Nick Herbert seeks aide to support his constituency work
Arundel & South Downs MP Nick Herbert is advertising for a local person to help manage his constituency activity.
Mr Herbert is advertising on his website (www.nickherbert.com) for a "bright, personable individual" to become his full-time Constituency Researcher.
The post will become vacant in January with the departure of Matthew Jones who has worked for the MP since October 2007.
Mr Jones, who until recently lived in Midhurst, is leaving to take up the prestigious post of Archivist to the College of Arms in London.
Mr Herbert is now seeking a replacement to help organise and attend his surgeries and village meetings; liaise with councillors, community groups and individuals to ensure that local concerns are taken up; and manage local communications, including with the press and through his website.
Mr Herbert says that he hopes to recruit someone who is based in or near the constituency and would be able to work locally for at least some of the week, accompanying him on Fridays and Saturdays when he holds surgeries and attends local meetings and events.
The MP adds: "Depending on the individual, this could be a full or part-time position, and it could be combined with the role of Parliamentary Researcher based at Westminster."
The new Constituency Researcher will complement Arundel & South Downs Conservative Association Agent, Russell Tanguay, who is based in Steyning. Mr Tanguay will continue to focus on party matters, while the new Constituency Researcher will support the MP's constituency duties. The position will also involve close liaison with Mr Herbert's office in Westminster.
The MP specifies that candidates will be "extremely well organised, with good communication and writing skills and the ability to empathise with people and community issues." They should be "natural campaigners, with good political instincts, with the skills and enthusiasm to manage my website and develop new forms of e-campaigning and communication."
Mr Herbert, who is serving in the Coalition Government as Minister of State for Policing and Criminal Justice, commented: "I hope to find someone who will share my commitment to represent the interests and concerns of the local community effectively and do the best possible job for constituents.
"This is a large constituency and there is a lot going on, so it's important to me that I am able to rely on someone who can help me to provide a first class service to the public."
Mr Herbert said that the salary for the position would depend on the researcher's experience. He added that he hoped to be able to appoint someone before the House of Commons returns in January.
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Notes for Editors
1. For further details of the post, visit http://bit.ly/ehSg4s