In April 2022 Midlands Connect launched a new Strategic Transport Plan (STP).  This document provides a fundamental building block to our technical programme for the next three to five years, before we would likely start the cycle of examining our Strategy again.  This role is focused on the commitments in the STP, ensuring that they are delivered upon and supporting the whole of the technical programme to work at-pace.

As the Sub-National Transport Body (STB) for the Midlands, Midlands Connect are driving forward a regional plan which aims to boost economic growth whilst at the same time reducing transport’s part in the climate emergency and having a positive impact on quality of life for our citizens. In order to be successful our team will have to ensure that we fully understand aspects such as: the economy, housing, social policy and the impacts of climate change.

What will you be doing?

• Develop a three-year delivery plan for the Midlands Connect Strategic Transport Plan which identifies all of the interdependent strands of work required to fulfil the commitments of the STP
• Work with individual project managers to ensure the timely development and delivery of scopes of work for all strands of the annual business plan and the Strategic Transport Plan
• Formally establish the Centres of Excellence programme, working with technical leads to create groups, programmes and collaboration tools
• Actively engage with the supplier market to ensure that they understand our technical programme requirements and can feed in their expertise into the early phases of specification/brief development
• Line management and performance management of staff as required. This includes providing leadership, direction and mentoring of the staff engaged on the delivery of projects within this portfolio
• Ensure robust project controls and that coherent up to date schedules and milestone plans are in place and are regularly monitored to drive the delivery of projects and activities against agreed governance and timescales

Midlands Connect is the transport partner of the Midlands Engine, a coalition of Councils, Combined Authorities, Local Enterprise Partnerships, Universities, and businesses across the region, actively working with Government to add value for the whole of the Midlands and its communities. The team research, develop and recommend long-term transport projects which will provide the biggest possible economic, social and environmental benefits for the Midlands and the rest of the UK.

WMCA acts as the accountable body for the Midlands Connect partnership and is a core pillar of the Midlands Engine ‘Vision for Growth’. 

About you

We are looking for someone with a varied experience across the field of transport planning.  The role will require you to support a number of programme areas to ensure the work we either develop in-house or procure stays focused to what the STP has committed use to deliver.     

You will have a strong role in the overall management of the technical programme, working closely with the Head of Strategy, Head of Rail and the Head of Business Operations as a team to ensure that the programme is delivered on-time, to a high quality and delivers the STP requirements.

You should have a good understanding of the role of Sub-National Transport Bodies and where we add value in the landscape of local and national government.   

Ownership of the programme will require excellent programme management skills, including managing an allocated budget and an expectation of delivering to cost, time and quality. This will involve identifying and managing suitable resources, either from within the Midlands Connect Technical Team, or seeking consultancy support.

In addition, the role will have a specific requirement to establish and manage our emerging ‘Centres of Excellence’ programme.  This programme is vitally important to aid in the capacity and capability of Local Authority transport planning across the region, aiding authority officers to work together, learn from each other, share resources and even develop joint projects/programmes.

About us

WMCA is committed to a better connected, more prosperous, fairer, greener and healthier region. This is our vision. We will achieve our vision through living our values which are central to how we work and interact with our wider partners and stakeholders.

We’re a partnership organisation. Our people feel valued and respected, have a can-do attitude and are innovators. We try new ways of doing things, we aren’t afraid to fail, learn from what went wrong and try again. Our people are empowered to be creative and explore and innovate.

We are a “Leaders in Diversity” accredited organisation, are in the Inclusive Top 50 Employers List and are one of The Times Top 50 Employers for Women. As a Disability Confident Employer, we have made a positive commitment to interviewing all applicants with a disability who meet the essential role criteria. We are committed to building a team of people with varied backgrounds and experiences as we recognise that this will only benefit us as an employer, the more inclusive we are the better our work will be.

As an organisation, we will continue to adapt and develop to the opportunities and challenges ahead. We will continue to transform ourselves and our organisation into the best we can be, underpinned by our values and behaviours and everyone contributes towards achieving our vision.

Furthermore, wherever possible we will offer flexible working options which assist work-life balance. We are very happy to discuss a flexible working pattern that suits your needs, so please do not let that be a barrier to applying. If your values align with ours and you’re committed to working towards creating a future we can all be proud of, we want to hear from you.

About your application

The online Application Form you'll be asked to complete plays a key part in our recruitment and selection process. We use the information you provide to decide whether to invite you for an interview. It is important that you complete the Application Form as fully and accurately as possible. You will be asked to upload a Supporting Statement (not a CV) and this should include specific examples which demonstrate how you meet the essential criteria for the role for which you are applying. 

If you would like to discuss alternative methods to the online application as a reasonable adjustment please contact the Resourcing Team by email (careers@wmca.org.uk).

Location

156 Great Charles Street, Queensway, Birmingham, B3 3HN. Hybrid working conditions are currently in place which means working remotely and coming to the office when required.

Supporting documents
Role Profile - STP Programme Delivery Sponsor.pdf