Connected Places Partnership & Project Manager

12month Fixed Term | £49,282 - £53,460
GM Digital Policy Team Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA)

About the Role

Greater Manchester is on an ambitious journey to become a worldleading digitally connected city region. We’re looking for a Connected Places Partnership & Project Manager to help make this vision a reality.

In this role, you’ll lead and coordinate activity to embed highquality digital connectivityfull fibre, mobile, wireless and emerging technologiesinto planning, regeneration and development projects across Greater Manchester.

Working within the GM Digital Policy Team, you’ll collaborate with local authorities, telecoms providers, developers and national bodies to ensure digital infrastructure plays a central role in how places are created and evolve.

This is a fantastic opportunity for someone passionate about shaping digitally enabled, inclusive, healthy and sustainable places.

What You’ll Do

Digital Placemaking

• Embed worldclass digital connectivity standards into planning policy, masterplans and infrastructure strategies.
• Support the creation and delivery of Digital Place Plans for priority regeneration and growth areas.
• Advise on 5G, small cells, broadband competition and futureready digital infrastructure.

Stakeholder & Provider Engagement

• Act as a central point of coordination for full fibre providers, MNOs, neutral hosts and other telecoms stakeholders.
• Streamline deployment processes with planners, regeneration teams, highways and estates colleagues.
• Lead coordination of GM Digital Infrastructure Advisory Group (GMDIAG) and related digital infrastructure forums.

Project & Programme Delivery

• Manage digital placemaking projects from concept to delivery.
• Lead multipartner initiatives such as public WiFi, digital inclusion schemes and public estate connectivity.
• Produce evidence packs, policy briefings and reports to support informed decisions.

Data & Insight

• Use GMCA’s Digital Connectivity Index and provider intelligence to identify gaps, capacity challenges and investment opportunities.
• Translate complex mapping data into insights for planners and developers.

Innovation & Market Interventions

• Support innovative approaches such as digital wayleaves, vouchers, neutral host models and smart places technologies.

Mandatory Information:

Artificial Intelligence (AI)

We embrace AI to enhance our operations and to innovate our services. However, we value human talent and are looking for passionate individuals to join our organisation. Please ensure you personally complete your application and read all the instructions carefully to maximise your chances of success.

Applications that rely too heavily on AI may be rejected during shortlisting, however we understand that AI may be used as a reasonable adjustment, if using AI to support your application, please give a brief explanation why to help ensure fair selection process.

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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 licenced sponsor.

Hybrid working

This role is part of GMCA’s hybrid working scheme. As part of our commitment to ‘Build Back Fairer’ in Greater Manchester following the Covid-19 pandemic, we have evolved our management methods by trusting and empowering staff to deliver their work in the best way that suits the business and their individual needs, and supports health and wellbeing. Our hybrid working policy sets out a flexible approach, combining attendance at our on-site locations with remote working, typically from home; the location of work is primarily dictated by the needs of the business: ‘Do what is right for you and the business on that day’. If appointed to the role you will work with your manager to agree and regularly review the best working pattern for you, your team and your work.