Community engagement and volunteer support worker jobs

Are you passionate about supporting people at a critical point in their lives? Do you believe everyone deserves to feel safe, respected, and supported?

We are looking for three Hostel Support Workers to join our team at a 14-bed, 24-hour hostel, where you will play a vital role in creating a calm, welcoming, and well-managed environment for residents experiencing homelessness.

Working day and evening shifts, you will provide practical, emotional, and safeguarding support to vulnerable adults, ensuring their welfare, dignity, and protection at all times. You will remain alert to risk, respond confidently to incidents or concerns, and follow clear safeguarding and risk-management procedures to keep residents and colleagues safe.

You will hold a small caseload of residents, offering person-centred, trauma-informed key-work support that helps individuals build independence, stability, and wellbeing. This will include encouraging engagement with support services, promoting positive routines, and helping residents work towards longer-term housing and life goals.

Working closely with colleagues across the service, you will:

• Maintain accurate records and case notes

• Communicate clearly with the wider team

• Deliver effective handover between shifts to ensure continuity of care and support

Above all, you will help foster an environment where residents feel safe, listened to, and encouraged, supporting them to move forward at their own pace.

This role is ideal for someone who is compassionate, resilient, and committed to making a meaningful difference—whether you bring previous hostel experience or are looking to grow your career in homelessness and supported housing services.

Join Homeless Oxfordshire as a Project 41 Support Worker, supporting people with experiences of homelessness, trauma, substance use, and mental health needs to live more independently in dispersed accommodation. You’ll build compassionate, trauma-informed relationships, deliver high-quality support, coordinate with partners, manage risks and safeguarding, and help clients move on to suitable long-term housing. Join a supportive team where your commitment, resilience, and positive approach truly change lives.

Main Purpose Of Job:
Project 41 accommodates individuals within the homeless pathway and as part of Oxfordshire’s Homelessness Alliance. These individuals have support needs including substance use, mental health and offending histories, but are able to live in dispersed accommodation in Oxford with a higher level of independence than in our hostels. The successful candidate will understand the trauma people using our services have experienced, and have a compassionate and assertive approach to building relationships. At Project 41 you will provide high quality support service provision, work with clients to ensure suitable and timely move on, ensure the health and safety and safeguarding of service users and colleagues, work in a psychologically informed way, and develop and maintain effective partnerships with relevant agencies.

Main Areas Of Responsibility:

• To ensure the effective delivery of high quality support, housing management and resettlement opportunities.
• To develop effective professional relationships with service users that is trauma informed and compassionate, and which empowers and motivates our service users to make positive changes in their lives.
• To work in partnership with support agencies to coordinate a holistic response to an individuals needs; this may include substance use services, probation, health professionals and adult social care.
• To lead on identifying and applying for suitable move on accommodation, and providing support throughout the move and whilst settling in to new accommodation.
• To assess risk and suitability of referrals for the service.
• To be responsible for creating and actioning person centred, strengths based support plans, and identifying and working towards suitable move on.
• To assess and manage risk for individuals and in the service, creating and maintaining risk assessments for all clients. Reporting any safeguarding concerns without delay in line with procedures.
• Work with the Team Manager and colleagues to achieve agreed contractual performance targets and organisational targets and objectives.
• Maintain a safe, clean and welcoming environment across accommodation services; this may including room cleaning and clearance.
• Manage challenging situations in line with procedures and to ensure the safety of yourself and others.
• Ensure that IT systems are updated as required and concise record keeping is completed promptly.
• To participate in the induction of and support new team members.
• To contribute to a positive team culture which is inspiring and motivational.
• Comply with Homeless Oxfordshire’s policies and procedures.
• Contribute to a positive working environment in which equality and diversity are valued and staff are enabled to do their best.
• Contribute to the work of the broader team.

About Us:

We are an open door for people experiencing homelessness whose lives have been shaped by trauma and disadvantage; providing safety, stability and support when it is needed most. We deliver this support across Oxfordshire by providing a range of accommodation with access to high quality support, offering a safe and welcoming space for people to take control of their own lives. We are an accredited Oxford Living Wage employer, and benefits to the role include: annual leave starting at 26 days (excluding bank holidays), flexible working, enhanced benefits with qualifying service, retail discounts with our Homeless Oxfordshire Benefits Hub, and life assurance up to four times your salary and a £250 bonus if you successfully refer a someone as a new colleague through our Employee Referral Scheme as a thanks from us!

What’s Next: Have a look at the job description to find out more about the role and apply on our website. Please be aware that this role is subject to an enhanced DBS disclosure check and will be undertaken for the successful candidate .

We reserve the right to close this advert early if we identify a suitable candidate before the advertised closing date.

Operational Support Worker *(Female Only)

Location: Sheffield

Closing date: 6th March 2026

Overview of Role:

The Operational Support Worker plays a vital role in enabling the team to offer compassionate, Christ centred support to vulnerable women. As the project has seen growth over the last few years, in response to rising demand, this role will play a key part in shaping and establishing the administrative systems, processes and procedures we’ve not yet had the capacity to formalise—ideal for someone who is energised by building structure, improving practice, and being part of creating solutions rather than stepping into a readymade setup. By carrying out the administrative, organisational, and practical tasks that keep the project running smoothly, they will help free frontline staff and evangelists to focus on building relationships, offering pastoral care, and walking alongside women in their daily challenges.

Salary: £24,570 per Annum (FTE)

Hours:37.5  per week

Pension: Church Army is an auto enrolment pension employer. You will be assessed under pension auto enrolment criteria.

Annual Leave: 25 days, plus Bank Holidays (total 33 days)

Contract:Full-Time – Open Ended

DBS: This post is subject to a enhanced DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) check and compliant with safeguarding policies and procedures. Safeguarding training will be required.

Everyone in Church Army whether a staff member, volunteer, Evangelist, Evangelist in Training or Licenced Waterways Chaplain is responsible for making sure that Church Army has a safe and healthy safeguarding culture.
We are committed to protecting the vulnerable and ensuring the highest possible safeguarding standards. We expect everyone in Church Army to be familiar and comply with our Safer Ministry Policy, undergo any safer recruitment processes, and report any concerns or behaviours they don’t think are right to a member of the safeguarding team: or someone they trust.

Occupational Requirement:  This post is subject to an Occupational Requirement under the provisions made in the Equality Act 2010 that the post holder has an active faith in Jesus. The successful candidate must be in agreement with the vision and values of Church Army.

*Due to the responsibilities of the role, there is an occupational requirement under the Equality Act 2010 that the post holder is female.

Application Deadline:6 March 2026

Interview Date:   16 March 2026

Next Steps:

For more information on the role, you can find the job description and person specification for the post here.

To apply, please download and complete a Faith Based Application Form  for this post. When you are ready to submit your application, please email your completed application form, in word format,

PLEASE NOTE, WE DO NOT ACCEPT CVs

37.5 hours per week / £27,770 per annum / permanent / working onsite on a seven-day rolling rota, including evenings, weekends and bank holidays.

At YMCA DownsLink Group, our mission is to help children and young people have a fair chance to be who they want to be. We do this by providing a safe home, building life skills and self-confidence, and supporting emotional wellbeing and mental health.

Our Values - we do what’s right, we work with heart, and we build real connections - guide and shape how we show up for children and young people we support and for each other.

Guildford Foyer provides 24/7 supported accommodation for up to 34 young people aged 16–25, many with complex needs, including unaccompanied asylum‑seeking young people. We use a trauma‑informed, psychologically informed approach to help residents build life skills, set goals, and move towards independent living. Our Support Workers, Night Workers and Bank Workers offer guidance around housing, budgeting, living skills, education, employment and community engagement.

We are recruiting a Supported Housing Support Worker to join our team. Key responsibilities include:

Housing

• Support young people to understand and maintain occupancy agreements and house rules.
• Encourage timely rent payments and promote a positive payment culture.
• Stay informed on housing law and welfare benefits affecting young people.
• Address issues such as rent arrears or property damage using restorative approaches.

Coaching and engagement

• Coach young people to identify aspirations and build independence skills.
• Promote personal responsibility, engagement with support services, and community connections.
• Ensure strong safeguarding practice and maintain professional boundaries.
• Keep accurate records on In‑Form, tracking needs, risks and outcomes.

General

• Work as part of a rota, including lone working, providing calm and objective support.
• Contribute to a positive team culture and manage challenging situations effectively.
• Take part in ongoing training and reflective practice.

At times, this role will involve lone working, but you’ll be fully supported with a thorough induction, training, and the opportunity to get to know the team and service before starting on the rota. Full role details are available in the job profile.

If you’re enthusiastic about this opportunity but your experience doesn’t align perfectly with every requirement, we encourage you to apply anyway and demonstrate how your experience is transferrable. You may be just the right candidate. 

This is a dynamic and varied role, ideal for someone passionate about supporting and empowering young people to grow and thrive.

Experience and knowledge

• Experience in housing, support work, or working with young people at risk.
• Ability to manage a caseload of young people with complex needs and support them toward independence.
• Knowledge of statutory/voluntary services for young people.
• Strong safeguarding awareness and ability to maintain professional boundaries.
• Confident and accurate in completing logs, incident reports, and H&S checks.

Skills and abilities

• Clear written and verbal communication, with strong record‑keeping skills.
• Ability to build effective relationships and advocate/signpost where needed.
• Able to work independently and as part of a team.
• Good IT and keyboard skills.
• Able to de‑escalate challenging situations and manage behaviour appropriately.

CLOSING DATE: Sunday 8 March 2026 at midnight.

PLEASE NOTE: We are unable to provide work permits or visa sponsorship for this role, so applicants must already have the right to live and work in the UK independently.

An inclusive workplace We are committed to policies and practices of equity, diversity, and inclusion and to supporting our people to make sure our culture is consistent with this commitment. 

Accessibility If you require assistance or have questions regarding the application process, please do contact us.

YMCA DLG requires all staff and volunteers to be committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and to respond proactively to safeguarding concerns. 

Job Title: Children's Support Worker

Location: Warwickshire - Travel required across Warwickshire, predominantly South Warwickshire. Use of a car is essential to the role. 
Salary: £25,857.12 per annum 

Contract type: Full Time, Permanent 

Hours: 37.5 hours per week

We are recruiting for a Children’s Support Worker who will be working closely with children and their parents who are living in our dispersed accommodation refuges escaping domestic violence and other forms of violence and abuse, to provide personal welfare support and ensure that our clients are provided with a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment.

A key requirement is to provide personal welfare support and to ensure that women are provided with a safe, supportive, and welcoming environment. The post holder will support children who have witnessed or experienced domestic violence and plan and provide stimulating, safe, and appropriate play opportunities.

Please note that post is restricted to women due to the nature of the role. The Occupational Requirement under Schedule 9 (part 1) of the Equality Act 2010 applies.

A driving license and access to a car is essential to the role. 

Closing Date: 09:00 am 13 March 2026

Interview Date: 23 March 2026

Following a successful application to the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, we are seeking a Youth Worker to lead on systems change as part of our Brighter Rainbow Project. A key requirement of the post is to hold a JNC Level 6 Youth and Community Work qualification or equivalent (or due to complete 2026- 2027). We also welcome applicants with related subjects including nursing, primary teaching, secondary teaching, social work etc.

Since 1899, Birmingham Settlement has been working to create opportunity and choice – connecting and empowering people through action, activities, and shared learning to build and sustain wellbeing for all.

Senior Community Action Worker

Salary: £30k per annum

35 hours per week (flexible)

25 days A/L pro rata + contributory pension scheme

Birmingham Settlement is recruiting a Senior Community Action Worker to help us grow and offer more to the communities and people we serve.  Mainly based at our Sports & Community Centre (SCC), the role will help to develop, lead and manage activities that support individual and community leadership, voice and engagement in line with individual, community, and funder needs.

The role will focus on the overall management and development of the Settlement’s Sports & Community Centre to encourage active living, offering a diverse range of opportunities and learning activities to encourage physical health and wellbeing including partnerships and greater use of site facilities – the sports pitch, the gym, halls and large outside space as detailed in the job description.

An open mind, adaptability and a willingness to work flexibly along with excellent customer care skills are standard requirements that we must all always adhere to.

For an informal discussion about the role call Alex Howell. 

For an application pack visit our website or email us or write to Human Resources, Birmingham Settlement Sports & Community Centre, 600 Kingstanding Road, Kingstanding, Birmingham, B44 9SH 

Closing date: 5pm Thursday 26th February 2026

Interviews: Friday 6th March 2026

Birmingham Settlement is committed to Equality of Opportunity and welcomes applications from all sections of the community. Registered charity number 517303

Important, please read before applying:

1. Due to the requirement of the role to work at women only activities, we are accepting applications from female applicants only.

2. The role will support the delivery of our weekly Sports Hub (Wednesday 5 pm-8 pm), Youth Club (Thursday 5 pm-9 pm), trips and young women’s only activities therefore before applying, please ensure you are available to work during these times.

Overview 

At Young Roots, we want to see a compassionate and welcoming society for young refugees and asylum seekers in the UK. We work alongside young people seeking safety in the UK, building trusted relationships, providing practical and emotional support and promoting young people’s rights and power.

Our youth clubs and casework are transformative for young refugees, allowing young people who have fled danger, had traumatic journeys and who are often here alone, to find community and connection, have a space to be a young person and access support in addressing a whole range of practical challenges they face. We also draw on our evidence from working every day with young refugees and asylum seekers to call for change to the laws and policies which are harming young people. 

About the Role

Our youthwork plays an important role in reducing social isolation and loneliness, improving mental health and wellbeing, and creating a sense of belonging.

This includes a wide range of youth and sporting activities across several weekly youth groups, our young women’s groups, trips during the school holidays and annual residentials. Our youth participation approach means that our activities are directly informed by what young people want.

This is an opportunity for a dynamic and creative youth worker to contribute and strengthen our youth development programmes. You will be responsible for planning and delivering youth activities, ensuring that the sessions run smoothly and safely. You will also be responsible for making sure volunteers are supported, giving advice and guidance where necessary.

To Apply:

To apply, please submit your CV alongside a personal statement by the closing date outlining how you would be a great fit for the role.

Your personal statement should be no more than 800 words, answering the following questions:

1. What is your motivation for working with Young Roots?

2. What is your motivation for applying for this role specifically?

3. What skills and experience would you bring that will enable you to be successful in this role?  Please ensure you refer to the essential criteria on the person specification and provide examples to demonstrate how and where you meet the criteria.

You may submit your personal statement in writing, or via video.

Hybrid working with regular evening work with regular attendance at our service delivery venues across London as appropriate to the role.

No agencies, please.

Closing date: 8th of March

Interview date: First round of interviews will be on the 17th of March online and Second round of interviews will be on the 26th of March at our Brent Youth Group

Employment support services | Disability charity Scope UK

Find out which of our employment support services is right for you.

Young Roots recognises the positive value of diversity, promotes equity and challenges discrimination. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, particularly those who can face disadvantage in employment, such as people from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ individuals and people with disabilities. As an organisation that supports refugees, asylum seekers and migrants, we particularly welcome applications from people within these communities. We offer a guaranteed interview for those with lived experience of the asylum system and those with disabilities, where they meet the essential elements of the person specification. If aspects of the application process create barriers to you applying and you’d like any adjustment to the process or you’d like an informal discussion or advice on your application, please get in touch. We would also like to alert you to the existence of organisations which support people from under-represented groups to access employment, who can advise you on applying for this role. For example, Scope, Young Women’s Trust and Experts by Experience.

Young Roots is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share this commitment. We take this duty very seriously.

Our work is underpinned by policies and procedures which promote safe working practices. We have a framework of training and supervision which everyone is expected to comply with and systems for monitoring, quality assurance and gaining service user feedback. On joining you will be expected to be part of this approach to safeguard our service users.

All posts are subject to a safer recruitment process which includes vetting checks such as enhanced criminal records and barring, scrutiny of employment history, references and other checks.

Evening / Weekend Support Worker (Substance Misuse)

We are looking for someone mature, motivated and caring to provide person-centred support to our residents in their recovery journey. If you have a heart to see people overcome substance misuse - to reset, recover, and restore their lives - please join our friendly team.

The post-holder will form part of our team of staff who support our residents in their recovery primarily outside of office hours. You will therefore have great inter-personal skills and the ability to implement firm but caring boundaries. In addition, you will be responsible for a variety of administrative tasks, including updating records and administering medication as well as managing the house during weekends and overnight.

This is a part-time role on a zero hours contract, including some evenings and weekends, so could work alongside other employment commitments. Hours negotiable.

If you're interested in this opportunity and feel you have the skills to help support the work we do, we’d love to hear from you. Please submit your CV along with a covering letter to explain your suitability for the role as outlined in the job description.

Yeldall Manor is a Christian organisation, and this role has an occupational requirement that the successful candidate be a committed and practising Christian able to support residents in their spiritual journey (in accordance with Schedule 9 of the Equality Act 2010).

Yeldall Manor is committed to safeguard and promote the welfare of its residents. The successful candidate will be subject to a satisfactory enhanced DBS check. We welcome candidates with lived experience but, if you are in recovery, you must have a minimum of two years’ clean time.

We look forward to hearing from you!

Would you like to make a lasting difference in the lives of children affected by domestic abuse? Join an award-winning trauma recovery service provider that is passionate about making a positive difference to the lives of children and families.

Bounce Back for Kids (BB4K) is a lifeline for children healing from the trauma of domestic abuse. From April next year, we’re expanding our service and looking for new Support Workers to join our team – helping guide children and families on their healing journey.

Position: Bounce Back for Kids (BB4K) Support Worker

Location: Homebased with frequent travel. Role covers casework activity across Oxfordshire area including Cherwell, West Oxfordshire and the wider Oxfordshire area.

Contract: Permanent part time – 18.5 hours per week, weekdays.

We’re open to discussing working patterns that match both your needs and our service delivery. We’re also open to discussing an opportunity for 24 hours.

Salary range: £12,868 - £15,727 pro-rata per annum (full time equivalent range £25,735 - £31,453 per annum) 

About the role:

As a Support Worker you will play a significant role in supporting children and families affected by domestic abuse, some of your key responsibilities will include:

· the completion of assessments to understand the needs of families

· delivering group work for children and parents

· provide 1-2-1 sessions to children and families most in need

· supporting our families through providing outreach support

About you:

A successful Support Worker will need a good understanding of domestic abuse and the impact on children and families (or an interest in working in this field), with experience of delivering groupwork programmes for vulnerable parents and/or children.

If this sounds like you please apply today to join a collaborative and dedicated team who are part of something truly meaningful.           

We welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds, including those with personal lived experience of domestic abuse or from underrepresented communities, who meet the essential role requirements.

For more information about our BB4K service please visit our website where you will also find contact details and information about how to apply.

Closing date: 9am, Fri 27 February 2026      

Early applications are encouraged as we may review and appoint on an earlier basis if a successful candidate is secured.

Other roles you may have experience of could include: Family Support Worker, Family Key Worker, Children’s Support Worker, Domestic Abuse Support Worker, Domestic Abuse Key Worker, Recovery Worker, Assistant Support Worker, IDVA Independent Domestic Violence Advocate, ISVA Independent Sexual Violence Advocate, etc. 

Safeguarding is at the heart of everything we do at PACT. We have robust measures and best practices in place to safeguard and protect the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and we take pride in maintaining outstanding safeguarding standards.

Anyone joining our team is subject to PACT’s safer recruitment pre-appointment enquiries, including a Disclosure Barring Service (DBS). The role description provides information on what our safer recruitment enquiries include and the level of DBS required to work in the role.

All opportunities with PACT are based in the UK.

Following a successful application to the Henry Smith Foundation we are seeking a passionate, committed and flexible Support Worker (35 hours per week) to join our team to support young people and families, primarily focusing on LGBTQ+ young people but working with the wider team to ensure all young people and families are supported.

The main aims of the post are to ensure:

• The charity delivers quality information, advice, guidance and advocacy services which improve outcomes for LGBTQ+ young people in Calderdale & Kirklees.
• LGBTQ+ young people who face additional access barriers are reached and given the opportunity to engage with the service, reducing their isolation and loneliness.
• LGBTQ+ young people have emotionally healthy relationships with their family, friends and intimate partners.

The above would be achieved through group work, youth groups, parent and family groups, 121 work, attending professional meetings such as Team Around The Family and Child In Need meetings, mediating between families and schools, networking, stand events such as Pride’s and Freshers events, offsite activities and family support sessions.

This is a service user and public facing role. The successful candidate will be expected to attend sessions, meetings and events across in Calderdale & Kirklees

The right candidate will have:

• JNC Level 3 Youth and Community Work qualification or a willingness to undertake training. We welcome applicants with equivalent qualifications and experience in relevant sectors inclusive of child care, teaching, social work, nursing etc (or due to complete 2026 - 2027).

• A minimum 12-months experience of working with children, young people aged 25 and under and/or families
• An ability to assess needs and involve young people in identifying appropriate self-action plans
• Knowledge and understanding of the impact of Homophobia, Biphobia and transphobia on LGBTQ+ young people
• A flexible approach to work and willingness to work some evenings and weekends
• A full clean driving license and access to a car

What you'd get from us:

• Training and development opportunities
• A generous annual leave entitlement, 31 day per year plus bank holidays
• 6% pension contribution
• Life Assurance at three-times salary rate
• An employee health plan, helping with the costs of dental, optical treatments etc
• Access to staff counselling
• Perkbox Employee Benefits - 1000+ deals and discounts
• Travel expenses
• Flexible and hybrid working
• Earn between £26,510.82 – 27,836.36
• Pay award pending

Why you'd work for us:

• So you can use your skills and passion to influence change and improve outcomes for some of the most stigmatised and marginalised people in Calderdale & Kirklees
• Gain experience, build your transferable skills and learn new ones
• Be part of an amazing, committed team challenging stigma, bias, and inequalities

Sydenham Garden is seeking a Community Activities & Volunteering Lead on a Fixed term contract to end of December 2027 to join our team of 14 staff and approximately 70 volunteers in delivering adult mental health and dementia services in our beautiful garden settings in south-east London. 

Position: Community Activities & Volunteering Lead

Contract: Fixed term to 31st December 2027, full time - 37.5 hours per week. Some regular working outside Monday-Friday 9-5 may be required, for which TOIL will be available. Part time and flexible working applications also considered.

Salary: £32,644 plus 6% pension contribution.

Annual Leave: 33 days inclusive of Bank Holidays.

Location: Sydenham Garden Resource Centre, SE23 2LW & De Frene Market Garden, SE26 4AB.

Application closing date: Thursday 5 March 2026, 9am.

Interview date: Thursday 12 March 2026.

About the role

Sydenham Garden, based in Lewisham in South-East London, is a unique wellbeing centre utilising its gardens, nature reserve and activity rooms to help people living with and recovering from mental and physical ill-health. We provide nature and arts based creative, social and therapeutic activities for co-workers (the name we give to our primary beneficiaries). With funding from The National Lottery Community Fund to help us ‘grow our community’ and increase the sustainability of our impact we’re seeking a Community Activities & Volunteering Lead to drive continuous improvement and development of volunteer-led community activities for the benefit of co-workers as well as managing the day to day running of our volunteer programme.

About you

You’ll have experience of recruiting, working with, and managing volunteers, including delivery of skill-building and development activities for volunteers with Lived Experience of mental and/or physical ill health. You’ll have excellent people skills and the ability to demonstrate sensitivity, kindness, and a person-centred understanding of different mental, physical, and neurological needs. You’ll have experience of delivering group activities and working with people with mental/physical-ill health and/or dementia. You’ll have line management experience and be able to provide strategic direction as well as be able to innovate and develop new initiatives and balance competing priorities while being willing to play a team role and get stuck into different activities.

Why you should join us 

We’re a friendly team who are passionate about creating a supportive and inclusive community for people living with mental and physical ill-health. You’ll be part of a supportive team of staff and volunteers, and benefit from spending time in our beautiful gardens and nature reserve.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Sydenham Garden is committed to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI). We want to build a diverse and inclusive staff, volunteer and trustee team where everyone feels that they belong and that reflects the profile of the communities we serve. Therefore, we will welcome and consider applications from candidates of all backgrounds and protected characteristics, and we particularly encourage applications from people of African or Caribbean heritage to ensure our staff team represents the communities we serve.

Recruitment Timeline

Deadline for applications: Thursday 5th March 2026, 9am.

Interviews: Thursday 12th March 2026.

PLEASE SEE ATTACHMENT BELOW TO DOWNLOAD THE JOB DESCRIPTION & PERSON SPECIFICATION AND FOR FULL DETAILS OF HOW TO APPLY INCLUDING OUR EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES MONITORING FORM.

About the role

The Side-by-Side project supports children in care and care leavers to have the same opportunities as those who have not experienced care.

For many young people, navigating the care system and especially the transition to leaving care can be complex, isolating, and overwhelming. Too often, care-experienced young people are expected to face adulthood before they are ready, without the safety nets of family, friends, and community networks that many of us take for granted.

The project provides a mentoring and befriending service, offering consistent, trusted relationships that help young people feel less alone, build confidence and life skills, and navigate key life changes as they move towards independence.

Side-by-Side supports young people with a range of needs, including those who may be at risk of exploitation, unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, and young people living with identified mental health challenges. The project is guided by strong safeguarding practice, built on trust, and delivered through trauma-informed, person-centred approaches.

As a Community Engagement Worker, you will work directly with young people through engagement sessions, group activities and co-designed initiatives. You will also work alongside volunteers, supporting them to safely and effectively engage with young people. This role does not involve acting as a young person’s key worker or holding a caseload. Instead your focus is on enabling connections, strengthening community networks and creating opportunities for young people to thrive across Hertfordshire, Luton and Bedfordshire.

About you

We are looking for a compassionate and motivated individual, to work 21 hours per week that has strong local knowledge and a commitment to community-based support. You will be confident working directly with care-experienced young people, including those who may be at risk of exploitation, unaccompanied asylum-seeking children, and young people living with identified mental health challenges.

You will live in or have strong connections to Hertfordshire, Luton, or Bedfordshire, and be confident working across these communities.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Build community links: develop relationships with local venues, services, and partners to support young people and Side-by-Side activities.
• Support volunteers: recruit, train, and guide volunteers, helping them signpost young people to relevant services.
• Engage young people: deliver activities, gather feedback, and support co-designed initiatives to ensure young people shape the services they receive.
• Live our values: all work is guided by trust, reducing loneliness, providing practical and emotional support, and delivering person-centred approaches.

How to apply

In your application, you will need to evidence, using specific examples, how your skills and experience meet the criteria laid out in the person specification, within the job description attached.

For further information and to apply, please visit our website.

​Safeguarding and Compliance

NYAS operates robust safe procedures to ensure the protection of the children, young people and adults at risk we work with. To comply with NYAS’s Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy, candidates will be subject to an enhanced DBS check, references and a Digital Risk Assessment.

In accordance with UK immigration law, NYAS is required to ensure that all prospective candidates have the legal right to work in the United Kingdom. Therefore, proof of eligibility to work in the UK will be required as part of the recruitment process.

We reserve the right to close the advert early should the right candidate be found before the closing date.

Abbey Community Centre is a vibrant, long-established community charity at the heart of Kilburn, North West London. Every day, we bring people together, reduce isolation and improve health and wellbeing through inclusive activities, services and community support.

We're now looking for an experienced Centre Operations Manager to play a key senior role in ensuring our busy community hub runs safely, smoothly and effectively for the thousands of people who use it each year.

About Abbey Community Centre

Abbey Community Centre works with people of all ages and backgrounds, with a particular focus on older residents and low-income families with young children. We deliver a wide range of activities, services and support including children’s stay-and-play sessions and drop-ins, fitness and wellbeing activities, befriending schemes, digital inclusion support, community meals, warm space provision, food support, volunteering opportunities and specialist outreach.

Alongside this community delivery, we manage a busy public building and a programme of room hire that helps generate income to sustain our work. With a small staff team, over 100 volunteers and many partner organisations, our operations need to be reliable, well-coordinated and people-centred.

The role and its impact

As Centre Operations Manager, you will be the organisation’s senior operational lead on the ground. Working closely with the CEO, you will hold delegated authority for the day-to-day running of the Centre — ensuring the building, people and systems all work together to support high-quality community activity.

This is a hands-on leadership role combining practical problem-solving with people management. You will line manage and help develop operational staff, oversee facilities and contractors, lead on health and safety and operational compliance, support volunteering, and ensure organisational systems and processes function reliably.

Your work will directly enable staff, volunteers and partners to deliver activities and services safely and confidently, and will help ensure Abbey remains a welcoming, accessible and well-run space for the local community.

What you’ll be working on

In this role, you will:

• Oversee daily building operations, maintenance and contractor management

• Lead on health & safety and related compliance, including risk assessments and training

• Line manage & develop operational staff and support a positive, consistent working culture

• Ensure operational policies and procedures are applied effectively in practice

• Support and coordinate volunteering within the centre

• Manage operational budgets and contracts within agreed limits

• Act as a senior member of the management team, deputising for the CEO on agreed matters

Key details

• Location: Abbey Community Centre, Kilburn (NW6 4BJ, London Borough of Camden)

• Hours: 24–28 hours per week (fixed hours agreed at appointment), worked over a minimum of four weekdays

• Core hours: 11.00am–4.00pm (flexibility outside these hours by agreement)

• Contract: Permanent, part-time

• Salary: £40,000–£42,000 per annum, pro rata (depending on experience)

• Annual leave: 30 days pro-rata, rising to 35 days after 5 years’ service (plus bank holidays, pro-rata)

• Pension: NEST pension scheme (if eligible)

• Some evening and occasional weekend working is required

This role could be right for you if…

You are an experienced operational manager who enjoys combining leadership with practical delivery, thrives in a public-facing environment, and wants your work to make a visible difference to a local community. You don’t need to tick every box — we’re interested in your experience, judgement, approach and motivation.

Abbey Community Centre is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and we welcome applications from candidates from a wide range of backgrounds. Reasonable adjustments will be offered throughout the recruitment process.