Emergency Planning and Resilience Officer

Job Purpose:

Before applying for this job, it is important that you read the guidance by clicking on this link and the Job Profile attached. These explain the job role and the type of person we're looking for.

Location: Aberdeen City, Scotland, United Kingdom, Marischal College
Duration: Permanent, Full Time

Roles that require PVG Membership

Please note that with effect from 1 April 2023, where a role requires PVG membership, candidates will be required to meet the cost of the PVG membership. This applies only to roles with a full time equivalent salary of £30,000 and above. (Teaching roles and jobs at Grade 10 and above (currently £30,030 per annum / £16.50 per hour)

The Council will pay for the PVG membership cost initially, either £18 for existing PVG scheme members, or £59 for non-members, and this cost will be deducted from an employee’s first FULL month’s salary payment.

Job purpose/about the role

The purpose of this role is to deliver emergency planning and resilience activity that ensures Aberdeen City Council can effectively prepare for, respond to, and recover from incidents, disruptions and emergencies while meeting its statutory responsibilities. The post holder is responsible for providing professional advice, coordination, assurance and partnership working across the Council, Aberdeen City Health and Social Care Partnership, ALEOs and resilience partners to strengthen organisational preparedness and compliance with legislation and national guidance. The role also supports the safe and effective delivery of public, civic and ceremonial events by ensuring appropriate planning, risk management, governance and resilience considerations are embedded in event arrangements across the city.

The post holder needs to hold as a minimum:

• Proven experience in emergency planning and resilience
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Ability to manage budgets and resources effectively
• Knowledge of relevant legislative requirement and standards
• Ability to impart knowledge and good practice
• Driving licence

The postholder is able to demonstrate:

• Exercising a high level of professional judgement to critically evaluate complex and sensitive information, making informed decisions and identifying proportionate, risk-based solutions that impact on public safety and service delivery.
• Providing authoritative advice and guidance to senior officers, elected members, and multi-agency partners on emergency planning, resilience, and event safety, influencing decision-making and ensuring compliance with statutory duties.
• Managing competing priorities and delivering outcomes within constrained timescales, maintaining resilience, accuracy, and professional credibility in high-pressure and time-critical environments.
• Leading the identification, assessment, and management of risk, ensuring robust risk mitigation and assurance processes are embedded and aligned with corporate governance and Civil Contingencies Act 2004 requirements.
• Planning, managing, and delivering complex projects and work programmes with a high degree of autonomy, ensuring delivery within agreed scope, resources, and organisational priorities.
• Delivering and maintaining emergency plans and procedures that underpin the Council’s preparedness, response, and recovery arrangements as a Category 1 responder, ensuring these are effective, exercised, and audit-ready.
• Responsibility for the professional assessment of event safety, licensing, and risk management arrangements, including the integration of Protect Duty and security considerations.
• Designing and delivering training, exercising, and professional guidance that builds organisational capability, strengthens resilience culture, and ensures readiness across services and partners.
• Developing and sustaining effective working relationships across complex stakeholder environments, representing the Council and influencing outcomes within multi-agency resilience and public safety arrangements.
• Driving continuous improvement, identifying gaps, embedding lessons learned, and contributing to the development of local and national resilience frameworks and best practice.
• Responding to incidents and emerging risks with confidence and independence, applying sound judgement, adaptability, and leadership to support effective operational and strategic outcomes.

About Us

Please see the Job Profile for further details.

Aberdeen City Council is an equal opportunities employer and we are committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. For further information, please see our Equality, Diversity, Inclusion and Recruitment pack.

Flexible Working

We are happy to talk flexible working and offer flexible working for most roles in the organisation meaning that many of our employees enjoy the freedom of choosing a working pattern that suits them as much as it suits the organisation.

Disability Confident

We are a Disability Confident Employer. If you consider yourself to have a disability and think you may require a reasonable adjustment to be made for this part of the selection process, or would like further information in relation to reasonable adjustments, please contact Recruitment@aberdeencity.gov.uk.

Armed Forces

We are a forces-friendly employer, have signed the Armed Forces Covenant and are a gold award recipient in the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme. We have a specific email address for those in the forces, those who have left the forces, as well as their partners / spouses / families: armedforces@aberdeencity.gov.uk. We are able to answer questions about jobs and our application / selection process, as well as about our employee support provisions.

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

We have a number of guaranteed interview schemes available to applicants who meet the minimum criteria for the role they are applying for who:

• have a disability as defined by the Equality Act 2010 (all jobs)
• looked after young people, those that are in continuing care or are a care leaver up to the age of 29 (all jobs)
• are aged 16-24 and live in Aberdeen City or have been to an Aberdeen City Council school and are applying for a Modern Apprenticeship (except Trades apprenticeships)
• have done a Foundation Apprenticeship with Aberdeen City Council and are applying for any apprenticeships relevant to the area in which they did their Foundation Apprenticeship
• are New Scots aged 16-24 and are applying for any apprenticeships

Please note that eligibility to work in the UK is dependent on legal status and all applicants must have the right to live and work in the UK.