Senior Internal Communications Officer

​Working for City Hall makes a difference to the lives of Londoners. Our staff are at the centre of long-term planning and development for our great city.
 

Strategy and Communications

Strategy and Communications sits at the centre of the organisation, bringing together several teams with organisation-wide remits and mutual collaboration opportunities. The work of the directorate’s teams includes delivery of major events, designing and leading public affairs or marketing campaigns, providing data, evidence and analysis, leading cross-organisational programmes, to making sure we plan for and can respond to emerging events or emergencies in our city.

About the team

The Internal and Change Communications team plays a vital role in helping every colleague understands the organisation’s priorities, feels informed and included and understands how their role contributes to delivering for London and Londoners. 

Working at the heart of the organisation the team delivers a broad range of communications activity, from leadership communications and employee engagement campaigns to major organisational change programmes. We partners closely with senior leaders and stakeholders to translate complex information in to meaningful, clear and accessible messaging.

We are responsible for a wide range of channels and activities including all staff newsletters and events, intranet content, colleague events, leadership briefings, campaigns and change communications.

About the role

As a Senior Internal Communications, you’ll work closely with colleagues across our Core and Enabling Services to plan and deliver internal communications that support key business priorities. You’ll contribute to annual communications plans to identify opportunities to engage colleagues and ensure activity is coordinated, timely and aligned to wider organisational objectives.

A significant part of the role involves creating high-quality content for a wide range of channels, including intranet articles, leadership communications, briefings, newsletters, campaigns and colleague engagement materials. You'll be a confident writer who can translate complex information into clear, engaging and audience-focused communications.

You'll also play a key role in delivering some of our largest staff events and engagement activities. From coordinating logistics and managing event communications to supporting speakers, suppliers and stakeholders, you'll help ensure events run smoothly and provide a positive experience for colleagues.

This is an exciting opportunity for a communications professional who enjoys variety, thrives in a fast-paced environment and wants to make a visible impact. You'll have the chance to influence how colleagues experience change, improve internal communications.

What your day will look like

• Writing intranet stories, colleague updates, leadership messages and newsletters that keep people informed about what's happening across the organisation.
• Meeting with stakeholders to understand upcoming activity, agree communications approaches and turn complex information into clear, engaging content.
• Planning and coordinating communications campaigns, making sure content, approvals and delivery timelines stay on track.
• Organising colleague events including scheduling, preparing materials, managing attendee lists and supporting smooth delivery on the day.
• Updating communications plans, content calendars and channel schedules to make sure colleagues receive the right information at the right time.
• Reviewing channel performance, colleague feedback and engagement data to identify what's working well and where we can improve.

Skills, knowledge and experience

To be considered for the role you must meet the following essential criteria:

• Experience of developing and delivering measurable and effective internal communications and engagement plans in a complex environment 
• Experience of providing clear and consistent internal communications advice to a range of stakeholders   
• Demonstrates experience of managing multiple projects and deadlines  
• Ability to apply judgement and context ensuring that messages are clear, timely and appropriate, and are tailored to the needs of a variety of audiences and channels  
• Ability to translate complex information into engaging and easy to understand information 
• Proactively builds positive relationships with a variety of stakeholders  
• Experience of organising large scale (staff) events – including all logistics, content (scripts, slides), and related event and comms support etc 

Behavioural competencies

Communicating and influencing…is presenting information and arguments clearly and convincingly so that others see us as credible and articulate and engage with us.  

Level three indicators of effective performance:  

• Encourages and supports teams in engaging in transparent and inclusive communication  

• Influences others and gains buy-in using compelling, well thought through arguments  

• Negotiates effectively to deliver GLA priorities  

• Synthesises the complex viewpoints of others, recognises where compromise is necessary and brokers agreement  

• Advocates positively for the GLA both within and outside the organisation 

Building and managing relationships… is developing rapport and working effectively with a diverse range of people, sharing knowledge and skills to deliver shared goals. 

Level three indicators of effective performance:  

• Actively engages partners and encourages others to build relationships that support GLA objectives  

• Understands and recognises the contributions that staff at all levels make to delivering priorities  

• Proactively manages partner relationships, preventing or resolving any conflict 

• Adapts style to work effectively with partners, building consensus, trust and respect 

• Delivers objectives by bringing together diverse stakeholders to work effectively in partnership 

Organisational awareness….is understanding and being sensitive to organisational dynamics, culture and politics across and beyond the GLA and shaping our approach accordingly.  

Level two indicators of effective performance:

• Challenges unethical behaviour  

• Uses understanding of the GLA’s complex partnership arrangements to deliver effectively 

• Recognises how political changes and sensitivities impact on own and team’s work  

• Is aware of the changing needs of Londoners, anticipating resulting changes for work agendas  

• Follows the GLA’s position in the media and understands how it impacts on work 

Planning and organising…is thinking ahead, managing time, priorities and risk, and developing structured and efficient approaches to deliver work on time and to a high standard.  

Level two indicators of effective performance:

• Prioritises work in line with key team or project deliverables  

• Makes contingency plans to account for changing work priorities, deadlines and milestones  

• Identifies and consults with sponsors or stakeholders in planning work  

• Pays close attention to detail, ensuring team’s work is delivered to a high standard 

• Negotiates realistic timescales for work delivery, ensuring team deliverables can be met 

This is a politically restricted role under the Local Government and Housing Act 1989.

The GLA Competency Framework Guidelines further detailing each competency and the different level indicators can be found here: GLA Competency Framework

How to apply

If you would like to apply for the role you will need to submit the following:

• Up to date CV
• Personal statement with a maximum of 1500 words. Please ensure you address how you demonstrate the essential criteria and behavioural competencies outlined above in the advert.

Please ensure your CV and Personal Statement have a maximum file size of 1.5MB each and upload your Personal Statement to the ‘CV and Cover Letters’ section’ of the form, ensuring you address the technical requirements and competencies in your Personal Statement.

Word or PDF format preferred and do not include any photographs or images. Please ensure your CV and Personal Statement are saved with the job reference number as part of the naming convention (E.g., “CV – applicant name - 012345)

As part of GLA’s continuing commitment to be an inclusive and equal opportunity employer we will be removing personal identifiable information from CVs and Personal Statements that could cause discrimination. 

We may close this advert early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.

If you have questions about the role

If you wish to talk to someone about the role, the hiring manager Megan Page would be happy to speak to you. Please contact them at megan.page@london.gov.uk  

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, contact the glaopdcrecruitment@tfl.gov.uk who support the GLA with recruitment.

This role DOES NOT meet the criteria for sponsorship for external candidates. It may meet the criteria for sponsorship for some internal candidates, in limited circumstances. Please contact the hiring manager if you wish to discuss this further.

Assessment process

Once you have submitted an application, your details will be reviewed by a panel.

If shortlisted, you’ll be invited to an interview/assessment.

The interview/assessment date is: w/c 7 December or w/c 14 December

Equality, diversity and inclusion

London's diversity is its biggest asset, and we strive to ensure our workforce reflects London's diversity at all levels. We welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity, sexual orientation, faith or disability.

We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic candidates and disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and we are happy to consider flexible working arrangements. We would welcome applications from candidates who are seeking part time work as this role is open to job share. 

Please note we are a Disability Confident Employer so for candidates who wish to be considered under the scheme and meet the essential criteria, they will automatically be invited to interview. Please note, should you require any adjustments through the process, we will accommodate as much as possible. Please contact the recruitment team for further information if required.

Benefits

GLA staff are hybrid working up to 3 days a week in our offices and remotely depending on their role. As part of this, you will need to split your time between home working and coming into the office.

In addition to a good salary package, you will be paid every four weeks, providing frequent salary payments. We also offer an attractive range of benefits including 30 days’ annual leave, interest free season ticket loan, interest free bicycle loan and a career average pension scheme.

Additional Information

Please note, all candidates will need to confirm that the information provided in this application form is true and correct. Should a candidate deliberately give false information, including the use of AI software, they understand that this would disqualify them from consideration.

Successful candidates must undergo a criminal record (DBS) check but some roles may require additional security screening. 

More Support

If you have a disability which makes submitting an online application form difficult, please contact resourcingteam@london.gov.uk.

The GLA is proud to be a Level 2: Disability Confident employer. We are committed to becoming a more inclusive and accessible organisation, and creating a truly inclusive and accessible workplace and culture for our disabled staff. We have named Disability Equality as a key corporate priority within our EDI Strategy. We welcome and encourage applications from disabled applicants. Should you wish to opt into the scheme, please let us know during your application.

Please note all applications for this vacancy must be submitted via our online recruitment system. We do not accept CVs alone for this role. Please upload a personal statement with a maximum of 1500 words to the ‘Additional Documents’ section of the form, ensuring you address the following technical requirements and competencies in your personal statement. Word or PDF format preferred and do not include any photographs or images.
 
The GLA Competency Framework Guidelines further detailing each competency and the different level indicators can be found here: GLA competency framework.

GLA staff are hybrid working up to 3 days a week in our offices and remotely depending on their role. As part of this, you will need to split your time between home working and coming into the office.

London's diversity is its biggest asset, and we strive to ensure our workforce reflects London's diversity at all levels. We welcome applications from everyone regardless of age, gender, gender identity, gender expression, ethnicity, sexual orientation, faith, or disability. 

We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority ethnic candidates and disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce. We are a disability confident employer who guarantee an interview to any disabled candidate who meets all of the essential criteria.

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and we are happy to consider flexible working arrangements. We would welcome applications from candidates who are seeking part time work as this role is open to job share. 

In addition to a good salary package, we offer an attractive range of benefits including 30 days’ annual leave, interest free season ticket loan, interest free bicycle loan and a career average pension scheme.