Milly's local government career began aged 16 working library shifts. Now she's helping pave the way for the next generation on the council graduate scheme.

For Milly, the full circle moment in her local government career arrived as she sat on the panel for Richmond and Wandsworth Councils’ graduate development programme last year. After having worked at council-run libraries in Richmond since the age of 16, before going on to become a project officer on the councils’ graduate scheme in 2022, Milly is now an Organisational Development (OD) Advisor for the two London boroughs.

‘I was just under a year into the grad scheme when a role came up in the OD team. It was a new role, the team was expanding, and you have to take opportunities when they come’, she said.

The OD role can involve working across areas such as apprenticeships, staff benefits, and Equality, Diversity, and Inclusion initiatives. More recently, Milly’s role has been largely focused on providing early careers support - for example, running the graduate programme from the candidates' recruitment through to their induction. 

Day-to-day, Milly works on various different projects to improve staff retention. But the experience of serving as a panel member offered an opportunity to reflect on what she has learnt since first becoming involved with local government.

The value of lived experience

‘Because I have lived experience of the scheme and understand how it works, I've been able to enhance the process and make it even better. But it's already something that's really well established. I think it will have been running for 14 cohorts this September.’

Highlighting the uniqueness of Richmond and Wandsworth Councils in providing an in-house graduate scheme, Milly reinforced that it is vital to make the most of the experience – for example, through networking and meeting other local government professionals.

While graduates will gain the Level 4 Associate Project Management qualification at the end of the programme, ‘gaining that exposure is really important for participants, especially since you're not guaranteed a job at the end of it’, Milly warns.

Early career evolution

Milly’s job doesn’t sit inside just one team - it is informed by collaboration and cross-organisational communication.

‘We have things like a steering group with different members of staff from outside OD as well, so you get insight from people across the organisation, which is really important given its nature.

‘I also work really closely with our internal comms team, which sits within OD. That's great, because I think Richmond and Wandsworth Councils do so much fantastic work, but sometimes we don't always shout about it, and I think it's really important to communicate all the great work we're doing.’

Milly explains that LinkedIn has been a key tool through which to maximise exposure of the councils’ work. Reposting achievements across the organisation’s social media channels and website is a great way of boosting visibility, she says.

Being part of a generation that grew up learning social media literacy, this confidence using online platforms is a unique strength that Milly has brought to the OD role.

‘In terms of the specific early careers and apprenticeship space, I've been in it for about a year and a half, and I'd say since I've joined, we've definitely used our social media platforms a lot more.

‘But it's about utilising both external and internal communication methods - and as fantastic as platforms like LinkedIn are, I think it's really important to also showcase things internally, like on our intranet-style websites and through newsletters with targeted comms.’

She added: ‘Not everyone has things like LinkedIn, but if you're a member of staff, you'll get sent the newsletter.’

Embracing change and new ways of working

Alongside the rewards of good social media practice, Milly notes the efficiency gains that have been welcomed thanks to the team’s use of Microsoft Copilot. Approved by the organisation’s IT systems, the artifical intelligence (AI) tool has helped to create positive change within the directorate Milly works in - Change and Innovation.

‘With AI, I think when it first came about - and I can only speak for my organisation and my own perspective - I think it was something that was probably a bit feared at first’, she explained.

‘But it's something our executive director has really looked to utilise more, and I think it should be embraced rather than feared. It's not about it doing my job for me. I don't think it could do my job, but it’s more about double-checking things I might have missed, particularly with things like spreadsheets.’

With the organisation’s Learning and Development team running training sessions on how to use Copilot properly, the next generation of local government workers at Richmond and Wandsworth can expect to progress professionally in an environment which celebrates transformation - not one that resists it.

Learning never goes out of style

To those interested in a similar local government career path, Milly recommends being proactive and seeking as much information as they can about the organisation: ‘I don't think you can ever learn too much’, she says.

‘If it's possible, people should take opportunities for additional qualifications or apprenticeships alongside their roles. I obviously feel really lucky that my organisation has paid for me to do that - I appreciate that's not the case for everyone, but if there are opportunities, I'd really encourage people to take them.’

As a final piece of advice, Milly urged applicants to do their research about the council they are eager to work for.

‘Look at the website, see what kind of projects and things are being worked on at the moment, use social media platforms like LinkedIn. Don't just take it at face value and assume you know what a council does.’

She added: ‘When I sat on the panel for the grad programme, the people who impressed me were the ones who came up with things that were a bit more unique, and I knew they'd put time into researching us - referencing things like our organisational values and behaviours in their answers.’

To explore current vacancies for roles in the local government sector, visit LocalGov Jobs.