Opportunities

Job Title: Town Clerk & Rfo
Council: Alsager Town Council
Permanent – Full Time
Salary: £43,516 (National Pay Award Pending) Upwards Depending On Experience

Main Function of Position

• To fulfil all the requirements of Proper Officer and Responsible Financial Officer to the Council.
• To provide effective leadership to all stakeholders on matters effecting the Town Council.
• To be responsible for all employees of Alsager Town Council.
• To be responsible for managing the Councils facilities and the Alsager Institute charity.

The Town Clerk is the Proper Officer and lead advisor to the Council and as such is under a statutory duty to carry out all the functions, and in particular to serve or issue all the notifications required by law of a local authority’s Proper Officer. The Town Clerk will be totally responsible for ensuring that the instructions of the Council in connection with its functions as a Local Authority are carried out.

The Town Clerk advises the Council and assists in the formation of overall statutory and non-statutory governance policies to be followed in respect of the Authority’s activities and in particular to produce all the information required for making effective decisions and to implement constructively all decisions.

The post will be accountable to the Council for the effective management of all its resources including being the Responsible Finance Officer and will be responsible for Annual Budget Preparation and for all the financial records of the Council and the careful administration of its finances.

What you’ll need to succeed

1. To act as Proper Officer and to ensure that legal, statutory and other provisions governing or affecting the running of the council are observed.
2. To prepare the Annual Budget for approval and submission of the Precept.
3. To act as Responsible Financial Officer who has responsibility for monitoring and balancing the Council’s accounts and to ensure the preparation of records for audit purposes and VAT.
4. To provide effective leadership to all stakeholders and staff on matters affecting and services provided by the council.
5. To ensure that the Councils obligations to insure and to risk assess are properly met
6. To prepare, in consultation with appropriate members, agendas for meetings of the Council and Committees.
7. To attend such meetings and prepare minutes for approval, and in times of leave of absence, to ensure officer attendance at such meetings.
8. To receive correspondence and documents on behalf of the Council and to deal with the correspondence or documents or bring such items to the attention of the Council. To issue correspondence as a result of instructions of, or with reference to the known policy of the Council.
9. To receive and report on invoices for goods and services to be paid for by the Council and to ensure such accounts are met. To ensure that invoices on behalf of the Council for goods and services are issued and to ensure payment is received.
10. To study reports, consultations and other information on activities affecting the Council and where appropriate, to discuss such matters with the principal council the Town Councils partners, other administrators and specialists as required to produce reports for discussion and resolution by the Town Council and or its Committees.
11. To prepare reports on matters and services that effect the council and in consultation with appropriate members suggestions prepare reports for consideration by the Council and to advise on practicability and likely effects of specific courses of action.
12. To performance manage the decisions of the Council and report progress.
13. To be responsible for all staff in accordance with the agreed staffing structure and to oversee all necessary activities in connection with the management of salaries, conditions of employment, appraisals and training needs of staff and to affectively deal with staff issues in accordance with Council Policy.
14. To monitor the implemented policies and procedures of the Council to ensure they are achieving the desired result and where appropriate, suggest modifications and initiate review.
15. To act as the representative of the Council as required and to attend conferences of the National Association of Local Councils and other relevant bodies.
16. To issue notices and prepare agendas and minutes for the Parish Meeting: to attend the Parish Meeting and to implement the decisions made at the Parish Meeting that are agreed by the Council.
17. To prepare, in consultation with the Chairman or his or her nominated representative, press releases about the activities of or decisions of the Council.
18. To hold the relevant qualification to enable the Council to apply for/maintain General Power of Competence and the Local Council Award Scheme and to attend training courses or seminars on the work and role of the Clerk as required.
19. The post holder may be required to carry out other similar tasks, as directed by the Council.

What you’ll get in return
A generous salary and package is on offer, the working environment and strong support team will ensure a smooth transition into this integral role.

What you need to do now
If you’re interested in this role, please email [email protected] for an application pack or ring Nicola Clarke Town Clerk on 01270 876440 for an informal chat about the position.

The closing date for the receipt of application forms is 30 November 2023, with interviews being conducted during W/C 11 December 2023.