Borough of culture volunteering coordinator jobs

The General Manager is responsible for the day-to-day leadership, operational management and financial performance of Vision 21 Gloucestershire.

The postholder will oversee the delivery of the charity's trading, environmental and community programmes, ensuring they operate effectively, safely and sustainably. They will lead staff and volunteers, manage operational budgets and resources, and ensure the charity's projects achieve their agreed objectives and impact.

The role combines commercial management of Reclaim Furniture Reuse and the local council bulky waste contract, with oversight of Vision 21's wider programmes, including ‘The Greenhouse’ (charity office and community space), Libraries of Things, Repair Cafés, community growing projects and other sustainability initiatives.

Working closely with the CEO, the General Manager will translate the charity's strategy into effective operational delivery, ensuring the organisation remains financially resilient and community focused.

Key Responsibilities

Operational Leadership

• Lead the day-to-day operation of Vision 21 Gloucestershire.
• Implement organisational objectives and annual plans agreed with the CEO and Trustees.
• Ensure effective communication and coordination across all projects.
• Develop and improve operational systems, processes and procedures.
• Monitor organisational performance and identify opportunities for improvement.
• Preparing annual operational plans
• Reporting KPIs to Trustees
• Supporting business development
• Identifying new income opportunities
• Support the CEO and Trustees through preparation of operational reports, risk registers, policies and annual planning.

Reclaim Furniture Reuse & Trading Operations

• Lead the successful operation and development of Reclaim Furniture Reuse.
• Grow the revenue via new revenue streams including online sales
• Manage the Cheltenham Borough Council bulky waste collection contract.
• Maximise sales, reuse rates, customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.
• Develop volunteer involvement, marketing and online sales opportunities.
• Oversee stock management, logistics, deliveries and collections.
• Ensure the successful relocation and operation of Reclaim at its new premises.

Staff and Volunteer Management

• Line manage operational staff and project coordinators.
• Recruit, support and develop staff and volunteers.
• Conduct supervision, appraisals and performance management.
• Foster a positive, inclusive and high-performing organisational culture.
• Ensure appropriate volunteer recruitment, training and retention systems are in place.

The Greenhouse and Community Programmes

• Oversee the operation and utilisation of The Greenhouse.
• Support the delivery of events, room hire and community activities.
• Ensure funded projects are delivered to agreed outputs and outcomes.
• Oversee the Libraries of Things, Repair Café network and community growing projects.
• Support the development of new programmes, partnerships and earned income opportunities.

Financial Management

• Manage operational budgets and expenditure.
• Work closely with the Treasurer, bookkeeper and CEO to monitor financial performance.
• Produce management information and operational reports.
• Ensure robust financial controls and procedures are maintained.
• Contribute to annual budgeting and financial planning.

Health, Safety and Compliance

• Ensure compliance with health and safety, employment, environmental and charity regulations.
• Maintain organisational policies, procedures and risk assessments.
• Oversee safeguarding, volunteer management and insurance requirements.
• Protect the charity's assets, reputation and operational resilience.

Partnerships and Community Engagement

• Build and maintain positive relationships with partners, funders, local authorities, businesses and community organisations.
• Represent Vision 21 at meetings, events and networking opportunities.
• Support the CEO in developing strategic partnerships and opportunities.

Person Specification

Essential

• Autonomous self-starter: Capable of managing daily operations and executing the strategic plan independently with minimal oversight from the Board.
• Significant experience managing operations, teams or projects.
• Experience managing staff and volunteers.
• Strong financial and commercial awareness.
• Experience managing budgets and organisational performance.
• Excellent organisational and leadership skills.
• Strong communication and relationship-building abilities.
• Ability to work strategically whilst remaining hands-on and practical.
• Commitment to environmental sustainability and community development.
• Full UK driving licence.

Desirable

• Experience within the charity, social enterprise or community sector.
• Experience in retail, reuse, circular economy or waste reduction activities.
• Experience managing contracts or service delivery.
• Knowledge of health and safety and compliance management.
• Experience working with trustees, governance structures or boards.

Key Relationships

The General Manager will work closely with:

• CEO (strategic leadership, fundraising and organisational development)
• Board of Trustees
• Treasurer and Finance Volunteers
• Reclaim staff and volunteers
• Project Coordinators
• Cheltenham Borough Council
• Funders and community partners

Success Measures

The postholder will be expected to:

• Maintain financial sustainability across operational activities.
• Successfully manage Reclaim's relocation and performance.
• Grow volunteer recruitment and retention.
• Increase utilisation and income generation from The Greenhouse.
• Deliver funded project outputs and outcomes.
• Maintain high standards of health, safety and compliance.
• Support the long-term growth and resilience of Vision 21 Gloucestershire.

About NCT
NCT is a charity with a clear mission: to support people as they become parents, through pregnancy, birth, and early parenthood.

With a 65-year history of transformative change, we are a vibrant community of volunteers, practitioners, peer supporters, members and advocates. We are the largest parenting charity in the country and over the decades we’ve supported millions of people on their unique journey into parenthood. 

While many know us for our antenatal classes, we also do much more. We campaign on issues that matter to parents, provide infant feeding support, and run thousands of free community events and activities led by our amazing volunteers. We also support families facing challenges like social isolation, feeding difficulties, and poor mental health. We offer support in communities, in hospitals and online. 

About the role
Join our passionate team and contribute to the meaningful work that transforms the lives of parents and families. Your role will include:

• Provide line management and support to direct line reports and leadership for the project. 
• Develop and maintain a strong understanding of Hackney’s parent demographics and local support services, enabling effective signposting for marginalised communities.
• Build strong partnerships with local VCOs and stakeholders to engage underrepresented communities, working collaboratively to support meaningful co-production.
• Create and lead welcoming parent focus groups that amplify local voices and help shape the project to be inclusive, accessible, and responsive to families’ needs.
• Data collection and reporting appropriate to the project for monthly/quarterly review with commissioners.

About you
You will be a compassionate, collaborative leader, committed to supporting parents and strengthening communities. You will provide effective line management and project leadership, creating inclusive, supportive environments where teams can thrive. 
Build a strong understanding of the diverse families in Hackney, taking an empathetic and proactive approach to engaging parents—particularly those whose voices are less often heard. Developing trusted relationships with local organisations and services, helping families access the support they need. Champion listening and co-creation, shaping accessible programmes through meaningful parent engagement, including focus groups. You will confidently use data to track progress, share learning, and demonstrate impact.
Above all, you will be driven to ensure every parent feels supported, connected, and heard.

Our Benefits – What we offer you
We value our team and offer fantastic benefits to support your well-being and professional growth: 

• 30 days annual leave (excluding Bank Holidays)
• Pension matched up to 5%
• Flexible working options to suit your lifestyle
• Employee Assistance Programme, including 24/7 GP access, personalised counselling, legal advice and more
• Cycle to work scheme to support sustainable commuting
• Life Assurance for peace of mind
• Free eye test for all staff, with further discounts
• Blue Light discount card
   

INTRODUCTION TO THE ROLE

iniva is seeking an experienced, thoughtful and collaborative Website & Communications Manager to join our team at a pivotal moment for the organisation. The role sits at the heart of Living Legacies: Collaboration, Community and Radicality, a four-year National Lottery Heritage Fund project that activates iniva’s archive and connects it with communities through exhibitions, events, podcasts, oral histories and digital resources. Working at iniva is dynamic, creative and purpose driven. As a small organisation, we value people who can work confidently on their own initiative while collaborating closely with colleagues, freelancers and partners. This part-time role (3 days per week) is offered as a fixed-term contract over four years, with responsibilities evolving across the project lifecycle — from strategy and planning in the early stages to website redevelopment, major public programmes and legacy outputs in later phases. The Website & Communications Manager will work closely with the Project Manager and wider team to support clear communication, shared understanding and joined-up audience engagement. The role plays a key part in shaping how audiences encounter Living Legacies and iniva more broadly, ensuring communications are inclusive, accessible and grounded in the organisation’s values. We’re looking for someone who cares about creating more equitable cultural spaces and enjoys sharing stories that connect artists, archives, and communities.

IDEAL CANDIDATE

This role would suit a practical and organised communications professional with strong writing and digital skills. You will be a confident and clear communicator, able to produce engaging, accessible content for a range of audiences across web, email and social media. You will have experience working with websites, including contributing to or supporting a WordPress (or similar CMS) website redevelopment, and be comfortable collaborating with website developers to deliver user-friendly, accessible digital experiences. You will bring the ability to plan and coordinate work across multiple projects, managing timelines, contributors and priorities effectively. Experience supporting or overseeing freelancers such as PR consultants, graphic designers, photographers, videographers etc or external partners is helpful, alongside a collaborative approach and good organisational skills. We are particularly interested in candidates who bring transferable skills from other sectors, along with curiosity, initiative and a willingness to learn. You should be motivated by working in a small, purpose-driven team and be committed to inclusive, accessible communication. This role supports a multi-year heritage project focused on the histories and practices of Black and Global Majority artists. We particularly welcome applicants with lived experience and/or a strong interest in these areas, and a commitment to inclusive, anti-racist and accessible communication practices. We know that no one will meet every requirement. If you meet most of the criteria and feel excited by the role, we encourage you to apply

Role Purpose

The Website & Communications Manager will lead iniva’s communications for a four-year fixed-term
project (3 days per week), with responsibilities evolving across the project — from setting up systems
and plans in Year 1 to delivering public activity, website redevelopment and legacy outputs in later
phases.

Focusing on Living Legacies, the postholder will lead communications activity to grow and diversify
audiences while maintaining strong engagement with existing audiences. They will manage a small
communications team, including the Communications Coordinator, and coordinate different
freelancers over the life of the project, such as a PR Consultant, Website Developer and Podcast
Producer to deliver clear, consistent and values-led communication across the organisation.
Working closely with a freelance Website Developer and internal teams, the postholder will oversee
the redevelopment of iniva’s website, ensuring it is accessible, user-friendly and supports the
project’s digital content and long-term needs. They will also work collaboratively with the Senior
Fundraising Manager, Project Manager and Project Curator to ensure joined-up, timely storytelling that
reflects the aims of the project and supports audience engagement.

Project Specific Duties

The duties below reflect the role across its four-year term. Activity in Years 1–2 will focus on
communications planning, audience development, team coordination and early digital work. Website
redevelopment (Years 2–3) and press activity for exhibitions (Years 3–4) will increase in later phases.
Not all responsibilities will be active at the same time.

Communications Strategy, Planning and Audience Development

• To review, refine and deliver the Living Legacies Communications Plan in collaboration with the wider project team, ensuring alignment with audience development goals, legacy planning and funder expectations.
• To lead audience development activity for Living Legacies, balancing growth and diversification with the retention of iniva’s existing audiences.
• To ensure consistent application of iniva and Living Legacies brand, tone of voice and values across all communications outputs.
• To establish and maintain communications systems, workflows and standards to support effective delivery across the team and with external contributors.
• To manage marketing, communications and documentation budgets ensuring activity is delivered within agreed resources for the organisation.

Website Redevelopment & Digital Experience

• To provide oversight of the redevelopment of iniva’s website (2027-2028), working closely with the Website Developer and internal stakeholders to ensure the site meets accessibility standards, audience engagement objectives and digital preservation needs.
• To manage the Website Developer and relevant budget lines to deliver a user-friendly, accessible website that supports archival access, digital outputs and the wider public programme.
• To ensure the website reflects the interpretive aims of Living Legacies and supports long-term access to project outputs, including oral histories, exhibitions and archival content.
• To gather and commission content from project partners and programme leads to ensure inclusive, participant-led storytelling is reflected across digital platforms.

Content, Campaigns & Creative Management

•  To oversee the creation, scheduling and publication of engaging digital content for Living Legacies, working with the Communications Coordinator across social media, email newsletters and website updates to raise awareness of the project, grow and engage existing and new audiences, and share stories, opportunities and project milestones.
• To commission and manage promotional materials, including digital and print assets, working with graphic designers, photographers, videographers and other freelance creatives to create compelling content that reflects the project's values and reaches diverse audiences.
•  To provide clear briefs, quality control and sign-off for commissioned content, ensuring outputs are on brand, accessible, high quality and delivered on schedule, and support meaningful engagement with participants, partners and audiences.
• To coordinate the promotion of project events and exhibitions, including digital and print listings, invitations, ticketing and on-site communications logistics, helping to maximise attendance, participation and the visibility of Living Legacies across communities and partner networks.

Monitoring, Evaluation & Reporting

• To oversee monitoring and evaluation of communications activity for Living Legacies, drawing on digital engagement data across web, email and social media platforms to understand audience reach, engagement and impact.
• To lead on communications-related reporting for senior management, the Board and funders, working with the Communications Coordinator to collate insights, data and evidence that demonstrate impact, learning and audience development.
• To use evaluation findings to inform ongoing communications strategy, audience development activity and project learning.

Collaboration & Internal Coordination

• To work collaboratively with the Project Manager, Project Curator, Senior Fundraising Manager and wider iniva team to ensure consistent messaging, joined-up communications and coordinated project delivery across all strands.
• To support shared understanding of communications priorities across exhibitions, podcasts, oral histories and community engagement activity, ensuring coherence of messaging and audience experience.
• To contribute to a culture of knowledge sharing, collective responsibility and values-led working across the organisation.

Press & Public Relations

•  To provide oversight and be the main point of contact for press and media activity for LivingLegacies, setting priorities, approving messaging and coordinating delivery with the Freelance PR Consultant, annually for three major project exhibitions and public programme (2027-2030).
• Liaise with external PR consultants to support programme promotion, ensuring assets and information are shared accurately and on time.
• To support the development and approval of press materials, including press releases and image assets, ensuring clarity, consistency and alignment with project messaging and organisational values.
• To oversee media listings, press scheduling and coverage tracking, using insights to inform future communications planning in consultation with the PR Consultant.
• To ensure compliance with funder branding and visibility requirements, including National Lottery Heritage Fund acknowledgement guidelines.

General Duties (In common with all iniva staff)

• To support the philosophy, aims and objectives of iniva and to champion its work.
• To promote and support equality, diversity and inclusion for all staff, contractors, volunteers and stakeholders.
•  To uphold collective responsibility, knowledge sharing and team working across the organisation.
• To contribute to, and follow iniva’s organisational policies and procedures, particularly policies relevant to your defined responsibilities and area of work.
• To ensure proper record keeping, filing and archiving of all communications and documentation related to your area of work.
• To engage in continuing professional development, seeking to stay up to date with developments and best practice in your area of work.

Note: This is a description of the job as it is at present constituted. It is iniva’s practice to examine job
descriptions regularly and to update them to ensure that they accurately reflect the job required to be
performed, or to incorporate proposed changes.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

The postholder for this role should demonstrate the following qualifications, experience, skills and
knowledge:

Essential

• Proven experience developing and delivering a communications strategy, ideally for cultural or heritage projects.
•  Experience in website development or managing website redevelopment projects, including working with web developers on design, UX, accessibility and audience engagement.
•  Strong copywriting and editorial skills, with the ability to produce clear, engaging and accessible content across platforms.
•  Experience creating and scheduling content for digital channels, including social media, email newsletters and websites.
•  Understanding of accessibility standards for digital content (e.g. WCAG 2.2) and inclusive communication practices.
• Experience in line management of staff and commissioning or supervising freelance creatives — including PR professionals, website developers, graphic designers, videographers, photographers and content producers — to deliver high-quality, on-brand and accessible content.
• Experience coordinating press and media engagement, including drafting press releases and managing listings.
• Ability to collect and interpret digital engagement data (e.g. social media insights, email performance, web analytics) for evaluation and reporting.
• Strong organisational and time-management skills, with the ability to manage multiple deadlines and priorities.
• Collaborative approach and experience working across teams to ensure consistent, values-led messaging.

Applicants do not need agency-level PR experience; experience of coordinating or overseeing
press activity within a wider communications role is sufficient. We are not expecting candidates
to demonstrate equal depth across all areas; instead, we are looking for a strong overall match
against the Essential criteria.

Desirable

• Familiarity with iniva’s mission, and an understanding of visual arts, archives or Black and
• diaspora cultural heritage in the UK. Experience promoting exhibitions, podcasts, or public programmes within an arts or heritage
• context.
• Knowledge of web content management systems (e.g. WordPress), email marketing tools
• (e.g. Mailchimp) and marketing management tools (e.g. SocialBee and Hootsuite).
•  Experience producing or editing visual content using graphic design tools (e.g. Adobe Creative
• Suite, Canva and Figma), with an eye for layout, accessibility and brand consistency.
•  Experience developing or applying audience development strategies.
•  Understanding of digital preservation principles for online content.
• Experience creating inclusive, participant-led storytelling in partnership with community
• groups.
• Confidence in briefing designers and overseeing the production of promotional materials
• across print and digital.
• Awareness of brand compliance and funder visibility guidelines (e.g. The National Lottery Heritage Fund).

Note: Applicants cannot be expected to be equally strong on all the above criteria, but to provide
evidence across the range, in varying strengths and combinations. iniva are committed to supporting
staff in training and support to achieve the standards required to undertake the role.