working for the council
Ever wondered what it’s like to work for the council? On this page you can find out what councils offer for graduates, the possible roles and benefits available, and where in Lincolnshire you could work.
What do councils do?
Councils are administrative governmental bodies responsible for providing a range of vital services to ensure the proper running of an area and community.
There are typically two main types of local governments: county councils and district councils, both with the aim of enhancing the quality of life in the areas they serve. In Greater Lincolnshire, we also have two unitary authorities, whereby a single council body carries all the duties of both the county and district councils.
With over two million people employed in local government across the country, a career with the council would see you contributing to a large community of professional staff, striving to represent the local community and provide essential services to the population.
What types of roles are available?
The large scope of local councils means that there’s a massive number of professional areas to work in. To help you get a sense of scale for the council’s responsibilities, the core services are broken down in the table below, alongside the department areas you could work in.
| Core Sectors | Areas in sector |
|---|---|
| Children’s Services | Schools, youth centres, nurseries, fostering and adoption and student support |
| Highway Roads & Transport | Traffic management and road safety, airports, harbours and tolls, highways and public transport. |
| Adult Services | Nursing, residential care, physical / mental /l earning disability services, employment support services. |
| Housing | Social housing, welfare service, homelessness, housing strategy |
| Cultural Services | Culture & heritage, museums and galleries, recreation and sport, open spaces, playgrounds parks, tourism, visitor information, marketing, libraries |
| Environmental Services | Cemetery, community safety, trading standards, food safety, pollution, pest control, licensing (alcohol, entertainment), agriculture, waste collection, recycling, street cleaning |
| Planning & Development | Building and development, conservation & listed buildings, policy, economic and community developments |
| Protective Services | Fire & rescue, court services |
| Central Services | Local tax collection, registration (birth/death/marriages), elections, emergency planning, local land changing |
| Core Services | HR, Finance, Senior Management, IT, Marketing |
What do councils offer for graduates?
The dynamic service areas of the council mean that graduate-level opportunities are frequent, and openings within the council are posted regularly.
If you’re thinking that working for the council might be for you, in any of the above disciplines, then the Local Government Association (LGA) provide numerous National Graduate Development Programmes with councils across the region that you could get involved in.
Are councils for me?
If you’re thinking about working for the council or you’re just unsure of what your next steps should be, then consider the following benefits of working for the council and think about how these might align with your core values.
Working for the council…
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… gives you the ability to make a real difference to people’s lives by implementing change and supporting the council’s essential services.
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… enables you to make positive changes that make the place you live better.
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… means that you’re able to build a network of professionals across a large number of sectors to support your future career.
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… is a unique experience. No other organisation sees as many core departments working together to achieve the same goal, this gives employees a huge sense of job satisfaction and makes them feel like they’re all part of one team.
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… particularly by starting on their graduate scheme means you can work across different departments, developing a host of transferable skills, tackling dynamic problems, and gaining a multitude of industry knowledge in the process.
The Councils in Lincolnshire
Lincolnshire is made up of 10 councils. Lincolnshire County Council is responsible for overseeing the fundamental services of the whole county.
There are 7 local district councils split across the county, responsible for implementing changes at a local level and ensuring that the districts of Lincolnshire are striving for innovation and excellence. North Lincolnshire Council and North-East Lincolnshire Council are unitary authorities, which operate separately and encompass both the elements of a county and district council simultaneously.
In the county, more than 12,500 people are employed by local councils and as such is a huge employer across the region. Over 5000 of these employees work for Lincolnshire County Council alone, meaning that there’s plenty of opportunities for graduate-level careers no matter your location across the region.
What are the benefits of working for the council?
A career in the council features a whole host of benefits and whilst there may be benefits of working for any individual county council.
There are plenty of unifying factors that remain consistent across all governing bodies that may entice you to apply.
- A career with the council gives you a generous holiday entitlement which increases after you’ve worked with them for 5 years.
- The council operates a salary sacrifice scheme which means you can purchase additional annual leave or use it for any other non-cash benefit.
- The council has an enticing pension scheme which often sees the employer pay in double that of your personal contributions.
- You could be given the option of flexible working depending on your role.
- You could also benefit from a comprehensive discount programme for sports memberships, cinema tickets, and high street stores amongst many others.