan, with constructive performance appraisals and one-to-one reviews with your manager so we can work with you to plan your future.
We aim to grow our people and recruit from within where possible. In most roles, you’ll have the scope to progress or move within or across teams.
Our HR / OD team have built an impressive suite of learning and training activities that provide a rounded and learner-centred experience. This includes a new learning management website that enables you to manage your own learning online.
| Induction | Corporate development programme | Management development | Coaching | Secondments | Networking and seminars |
|---|
Our structured induction programme is designed to give you the information and skills you need in the first months of your career with us. From an e-induction in your first few days, to a face-to-face event where you’ll meet the leader of the council and you’ll learn about our vision, business objectives and the community we serve.
Through our learning management system that we call grow, employees are able to access a range of high quality development opportunities, many of which are accessible at any time. These include e-learning, resources, workshops, events and some qualifications. We encourage and support our employees to take responsibility and manage their learning through the system available.
Through our learning management system that we call grow, managers can access blended programmes of learning including workshops and e-learning. There is a Manager’s Toolkit to support new managers, which includes a list of management activities with access to policy, procedures, templates and additional learning.
A number of our people are trained coaches, who regularly work with employees. Coaching is available to all employees. It’s a great tool for building confidence, supporting moves into new roles and developing supervisory, management and leadership skills.
Short-term secondments often arise as a result of rapid change or because we’re pulling together a team to work on an innovative project or pilot scheme. You get the chance to work with a different team or service and expand your skills and knowledge for a fixed time before returning to your regular job.
We encourage every service area to keep its teams up to date with the latest thinking and practice in their particular field of expertise. Our people regularly attend networking meetings inside and outside the organisation, as well as attending relevant conferences and seminars.
Our structured induction programme is designed to give you the information and skills you need in the first months of your career with us. From an e-induction in your first few days, to a face-to-face event where you’ll meet the leader of the council and you’ll learn about our vision, business objectives and the community we serve.
Through our learning management system that we call grow, employees are able to access a range of high quality development opportunities, many of which are accessible at any time. These include e-learning, resources, workshops, events and some qualifications. We encourage and support our employees to take responsibility and manage their learning through the system available.
Through our learning management system that we call grow, managers can access blended programmes of learning including workshops and e-learning. There is a Manager’s Toolkit to support new managers, which includes a list of management activities with access to policy, procedures, templates and additional learning.
A number of our people are trained coaches, who regularly work with employees. Coaching is available to all employees. It’s a great tool for building confidence, supporting moves into new roles and developing supervisory, management and leadership skills.
Short-term secondments often arise as a result of rapid change or because we’re pulling together a team to work on an innovative project or pilot scheme. You get the chance to work with a different team or service and expand your skills and knowledge for a fixed time before returning to your regular job.
We encourage every service area to keep its teams up to date with the latest thinking and practice in their particular field of expertise. Our people regularly attend networking meetings inside and outside the organisation, as well as attending relevant conferences and seminars.
Rewards and benefits
Your health, well-being and financial security are all important to us:
- Holidays – you’ll receive at least 26 days' annual leave, rising to 31 after 5 years and then 32 after 40 years’ service, plus public and bank holidays.
- Local government pension scheme – all our new employees are assessed against criteria and automatically enrolled into the scheme (unless you choose to opt out). If you already have continuous service or a pension with a different local authority this can be transferred to our scheme
- Occupational health – offers a variety of employee wellbeing services to support a healthy work/life balance and lifestyle, including health screening and smoking cessation sessions
- Free seminars on managing your finances and planning for retirement
- Family friendly policies - we have a range of family friendly policies to support staff balance work and reponsibilities outside of work including maternity leave, shared parental leave, adoption leave, maternity support and paternity leave, ordinary parental leave and carers leave.
We’re committed to minimising emissions, so we run a variety of alternative fuelled vehicles, pilot new vehicle technologies and encourage more sustainable staff travel:
- Car pool – if you need a car for a business trip you can book a car. Our fleet includes fully electric vehicles and ultra-low emissions cars
- Car share scheme – if you share your commute with another employee you can benefit from reduced travel costs, while helping to reduce the number of cars on the roads
- Subsidised rail – we can offer you 25% discount on rail season tickets
Our Wiltshire rewards scheme gives you access to a choice of savings and discounts:
- Discounts and cash back from well-known major supermarket chains, high street retailers and on holidays and entertainment
- Local discounts with retailers and service providers
- Salary sacrifice schemes which save tax and national insurance - including cycle to work and purchasing additional pension contributions
- Discounted leisure membership
Your health, well-being and financial security are all important to us:
- Holidays – you’ll receive at least 26 days' annual leave, rising to 31 after 5 years and then 32 after 40 years’ service, plus public and bank holidays.
- Local government pension scheme – all our new employees are assessed against criteria and automatically enrolled into the scheme (unless you choose to opt out). If you already have continuous service or a pension with a different local authority this can be transferred to our scheme
- Occupational health – offers a variety of employee wellbeing services to support a healthy work/life balance and lifestyle, including health screening and smoking cessation sessions
- Free seminars on managing your finances and planning for retirement
- Family friendly policies - we have a range of family friendly policies to support staff balance work and reponsibilities outside of work including maternity leave, shared parental leave, adoption leave, maternity support and paternity leave, ordinary parental leave and carers leave.
We’re committed to minimising emissions, so we run a variety of alternative fuelled vehicles, pilot new vehicle technologies and encourage more sustainable staff travel:
- Car pool – if you need a car for a business trip you can book a car. Our fleet includes fully electric vehicles and ultra-low emissions cars
- Car share scheme – if you share your commute with another employee you can benefit from reduced travel costs, while helping to reduce the number of cars on the roads
- Subsidised rail – we can offer you 25% discount on rail season tickets
Our Wiltshire rewards scheme gives you access to a choice of savings and discounts:
- Discounts and cash back from well-known major supermarket chains, high street retailers and on holidays and entertainment
- Local discounts with retailers and service providers
- Salary sacrifice schemes which save tax and national insurance - including cycle to work and purchasing additional pension contributions
- Discounted leisure membership
Living in Wiltshire
Wiltshire is a beautiful, predominantly rural county. Our towns and villages and our only city, Salisbury, are set against a stunning natural backdrop. Almost half of the county is designated as an 'area of outstanding natural beauty' and we also have two world heritage sites at Stonehenge and Avebury.
The Visit Wiltshire website is a great showcase of the county’s attractions.
When it comes to places to live, areas around our office hubs at Trowbridge, Chippenham and Salisbury offer great diversity and quality of life. The price of an average house is £265,764*, comparatively lower than in places such as Bath and Bristol.
*Land Registry HPI March 2017
There is no shortage of good primary and secondary schools here either, and in terms of GCSE performance, the percentage of pupils achieving 5+ A* to C grades including English and Mathematics in Wiltshire is above the average for South West England, as the government’s school performance tables show.
We have excellent transport connections, with the M4 corridor running through the county offering easy access to London, Wales and the rest of the country. London Heathrow and Bristol International airports and the main south coast ferry ports are all within easy reach. We also have 14 train stations in the county, providing links to every part of the UK.
When it comes to places to live, areas around our office hubs at Trowbridge, Chippenham and Salisbury offer great diversity and quality of life. The price of an average house is £265,764*, comparatively lower than in places such as Bath and Bristol.
*Land Registry HPI March 2017
There is no shortage of good primary and secondary schools here either, and in terms of GCSE performance, the percentage of pupils achieving 5+ A* to C grades including English and Mathematics in Wiltshire is above the average for South West England, as the government’s school performance tables show.
We have excellent transport connections, with the M4 corridor running through the county offering easy access to London, Wales and the rest of the country. London Heathrow and Bristol International airports and the main south coast ferry ports are all within easy reach. We also have 14 train stations in the county, providing links to every part of the UK.
Wiltshire facts
Wiltshire Council was created in 2009 as a unitary authority by bringing together the previous district and county councils.
We’re one of the county’s largest employers: a workforce of about 5,000, not including our schools workforce, serving a population of 474,300.
Care experienced young people can apply for internal job opportunities and are guaranteed an interview if they meet the minimum criteria.
We’ve put decision making in the heart of the community, through 18 local area boards.
Our teams work creatively in partnership with the NHS, police, fire and rescue, and community groups.
According to national crime statistics, Wiltshire is the second safest place to live in the country.
Our EPIC Values of Excellence, Responsibility and Trust and Respect underpin everything we do.
In 2014, the council doubled its highways maintenance budget, adding an extra £53 million over the next five years for road improvements on 2,728 miles of roads.
In the latest staff survey, 73% of staff said there was a community focused culture which is a very positive message and reflects the Council’s vision to create stronger communities.
Around half of the 225,000 tonnes of household waste collected each year in Wiltshire is recycled.
We have 21 leisure centres, 30 libraries and two mobile libraries.
We have been named best council to work for in Britain by Glassdoor.
We spend £900 million each year, providing 354 services to the people of Wiltshire.
Between 2012 and 2016 there was a rise of 7% in the number of "fully engaged staff” and a reduction in those whose responses show them to be fully disengaged.
We’re investing nearly £80 million in our innovative and award winning community campus programme to bring improved facilities and services to local communities.
