Transport Operations Manager

Transport Team Leader

Full time 37.5 hours per week

Salary range £28,000 - £30,000 per annum depending on experience

Based in Fareham

Would you like to join a local charity committed to making life better for everyone?

Would you like to support your community by helping to provide transport services for those people who find it difficult to access public transport?

As our Transport Operations Manager you will be responsible for leading and growing our Community Transport and associated services across Hampshire. You will have specific responsibility for developing and leading an efficient, safe, accessible and high-quality transport service for residents. You will build relationships with commissioners and partners across public, private and voluntary sectors. Working closely with the Head of Transport & Mobility you will lead our transport compliance, with an emphasis on passenger safety. You will support and sustain existing services which include Hampshire Connect, Home to School Transport, Local Bus Services, Group Hire and Adult Day Centre Transport. You will be responsible for a team of Transport Coordinators. You will be our main point of contact with transport service commissioners including Hampshire County Council ensuring we are fully compliant with legislative, health and safety, training and reporting requirements. You will develop our reputation as the best community transport provider in Hampshire.

We can offer you the following in addition to a competitive salary:

- 25 days holiday plus Bank Holidays (pro rata for part time staff)

- Contributory pension scheme

- Excellent training and development opportunities

- Energetic, friendly and supportive working environment

To apply please send your CV together with a covering letter outlining why you are a good candidate for the role.

For an informal discussion please contact Fabian Cook, Head of Transport & Mobility on 07508 702874.

This post will require a DBS check.

Please note closing date is 30th May 2025 but applications will be considered as they are received and the advert will be closed early if the position is filled so dont delay in applying

Full Job Description

Job Title Transport Operations Manager

Hours 37.5 hours per week

Salary Band F

Responsible to Head of Transport & Mobility

Responsible for Transport Coordinators and Drivers

Office base Community First, 163 West Street, Fareham, PO16 0EF
Regular travel to other offices and operating areas will be required.

Contract Permanent

Job Purpose
You will be responsible for leading and growing our Community Transport and associated services across Hampshire. You will have specific responsibility for developing and leading an efficient, safe, accessible and high-quality transport service for residents. You will build relationships with commissioners and partners across public, private and voluntary sectors. Working closely with the Head of Transport & Mobility you will lead our transport business development, bidding for contracts, developing and testing new innovative models of delivery to support and sustain existing services which include Hampshire Connect, Home to School Transport, Local Bus Services, Group Hire and Adult Day Centre Transport. You will be responsible for a team of Transport Coordinators. You will be our main point of contact with transport service commissioners including Hampshire County Council ensuring we are fully compliant with legislative, health and safety, training and reporting requirements. You will establish our reputation as the best community transport provider in Hampshire.

Responsibilities

Managing Transport Services

• Ensure we deliver a safe and high-quality service for our customers. Working with Transport Coordinators you will organise and plan transport services and manage transport contracts ensuring that vehicles and drivers are allocated, and daily transport is provided in accordance with the contract service specification.
• Oversee and ensure accurate and timely recording of monitoring statistics as required by customers and commissioners/funders. This will include passenger numbers, journey miles and times, fare income and other outputs.
• Organise regular team meetings with your Transport Coordinators and Drivers and ensure that all compulsory training, supervision and performance management is carried out in accordance with Community First policies.

Transport service innovation, development and promotion

• Develop, market and promote new services looking for innovation in how we can move toward a more sustainable funding model and how we can generate additional revenue to subsidise essential transport services for vulnerable people. This may include:
• Working with Head of Transport & Mobility to develop new pricing models for large scale contracting of transport services
• Exploring options for creating social enterprise and joint ventures with partners to pool resources and share expertise in order to grow our business
• Research and propose likely funding sources for innovation in our bids
• To communicate in a professional, constructive and non-discriminatory manner with customers, funders, partner organisations, managers, drivers, service users and their carers and lead by example for staff in your transport team.
• To proactively market and promote our transport services to a wide audience across our operating area including key decision makers, local authority partners, private sector, community groups and service users with the aim of increasing patronage, generating new income and identifying opportunities for collaboration and service innovation.

Quality Assurance, Reporting and Monitoring

• Ensure we have a robust programme of spot and programmed quality checks on drivers standards, ensuring that each trip, vehicle, driver and contract is quality checked and recorded at least annually. Your Transport Coordinators will be responsible for implementing this.
• To contribute to other quality monitoring to ensure the delivery of the specific aims and objectives of funders/commissioners. You will be required to attend monitoring meetings with HCC and District Council officers and produce high quality, in depth monitoring reports including information regarding financial and operating performance.
• To take the lead role in investigating any complaints and in the event of any accident and incident reporting as required. You will review procedures and make recommendations to the Head of Transport & Mobility to change and amend where improvements can be made.

Compliance and Risk Assessment

• Ensure that transport services are delivered safely and are compliant with Community First Health and Safety policies and all other legal requirements. You will ensure that all staff including Transport Coordinators and Drivers are aware of and take responsibility for the safety, welfare and comfort of all passengers whilst transporting them to and from their destination.
• Promote safe working practices and work environments ensuring drivers and all staff under your responsibility are appropriately trained, including MIDAS certified and DBS checked and that training records and accreditation is kept up to date. You will be required to undertake training courses as appropriate including Emergency First Aid at Work, MIDAS and others as required in order to carry out your duties. Ideally you will be trained to same standard as the Drivers and able to perform same duties if required in emergency or urgent situations.
• Ensure that Risk Assessments are carried out for all new and existing transport contracts/trips to assess whether they can be safely delivered and what equipment/procedures need to be in place.
• Take all reasonable care to promote a healthy working environment and safe working practices in accordance with Community Firsts Health & Safety Policy. A copy of Community Firsts Health and Safety policy and any guidance relevant to your duties will be provided.
• Deal with and respond to emergency situations in accordance with your training and procedures set out by Community First. You may need to act as first contact for Drivers reporting accidents or incidents and/or as Incident Co-ordinator. All accidents and incidents must be reported within one working day or immediately if in the case of any injury or a fatality. Accident report forms should be carried on all vehicles and include a sketch and/or photographs of the scene should be completed at the time of the accident.

Please note support for safeguarding and overall risk management will be provided.

Fleet Management

• Oversee the management of the vehicle fleet ensuring that all vehicles are in full and safe working order utilising systems to accurately record and maintain vehicle records including ownership, service history, MOTs, mileage, safety and vehicle checks.
• Ensure all passenger restraints are regularly checked for wear and tear and faults reported and rectified promptly. Ensure annual audit of passenger restraint is carried out across the operating fleet.
• Work with Transport Schedulers to ensure vehicles have fully stocked First Aid kits, fully functioning and serviced fire extinguishers, spill kits, cleaning cloths and scrapers. Arrange for central purchasing of replacement kits.
• Make recommendations and advise on the need for replacement or additional vehicles.
• Ensure that we have the most cost efficient and operationally effective arrangements in place for maintaining the vehicle fleet
• Ensure that all vehicles are kept insured and work with Transport Coordinators to deal with any claims relevant to incidents/accidents.

Clauses Common to All Community First Job Descriptions

• To promote Community Firsts Equal Opportunities and Diversity policy.
• To comply with all Community First policies and Conditions of Service as laid out in the Community First Staff Handbook.
• In discharging the duties of the post to have due regard to the provisions of Health & Safety at work legislation.
• To undertake such additional responsibilities appropriate to the role as may be required and agreed by the funding partners, commensurate with the grade and responsibilities of the post.
• This post, due to the nature of the work, is exempt from the provisions of Section 4 (2) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act, 1974. Applicants are, therefore, not entitled to withhold information about convictions which, for the purposes, are spent under the provisions of the Act, and in the event of employment, any failure to disclose such convictions could result in dismissal or disciplinary actions by the Council. You may be required to undertake a DBS check.

Person Specification

Transport Operations Manager

Key skills, knowledge and experience required:

Good knowledge of the wide range of Community Transportand associated services we deliver, including challenges, opportunities and understanding of the needs of our customers Essential

Resource management skills - with the ability to manageand get the very best out of staff, resources including fleet of vehicles and drivers, and manage financial resources effectively. Essential

Project and service management skills - with the ability toplan, allocate and monitor resources effectively in relation to meeting agreed objectives and targets, together with ability to analyse data and produce accurate reports Essential

People management skills - ability to recruit, manage, leadand motivate staff, and also have the confidence and insight into human behaviour that enable effective performance management Essential

Partnership working and relationship skills experience ofsuccessfully developing and working in partnership with a range of public, private and voluntary sector organisations with ability to create and maintain effective relationships with key decision makers and individual both in and outside of our organisation Essential

Communication skills - ability to represent Community Firstthrough effective verbal and written communication including presentation, influencing and negotiating skills and ability to produce high quality reports Essential

Driving licence and access to own car Essential

Good awareness, understanding and commitment to thevalues and ethos of the voluntary and community sector Desirable

Service funding and development experience of preparingand submitting competitive tenders and the ability to develop new services and innovative service models to meet new and emerging needs Desirable

Key competencies required:

Achievement and Service Orientation - demonstratingtenacity and with a clear focus on delivery and quality of service. Essential

Concern for order - recognising the importance of workingto plans and following agreed procedures particularly around health and safety, vehicle checks and driver training. Essential

Initiative - demonstrating an ability and willingness toresolve issues and cope with ambiguity and uncertainty and demanding workload and be a self-starter Essential

Self-confidence - displays assurance, confidence andresilience in challenging situations. Has leadership skills and is a strong communicator Essential

Personal credibility and impact - demonstrating anawareness of personal impact and can use a range of influencing strategies and communications tools including listening, writing and presenting skills Essential

Commercial awareness ability to think strategically andunderstand importance of financial viability in delivering the transport function and service Essential