We are Team Leeds
In Leeds we have bold ambitions and a clear vision for the city’s future, making it the ideal place to take your leadership career to new heights.
You will be joining us at an incredibly exciting time for Leeds, as we build a shared future and realise our city’s huge potential through the collective power of Team Leeds. We know we are stronger together and that our residents benefit when our council, partners, businesses and communities work as one to achieve our goals.
Why Leeds
Our city and our council
In a major city of over 800,000 residents, you really can make a difference. With a huge diversity of communities with different strengths and challenges, you will use the breadth of your expertise with vision and compassion for lasting impact.
Leeds is the UK’s fastest growing city, a dynamic hub for business, creativity and innovation, and the main economic centre of West Yorkshire. We are a compassionate city, driven by our shared mission to tackle poverty and inequality in our belief that success for the city should mean better quality of life for everyone who calls Leeds home.
Leeds City Council is England’s second largest local authority, with over 14,000 employees delivering hundreds of services to our residents and their communities. In common with most of the sector, we are managing rising demand for our services in the face of diminished resources. We are confident that we will emerge stronger by focusing on impactful transformation projects internally and employing our Team Leeds approach to deliver for local people.
Our Leeds Ambitions
In September 2025 we launch our Leeds Ambitions, our vision for the city that refreshes our Best City Ambition. Created in consultation with residents and partners, the Leeds Ambitions are a strategic roadmap with a core mission of addressing poverty and inequality to achieve real and measurable results.
We have listened and learned, and have built that feedback into the Leeds Ambitions to ensure we keep a sharp focus on:
- Our updated priorities: Our Leeds Ambitions have at their heart four key priorities that reflect interconnected goals: health and wellbeing, inclusive growth, strong communities and a sustainable city
- Tackling poverty and inequality: Leeds Ambitions serves as the city’s anti-poverty strategy, embedding Marmot City principles to drive meaningful change
- Shared city vision: Leeds Ambitions is no longer solely a council plan; it’s a collective vision with shared leadership and input from diverse organisations citywide
- Our Team Leeds approach: we’re building on the strengths of Team Leeds to further boost collaborative working, social value, community empowerment and resource sharing
- Clearer impact measurement: A new outcomes framework will use action plans, benchmarks and data to track progress and monitor the impact of the Leeds Ambitions
- Strategic partnerships: We want our partnership infrastructure to be fit for the future; continuing our work with Leeds Anchors Network and Leeds Community Anchor Network and empowering all partners to drive shared action
Equality, diversity and inclusion
We are proud to be an inclusive employer, supporting you all the way, from the moment you apply to join our team throughout your time working with us.
We recognise that to properly serve our city, our leadership and our workforce must fully reflect the diverse people of Leeds. Teams built of individuals who bring their unique contributions to the table are vital if we are to evolve and innovate to deliver for our citizens.
Our values encapsulate our commitment to treat people fairly, appreciate others and challenge all forms of inequality and discrimination. Our leaders embody our values, creating a workplace where everyone can thrive, use their individual talents and feel that they belong.
We’re keen to hear from people of all backgrounds and life experiences who can lead our services with fresh insight and perspective. We especially welcome applications from women, carers, veterans, LGBTQ+ people, those from ethnically diverse communities, disabled people, and those with care experience — and anyone else who brings lived experience that can lead us do things better.
The following accreditations and pledges demonstrate our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion:
- Mindful Employer
- Disability Confident Leader
- Age-friendly Employer Pledge
- Stonewall Workplace Equality Index Top 100 Employer
- Fostering Friendly Employer
- Armed Forces Covenant
- Living Wage Employer
Our staff networks provide peer support and a safe space for colleagues who associate with a particular theme through lived experience or allyship. At organisational level the networks are important in raising awareness, empowering underrepresented groups and driving cultural change.
Our benefits
We know that delivering exceptional public services starts with supporting the people who make them happen. That’s why we prioritise a rewarding and inclusive experience for all our colleagues.
We offer a comprehensive range of benefits focused on your professional development, wellbeing, work-life balance and finances. Our employment policies are designed with flexibility and fairness in mind, helping you balance your personal circumstances with your career ambitions.
Our leadership package includes:
- Fair and transparent pay progression structure under the Joint Negotiating Committee (JNC) for Chief Officers in local government
- Annual leave starting at 28 days (33 days after 5 years’ service) plus statutory holidays, with the option to purchase 5 additional days through salary sacrifice
- Flexible and hybrid working options subject to your role and service need
- Professional development with fully funded study for relevant qualifications and supporting your progression through opportunities at work or with our partners
- Local Government Pension Scheme administered by West Yorkshire Pension Fund with generous employer contributions
- Shared cost AVC scheme allowing you to boost your pension in the most tax-efficient way
- Support for your wellbeing through our family friendly policies, flexible working options and 24/7 employee assistance programme
- Exclusive offers on an ultra-low emission vehicle lease paid for through salary sacrifice
- Moneysaving offers including discounts with national retailers and special deals with local businesses
We’re proud to foster a workplace where everyone can be their best—and where your leadership can make a lasting difference to the communities we serve.
Find out more about benefits for all Leeds City Council colleagues.
Links to further information
Parks and Green Spaces Strategy
Other council plans and strategies
Living in Leeds
Life’s not all about work though, and Leeds is a brilliant place to live too! Leeds is a vibrant, diverse city, with a thriving economy and all the culture, shopping and entertainment you would expect from a major centre. It’s well connected too, with excellent road and rail links to the rest of the UK and Leeds Bradford International Airport close by.
Whether you’re looking for the convenience of city living, a spacious suburb or a rural retreat there’s a wide choice of places to live with easy access to your workplace and wherever else you need to be.
You’re never far from nature and open space either - Leeds is one of the greenest cities in the country, with seven Green Flag award-winning parks among our many open spaces. We’re also on the doorstep of the Yorkshire Dales for lovers of the great outdoors.
Leeds has a rich history. Wander through the city centre to admire the architecture and call into Leeds Art Gallery and Leeds City Museum to see artefacts that tell the story of the city, as well as fascinating objects from around the world.
If you like to listen to music, watch films or see a show, you’ll be spoilt for choice here. Theatre goers can see major productions at Leeds Playhouse and the Grand Theatre, or a community show at The Carriageworks. Music lovers can hear world famous artists at the First Direct Arena, discover new acts at many smaller venues around the city, listen to classical artists at Leeds Town Hall or enjoy the eclectic offer at the Howard Assembly Room. Film buffs have a choice of the usual multiplexes or characterful independents like the Hyde Park Picture House.
For sports fans, there’s plenty of action in Leeds. We’re home to Leeds United Football Club, Yorkshire County Cricket Club, Leeds Rhinos rugby league and other elite sports teams. We’ve hosted major sporting events, most recently IRONMAN Leeds Triathlon, while grassroots sport is alive and well in communities across the city.
We can’t wait to give you a warm Yorkshire welcome!
