Location: Aylesbury
Overview
We’re looking for an experienced and highly motivated Planned and Third‑Party Works Team Leader to help shape and deliver high‑quality highways services across Buckinghamshire. This pivotal role leads the delivery of planned work programmes, highways licences and small‑scheme design, ensuring accuracy, technical excellence and outstanding customer service. Acting as the escalation point for complex issues, you’ll play a key role in maintaining the Council’s reputation and ensuring our highway network meets the needs of our communities.
About us
Buckinghamshire Council is a relatively new organisation that combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities, and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and to provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally.
Buckinghamshire Council’s Highways services play a vital role in supporting our communities, keeping the county moving and ensuring our transport network is safe, resilient and well‑managed. We’re ambitious, collaborative and committed to continuous improvement. Our teams are proud, ambitious, collaborative, and trustworthy, with a shared commitment to high standards, innovation, and excellent service delivery. You’ll be part of a supportive environment that values expertise, encourages learning, and promotes forward‑thinking approaches to managing our highways.
As part of our ambition to deliver the very best highways service for Buckinghamshire, we have recently reshaped our service, creating a stronger, more resilient and forward‑looking structure. This transformation reflects both local priorities and significant national developments in the sector. With new initiatives emerging, including the introduction of Lane Rental and wider changes to streetworks and network management, we are now investing in a range of new and exciting roles that will help us meet the needs of our communities today and into the future. These posts offer a genuine opportunity to shape how we manage and improve our network, drive innovation.
About the role
In this role, you will lead a team of Planned Works Lead Officers and Licensing Officers, overseeing the delivery of small scheme design, planned works programmes, and managing highway licencing. You will provide expert technical guidance, manage performance, and drive improvements across processes and service delivery.
You will act as principal designer signing off technical designs in accordance with CDM Regulations.
Key Responsibilities
1. Lead a team responsible for the end‑to‑end delivery of the planned works programme, ensuring schemes are prioritised, scheduled and completed to the required standards, within budget, and aligned to organisational and stakeholder expectations
2. Oversee the effective management and issuing of highways licences, ensuring all applications are assessed, approved and monitored in line with legislation, policy requirements and accurate record‑keeping standards.
3. Lead the development and delivery of small‑scale highway improvement schemes, ensuring designs are technically robust, compliant with relevant standards, and aligned to local needs and service priorities.
4. Develop and implement service business plans focused on performance, value for money and customer priorities.
5. Monitor team performance, report risks, and provide expert technical guidance on complex or escalated issues.
6. Prepare and present reports to senior managers, Members, and internal/external decision‑making groups.
7. Drive continuous improvement, reviewing procedures and contributing to specialist and service‑wide projects.
8. Manage budgets associated with planned and third‑party works, working closely with contract and commissioning teams.
9. Build strong relationships across Buckinghamshire Highways, alliance partners, contractors and community stakeholders.
About you
You will be an experienced highways professional with a strong technical background and expert knowledge of relevant legislation, including the Highways Act and CDM Regulations. You have the credibility to lead a team, influence partners and work collaboratively across services. You will be an excellent communicator, able to provide expert technical guidance, resolve complex issues and manage escalated enquiries with professionalism. Highly organised and proactive, you can manage competing priorities, deliver large programmes of work to time and budget, and use data, performance insight and best practice to drive continual improvement. With strong interpersonal, negotiation and leadership skills, you will play a key role in shaping a modern, resilient and forward‑looking highways service for Buckinghamshire.
You will hold an appropriate professional qualification and maintain active membership of a recognised professional body relevant to the highways or engineering sector.