Business and Executive Support Officer

We are committed to the development of our workforce. This position is only available to applicants who already work for Surrey County Council.  We thank you for your interest in our roles and would encourage you to review our vacancies which are open to all.

This role has a starting salary of £34,660 per annum, based on a 36 hour working week. This is a fixed term contract / secondment opportunity until March 31st 2027.

We have a great opportunity to join the Active Surrey team as a Business, Office & Executive Support Officer . We support hybrid working with the right balance. We come together in person for 2 days per week and support working from home the rest of the time.

Our Offer to You 

• 26 days' holiday, rising to 28 days after 2 years' service and 31 days after 5 years' service
• Option to buy up to 10 days of additional annual leave
• A generous local government salary related pension 
• Up to 5 days of carer's leave and 2 paid volunteering days per year 
• Paternity, adoption and dependents leave
• An Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to support health and wellbeing 
• Learning and development hub where you can access a wealth of resources
• Wellbeing and lifestyle discounts including gym, travel, and shopping
• A chance to make a real difference to the lives of our residents.

About The Role 

This role provides proactive PA and executive support to the Head of Active Surrey, managing priorities, emails, meetings, deadlines and follow‑up actions. It includes coordinating diaries, meeting preparation, papers, briefings, correspondence and logistics, and liaising with the Chair, Board members, SCC colleagues, Sport England and other partners. You'll handle confidential information with discretion, track actions and decisions, and act as a central coordination point for office operations, business processes and the organisation's internal rhythm.

You'll oversee the smooth running of shared systems, records, templates, trackers and business continuity arrangements, maintaining and improving CRM, shared drives, calendars, action logs, grant and contract records. The role coordinates internal deadlines, document management, planning tools and team processes, identifying opportunities to improve consistency and ways of working. You'll support agendas, papers and action logs for SLT, management and Board meetings, manage forward planning, paper deadlines and governance records, and help maintain decision logs, policy schedules, organisational trackers, KPI timetables and reporting cycles to ensure priorities and actions are followed through.

You'll support recruitment administration, onboarding, induction tracking and people‑related processes, working with SCC HR to ensure compliance. The role also supports organisational improvement and change workstreams, including governance, operating model development, people planning and finance process improvement, maintaining action trackers, meeting notes, consultation logistics and implementation plans. You'll assist with finance and procurement administration in line with SCC processes and help track compliance across safeguarding, health and safety, business continuity, mandatory training, policy review and records management.

Your Application

In order to be considered for shortlisting, your application will clearly evidence the following skills and align with our behaviours :

• Strong organisational and project‑management skills, with confidence working across busy teams, senior leaders and external partners.

• Experience providing executive, PA or business support in a complex organisation.

• Skilled in coordinating meetings, agendas, papers, action logs, forward plans and follow‑up actions, ideally including Board or senior governance meetings.

• Experience supporting business planning, reporting cycles, KPIs, performance timetables and internal deadlines.

• Strong understanding of systems, records, governance, confidentiality and accurate follow‑through.

• Confident using Microsoft 365, spreadsheets, shared drives, CRM and meeting tools, with strong communication skills, attention to detail and the ability to manage competing priorities.

The role may require occasional evening or weekend working, travel across Surrey and occasional national travel. 

The postholder will be expected to work flexibly to support key meetings, events and organisational deadlines. 

To apply, we request that you submit a CV and you will be asked the following 4 questions: 

1. Describe your experience providing business, office, or executive support. Include the key systems, processes, or tools you've used and how you ensured accuracy and efficiency.
2. Give an example of a time you had competing priorities while supporting senior stakeholders. How did you organise your workload and meet your deadlines?
3. Describe a situation where you communicated with a range of stakeholders (e.g., senior managers, external partners). How did you ensure your communication was clear, professional, and effective?
4. Tell us about a time you identified a problem or an opportunity to improve a process in a business or office support setting. What actions did you take, and what was the outcome?

Before submitting your application, we recommend you read the job description & Our  Life at Surrey handbook to get an insight into working at Surrey.

The job advert closes at 23:59 on 23/07/2026 with interviews planned to follow. 

Contact Us 

Please contact us for any questions relating to the role. This could be to discuss flexible working requests, transferable skills or any barriers to employment. Contact details: Mandana Mehran Pour, Head of Active Surrey: View email address on surreycc.gov.uk

Local Government Reorganisation

Surrey County Council is undergoing Local Government Reorganisation, moving from a two-tier system to two new unitary councils in April 2027. If you are employed by Surrey on 1st April 2027, your role will transfer with current terms and conditions to one of the new organisations, supporting local devolution and greater powers for our communities.

Join our dynamic team and shape the future of local government. Make a lasting impact with innovative solutions and improved services for our community. Help us build a brighter future for our residents! Please see more information here:  Information for applicants on Local Government Reorganisation - Surrey County Council

Our Commitment

We are a disability confident employer which means if you have shared a disability on your application form and have evidenced you meet the minimum shortlisting criteria, as displayed on the advert, we guarantee you an interview.

Your skills and experience truly matter to us. From application to your first day, we're committed to supporting you with any adjustments you need, we value inclusion and warmly welcome you to join and help build a workplace where everyone belongs.