Job Description

Pupil Absence Officer (Child Employment / Licensing)

Location

Trafford Council, 2nd Floor, Waterside House, Sale.

Salary range

Band 6 17,098 - 18,056 pro rata salary for 18 hours per week

Trafford council is a Living Wage Employer.

Working Pattern

Part time all year round

Working hours

18 hours a week

Contract type

Permanent

Application deadline

Sunday 28th September2025

Interview date

Provisionally Monday 13th October or Tuesday 14th October

Interview type

In person with a task

About the Role

We have an excellent opportunity to join our Pupil Absence Team, working alongside our attendance officers, supporting them with their school duties and with a particular focus on child employment, child licensing and chaperone requests.


This officer post is suited to somebody with a good understanding of child employment regulations, experience of working directly with children in a safeguarding role and skills to support the demands of our attendance service.


Our officers support our schools and families by providing them with high quality advice and guidance. They also carry out several statutory functions on behalf of the local authority including liaising with parents and specialist settings.


Supporting colleagues in our offices at Sale Waterside, there will be an opportunity to shape the hours that you work and for highly experienced candidates we would be prepared to consider remote working.


You will join a wider team of highly skilled, knowledgeable, education professionals with expertise in exclusions, home education, school admissions, school improvement and special educational needs.


At Trafford, attendance is everybody's business, meaning that there are plenty of opportunities for you to contribute to maintaining the high standards of a local authority with one on the lowest school absence levels in the country.

About you

You will have a caring supportive approach, but also be able to effectively challenge when necessary, using education legislation and guidance to support your decision making. As we deal with a wide variety of cases, you will be able to prioritise requests and maintain an accurate record of the work that you have carried out.


You will have a good level of knowledge and experience of school attendance and be receptive to building on this when we provide opportunities for you to learn new skills. You will have the ability to transfer your knowledge into a range of different contexts, using excellent communication and interpersonal skills, alongside experience of working with other professionals, to facilitate the next steps in complex cases.

About us

Trafford Council and its partners in the public, private and third sectors have a Vision which sees us working together to close inequality gaps and maximise Trafford's huge potential.

Our vision: Trafford where all our residents, businesses and communities thrive.

Trafford is a lively, prosperous place to put down roots and build a career. The council and Trafford schools employ around 8,000 people, who are central to making the area great. In return for their commitment, the council offers its employees development opportunities, as well as a fair and flexible workplace. The council is a Living Wage Employer.

Additional Information

Please note the advert may close early if we receive a high number of applications so, please do not delay in submitting your application.

A DBS check will be required.


You will have flexibility in terms of hybrid working at home.


You will be required to drive in this role.


On rare occasions you may be asked to work outside of normal office hours to carry out child licensing inspections.

Contact Details

Please feel free to contact Alistair Black, Lead for the Education of Vulnerable Children, by email for more information about this post - alistair.black@trafford.gov.uk

About the benefits

You will be welcomed into a friendly environment where your personal and professional development will be encouraged. You will have the opportunity to work and grow in a people-centered and values-based organisation that promotes a positive permission culture. Your opinions matter so you will have the opportunity to shape how we do things here at Trafford.


To learn more about Trafford as a place to work visit and to view more about our awards and benefits please visit: Trafford - Benefits | www.inploi.com (greater.jobs)

OTHER RELEVANT INFORMATION

Greater Manchester Continuous Service Commitment - greater.jobs | www.inploi.com


For this opportunity, you must be able to prove you have the right to work in the UK - if in doubt please visit the following link Employers' right to work checklist - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk).

Please note we are not a licensed sponsor

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Privacy Notice - The Council needs to hold and process information about employees, workers and other individuals as appropriate, for various reasons. With the General Data Protection Regulations coming into force we have in place a new privacy notice for staff, contractors, volunteers, trainees, those on work experience and job applicants. To find out more, please click here: Recruitment & Employment Privacy Notice (trafford.gov.uk)