An exciting opportunity to be involved in the development of a growing adult literacy charity as it expands across Central England
One in 20 adults in the UK has never learnt to read at all. This can have a serious impact on their confidence and wellbeing, limiting access to training, employment, and everyday opportunities that many take for granted. Being unable to read as an adult can be isolating and dangerous, reinforces social inequality, restricts economic growth, and worsens intergenerational disadvantage - but it is never too late to learn.
Read Easy helps adults transform their lives by learning to read. It does this by supporting its growing network of locally run, volunteer-led affiliated groups that offer free, confidential, one-to-one reading coaching—both in person and online to adults - aged from 18-88.
With its free, flexible, confidential approach, Read Easy encourages people who are too embarrassed to join a class to come forward for one-to-one support. Each new reader is provided with their own personal Reading Coach, so that they can learn in private and at their own pace. Learning to read transforms their lives in many other ways as well, including enabling them to support their children’s and grandchildren’s reading, and so transfers the benefits to the next generation.
There are currently 80 affiliated Read Easy groups across England, together involving more than a thousand volunteers. Read Easy UK is the registered charity and umbrella organisation which supports this network of affiliated volunteer groups and provides the structure, training and support to enable volunteers to establish groups in new areas.
As our Central Regional Adviser, your role would be to provide strategic leadership, guidance, and oversight to ensure that all volunteer groups consistently deliver high-quality services aligned with Read Easy UK’s strategy.
You will support local volunteer leaders to strengthen group performance, and foster collaboration across affiliated groups, so that that they deliver coaching to Readers with consistent quality, and a positive and worthwhile experience is had by all.
You will also find volunteers to ‘pioneer’ three new groups in the counties where there is no Read Easy presence in the East and West Midlands and East of England and provide them and our 29 existing groups and pioneers in the region, with high-quality support. Your quality support will ensure that they provide the same for their volunteers and new Readers. From meeting (mostly online) with Team Leaders to provide one to one support, and hosting online and annual in-person volunteer forums, to delivering presentations and occaisonal training for small groups of volunteers, this is a dynamic and rewarding role.
This is a home-based post requiring flexibility, some early evening working and occaisional travel to visit groups. The role is available on either a full or part time basis (min 32 hours p/w, 85% of 37.5 hours p/w FTE).
The successful candidate will be expected to:
- Live within one of the following areas: West Midlands (Defined as the 7 metropolitan boroughs of Birmingham, Coventry, Dudley, Sandwell, Solihull, Walsall, and Wolverhampton), Warwickshire, Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire, Northamptonshire, Leicestershire or Rutland;
- have been employed to work with volunteers for at least two years;
- have strong people management and interpersonal skills; excellent communication skills; and the confidence to run meetings and deliver presentations.
Salary & Benefits
- Annual Salary £25,075 (85% FTE) -£29,500 (100% FTE)
- 25 days holiday plus bank holidays and Christmas closing and 2 days volunteering leave – pro-rata for part time roles
- Company sick pay to financially support you when you are unwell (above statutory upon completion of probationary period)
- Support when extending your family – company parental and adoption pay (above statutory after 12 months service)
- Access to RewardHub – which gives retail discounts and has a ‘Wellbeing Centre’ with tools, tips, recipes, workout videos and guides which will help you to reach your own wellbeing goals
- Training and Development opportunities and resources – we are developing personal plans in this area to enhance employee experience and opportunity
- A collaborative, creative and inspiring working environment full of committed and passionate employees and inspirational volunteers
We strive to ensure our recruitment practices are fair, open, easy to access and as inclusive as possible. We aim to recruit a team which broadly reflect the local communities which we serve; to work with and learn from each other to continually improve the service we deliver to our Readers. Our Equality, Diversity & Inclusion Group is actively promoting and advancing diversity and inclusion, ensuring a culture where everyone can be themselves and thrive. We welcome you to apply and be your authentic self.
When applying for a job with us, if an applicant has a disability covered by the definition outlined within the Equality Act 2010 and can show that they meet the ‘essential criteria’ described in the person specification for the role being applied for, they are guaranteed an interview for the job for which they are applying through our Disability Confident scheme.
If you need any support with your application, please contact us,
The closing date for this post is 10:00 Tuesday 15th July 2025. Should you be shortlisted, the first round of interviews will take place online on Wednesday 23rd July, with in-person interviews, being held in Gloucestershire or West Midlands, on Tuesday 29th July 2025.
The successful candidate will be invited to meet the team on 31st July in Birmingham, should they be able to do so.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Job Title: Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Location: Remote (UK-based preferred)
Travel: Travel to Calais and UK operational sites required
Contract: Full-time, permanent
Salary: £40,000 per annum
Deadline to Apply: 16 July 2025
How to Apply: Please submit your CV and a cover letter outlining your suitability for the role and motivation for working with Care4Calais.
About Care4Calais
Care4Calais is a volunteer-led humanitarian charity providing essential aid and support to refugees and asylum seekers in Northern France and across the UK. Founded on principles of dignity, compassion, and solidarity, we are committed to creating a fairer, more inclusive society for those seeking refuge.
From providing warm clothing, English classes to legal access, education, and social support, we work tirelessly—through a network of grassroots volunteers and a small, dedicated staff teams—to deliver life-changing help to displaced people. With operations in Calais, Dunkirk, and over 70 locations in the UK, our impact is wide-reaching and continually growing.
About the Role
We are seeking an exceptional Chief Operating Officer (COO) to lead and oversee the strategic delivery of Care4Calais’ operational (direct aid provision) work across all regions. This is quite a newly created role that will play a central part in shaping the charity’s growth, resilience, and day-to-day effectiveness—ensuring our humanitarian aid reaches those who need it most.
The COO will work closely with the CEO, Senior Leadership Team, and Trustees, to develop internal systems, guide operational teams, maintain consistency across all projects, and strengthen our digital communications, training, safeguarding, and volunteer engagement. You will also play a key leadership role in fostering innovation, implementing policy, and coordinating multi-regional delivery across the UK and Northern France.
This is a remote-based role, but regular travel to operational sites in Calais and around the UK is essential to ensure quality, cohesion, and morale across our field teams and volunteer network.
Key Responsibilities
➣ Strategic & Operational Leadership
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Oversee the delivery of all operational activities across the UK and French field sites, ensuring they align with Care4Calais’ mission, values, and strategic goals.
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Lead and support UK Field Operations Managers and France Operations Coordinators in planning and executing aid distributions, support services, and community engagement.
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Monitor performance across regions, using data and feedback to drive improvements in impact, efficiency, safety, and volunteer satisfaction.
➣ Volunteer Coordination & Digital Community Oversight
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Supervise volunteer communication channels, including Facebook groups, WhatsApp chats, and other platforms, ensuring all messaging is consistent, safe, and in line with our organisational tone and values.
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Support the recruitment, onboarding, training, and retention of a diverse and inclusive volunteer base.
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Work daily with Field Operations Managers to provide hands-on guidance, motivation, problem-solving and support for regional leads and volunteer teams.
➣ Training, Safeguarding & Compliance
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Develop, maintain, and implement comprehensive training programmes for volunteers to ensure service quality, safety, and dignity for people seeking asylum.
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Ensure that safeguarding policies are understood by all team members, staff and volunteers alike, and rigorously implemented, acting as a point of escalation for issues that arise.
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Oversee incident reporting processes, risk assessments, and other compliance-related procedures to safeguard both volunteers and people seeking asylum.
➣ Organisational Development & Governance
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Contribute to strategic planning and policy development with the CEO, and SLT.
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Identify opportunities for innovation in service delivery, volunteer management, and infrastructure.
➣ Field Engagement & External Representation
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Conduct regular visits to UK and French operational sites, meeting with local teams, assessing needs, and providing in-person leadership and support.
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Represent Care4Calais in meetings with partner organisations and local authorities, and at public events.
Person Specification
Essential
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Demonstrable experience managing multi-site teams.
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Strong leadership, organisational and communication skills, with the ability to delegate effectively and manage competing priorities.
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Deep understanding of issues affecting asylum seekers, displaced people, or those facing immigration challenges.
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Commitment to anti-racism, inclusivity, and the promotion of human rights.
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Ability and willingness to travel frequently to field operations across the UK and Calais.
Desirable
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Proven experience in a senior operational, COO, or equivalent leadership role within the charity, humanitarian or grassroots community sector.
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Experience working with refugee communities or within the UK asylum system.
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Understanding of safeguarding, compliance, and humanitarian best practices.
Equality & Safeguarding
Care4Calais is an equal opportunities employer. We actively encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities, people from refugee and migrant backgrounds, LGBTQ+ individuals, disabled candidates, and those with lived experience of immigration system.
All appointments are subject to enhanced safeguarding checks.
Lived Experience Inclusion
We are an anti-racist organisation and a proud member of the Experts by Experience Employment Network (EBE), which aims to create a charitable sector led by individuals with lived experience of the asylum system.
As part of our membership, we are dedicated to creating inclusive employment practices that recognise and accommodate the unique circumstances and strengths of people with lived experience. We actively move away from a one-size-fits-all approach, ensuring our recruitment processes are fair, supportive, and accessible.
We warmly encourage applicants with lived experience to make use of the guidance and resources available on the EBE website (ebeemployment).
In addition, applicants with lived experience are welcome to connect with the EBE support team for tailored assistance with completing the application form and, where available, one-to-one interview preparation.
Importantly, we recognise the significant cultural, linguistic, and experiential insights that individuals with lived experience of the UK asylum system bring to this role. As such, all applicants from this background who meet the essential criteria will be automatically shortlisted and invited to interview.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Location: Home based
Contract: Fixed term until 31 March 2026 – Full time 35hrs per week
Salary: £27,250 gross per annum
Closing Date: 21 July 2025
Assessment Day: 5 August 2025
Are you looking for a new opportunity?
The Marine Society & Sea Cadets (MSSC) is a vibrant and growing charity delivering life changing nautical adventure for young people through the Sea Cadets to give them the best possible head start in life. We also provide personal and professional development opportunities for seafarers with the Marine Society. Working with our staff, cadets, and volunteers, we have built a vision and five-year strategy to take us forward and further improve the astounding contribution already made through our work to the lives of thousands of young people and seafarers, while fully supporting our volunteers who are vital to our success.
We are currently looking for a Growth and Development Worker based in England to join our team. This is an externally funded post which will be focused on opening new provision and supporting existing provision in order to reduce waiting lists within specific funding areas. This is a very varied and rewarding role that requires someone who is self-motivated, organised, creative, tenacious, positive, IT competent and with a real interest in people. You need to be able to coach, empower and inspire our volunteers and cadets, both in person and remotely, to grow the Sea Cadets.
Responsibilities
- Delivering a variety of training sessions on, for example, recruitment of cadets and volunteers
- Developing new growth and recruitment tools and ideas
- Promoting flexible volunteering and the volunteer strategy
- Assisting with running our social media accounts
- Working with and empowering our volunteers to develop plans for growth
- Planning and setting up Juniors Sections in new and existing locations/units
- Delivering assemblies in schools
- Forming part of various working groups with colleagues to develop the tools, resources and processes needed to increase the positive impact of the Growth and Development team.
- Supporting the delivery of funded outreach projects
Requirements
- Previous experience of working with volunteers
- Experience delivering on multiple project plans simultaneously
- Ability to build and maintain excellent relationships with a variety of stakeholders remotely and face-to-face
- Experience delivering workshops and/or training
- Self-motivated and able to manage your time and workload effectively
- Flexible and enthusiastic
- Able to work as a team player with creative ideas and solutions who will empower our volunteers to make a difference to the lives of even more young people across the UK
For further information, please download the attached Recruitment Pack.
Benefits
- Flexible Working hours and a hybrid culture
- Cycle to work scheme and Season Ticket Loan
- 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
- Life assurance (4x salary) for those that join the pension
- Private medical insurance
- Pension (employer contribution up to 10%)
- Wellbeing portal and EAP with 121 counselling
- Employee development: We are investing in our employees' development and have an annual calendar of learning and development opportunities, designed to support employees to develop into their roles and stretch them to achieve their full potential.
- National staff conference: All employees come together once a year to reflect on the past year and celebrate success at our offsite staff conference. This is a great opportunity to listen to employees' views, and for employees to network, share information and socialise.
If you are interested in this Growth and Development vacancy, please apply now!
Additional Information
MSSC positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates from all backgrounds. Equity, diversity, and inclusion really matters to us, so we can best serve our beneficiaries from every community. We work to ensure a fair and consistent recruitment process and aim to be a charity where diversity of experience, identity and skills are valued and welcomed. MSSC is an equal opportunities employer.
We recognise our responsibilities to safeguard and protect the young people and vulnerable adults with whom we work. We do all we can to promote their health, safety and wellbeing, and we expect our staff to share this commitment and work in line with safeguarding policy, the MSSC’s values and ethos of inclusivity. We adhere to safer recruitment practices and therefore employment is subject to detailed pre-employment checks for successful candidates, including references and criminal disclosure checks and the completion of a disclosure questionnaire.
All successful applicants are required to attend safeguarding training and undergo a criminal record check.
Registered Charity
101 - 500
We help launch young people for life through adventure.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Are you passionate about supporting and empowering children and young people to thrive?
Would you like to work for an independent organisation that fosters creativity, encourages everyone to contribute to organisational growth and makes sure staff feel supported and valued?
SAFE! Support for Young People Affected by Crime is an independent charity working across the Thames Valley. We are looking for an experienced practitioner to join our team providing high quality individual and group support to children and young people affected by crime within SAFE!’s CYP Support After Crime and Abuse Service.
Role: SACA Project Worker
Location: Buckinghamshire
Hours: 30 hours a week (requests for job-share and part-time hours considered)
Salary: £26,900 to £29,657 pro rata
We are looking for people who can quickly engage and build trust with young people. You should have a track-record of working with children and young people in a supportive role. An enthusiastic self-starter with excellent communication skills, you will have experience of multi-agency working and a commitment to high-standards of professionalism.
Please visit our website for further details and to apply
Closing date: 5pm Sunday 3rd August 2025
Interviews: 14 & 15th August 2025
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.