RESPONSIBILITIES:
Outreach, Wheelchair Skills and Wider Engagement
· Engage the widest possible range of people with spinal cord injury to sign up for further contact with Back Up, through organising and/or delivering wheelchair skills training sessions and talks for patients and families at the spinal cord injury centre in the region, general hospitals and with other key partners or locations as identified.
· Coordinate, support and manage volunteer trainers who are helping to deliver sessions and talking to patients and families.
· Lead, sustain and develop strong and effective working relationships with a wide range of health professionals and other charity representatives e.g. through presentations, calls and meetings, to ensure that people access seamless support.
Proactive Contact with People Affected by Spinal Cord Injury
· Maintain and support relationships with a large number of people affected by SCI (adults, children and young people and their parents) through regular proactive contact. This could be in person in the spinal cord injury centre, other settings or through events, telephone contact or other interactions.
· Explore their feelings, wishes and needs and provide tailored peer support to help them feel supported, access relevant services from Back Up and elsewhere through proactive referrals, and become more aware of the possibilities of life after SCI.
Networking, Partnerships and Sustainability
· Develop and maintain a map of touchpoints in the region, where people with an SCI will come into contact.
· Develop partnerships, referral routes and signposting processes to develop reach beyond the spinal cord injury centre.
· Develop and manage a network of community ambassador volunteers to support the wider work and sustainability of Back Up through fundraising and other related activities.
· Take a lead on encouraging localised fundraising activity; working towards wider income targets that support ongoing sustainability.
Other Duties and Responsibilities
· Maintaining accurate records on the database.
· Work as a team, consulting with others to ensure you give and receive high quality support.
· Keep Back Up informed of the issues affecting the people you are supporting and of developments at the spinal cord injury centre, general hospitals and other settings.
· Input into team planning and activities.
· Manage the budget relating to activities in your region.
· Help recruit new volunteers as needed to ensure a diverse team representing Back Up.
· Other duties as required by the Regional Outreach & Engagement Team Leader.
The above list is not exclusive or exhaustive, and the post holder will be required to undertake such duties as may reasonably be expected within the scope of this role.
PERSON SPECIFICATION:
Essential:
- Experience of working to support vulnerable people to achieve goals/move forward in life
- Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to relate to people at all levels internally and externally
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- High standard of IT including experience of using databases and MS Office
- Self-starter; highly organised, able to drive own workload
- A creative and proactive approach to all areas of work with a 'can do' attitude, in line with the charity's values
- Commitment to delivering a high-quality service
- Respect for confidentiality
- Suitable to work safely and appropriately with children and vulnerable people
- Strong team working orientation with a flexible and adaptable approach to work demands across the whole organisation, a real people person
- Respect for others; able to work in a way that respects diversity and values equality
- Great listener, warmth, empathy, respect for everybody. Able to be non-judgmental and focus on the individual and their needs
- Willing and able to travel and work occasional evenings and weekends including overnight stays
- GCSE Maths and English A-C or equivalent
Desirable:
- Spinal cord injured person or family member
- Experience of working with and supporting volunteers
- Experience of working with people in trauma
- Presentation skills and the ability to manage a group
- Proactive approach to own support needs, health & wellbeing
- An understanding of the needs of people adjusting to life with spinal cord injury
• Please Note: We currently review application only through Charity Jobs ATS. Please apply through Charity jobs as we will not be accepting offline applications.
• Charity Jobs will ask you for a CV & Cover Letter (saying why you want the job and explaining how you meet the criteria in the job description. This statement is crucial; CVs alone will not be accepted).
• Please complete equal opportunities form on charity Jobs. This form will be kept separate from your application and not viewed by the recruiting manager. It is used to help us assess the diversity of our applicants to ensure our processes are fair to all. It is optional to fill in, but it will help us improve and maintain high standards.
We will acknowledge receipt of your ap
Registered Charity
At Back Up, our vision is a world where everyone affected by spinal cord injury can reach their full potential.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Job Purpose
Sequence ME & Long Covid is one of the most ambitious whole-genome sequencing studies ever undertaken into ME and Long Covid, co-led by Action for ME. Building on the success of DecodeME, this proposed £20 million study will use large-scale, long-read whole-genome sequencing to analyse the entire genetic code of 9,000 people with ME and 9,000 people with Long Covid - making it the world's largest 'long-read' whole-genome sequencing study of any disease.
Current funding supports project mobilisation, partnership development, and the development of the Long Covid arm of the study, including agreeing case definitions and gathering expressions of interest from people with Long Covid. Phase 2 has recently been confirmed, backed by £4.75m from the UK government and a further £174,414 from the WE&ME Foundation, and will focus on sequencing 6,000 ME/CFS samples previously collected through DecodeME using Oxford Nanopore's long-read sequencing technology, running alongside Phase 1.
You will play a pivotal role supporting the Sequence ME & Long Covid project in several different ways. Working closely with the project's management team and other team members, you will help ensure the smooth day-to-day running of this landmark study, providing administrative support to the various people and partners involved in delivering it.
As a self-starter, you will manage a range of tasks including meeting scheduling, taking meeting minutes, preparing governance documents, event administration, and broader project support - no two days will be the same.
You will need to maintain a high level of confidentiality at all times, particularly when supporting governance meetings and handling sensitive project documentation.
As a team player, you will provide comprehensive, confidential and organised administrative support, developing a deep understanding of the project and building strong, effective working relationships with colleagues, researchers and external partners.
Remote working at home can be challenging for some and works incredibly well for others. You will need to be able to work independently, use your own initiative, and remain proactive in maintaining good levels of communication with colleagues.
Key Duties
- Help monitor inboxes and respond to routine project enquiries in a timely and sensitive manner, escalating more complex matters as appropriate
- Assist the project's management team and other team members with meeting scheduling and diary coordination
- Take accurate minutes at project, management and other project-related meetings, and follow up and track resulting actions to completion
- Prepare, format and proof-read governance documents and papers
- Maintain and update project databases including the Teams channel, ensuring documents are saved correctly, other management information/recording systems to ensure accurate and timely record-keeping. Help with the tracking of expressions of interest from potential study participants.
- Provide administrative support for project events - from planning and logistics through to on-the-day support
- Help prepare presentations, slide decks and briefing materials for internal meetings, funders, partners and participant-facing communications
- Support the drafting, formatting and coordination of project communications, such as updates for partners, funders or the wider ME and Long Covid community
- Support coordination between internal teams and external partners, including research and funding partners
- Maintain project files and documentation in line with agreed communication operating procedures with internal and external partners ensuring information is well organised, up to date and easy for the team to access
- Maintain confidentiality at all times and in line with relevant policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with GDPR and that all data consent processes have been followed in relation to data protection
- Positively promote the work of the Sequence ME & Long Covid project and Action for ME at all times
- Undertake any other reasonable activity in line with the responsibilities of the post, as requested by the CEO, Business Development & Partnerships Manager, Senior Research Manager or the project's Management Team
Person Specification
Essential skills and experience
- Organisational skills - Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple tasks across a fast-moving research project, with attention to detail and accuracy maintained under pressure
- Communication - Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to interact effectively with diverse audiences including researchers, funders and people affected by ME and Long Covid
- IT literacy - Proficient with common office software, including Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint), and able to quickly learn relevant project management, database or communications systems as needed
- Problem-solving - A creative and solution-focused mindset to address challenges and find innovative ways to improve processes
- Adaptability - Capable of managing changing priorities, working flexibly, and adapting to the needs of a fast-paced, ambitious research programme
- Initiative - A proactive approach, with the ability to work independently and take initiative, while also following clear instructions when given
- Teamwork - A collaborative team player with a proven ability to work effectively as part of a team, including a remote-working team spanning multiple partners and stakeholders
- Interest in the sector - A genuine interest in health research, the Third Sector, and a desire to take action to improve the lives of people with ME and Long Covid
- Experience - Demonstrable ability to be an effective administrator, ideally within a charity, research, or project environment. Experience supporting governance processes, events, or communications would be an advantage but is not essential
Desirable skills and experience
- Experience providing administrative support for scientific or research-related projects
- Experience writing and communicating with non-specialist or general audiences
Please note, the salary of £24,642.09 FTE per year pro rata is based on a 35-hour week.
Registered Charity
21 - 50
Our mission is to improve the lives of people affected by ME. Better meeting their needs today while taking action to secure change for tomorrow.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.