Who we are:
The National Autistic Society is here to transform lives, change attitudes and create a society that works for autistic people.
We transform lives by providing support, information and practical advice for the 700,000 autistic adults and children in the UK, as well as their three million family members and carers. Since 1962, autistic people have turned to us at key moments or challenging times in their lives, be it getting a diagnosis, going to school or finding work.
The Autism Know How department, which this role sits within, supports organisations across sectors to improve both understanding and practice for professionals and employees in order to help to transform the lives of autistic people and families. We do this through diagnostic services, training, accreditation, consultancy and conferences.
What we can offer you:
- Auto-enrolled Pension Scheme
- 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
- Excellent induction, training and development programme including training about autism and opportunities to attend our conferences
- Online staff discount scheme for a range of benefits such as cycle to work scheme, season ticket loan & shopping discounts for places such as Asda, Tesco, Sainsburys, Halfords, Nike, Apple and loads more!
- Healthcare Cash Plan
- Life Assurance at 2 x base salary
- A portfolio of fantastic new salary sacrifices benefits and other flexible benefits private health, dental insurance, car salary sacrifice scheme, activity pass, holiday trading, enhanced pension & salary deduct loans (eligibility criteria may apply)
- Access to a 24-hour Employee Assistance Programme & counselling programme
- Free access to the Headspace App – a global leader in mindfulness and you can enrol up to three friends or family members for free!
Who we are looking for:
A Permanent Customer Relations and Sales Officer to work as part of a centralised sales team, which leads all Autism Know How sales, logistic and customer support enquiries.
Managing all aspects of the customer sales journey, this role will lead and deliver an effective, timely and professional customer journey and experience, maximising income potential and repeat business to ensure performance against team sales targets and to enable the society to continue to improve its offering for autistic people.
This role will work closely with colleagues across Autism Know How, Marketing, CRM and Business Development departments, and other relevant NAS teams where required.
This role will also deliver general administration and data processing as required.
To view the job description, please click here.
Where you will be working:
Home based, with occasional travel when required.
How to apply:
- To apply for this role please click the Apply button below
- When providing a supporting statement, please refer to the job description and person specification and include any information that shows your suitability for the role.
We do reserve the right to close this advertisement early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
For some roles, successful applicants will be required to complete the relevant safeguarding checks which will include additional references and criminal background checks.
Applications for this job are sought from anyone who is suitably qualified and experienced for the role but particularly welcome from those with a diagnosis of autism.
The National Autistic Society is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children and adults who use our services and as such expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Successful applicants will be required to complete the relevant safeguarding checks.
We are an equal opportunities employer.
This is an exciting opportunity to join us as we strengthen our impact as a small-sized charity. You will have an opportunity to use and develop your range of project management, design, social media, website, and communication skills in a dynamic supportive team that is committed to maximising our positive impact on Deaf and hard of hearing people in Bristol.
Summary of duties:
Our Communications and Engagement Officer will lead on the work of our new Community Hub project and promote all the great things that CfD does e.g. the events and activities as part of our Deaf People Together project. The post holder will be based at The Vassall Centre, Gill Avenue, Fishponds, Bristol BS16 2QQ.
This is an exciting opportunity to help CfD improve our communications, and to support the Deaf Community and hard of hearing people throughout Bristol with managing and sharing their information. You will work with Deaf and hard of hearing people by providing the training, tools, and resources to enable them to create their own information materials that can be shared with the community.
You will be responsible for developing and uploading website content, creating marketing material, use of social media and other communications platforms to help deliver the aims of our Community Hub project and to increase our community engagement and profile. You will also lead on commissioning a redesign of our website.
You will also have a role in supporting our Community Development Officer to arrange and publicise events.
You will use your time in this way:
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Half of your time on the Community Hub Project;
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About a day a week supporting our Community Development Officer;
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The rest of your time on promoting other projects and developing the CfD website.
This is a role for a creative individual who is well organised and is proactive, who has the ambition to develop and deliver fun, engaging, and effective accessible communication.
The main responsibilities are to:
Community Hub
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Provide training for and support deaf volunteers to improve CfD’s capacity to produce and share relevant community information from across Bristol. You will organise workshops for deaf people to develop their skills in video and media technology to produce accessible content.
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Develop a virtual information hub, where information on CfD events and other activities in Bristol will be fully accessible to all deaf people, using CfD’s website, social media, apps, and newsletters.
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Support deaf people with producing their own newsletters using BSL and subtitles. Our aim is to have a regular newsletter that is produced and managed by deaf people.
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Develop a CfD “newsround” – a regular video round-up of events, news, and information of interest to deaf people.
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Work with 4 Community Hubs in Bristol to increase their accessibility for and engagement with deaf people in their neighbourhoods, and to increase their understanding of how to include deaf people in activities. This work will include collaborating to deliver deaf-focused events.
Communications
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Support other projects at CfD with information dissemination, and media and communications, such as creating posters, video production, posting on social media, and basic updates on our website.
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Improve the quality and reach of information that CfD sends out e.g. using other social media platforms.
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Support the CFD Community Development Officer by arranging and promoting events.
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Ensure compliance across all media with CfD’s brand guidelines.
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Lead on reviewing the CfD website and commissioning a new design.
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Coordinate any media enquiries.
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Collect data to analyse and evaluate the impact of the role.
General
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Attend conferences, training, and other staff development opportunities.
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Develop an agreed personal training plan and carry this out using internal and external training as required.
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Adhere to and promote CfD’s policies and standards, especially the Equal Opportunities, Data Protection, Safeguarding, Health and Safety and Communication policies.
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Act as an ambassador for CfD promoting a positive and professional image and attitude at all times.
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Support the CEO and other CfD staff in achieving the aims of CfD and carry out such other relevant duties as may be agreed.
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Support CfD to find funding for new projects involving Deaf and Hard of Hearing people.
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Coordinate and manage own Access to Work support (if needed).
Terms and conditions:
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This is a full-time position of 37.5 hours a week. CfD’s core hours are 10am – 4pm. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required.
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Contract until January 31st 2026 with possibility of an extension subject to further funding.
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Salary £24,000 - £27,000a year.
Note:
The final interpretation of this job description rests with the CEO in consultation with the Board of Trustees and the jobholder. The job description will be reviewed in the course of supervision meetings and any amendments will be negotiated with the jobholder. The jobholder is also expected to share in other CfD activities as time permits and by agreement with the CEO.
Person specification
The successful candidate will have had at least two years in a relevant communications role.
You will have a pro-active approach and be committed to achieving results
Essential skills, abilities and knowledge
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A passion to communicate CfD’s values and to support the interests of the deaf and hard of hearing people that we work with.
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Excellent interpersonal skills and confidence in communicating with Deaf British Sign Language (BSL) users and hard of hearing people. This may be direct communication or through a BSL interpreter or speech-to-text operator.
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Ability to create high-quality communications material and to engage with a variety of audiences.
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Experience of social media management and familiarity with evolving and new digital media platforms.
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Ability to create graphics and images for communication materials.
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Ability to produce video material, including filming and editing and adding including subtitles.
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Ability to think creatively.
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Ability to write clear content for social media and website pages
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Experience of training and supporting groups of people, either as part of paid work or as a volunteer.
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Ability to form positive working relationships with other professionals and to collaborate on projects.
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Good influencing and negotiating skills so that you can persuade people to make their activities more inclusive of deaf people.
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Good attention to detail.
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Educated to A-Level standard, including Maths and English GCSEs.
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Good working knowledge of Microsoft Office and associated software, including Excel, Word, and Outlook.
Desirable skills, abilities and knowledge:
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Relevant professional qualification.
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Experience of working with Deaf and/or hard of hearing people.
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Ability to communicate in British Sign Language (training can be provided).
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Experience working, paid or unpaid, in or with communities, the disability sector or in the third sector.
Things we expect all staff to support us with:
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Actively seek out opportunities for development and income generation.
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Read, understand and follow CfD’s policies and procedures.
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Stay up to date with key developments in your specialist area.
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Be willing to occasionally work evenings and weekends.
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Participate in team-meetings and development days.
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Be willing to travel across Bristol and occasionally further afield.
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Represent CfD at local, regional and national meetings and events.
In return, you will receive:
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Competitive pay and holiday allowance
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25 days a year plus Bank Holidays (pro-rata if part-time)
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Employee pension contributions
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A flexible working policy
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Our core hours are 10:00 until 16:00 Monday to Friday
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The opportunity to be part of a committed, skilled and supportive team
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Support to develop your skills further
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
About us:
Action for M.E. is the only charity in the UK providing direct support including healthcare to children and adults with M.E.. We provide vital support services, campaign for change and invest in ground-breaking research to help put an end to the ignorance, injustice and neglect experienced by people with M.E.
Opportunity:
Having been paused to new referrals, Action for M.E.’s free, independent, Adults Advocacy service will soon be re-opening. It’s one of our range of free Support Services that work with adults, young people, and/or families living with M.E. We support colleagues across the team to take part in and share reflective practice, self-care, peer-support and training.
Our Adults Advocacy service offers non-statutory, single-issue, instructed advocacy for adults with a confirmed diagnosis of M.E. We encourage self-advocacy where possible, though many of our clients are too severely affected by M.E. to be able to take undertake this.
As an Adults Advocate, you will manage a caseload of clients, as well as inputting and contributing to the triage process along with your Advocacy colleagues. You will meet with clients by phone, email, Zoom and/or SMS; we can also facilitate communication by post if this is required. We are not able to offer home visits or face to face meetings.
What we can offer you:
We offer fully remote and flexible working with generous annual leave (30 days plus bank holidays, pro rata). The wellbeing of our staff is important to us, we offer a range of benefits to employees including (but not limited to) access to free counselling and voluntary wellbeing weekday sessions, examples of recent sessions include guided group meditations and a book club.
To view the full job description, download the job pack, and apply for this role, please visit our Recruitee site (please note that we only accept applications via Recruitee; any application sent directly to an Action for M.E. mailbox will not be considered).
Should you have any questions about the role, or require any reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process, please don’t hesitate to contact our recruitment team, details of how to do this are contained in the application pack, "how to apply" section.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.