Salary: £39,152 – £41,771 a year pro rata
Hours per week: 37
Contract type: Fixed term for 12 months 

This position is available as a secondment opportunity for 12 months. If you are a permanent LBC employee, you must have written approval (an email will suffice) from your manager prior to applying and a copy will need to be submitted with your application. Please note: we will not be able to proceed with your application form without your manager’s permission.

As part of our commitment to delivering high-impact transformation and continuous improvement across the organisation, we have established a new Portfolio Management Office (PMO). To support this strategic step forward, we are now recruiting a PMO Evaluation Officer to play a central role in ensuring our programmes and projects deliver real, measurable benefits.

Reporting to the newly appointed PMO Manager, the Evaluation Officer will lead the development and implementation of a new Evaluation Framework, helping the organisation better understand the effectiveness and impact of its activities. You will be instrumental in driving benefit realisation and high-quality performance reporting, ensuring we track both financial and non-financial outcomes.

This is a critical role in shaping how we assess success – from setting evaluation standards to undertaking and commissioning both process and impact evaluations. You’ll also work closely with colleagues across the organisation, offering expert advice and guidance to embed a culture of continuous improvement and evidence-based decision-making.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a robust Evaluation Framework across the PMO and transformation portfolio.
• Lead the tracking and reporting of programme and project benefits (financial and non-financial).
• Undertake and commission evaluations, including process and impact assessments.
• Provide expert evaluation advice and build capability across teams.
• Analyse and present data to inform policy, strategy, and service design.
• Build effective relationships with internal and external stakeholders to support evaluation and reporting goals.
• Work across multiple projects in a fast-paced environment, ensuring alignment with strategic objectives and deadlines.

Please note this role does not attract sponsorship.

We’re looking for someone with a strong background in evaluation, performance reporting or impact assessment, who can work collaboratively and think strategically. You’ll bring:

• Experience delivering high-quality evaluations or performance reporting in a complex organisation.
• A track record of designing and conducting both quantitative and qualitative research.
• The ability to translate evaluation findings into actionable insights.
• Strong analytical skills and competency in statistical analysis, including using tools such as MS Excel and Power BI (or similar).
• An understanding of evaluation methodologies, such as logic modelling and theory of change.
• Experience of working with performance frameworks, target setting, and benchmarking.
• Excellent communication skills – written, verbal and presentation.
• A commitment to equality, diversity, and inclusion, with a demonstrable understanding of equalities issues.
• The ability to travel within the Borough and attend meetings outside of normal business hours.

Why Join Us?
This is an exciting opportunity to make a real difference, supporting transformation and improvement across the organisation. You’ll join a forward-thinking team at a time of change and investment in smarter, data-driven approaches to project delivery and evaluation.

Our ambitious Luton 2040 Vision – that no-one in Luton will have to live in poverty – is at the heart of everything we do. We recognise that our people are remarkable, talented, committed and passionate about serving our residents.

The people of Luton depend heavily on this council – and that means our workforce! Are you ready to realise the remarkable and help us deliver our vision?

We welcome applications from all sections of the community and are committed to developing a workforce that reflects the diversity of our borough

On occasions, we may close a vacancy early due to a very high number of applications being received.

We offer a range of excellent staff benefits which include:

– From 25 to 32 days’ annual leave: linked to length of service and grade
– Buying annual leave scheme: buy up to 20 days additional annual leave
– Career Pathways: step up in your career or move into a specialist area
– Pension scheme: with generous employer contributions of up to 20.2 per cent (at July 2023) and 3x salary death in service grant
– Generous relocation package: up to £8,000 (subject to eligibility)
– Employee Assistance Programme: a free, 24/7 confidential counselling and wellbeing support service available to all employees, their partner or spouse and dependent children over 16 still living at home
– Work/life balance: flexible working options including working from home where possible. We welcome requests for flexible working arrangements including part-time hours and alternative working patterns
– Training and support: unlimited access to development courses, mentoring and support and clear career pathways
– Staff offers: includes discounts on your MOT, gym and fitness, restaurants and salons
– Arriva Travel Club: great value savings on local bus travel

We understand that job applications take time and effort, but a high-quality application shows that you are professional with a good attention to detail. The recruiting manager may receive a number of applications for each job advertised so you want yours to stand out!

Our ‘How to apply’ page has more tips to help with your application: How to apply