Advice Service Manager Jobs in Birmingham, West Midlands
Role: Communities Coordinator
Hours: 37.5 per week Monday to Friday
Contract: Permanent
Salary: £25,000-£33,000
Holiday: 25 days per year plus Bank Holidays
Based: Home Based with travel to London and across the UK
Probationary Period: 3 months
Reports to: Head of Campaigns
Benefits: An additional 3 days holiday between Christmas and New Year / Flexitime policy / 5% pension contribution
We are River Action
We are a small and agile campaigning organisation on a mission to rescue Britain’s rivers from a toxic cocktail of agricultural, sewage and industrial pollution. We support community action, galvanise and mobilise public opinion, influence government policy, and call out destructive industrial practices to incentivise changes that end pollution.
We are building a talented team of positive disrupters and community mobilisers to deliver our strategy to urgently protect and restore our rivers for the benefit of community and wildlife.
Britain’s rivers are our life support system and they are dying. We need urgent action to bring them back to life.
Who we are looking for:
We are looking for highly engaged people who share our passion for rivers, wildlife and people who bring a creative, collaborative and investigative approach to campaigning. For this role we are looking for a confident and resilient community organiser who can build strong relationships to support communities to create change locally.
What you’ll be doing:
The Communities Coordinator will support community groups to campaign for clean rivers at a local level. By facilitating grass roots action you’ll be galvanising a strong and powerful network of community activists that have the power to create change both locally and nationally. You’ll be responsible for taking River Action’s national campaign strategy to a local level. You’ll work closely with the Campaigns Manager and the wider team to develop a Community Toolkit (including advice for activists, and guidance and services for communications, fundraising, legal support and citizen science projects) to support communities as well as provide strategic support to empower community activists to campaign for clean rivers. You’ll work closely with the Campaigns Manager and wider team to amplify the stories of those taking action at a local level and connect campaign groups to the wider national agenda. You’ll be working collaboratively with the River Action team to devise, develop and deliver our strategy ensuring our programme of community engagement is equitable, diverse and inclusive. You’ll be working closely with other organisations to ensure our community support compliments the work of others and meets the needs of community groups we work with.
Main Duties
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Contribute to the development and implementation of River Action’s campaign strategy.
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Develop River Action’s Community Toolkit as a package of support for local campaign groups.
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Identify community groups within river catchments areas River Action is working and build positive and impactful relationships..
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Organise site visits to develop good relationships and in-depth understanding of local issues impacting river health.
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Convene and align local stakeholders around river catchment and regional campaigns.
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Facilitate local community groups’ campaigns and provide support in line with our toolkit’s support package.
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Facilitate the creation of community group citizen science projects, integrated within a national system for gathering and sharing evidence of pollution.
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Organise community crowdfunding for citizen science and communications.
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Plan and host webinars, training sessions and online and in person events.
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Develop good working relationships with regulators including Environment Agency, Natural Resources Wales and Scottish Environment and Protection Agency.
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Support the CEO and Campaigns Manager to identify and deliver legal challenges at a local level.
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Maintain and develop partnerships and working relationships with other key groups and stakeholders working in similar areas of work to River Action.
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Identify opportunities to engage, empower and expand River Action’s network of supporters.
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Support the Communications Coordinator to create inspiring and engaging digital media content and news stories, including taking photographs and videos and conducting interviews.
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Support the Campaigns Manager and Communication Coordinator in responding to the reactive news agenda.
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Contribute to the Monitoring and Evaluation system for demonstrating impact of River Action’s community engagement work, reporting against KPIs.
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Contribute to fundraising efforts particularly crowdfunding and drafting of funding proposals to support Campaigns and Fundraising Teams and the charity’s mission.
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Work as a motivated and collaborative team player within a fast-paced team.
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Carry out any other duties as are within the scope, spirit and purpose of the post as requested by your line manager or any other member of the River Action team.
Other Duties & Responsibilities
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Adopt a positive approach to personal and professional development; engaging in one to one meetings and relevant training.
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Be aware of, and act on, relevant health and safety responsibilities as an employee of River Action and adhere to these wherever you are working.
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To maintain confidentiality in all areas of work at River Action.
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UK travel will be required. Training & operational activities may require overnight stays away from home, in which case standard River Action procedures apply.
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Demonstrate a strong commitment to creating an inclusive, equal and diverse workplace.
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Work collaboratively with colleagues across River Action to collectively deliver our ethos and mission.
What you’ll bring
The position will suit an energetic, collaborative, resilient community organiser with a passion for aligning and mobilising communities to drive environmental change. The ideal person will be an excellent communicator, a natural convener, well-organised, and thrive within a dynamic and fast-paced environment. The person will have a passion to protect and renew our waterways and hold those responsible for environmental destruction to account.
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Experience in working with and supporting community groups.
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Experience in developing guidance documents and toolkits.
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Expertise in convening and galvanising people around a common cause, using a diplomatic and sympathetic approach combined with urgency.
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A head for organisation and excellent time management working in a calm and logical way.
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An understanding of the issues that are impacting our rivers.
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The ability to establish and maintain effective contacts and relationships with senior and influential external individuals and bodies.
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The ability to communicate effectively and appropriately with a wide range of people both verbally and in writing including the media, community groups, other NGO representatives, supporters and followers on social media.
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Great IT literacy.
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Ability to work independently and take initiative to solve problems.
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Ability to work flexible hours as necessary.
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Ability to travel to remote locations not necessarily well-served by public transport.
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A good team player with a willingness to muck in as and where required.
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Ability to think clearly even when working under pressure.
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A passion for River Action’s mission and vision.
Diversity and Inclusion
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies show that women and people of colour are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single criteria. We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace. So if you like the look of this role but your past experience does not align perfectly with everything in the job description, we would still like to hear from you. You may be just the right person for this or other roles.
How to apply
To apply, please submit your CV, a cover letter explaining how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role and a written submission as described below to jobs at riveractionuk dot com. Only applications including all three documents will be accepted.
Written Submission:
This year, River Action will be developing its Communities Toolkit aimed at local campaign groups and activists seeking to develop their own local campaigns to rescue their rivers locally. As part of your application, we would like you to put together a one page document outlining a plan for the toolkit, mapping out the main structure and content of the toolkit and how you would deliver it to communities. We will particularly be looking at your style of communication and creative skills. Should you be successful in being invited to interview, you may be asked to present this idea.
Closing Date: Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until 23:00 Friday 24 May. Screening calls and first-round interviews may be conducted with short-listed candidates before the application deadline. The deadline may be closed early if the right candidate is found.
Interview Date: Interviews expected to be held from 24 May via video conference.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Volunteer Development Officer
Reference: APR20246930
Location: Flexible in UK
Salary: £26,379.00 - £28,319.00 Per Annum, Pro Rata
Contract: Permanent
Hours: Part-time, 30 hours per week
Benefits: Pension Scheme, Life Assurance Scheme, 26 days' Annual Leave (pro rata)
Nature is in Crisis, and here at the RSPB we are working across the UK and overseas to save it. As the UK's largest nature conservation charity, with a workforce of over 14,000 employees and volunteers, we have an ambitious programme of work to revolutionise our volunteering approach and deepen the impact volunteers have as individuals and collectively.
The Volunteer Development Officer (Assemble) will work within the Volunteering Development Department to deliver the volunteering elements of our new corporate strategy, which has a focus on increasing people powered conservation, focussing on diversity and raising our internal people capabilities.
Assemble is our volunteering management system and this role will be the lead contact, champion and be the system expert from the RSPB business perspective (volunteering) for Assemble – ensuring volunteering and volunteers get the best from Assemble.
The Volunteering Development Department are the subject matter experts for volunteering and will drive the culture change needed to achieve the required change and growth in volunteers and volunteering delivering our ambitious strategy demands.
You can be based anywhere in the UK, and we are very supportive of flexible working. We value and understand the importance of different voices, experiences, perspectives and backgrounds within our workforce and strongly encourage applications from all sections of the community.
What's the role about?
The Volunteering Development Department are the subject matter experts for volunteering and will drive the culture change needed to achieve the required change and growth in volunteers and volunteering delivering our ambitious strategy demands.
As the Volunteer Management System (Assemble) lead, this role will:
- Proactively make changes to Assemble (through the System Administrator) as required to support, improve and develop business operations.
- Document RSPB Business processes linked to Assemble
- Assist in developing and delivering training and other resources such as promotional talks, intranet articles and team presentations, to promote uptake of the system and support users in getting the best from Assemble
- With the System Administrator (in our Digital team) ensure Assemble functionality (existing and new), work as required for users and the RSPB
- Provide excellent Customer Care and support to all Assemble Users resolving issues and challenges within our service level agreement.
- Ensure data and metrics from Assemble are available to meet business need, funding bid requirements and our annual reporting requirements internally and externally Identify and champion opportunities to get even more from Assemble to meet our volunteering strategy and improve and enhance our support for volunteers and the user experience on Assemble.
- This role would have an individual specialism but with the ability to be flexible to cover the priorities required across the department and the UK wide needs.
Essential skills, knowledge and experience:
- Comprehensive understanding and knowledge of volunteering innovation, best practice and sector standards.
- Demonstrable track record of having successfully and effectively developed a range of volunteering roles and schemes across an organisation.
- Experience of providing operational advice and guidance on volunteer involvement to people at all levels and building effective stakeholder relationships.
- Experience of working in a customer-focused environment.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, successfully influencing, persuading, guiding, listening to, and negotiating with others, constructively challenging thinking where appropriate.
- Strong skills in identifying and analysing problems, issues and areas of improvement, working collaboratively to develop creative strategies and solutions.
- Ability to be proactive, use initiative and work independently.
- Excellent planning and organisational skills; ability to manage and deliver a diverse portfolio of work and to balance the priorities and needs of multiple stakeholders.
Closing date: 23:59, Friday 24th May 2024
We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from week commencing 10th June 2024.
Interested?
If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application for this position.
We are committed to developing an inclusive and diverse RSPB, in which everyone feels supported, valued, and able to be their full selves. To achieve our vision of creating a world richer in nature, we need more people, and more diverse people, on nature’s side. People of colour and disabled people are currently underrepresented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we are particularly interested in receiving your application.
The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
The RSPB is a licenced sponsor. This role is not eligible for UK Visa Sponsorship - the successful applicant will need to have a pre-existing Right to Work in the UK in order to be offered an employment contract.
As part of this application process you will be asked to complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above. Contact us to discuss any additional support you may need to complete your application.
No agencies please.
Press and Media Relations Officer
The Press and Media Relations Officer represents the work of SCIE, acting as the point of contact for members of the press and other media representatives. The post holder is responsible for maintaining the profile and reputation of the charity and helping to achieve our influencing objectives with policymakers and leaders in the social care sector. Responsibilities include disseminating information to members of the press and other media to raise awareness of SCIE’s policy positions, research findings and improvement programmes. The post holder will help shape and deliver media influencing plans that support SCIE’s influencing objectives and use a variety of channels to achieve these objectives, including both traditional and social media.
About us
The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) is a national charity with a clear vision of a society where care and support maximise people’s choices, removes social inequality, and enables people to live fulfilling, safe and healthy lives. To achieve this we research, evidence, share and support the implementation of best practice. We use this evidence and experience to shape policy and outcomes, and to raise awareness of the importance of social care and social work for creating a fair and equal society. Everything we do is informed by people with experience of care and support.
At the SCIE, we are driven by our values:
· Progressive – always learning and developing.
· Inclusive – working together for equality, diversity, and fairness.
· Credible – evidence-based, robust, and reliable.
· Transparent – open and honest.
General responsibilities:
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Have fun and challenge yourself at work, model the charity’s values and abide by our policies and practices.
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Embrace diversity and share in our commitment to equality of opportunity and to eliminating discrimination.
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Work flexibly and positively contributing to good team working and the delivery of the SCIE’s objectives through matrix working.
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Show a clear commitment to working with people with lived experience in a sensitive and non-judgmental way to facilitate positive working relationships.
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Other tasks as may be required, commensurate with the level of the post
Please see the Job Description as an attachement for further detail
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as the applications come in. Don’t miss your opportunity, apply now!
Do you have experience of outbound calling in a call centre environment? Do you thrive on connecting with people and making a difference?
Look no further! Join our team as a fundraising call centre agent and contribute to world free from the fear of heart and circulatory diseases. A world without heartbreak.
About the role
As a valued member of our Customer Engagement team, your role will be pivotal in driving our support and fundraising efforts through outbound calling. Your mission is to connect with our British Heart Foundation (BHF) supporters, who are the lifeblood of our organisation.
Here’s how you’ll make a difference:
- Supporter Engagement Specialist: Connecting with our BHF supporters through outbound calls.
- Fundraising Event Advocate: Promoting major fundraising events like the London Marathon and the London to Brighton Bike Ride.
- Customer Experience Ambassador: Enhancing satisfaction and relationships through social media and stewardship activities.
Working arrangements
We have two 6-month fixed term contracts available. These roles, while initially for six months, could potentially lead to permanent job opportunities.
Working hours are between 09:00am – 07:00pm, subject to business needs. Normal working hours are 09:00am to 05:00pm - Monday to Friday, with flexibility to work 11:00am - 07:00pm during peak event season.
This is a blended role, where your work will be dual located between your home and our Birmingham office (B37 7YE).
At the BHF we believe in the power of being together, so our colleagues on blended contracts can expect to spend some time in their office, at least one day each week, on average. The use of our office spaces is driven in part by your role and the activities you need to do. This may vary from time to time, so you will need to work in a flexible way to unlock your best work for our cause.
Need more help balancing your work and home life? Talk to us about what flexibility is available at the application or interview stage.
About you
- Outbound Calling Experience: You’ve honed your skills in a call centre environment, where you’ve built strong relationships over the phone. You can use your experience in this environment to enhance our customer experience and drive fundraising revenue.
- Exceptional Communication Skills: Your written and spoken English is impeccable. You’ve previously experience engaging with customers via social media.
- Tech Proficiency: Your computer literacy is top-notch, you have experience with Microsoft Office, CRM systems, and data entry.
- Outstanding Customer Service: World-class customer service is your mantra. Your empathy and enthusiasm radiate, and your skills enable you to facilitate informative and engaging customer interactions.
- Attention to Detail: You’re meticulous. Whether it’s accurately recording data or ensuring smooth operations, your administrative skills shine through.
What can we offer you?
Our Career Academy provides you with support, inspiration, and opportunities to help you unlock your full potential. We have a strong culture of internal progression and will actively support you to develop your career within the Customer Services team and the wider organisation.
Our generous staff benefits include:
• 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays
• Private medical insurance
• Dental health cover
• Contribution towards gym membership
• Pension with employer contribution up to 10%
• Life assurance
Barnardo's and Amazon have joined together to pilot a project which aims to support and transform the lives of young people who are not in education, employment, or training. The pilot took place in Tilbury, Essex, and due to the success, we are developing further sites across the nation. The aim of the programme is to equip young people aged 18-29 with the skills, confidence, and ambition to pursue their goals of finding employment, apprenticeships or further education and training. Amazon are offering real employment opportunities within their Coventry warehouse and the young people we are supporting will be invited to apply, interview and work for Amazon.
The role will provide a pivotal support to the Barnardo's programme in Coventry and surrounding areas. Working with vulnerable young people who are not in education, employment or training, this role focuses on supporting young people through a 10week motivational programme and includes improving employability skills, confidence, and self-esteem work.
You will work assertively and creatively to engage with hard-to-reach young people. You will lead and develop the work in this area and will be responsible for providing quality Information, Advice and Guidance.
You will be responsible for contributing to, devising and developing schemes of work, session plans and resources to meet curriculum requirements to equip young people with the personal social and development skills, motivation, confidence and employability skills to progress into and sustain employment and/or further education/training. You will conduct 1:1 mentoring sessions and use outcome measurement tools to track changes.
You will be responsible for supporting young people to attend work placement/trials and ultimately employment opportunities and supporting service users to apply, prepare for and sustain this employment.
When completing your application please refer to your skills knowledge and experience in relation to the Person Specification, Job Description and Additional Information document. This should be done with an understanding of the context of the service described.
Although this contract has a permanent status, please be aware that this post is subject to funding currently to 31 March 2025 and therefore should this funding not be extended further, you may be subject to a redundancy consultation or a TUPE arrangement.
Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.
Pay & Reward Framework
We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values. We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people.
For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out 1st April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a key pillar of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to grow and develop in their career at Barnardo's as it will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues to progress through the pay band of their role.
Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band – this ensures that pay progression steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours. More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
National LGBT+ Independent Victim Advocate
Do you want to make life better for LGBT+ victims and survivors of abuse?
Galop works directly with thousands of LGBT+ people who have experienced abuse and violence every year. We specialise in supporting victims and survivors of domestic abuse, sexual violence, hate crime, and other forms of abuse including honour-based abuse, forced marriage, and so-called conversion therapies. We are a service run by LGBT+ people, for LGBT+ people, and the needs of our community are at the centre of what we do.
We run three national support helplines for LGBT+ victims and survivors of domestic abuse, so-called “conversion therapy, ”and hate crime. We provide advocacy services, both in London and nationally, for LGBT+ victims who need longer-term support. We are person-centred, empowerment-based, and trauma-informed – meaning our focus is always on helping our clients decide what is best for them, and then supporting them through their journey.
We use what we learn through working on the frontlines with clients to work on national and local policy change, to improve outcomes for LGBT+ victims and survivors of abuse and violence. We build evidence through key pieces of research, like our upcoming report into LGBT+ experiences of sexual violence. We push for legislative change, improved statutory guidance for victims, and better understanding of the needs of LGBT+ people around the country.
About the role
You will be joining our growing national advocacy team, supporting survivors remotely across the UK and providing Face-to-face support, office based, or community-based support in Wales which will be
delivered in the context of a confidential and a safe space for survivors. You will work directly with LGBT+ victims/survivors, offering them a space to talk and think through options, helping them plan what they want to do, and offering assistance in getting what they need from services. Your work will focus on needs specifically related to experiences of abuse or violence, including issues such as wellbeing, support with the criminal and civil justice process, safety and access to other services to enable survivors to cope and recover. You will be empathetic and thoughtful in your approach to understanding your clients’ needs, while maintaining boundaries and mindful of self-care.
Providing advice, advocacy and support to LGBT+ victims/survivors of abuse and violence, with a focus on so-called conversion practices, which will include:
- Remotely supporting, advising and advocating for a national caseload of LGBT+ people who have been subjected to abuse or violence. The focus of the support will be to LGBT+ victims/survivors of so-called conversion practices
- Ensuring your approach to contact with clients is trauma-informed, empowerment-based and person-centred.
- Providing information and support to enable clients to make informed choices and meet their individual needs.
- Assisting victims/survivors in dealing with the diverse impacts of harm and abuse (safety, emotional, social, financial, or practical).
- Assisting/supporting clients in navigating the criminal/civil justice systems, ensuring they are aware of their rights and options.
- Maintaining professional boundaries at all times and ensuring that clients understand the remit of the service.
Partnership working
- Providing appropriate referrals/signposting to other agencies including, housing, welfare, counselling and other support services.
- Maintaining positive working relationships with key agencies and Galop partners, including attending internal/external meetings, with a focus on Wales.
- Working with agencies to safeguard victims and survivors, keeping them informed of relevant changes to a client’s situation.
Monitoring and evaluation
- Ensuring all client records are maintained and treated in confidence, according to Galop policies and GDPR legislation.
- Keeping accurate records of work undertaken with clients in line with Galop’s policies and funder agreements.
- Assist collecting monitoring data and client feedback for reports.
- Understanding of and commitment to inclusive working with LGBT+ clients from diverse backgrounds.
- Acting in accordance with Galop policies, procedures and ethos.
- Being an active member of the Galop team, attending regular staff team meetings, attending clinical supervision and training.
- Participating and contributing to Galop service planning & strategic development, with a focus on Wales.
About you
You will have expertise in delivering needs-led specialist support services. You will need to be solutions-focused and enjoy working collaboratively across a diverse and committed team. You’ll need to have good resilience and self-care and be prepared to work in an environment where abuse and violence are regularly talked about. You’ll need to understand the impact of trauma and how that affects our team.
There is a Genuine Occupational Requirement under the Equality Act 2010 that the post holder has experience of LGBT+ needs and the impact of discrimination. Candidates should demonstrate a thorough understanding of LGBT+ people’s lives, including awareness of the issues that LGBT+ survivors might face.
In addition, due to role being a Bilingual post, it is an essential requirement for the individual for this role to speak fluent Welsh and English.
Location: This is a remote post, working from home.
The role will include travel to our London building and occasional travel across the UK and in particular to communities across Wales.
Hours: 0.6 FTE (21 hours per week) flexibility available
Contract: Until 31 March 2025 (extension subject to funding)
Salary: Grade F: £27,230.31 - £31,878.96 (pro-rata)
Closing Date : Applications should be submitted by 10am on Tuesday 21st May.
Interview dates TBC.
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