Principal – Policy & Strategy (GM Live Well - Community Power)

GM Live Well is Greater Manchester’s strategic commitment to great everyday support in every neighbourhood reshaping public services around people and places, investing in prevention and putting communities at the heart of decisions that affect their lives. Live Well has become our whole-system approach to public service reform and systems change, and it’s grown from a movement for community-powered change with residents, communities and the VCFSE sector at its heart.

You’ll join our cross-sector GM Live Well Communities team, bringing together GMCA and 10GM colleagues alongside community leaders, with shared leadership and equitable decision-making at the heart of how we work. Together, we’re strengthening community power, the VCFSE sector and social infrastructure, embedding equity, inclusion and everyday cohesion, and building the relationships and networks needed for community-led prevention to become a reality. You’ll work alongside colleagues leading innovative programmes including Live Well Spaces of Hope and Connection, the Live Well Communities Fund and our movement-building work.

As Principal Strategy & Policy (GM Live Well Community Power), you’ll help shape how Greater Manchester uses its devolved powers, partnerships and investment to strengthen community power, influence national policy and develop new approaches to neighbourhood governance and public service reform.

This is an exciting time for community power and devolution. The English Devolution and Community Empowerment Act, Pride in Place and renewed investment in neighbourhoods, high streets and community ownership offer opportunities to shift power not just from Westminster to city-regions, but closer to communities themselves. You’ll help turn this ambition into practice, working with local and national partners to develop policy, strategy and new approaches that recognise communities as leaders in change.

You’ll connect community-led innovation and neighbourhood approaches across Greater Manchester’s ten boroughs, working alongside our Prevention Demonstrator to test, learn and build evidence of what works, informing national policy and making the case for greater devolution.

A key part of your role will be helping to establish a community-powered Live Well Commission, shaping its direction, governance and learning agenda with communities and partners, and translating community-led evidence into recommendations that influence policy, investment and systems change. You’ll also mobilise the GM Live Well Alliance, developing new and transformative models of governance that share power, decision-making and accountability that will sit at the heart of GM Live Well.

You’ll design, commission and develop innovation pilots, capacity-building programmes and learning networks, drawing on participatory approaches from our GM Participation Playbook to turn neighbourhood learning into policy, commissioning and investment proposals for lasting change.

We’re looking for someone who sees community power as both an ambition and a way of working who understands that how we bring people together, build relationships and share power matters just as much as what we achieve. Someone who brings creativity, energy and a belief in participation, storytelling and collective leadership to build confidence, connection and agency in communities. Someone who doesn’t just develop policy about community power, but brings it to life through how they work.

You’ll bring significant experience of developing policy, strategy or approaches to implementation in complex environments, whether in public services, civil society or cross-sector partnerships. You’ll be able to connect national policy, research, community insight and lived experience, turning them into clear advice, practical proposals and recommendations for decision-makers.

You’ll understand how public service reform, prevention, social infrastructure and neighbourhood approaches connect, and how governance, commissioning and investment can enable communities to lead. You’ll be comfortable moving between big-picture systems thinking and local realities, developing persuasive policy proposals and bringing people together around shared priorities.

Above all, you’ll be curious, collaborative and politically aware, with a deep commitment to equity, inclusion and social justice. You’ll value the strengths, leadership and autonomy of communities, be willing to challenge assumptions, share power and keep learning.

We welcome applicants from different sectors, backgrounds and career paths, recognising the value of diverse experience and perspectives. We’re also open to applications from those interested in joining us on secondment.

This is a hybrid role rooted in Greater Manchester and its communities, with flexibility to work from home alongside time in GMCA offices, community spaces and neighbourhood settings. We’re looking for someone who lives in or within easy reach of the city-region and values working closely with the people and places at the heart of Live Well.

We’re planning to get back to candidates who have submitted an application end of November, with shortlisted candidates invited to interview in early December. In keeping with our team’s values of collaboration, equity and shared leadership, we want our recruitment process to reflect how we work, and there will be involvement from partners across the Live Well Communities team and wider movement. In the meantime, please do get in touch if you have any questions or want to hear more about #GMLiveWell.

The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) brings together the cityregion’s ten councils and key partners including Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue Service (GMFRS) and Transport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) - to deliver the Greater Manchester Strategy. Our shared vision is to create a thriving city region where everyone can live a good life. We work to grow an inclusive economy and ensure people have what they need to live happy, healthy lives, tackling inequalities. Our policy department include Digital, Economy, Education, Work & Skills, Environment, Place Making, Public Service Reform, and Safer & Stronger Communities - who are supported by our essential corporate functions like Finance, Legal & Governance, People Services, Procurement and Communications.

We value the diversity of our employees, and aim to recruit a workforce which reflects our diverse communities across Greater Manchester. We encourage applications from all suitably qualified individuals, irrespective of people's age, disability, Trans status and Non-binary identity, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation. We have guidance in place to ensure that all applicants are treated fairly and consistently at every stage of the recruitment process, including the consideration of reasonable adjustments for people who have a disability.

To find out more about working for us please click here: https://www.greatermanchester-ca.gov.uk/

In return for your hard work, we offer our employees a competitive package as part of our offer that you can find out more about here:

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Artificial Intelligence (AI)

We embrace AI to enhance our operations and to innovate our services. However, we value human talent and are looking for passionate individuals to join our organisation. Please ensure you personally complete your application and read all the instructions carefully to maximise your chances of success.

Applications that rely too heavily on AI may be rejected during shortlisting, however we understand that AI may be used as a reasonable adjustment, if using AI to support your application, please give a brief explanation why to help ensure fair selection process.

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Hybrid working

This role is part of GMCA’s hybrid working scheme. As part of our commitment to ‘Build Back Fairer’ in Greater Manchester following the Covid-19 pandemic, we have evolved our management methods by trusting and empowering staff to deliver their work in the best way that suits the business and their individual needs, and supports health and wellbeing. Our hybrid working policy sets out a flexible approach, combining attendance at our Manchester city centre office, allocated GM Local Authority office(s), or on site in the community, with remote working, typically from home (within a reasonable commutable distance from Greater Manchester); the location of work is primarily dictated by the needs of the business: ‘Do what is right for you and the business on that day’. If appointed to the role you will work with your manager to agree and regularly review the best working pattern for you, your team and your work.

Supporting Documents

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