Ken’s story
Customer and Neighbourhood Services
Meet Ken. He’s an Assistant Director within Barnsley Council and excited about sharing the interesting opportunities he’s found in the field of environmental protection. Responsible for Regulatory Services, he talks about the innovative ways his team is being developed – and sheds light on the positive impact Project Nomad is having.
I came to Barnsley Council in 2002 to become a Unit Manager. I had an opportunity to progress my own career, but also saw an opportunity to do some very interesting work in the field of environment protection area. An area I’d worked in for a long time. Barnsley did have quite a reputation in that area and I was looking forward to progressing my career.
Five years ago I was appointed as Assistant Director where I have responsibility for Regulatory Services, which is Environmental Health, Trading Standards, Licensing and other similar functions.
The best thing about the role I have as an Assistant Director is the opportunity to be quite self-directed. I’m able to do some really innovative and exciting work, and I’ve worked with some really good people as well. Personally I take a great deal of satisfaction from implementing change, working with teams and moving the authority in a new direction. I also have a corporate role and contribute to the overall strategic direction of the authority. Getting engaged in new and innovative work is really rewarding.
I’m fortunate to work with some really enthusiastic and interesting people in the council - very, very driven people with a strong sense of vision and where we want to go as an organisation. People who also value having a bit of fun along the way.
In Regulatory Services we work really hard at developing individuals and providing opportunities for people to experience new work, and to undertake training and professional development. We also try really hard to work on communications, and we’ve done some quite whizzy things, in fact. We’re exploring at the moment with blogs and all sorts of new forms of communication to engage with people. And to allow people to have a conversation with their managers and their supervisors about the work and the direction that the department is taking.
One of the most enjoyable things I’ve done in my time at Barnsley is being engaged with a national government project around new ways of working. This was a project known as Project Nomad, and was very much about looking at mobile working and flexible and home working. It’s been really interesting for me to be engaged in a national piece of work, but also to be involved in implementing change within the local authority, within my own services. And seeing the impact that has on people on their every day working lives, on improving their work/life balance, and on changing the way we deliver our services to the public.
I’d recommend working for Barnsley, because of the buzz. I describe the place to people outside of the organisation as being a buzzy environment. It’s a really good place to work. If you like to come to work to contribute and make a difference, then this is the place to be. It’s really rewarding, really enjoyable, and there are plenty of opportunities.
