Head of Governance, Legal and Communications

The Council of the Isles of Scilly is seeking an experienced and highly capable Head of Governance, Legal and Communications to play a pivotal role at the heart of the organisation.

Reporting to the Chief Executive, this is a senior, front-line leadership role with responsibility for the Council’s governance, legal advice, corporate communications, democratic services, information governance and performance arrangements. You will work closely with Members, the Senior Leadership Team and external partners, providing high-quality advice, constructive challenge and assurance in a politically sensitive and high-profile environment.

This role is critical to ensuring the Council meets its statutory obligations, maintains strong governance arrangements, and delivers effective corporate leadership across a diverse and complex portfolio.

Key responsibilities include:

• Providing or commissioning high-quality legal advice across the organisation
• Leading corporate governance, democratic services and member support
• Overseeing corporate performance, risk management and business continuity
• Leading corporate communications, complaints handling and FOI processes
• Acting as Senior Information Risk Owner and overseeing information governance
• Supporting elections, registration services and constitutional arrangements
• Developing and monitoring the Council’s corporate plan and service plans
• Managing budgets, contracts and external partnerships
• Representing the Council with stakeholders, partners, the media and the community

The role involves significant autonomy, decision-making responsibility and the need to balance competing priorities, often under pressure and within tight statutory timescales.

Monitoring Officer flexibility

The Council recognises the challenges of recruitment in specialist governance and legal roles and is therefore open to combining this post with the Council’s statutory Monitoring Officer function, where an applicant is appropriately qualified and experienced to undertake that role.

Appointment to the Monitoring Officer role is not automatic and will be subject to:

• The successful candidate meeting the statutory and professional requirements
• A clear assessment of skills, experience and organisational need

Where the Monitoring Officer role is formally assigned, this will attract a separate and appropriate salary uplift, in addition to the substantive Grade 8 salary for the Head of Governance, Legal and Communications role.

Applicants who do not meet the requirements for the Monitoring Officer role are encouraged to apply and will be considered solely for the substantive post at the advertised grade.

About you

You will bring:

• A strong legal background with significant local authority governance experience
• Proven experience of operating at a senior level in a politically sensitive environment
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Experience of corporate governance, policy development and performance management
• The credibility and confidence to advise Members, senior officers and partners
• A collaborative leadership style and strong personal integrity

A legal qualification and experience of local government law, elections, registration or democratic services would be advantageous, as would experience of working at senior management level within a complex organisation.

Why join us?

This is a rare opportunity to take on a senior leadership role with real influence, shaping governance, assurance and corporate leadership for a unique island authority. You will work closely with Members and senior leaders, make a tangible difference to how the Council operates, and help safeguard public trust and confidence.