Press and PR Officer
Job description
Original text imported from Reed
Main Duties And Responsibilities Press and PR Officer
Behavioural: Press and PR Officer
- Enjoy, achieve, create impact, and thrive in the role and organisation.
- Live our values in the role and organisation.
Corporate Communications & Marketing Duties & Responsibilities: Press and PR Officer
- Research, write and publish news releases in response to media enquiries.
- Proactively pin-point future stories and ensuring they are covered by relevant local, regional, national and specialist media.
- Respond to media enquiries with appropriate statements and information and researching/producing media releases on specific issues and to promote, protect and develop the reputation of the council.
- Create news stories and effective content to promote the work of the Council and keep residents well informed.
- Ensure effective communication channels are maintained both internally and externally, supporting marketing campaigns where required.
- Monitor the performance of the press and public relations function, and ensuring continuous improvement is achieved.
- Assist the Senior Press, PR & Digital Manager in the development and delivery of the Councils Media Protocol.
Communication, Engagement and Training: Press and PR Officer
- Cultivate good relationships with key decision makers and opinion formers to attract support for the Council at all levels ? including local, regional and national media.
- Advise colleagues at all levels of the organisation, including Committee Members, regarding communications and reputational issues.
- Safeguard and promote the reputation of Wirral Council through producing clear, engaging communications to internal and external stakeholders related to Council priorities.
- Liaise with the Media, providing advice and support as necessary.
- Manage the work of external contractors and partners as required, such as photographers, marketing and PR agencies and event management support.
- Communicate clear information to stakeholders, including staff, about the Council and its services.
Compliance:
- Adhere to and comply with all relevant corporate policies and procedures including Health & Safety, General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR), Corporate Governance and Code of Conduct.
- Ensure that all service initiatives adhere to relevant legislation, policies and practices.
Other: Press and PR Officer
- Any other duties commensurate with the grade.
Role Specific Knowledge, Experience And Skills Press and PR Officer
Qualifications
Essential
- Educated to degree level or equivalent, preferably in a related field such as Journalism, Marketing, Public Relations, Advertising or Communications.
.
Knowledge & Skills
Essential
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
- Ability of working to tight deadlines and effectively managing conflicting priorities.
- Ability to work in confidence and make judgements on reputational matters in a sensitive environment.
Experience
Essential
- Demonstrable ability and experience of working with and influencing colleagues at a high organisational level.
- Experience of working in a related position.
Desirable
- Experience of working in local government.
- Experience of working in a political organisation.
- Experience of media related work, including journalism, writing press releases, working with journalists and managing PR projects.
Additional Information
- Ability to travel across the Borough and work from various locations.
- Work hybrid, with a flexible working approach to accommodate service needs.
- On occasion, able to work outside traditional hours, of a weekend and evening as required, adopting a flexible working approach in response to business requirements.
Health & Safety Considerations:
- Lone working
- Working outside
- Work with VDUs (Video Display Unit) (>5hrs per week)
Key skills
AI-extracted from the job advert
Application advice
5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.
⭐ Highlight your degree in Journalism, Marketing, PR or Communications at the top as this is explicitly required
📊 Quantify your media coverage: 'Secured 45 positive media placements, reaching 2.3M readers across regional outlets'
🌐 Emphasise local government experience as this role is specifically for Wirral Council
🎯 Showcase crisis communication examples where you protected organisational reputation under pressure
🤝 Detail your stakeholder management experience, particularly with senior decision makers and committee members
Suggested CV bullets
3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.
Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:
- •Managed 150+ media enquiries annually, achieving 89% positive coverage across regional and national outlets for local authority communications
- •Developed media protocol framework ensuring GDPR compliance across 12 departments, reducing legal risk by 45% within 8 months
- •Led reputation management during council restructure, maintaining 78% public approval rating through strategic stakeholder engagement and proactive media relations
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Dear Hiring Manager,
Wirral Council's commitment to transparent community engagement through strategic communications aligns perfectly with my media relations expertise, particularly my experience in press release writing and stakeholder management for public sector organisations.
My background in corporate communications and reputation management has equipped me with the skills to handle sensitive media enquiries while maintaining GDPR compliance and building relationships with key decision makers across local and national media outlets.
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Interview questions
10 questions generated from this advert.
Technical
- ›How do you measure the success of a press release campaign?
- ›What tools do you use for media monitoring and analysis?
- ›How do you ensure GDPR compliance when handling media enquiries?
- ›Describe your process for creating content across different media channels
- ›How do you manage external contractors like photographers and PR agencies?
Behavioural
- ›Tell me about a time you had to manage a reputational crisis for your organisation
- ›Describe a situation where you had to work to tight deadlines with conflicting priorities
- ›Give an example of how you've influenced senior stakeholders on communications strategy
- ›Tell me about a challenging media enquiry you handled and how you approached it
- ›Describe a time you had to maintain confidentiality while managing sensitive information
STAR answer examples
Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.
Tell me about a time you had to manage a reputational crisis for your organisation
Describe a situation where you had to work to tight deadlines with conflicting priorities