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Harrogate, North Yorkshire – with some travel across the Yorkshire region
We offer hybrid working.
About Us
Yorkshire is one of the regions hardest hit by cancer. Together, we can change this.
Yorkshire Cancer Research is a charity dedicated to funding research so that you and those you love live longer healthier lives, free of cancer.
Thanks to supporters, the charity funds vital cancer research and pioneers innovative new services for people with cancer. These life-giving medical breakthroughs are helping more people survive cancer – in Yorkshire, and beyond.
As an inclusive employer, our aim is to ensure our workforce reflects the rich diversity of our region. We believe a diverse workforce is vital to us taking action to prevent, diagnose and treat cancer more effectively in Yorkshire. We offer equal opportunities regardless of race, religion or belief, age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, marriage and civil partnerships.
The Benefits
We offer all employees a wide range of benefits including an enhanced contributory pension scheme, 25 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays (increasing to 30 days after 5 years’ service), flexible working arrangements, private medical insurance, enhanced maternity leave, career progression, learning and development, wellbeing initiatives, offices within walking distance of Hornbeam Park train station, and a whole lot more.
We’ve got a strong set of values that inform everything we do and we’re looking for people who are aligned with these. As our Communications Manager (to Executive) you will put people in Yorkshire at the heart of everything you do, unite with colleagues and other organisations in this cause, and dare to think big and bold to make positive solutions happen.
The Role
The Communications Manager (to Executive) is responsible for what, where and how the Chief Executive, Directors (collective referred to as ‘Directors’ from this point forward) and members of the Board of Trustees communicate about the charity to employees, volunteers and supporters.
You will enable charity leaders to convey and reinforce consistent messages to build reputation and trust in both the charity and the leadership of the charity.
As Communications Manager (to Executive), you will be responsible for Directors’ communication about the charity and its:
- purpose
- brand
- public affairs
- reputation (including crisis management and responses to complaints)
The role holder will help to identify communication gaps and opportunity, working with Directors to address these through a communication plan.
You will plan, agree, draft and support Directors to deliver proactive thought-leadership.
Specifically, you will:
· Develop and agree a bespoke internal/external communication plan for Directors, reflecting both their shared, collective role in leading the charity.
· Optimise existing, and develop new, communication channels to enable Directors to reach new audiences and reinforce messages to existing audiences.
· Identify corporate developments, projects and initiatives that will benefit from Director communication and work with project/initiative leader(s) to ensure a planned, aligned and integrated approach to key messages and their delivery.
Brand
· Ensure the charity’s brand, strategy and purpose is accurately and proactively reflected in all messaging and content which quotes or is on behalf of Directors.
· Reflect the charity’s tone-of-voice, taking a plain-English approach to communication by avoiding technical terms, jargon and acronyms.
Process and Governance
· Ensure Directors are advised about potential PR and communication opportunities and can consider and input before they are committed to.
· For proactive communication, diarise approval time in Directors’ diaries and provide Executive briefings and content well in advance (giving weeks’ rather than days’ notice) so that there is plenty of time for Directors to review, adapt and approve before the deadline or event.
· Where reactive opportunities (e.g. tv and radio interviews) are available, ensure the relevant Director has adequate notice and time to prepare, negotiating longer timeframes on their behalf where this is possible and necessary.
About You
To be considered for this role, you will need:
· To be educated to degree level or equivalent.
· To have achieved a recognised professional qualification which demonstrates an ongoing commitment to learning and development.
· To have demonstrable experience of effective PR management, preferably with a not-for-profit organisation.
· To be experienced and confident working with and advising an organisation’s most senior leaders.
· To have clear experience of having embraced organisational change and transformation, and of helping colleagues and team members to do likewise.
· To have extensive experience of successfully prioritising projects, activities and work so that those activities that will have greatest strategic impact are delivered first and foremost.
· To have proven communications acumen with the ability to manage a budget.
· To have excellent collaboration, prioritisation and communication skills.
· To have Integrity and discretion when handling privileged information.
· To have the ability to plan own workload and manage that of others, on time.
· To have excellent written and verbal communication and influencing skills, with a strong background presenting complex information, simply and effectively to a range of audiences.
· To have excellent networking, influencing and relationship management skills, with the ability to inspire and motivate others, as well as the confidence and personal authority to work with external organisations.
· To be a dedicated and respected team player creating effective working relationships with others.
· To be highly comfortable working with challenging and changing environments.
Application
Before applying, please visit our Careers Page to view the full role profile and find out more about working for Yorkshire Cancer Research.
To apply please submit a CV and cover letter outlining your suitability for the role to Claire Wooldridge, Head of People, before 30 April 2026. Please read our privacy notice before applying.
Yorkshire Cancer Research is a responsible and flexible employer. We welcome any discussion for flexible working at the interview/offer stage where we will consider an individual’s circumstances against the needs of the charity.
We positively encourage applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates from all backgrounds. If we can make any reasonable adjustments to support your application, please contact us.
Registered Charity 
101 - 500
Thank you!
Job Title: Communications and Content Executive
Salary: £28,600 - £30,200 per annum, plus 15% ILW if applicable
Hours: Full time, 37.5 hours per week
Contract Type: Permanent
Location: Hybrid – based minimum 2 days per week in one of our centres (Birmingham, Liverpool, London, or Newcastle)
Reports to: Senior Communications Manager
THE CHARITY
Suicide is the leading cause of death of men under 35 and three quarters of those who die by suicide are men. James’ Place exists to save the lives of men in suicidal crisis through delivering clinical services. We are a charity currently offering free, life-saving therapy to suicidal men at our centres in Liverpool, London and Newcastle.
James’ Place was set up by Clare Milford Haven and Nick Wentworth-Stanley in 2008 after their twenty-one-year-old son, James, died by suicide ten days after a minor operation. James had no history of mental illness or depression and had sought urgent help for anxiety and suicidal thoughts but didn’t find it.
James' Place was set up to make the experience of finding help as easy as possible. We offer men who are experiencing a suicidal crisis a brief, intensive, therapeutic intervention in a safe environment. Men who walk through the door at James’ Place will be in a space where they feel valued and respected. We provide a calm and peaceful environment both inside the centres and in our outside spaces, accessible to men who visit us as well as their friends and families. We have so far treated over 5,100 men who might otherwise have been unable to access the support they desperately need.
In early 2026 we will be opening our fourth centre in Birmingham. Our new centre in Birmingham will be there to support suicidal men living in the West Midlands.
THE OPPORTUNITY
We are looking for a Communications and Content Executive to join our Communications team. This is a new role, reporting into the Senior Communications Manager. We are looking for a creative and proactive individual with experience in developing high quality social media content to take over the day to day running of our social media platforms. You will be creating content, maintain a content calendar, monitoring trends and replying to messages and comments from our active community, as well as analysing our data.
The role will also be involved in developing other communications content as needed. This will include writing articles and the newsletter, designing leaflets and flyers, assisting with creating and uploading content to the website, as well as gathering information to support our advocacy work. Good writing skills and a familiarity with some design skills, as well as ability to create videos are a must.
We are looking for a comms all-rounder; someone with lots of ideas, a can-do attitude and a solid grasp of the ever-changing social media landscape to join our team.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
- Creating, scheduling, and publishing high-quality and engaging social media content across all key social media platforms
- Developing and maintaining a content calendar
- Engaging with audiences, monitoring and responding to comments and messages, and sharing posts on our social media channels
- Monitoring and evaluating social media performance, social media trends, attitudes and sentiment, adapting content to optimise reach and engagement.
- Ensuring posts follow digital accessibility best practices
- Responsibility for designing and delivering regular content for our community such as our newsletter, and executing specific campaigns as needed
- Writing annual report, articles, blogs, statements as needed
- Engaging in collaborative discussions and ideas generation across teams to deliver relevant and engaging content.
- Work with the team to build our understanding of men in suicidal crisis and how suicidal behaviour develops.
- Undertake any other duties as required in pursuit of organisational success.
- Demonstrate commitment to the James’ Place values of Focus, Bravery, Respect, Compassion, Professionalism, Collaboration and Hope through all aspects of work
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Essential
- Experience developing creative and engaging social media content including video
- Experience using social media platforms including Instagram, Facebook, Linkedin, Twitter, Blue Sky, including the scheduling of content across platforms.
- Experience using website CMS e.g. WordPress
- Familiarity with monitoring and evaluating the performance of content on different platforms
- Excellent interpersonal skills
- Excellent written and verbal communications skills
- Good videography and photography skills
- Ability to prioritise workload
- Ability to be flexible and take on additional tasks and responsibilities as needed
Desirable
- Ability to interpret data and generate insights
- Experience using Adobe Photoshop, Canva or another graphic design platform
- Experience using Postcards
- Experience working with influencers and celebrities
- Experience using and developing content for TikTok
- Experience using AI to complete tasks
- Qualification in Digital Marketing, Communications, or related field
WE OFFER
- A 7% employer contributory pension scheme
- Family friendly policies
- Death in service insurance scheme
- 25 days plus bank holidays leave entitlement (FTE), including enhanced holiday allowance with incremental rises after qualifying period
HOW TO APPLY
To apply, please use the online application system to submit your CV detailing your experience, roles and responsibilities, and answer the screening questions. Please note, you do not need to upload a cover letter for this role. Please answer the mandatory questions to evidence your suitability for this role.
Please do not reapply if you applied for this role previously.
If you have any queries or experience challenges with the application process, please contact us directly.
Closing date: Shortlisting will be conducted on a rolling basis, therefore we recommend candidates apply for this role as soon as possible.
James’ Place is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community. Our aim is that no job applicant, temporary worker or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of age, disability, gender and transgender status, race and ethnicity, religion and belief (including no belief), marriage or civil partnership status or sexual orientation.
If you have a disability or health conditions which means you'd benefit from any adjustments to the interview process to help you perform at your best, please do let us know in advance.
Any job offers made are subject to the receipt of two relevant satisfactory employment references. We expect this to include one from your most recent or current employer. Any job offers made are also subject to a satisfactory DBS check and a Right to Work in the UK check.
REF-227 928
