Operations Team Leader - Waste and Recycling

Job Title: Operations Team Leader – Waste & Recycling
Location of work: Earlswood Depot
Salary: £35,445 - £37,902 (from 01/04/2026)
Basis: Permanent - Full time (36 hours)

Make a difference in your community. Lead a team that keeps our borough clean, safe, and sustainable.

We’re looking for an enthusiastic and motivated Waste & Recycling Team Leader to join our frontline operations team. This is a fantastic opportunity for someone with great people skills who wants to play a key role in delivering high quality services to residents and supporting the future of our waste and recycling operations.

About the Role
As a Waste & Recycling Team Leader, you’ll lead and support operational teams to ensure services are delivered safely, efficiently, and to a consistently high standard. You’ll provide day to day supervision, solve problems on the ground, and use your operational and systems  knowledge to help drive improvements across the service.

You’ll be responsible for managing staff, resources, equipment, and service performance. You’ll work closely with colleagues, contractors, and partner organisations, representing the service positively and building strong working relationships. You’ll also play an active role in monitoring data, identifying improvements, and helping shape how we meet the needs of our residents now and in the future.

About the Person 
•    Experience of an operational environment or similar 
•    Communicates clearly, confidently, and professionally
•    Can organise workloads and prioritise effectively
•    Uses technology and data to support and improve service delivery
•    Promotes safe working practices 
•    Builds positive working relationships with staff, residents and partners
•    Strives for continuous improvement in service delivery
•    Adapts well to change and remains calm under pressure

Experience in waste, recycling, or similar frontline services is helpful but not essential - what matters most is strong people skills, sound judgement, and the ability to interrogate data to drive service improvement.

Why Join Us?
•    Be part of a committed, hardworking team making a visible difference every day.
•    Help shape and improve a service used by every household in the borough.
•    Enjoy a role that’s varied, fast paced, and rewarding.
•    Develop your skills with opportunities for training and progression.

Ready to Apply?
If you’re proactive, organised, and passionate about delivering great Council services, we’d love to hear from you.

Staff Benefits
In exchange for your expertise, experience and enthusiasm, we will offer support in continuing your personal and career development, in addition to providing a wide range of employment linked benefits. 

We provide you with competitive annual leave and contribute 15% towards the LGPS pension scheme. You will also have access to a range of discounts including local and high street stores, and salary sacrifice schemes including a cycle lease scheme, and ‘Better’ leisure centre membership.

Additional Information
For an informal discussion about the role, call Sharon Quinn, Waste Recycling and Cleansing Senior Manager, on 01737 276044

We are proud to be an equal opportunities employer, supporting the guaranteed interview scheme for disabled and ex-armed forces candidates, who meet the essential criteria for the role.

Closing date:     8th April 2026
Interview date: 16th April 2026

Values and Behaviours
Our great working environment and the values and behaviours of every individual and team in the Council, help to evolve the culture of our organisation to become more commercial, innovative and embracing of change. Successful applicants to our career opportunities will be able to demonstrate they share the values and behaviours we seek in our organisation.

Local Government Reorganisation 
Reigate and Banstead Borough Council is part of the government’s plans for Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) scheduled to take place in April 2027. This means the current two-tier system, where services are split between Surrey County Council and district and borough councils like Reigate, will be replaced with two unitary councils made up of East and West Surrey, which will handle all local services. Reigate and Banstead Borough Council will form part of the new East Surrey unitary authority.

Although this may lead to some uncertainty for anyone considering a role with us, this process will take some time and during that time we still need to provide services. When local government is reorganised, most staff will transfer to the new council(s) which may offer additional opportunities for career development and variety as part of a larger organisation.

Further information on LGR can be found here: Local Government Reorganisation (LGR) and Devolution | Reigate and Banstead

See 'Who we are' as a council, to find out more about us.