Community Relations Officer - BBUK14179

About The Role

Balfour Beatty has an exciting opportunity for a Community Relations Advisor to join our Lower Thames Crossing project based in Grays. Here at Balfour Beatty, our work inspires communities and advances society. It is therefore essential that we provide excellent customer service and communication to reach all those individuals and businesses our projects touch.

This role is a key part of the team who act as the voice of the community within the project, ensuring timely, meaningful, and accessible communication to minimise disruption and build trust with those affected by the works.

The Community Relations Advisor is responsible for implementing strategies that protect and enhance our relationship with the local community. This role involves engaging with the public to raise awareness of the project, the programme and the benefits it will bring to the communities we operate in. The role will engage, consult, listen and proactively manage all community matters for the Roads North of the Thames on behalf of the Lower Thames Crossing project.

What you'll be doing

As a Community Relations Officer You'll

• Support the delivery of the stakeholder and communications strategy in line with the DCO requirements and project objectives for the Roads North Contract to build and maintain strong working relationships with local community stakeholders
• Act as the interface between the project team, affected landowners and community stakeholders to protect and enhance the reputation of the project, our customer and Balfour Beatty
• Interface with the Balfour Beatty Group Communications function on reputational risks and opportunities that have the potential to impact the UK brand ensuring awareness and understanding of sensitivities, and knowing when to escalate depending on stakeholder and topic
• Co-ordinate planning and delivery of tailored communications and events to keep residents businesses and road users informed about construction activities and impacts, championing inclusive and accessible communication practices and acting as a visible point of contact
• Proactively engage with the wider LTC team reviewing programmed activity to mitigate construction impacts on local stakeholders and the community
• Attend relevant project and supply chain meetings to ensure that all communications (including Advanced Notification Letters) and community relations activities are planned and delivered within required timescales.
• Contribute to training workshops and toolbox talks, ensuring the wider project team and supply chain are aware of community sensitivities and act as good neighbours.
• Engage and maintain good working relationships with all stakeholders associated with the project
• Maintain and produce written records in relation to community liaison activity including producing debrief notes following stakeholder meetings
  
  

Who we're looking for

Essential

You will have / be:

• A self-starter able to quickly build relationships through effective written and verbal communication
• Strong interpersonal skills with a proven ability to build rapport with individuals from various backgrounds
• Be able to quickly source and interpret technical information from a variety of sources and translate into customer-friendly written communications
• Experience of being able to respond to complaints and enquiries in a professional, sensitive and informative way
• Be able to demonstrate creativity using multi-media communications to reach audiences
• Confident engaging with external customers and stakeholders at face-to-face events/working groups
• Competent in the use of MS Office applications
• Ability to work flexible hours including evenings or weekends as required by events or activities
• Willingness to travel as required along the route of the project
  
  

Desirable

• Driving license
• National Highways experience desirable OR working in a construction or infrastructure environment
• Experience in event planning or coordination within a community focused environment
• Knowledge of local regulations, cultural norms, and issues affecting the community
  
  

Why work for us

Day in, day out, our teams deliver some of the UK’s most ambitious, exciting and meaningful projects; developing, building and maintaining the vital infrastructure that supports national economies and strengthens communities.

Why join us?

Benefits

As if contributing to and supporting work that makes life better for millions wasn’t rewarding enough, we offer a full range of benefits too. You’ll have the freedom to shape the package that’s right for you and your life. Here are some of our key benefits:

• Smart working, giving you more flexibility such as staggered start and finish times, with up to 40% remote working, where roles allow.
• 25 days paid annual leave (pro rata)
• Family friendly policies which include 28 weeks full pay for maternity/adoption leave and four weeks full pay for paternity/partners leave
• Pension, share incentive plan, volunteering leave, recognition schemes and much more…
  
  

About Us

Balfour Beatty’s Highways business delivers major schemes including motorway upgrade programmes, complex national infrastructure projects and regional investment programme works for National Highways. We have a strong orderbook and a positive pipeline of opportunities, we put the road user, at the heart of everything we do. We work safely, reduce carbon emissions and added social value to the communities within which we work.

Diversity and inclusion

At Balfour Beatty we believe that diversity and inclusion are essential components of any successful, happy workplace. Through our Value Everyone Diversity and Inclusion Strategy and Action Plan, we are growing our diverse workforce and developing our inclusive culture where everyone is able to thrive and reach their full potential, regardless of their identity or background. To find out how we are making this a reality, visit www.balfourbeatty.com/diversityandinclusion

To help and support us with our desired commitment to create an inclusive culture we are members of WISE, enei, Business Disability Forum and the Association for Black and Minority Ethnic Engineers (AFBE). In 2020, we signed the Audeliss and Involve Open Letter to demonstrate our commitment to taking key long term and sustainable actions on Black Inclusion. Balfour Beatty is also a Gold Award holder in the Ministry of Defence 'Employer Recognition Scheme' and actively encourage applications from Armed Forces personnel, veterans and reservists.

As a Disability Confident Employer, we are committed to working with people who have disabilities and long-term health conditions to remove barriers for them in obtaining employment. We are also committed to offering applicants with a disability an interview if they meet the minimum requirements for the role. For more info, visit: https://disabilityconfident.campaign.gov.uk/

We are looking to continually improve our resourcing process and ensure that it is fair and inclusive for all. If you have any feedback on the process, please share this with us at: [email protected]