Coastal Engagement Officer

• East Suffolk Council
• Location: East Suffolk House, Melton, Woodbridge IP12 1RT and Riverside, Lowestoft, Suffolk NR33 0EQ
• Salary: £32,578 - £35,570 per annum (pro rata for part time hours)
• Hours: 29.6 hours per week
• Contract: Permanent

East Suffolk Council is an exciting place to work and a great place to make a real difference to people’s lives, delivering vital services to a quarter of a million people across East Suffolk.
We currently have an exciting opportunity to join the East Suffolk Council's Coastal Management and Adaptation team as a Coastal Engagement Officer.
Your role
You will support the Operational Lead for Engagement in the planning and delivery of engagement strategies that increase awareness and understanding of coastal erosion and flood risk.
Working across a range of projects and programmes, you will provide expert communications and engagement advice, ensuring that approaches are evidence-based, targeted, and effective. You will undertake detailed analysis and evaluation to inform recommendations and ensure the most appropriate communications and engagement support is delivered.
You will also work closely with the Senior Coastal Engagement Advisor to identify opportunities for continuous improvement, helping to strengthen communications and engagement planning, coordination, and delivery across the service.
What you will need
With experience working in a busy office environment, you will be an excellent communicator and have strong interpersonal and customer service skills with the ability to build and maintain good working relationships.
You will have a Chartered Institute of Public Relations, (CIPR) Foundation certificate or equivalent relevant experience, along with a strong track record of producing public facing materials and supporting the planning, design and delivery of events.
You will be able to work effectively under pressure, managing sometimes conflicting priorities to meet deadlines and possess strong analytical skills, with the ability to compile, interpret and present statistical information to support decision-making.
A self-motivated approach and the confidence to use initiative are essential, alongside a commitment to maintaining the highest standards of confidentiality and handling sensitive information in accordance with data protection guidelines.
If you think you have what it takes to be successful in this role, even if you don’t meet all of the essential requirements, please apply. We would appreciate the opportunity to consider your application.
Why work for us?
East Suffolk Council is a great place to work and there are lots of benefits our employees can access.
To find out more about why we are so proud of East Suffolk Council,take a look at our video and hear why our employees think it is such a great place to work (YouTube).
Here are some of the main benefits:
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Generous leave entitlement (equivalent to 25 days a year, increasing to 31 days after 5 years’ service, plus bank holidays)
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Local government pension scheme
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Flexible working arrangements
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Learning and development tailored to your role
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A wide variety of staff support networks including access to health and wellbeing initiatives and programmes.
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Discounts on mobile phones, computers, holiday and travel, fashion and clothing, health and beauty and many other products and services.
For more information, please read our benefits brochure (pdf).
The majority of our teams are working in an agile way, with a mixture of home and office working, depending on individual preferences and service requirements. If you wish to discuss how that might impact your working arrangements if you were the successful candidate, please contact the recruiting manager listed at the bottom of this advert.
To find out more
For an informal discussion regarding this post, please contact Sharon Richardson, Operational Lead - Engagement on [email hidden]
Closing date: 11:30pm, 13 October 2026
Interview date: 26 October 2026 at East Suffolk House, Melton.
How to apply
Step 1 - Read the advert and the Job Description and Person Specification (Word/pdf).
Step 2 - Complete the Supporting Statement template (Word).Your statement needs to indicate how you meet each of the criteria contained within the Person Specification. Please use the template provided (other formats will not be accepted).
Step 3 - Complete the online application and upload your statement. Please note, CVs are not accepted.
For more information, visit the How to Apply section of our Career Site.