We currently have several Trainee Habilitation Specialist vacancies advertised across the South West region. Please only submit one application; this should be to your preferred location. If invited to interview, you will be given the opportunity to express interest in other locations.

As this role requires an Enhanced Disclosure check, job offers will be subject to the receipt of a satisfactory check.

As a Trainee Habilitation Specialist, you will contribute, as a full-time member of staff, to the services delivered by the Reading, Bristol, Exeter or Wales team (working regionally across the South West area) whilst successfully completing all elements of the 2-year Graduate Diploma in Habilitation and Disabilities of Sight (Children and Young People).

The content of the training will be covered through a mix of on the job, and off the job training.

On the job training will be provided by Guide Dogs as part of the habilitation team in the role of Trainee Habilitation Specialist. Off the job training will be covered by the University course, delivered by University College London (UCL), key details of which are below.

University College London Course key dates

Application deadline date (if successful, applications must be made to UCL by this date): 31st March 2022.

UCL Assessment dates: N/A

Course dates: UCL Starting in September 2022, 2-year course.

Successful applicants will be required to apply to, and be accepted by, University College London for Graduate Diploma in Habilitation and Disabilities of Sight (Children and Young People) course. 

The applications need to be submitted after a job offer has been made and accepted and before 31st March 2022 to increase the chance of gaining a place on the course. Places on the University course are limited for the September 2022 start date, and offers will be made on a first-come, first-served basis. Positions are not held back for Guide Dogs employees.

Note: Guide Dogs will pay the tuition fees as part of the position of Trainee Habilitation Specialist.

Please refer to the recruitment pack below for more information on the training and University course.

We cannot provide sponsorship for the role.

We reserve the right to close adverts earlier than the closing date.

Candidate profile

How to apply 

Applications need to be made using the online application form, accessed using the ‘apply’ button above. As part of your application, ensure you provide evidence and examples of how your skills & experience meet the criteria set out in the attached job description. 

The system does have a time limit, and we would advise you to complete your answers and copy and paste them into the online form once finalised. Please note that you’ll have to upload a CV as this is a mandatory requirement as part of our Safer Recruitment Policy.

Guide Dogs follow Safer Recruitment practices to ensure we are safeguarding the vulnerable people we work with. As part of this, we require a full work history with any gaps accounted for & a minimum of 2 professional referee details fully covering the past 5 years. If there is not enough space in your application form to provide this information, please ensure you upload additional documentation containing the additional detail.

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 below. Requirements include.

You will:

• Be familiar with working with children and young people and a proven ability to establish effective working relationships with them and their parents or carers. 
• Committed to multi-agency working and can demonstrate a strong ability to liaise effectively with other professionals/agencies.
• Access to a car or suitable transport arrangements

Please note: job offers will be subject to acceptance onto the University College London for Graduate Diploma in Habilitation and Disabilities of Sight (Children and Young People) course.

Diversity 

Guide Dogs welcomes applications from all sections of the community and actively encourages diversity to maximise achievements, creativity and good practice. We positively welcome and seek to ensure we achieve diversity in our workforce and that all job applicants and employees receive equal and fair treatment, regardless of age, race, gender, religion, sexual orientation, disability or nationality. We encourage applications from disabled people as they are currently under-represented in the organisation and guarantee an invite to interview for all disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the job.

Safeguarding 

Guide Dogs is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children, young people and adults at risk of harm with whom we work. We expect all our employees and volunteers to fully share this commitment.

Elrha is looking for an experienced Innovation Manager to apply their skills in Elrha’s fast-paced and creative Humanitarian Innovation Fund (HIF) This is not a fundraising role; the HIF aims to improve outcomes for people affected by humanitarian crises by identifying more effective and scalable innovative solutions. 

Our Innovation Managers are passionate about identifying the most pressing humanitarian problems, analysing opportunities for innovation, working with sector experts to investigate solutions and designing funding calls (innovation challenges) to address them. This role presents an opportunity to develop credible technical expertise and a respected profile in humanitarian innovation. 

This varied role includes managing an innovation portfolio through fostering effective partnerships and supporting to grantees to achieve maximum impact. The role requires the ability to work autonomously whilst proactively collaborating with sector and technical experts. It also aims to lead the development of technical innovation expertise both internally as well as externally. 

We are looking for exceptional candidates with a good mix of skills and experience across three areas: innovation, facilitation, and project management. 

1. Innovation: You will bring significant experience of developing creative innovation journeys and bringing ideas from conception to completion. You will have strong project management expertise to lead innovation processes in collaboration with key stakeholders and sector experts. Candidates will need a firm theoretical and practical grasp of key innovation concepts, tools and approaches. We welcome experience from the private, public or voluntary sectors.
    
2. Facilitation: The role requires the ability to build and maintain strong working relationships with diverse stakeholders and audiences, bringing excellent verbal and written communication skills. You will need to demonstrate a track record of organising and facilitating interactive, inclusive and accessible workshops — both in person and remotely - and convening interdisciplinary and diverse groups. Your communication skills will extend to the ability to write and talk about Elrha’s work, presenting compelling stories about our innovations to achieve maximum impact within the sector. 
    
3. Project management: Our innovation managers  need sensitive management skills to lead projects addressing complex issues in an ethical and thoughtful way.  Given the nature of our areas of work, (eg Gender-based Violence (GBV)), it is essential that applicants are able to manage projects in a sensitive and appropriate manner. 

The successful candidate will  be in a position to build a technically credible and respected profile in the relevant thematic humanitarian sector(s), and  provide excellent technical oversight and effective management across this thematic portfolio of innovation grants. We anticipate that this role will support our GBV and Water, Hygiene and Sanitation (WASH) portfolios, though prior experience in either specific area is not a requirement.

Please demonstrate clearly in your application how your experience is different from standard programming or delivery experience. For example, how have you drawn on innovation tools and approaches to identify and solve priority problems? Please note that we will assess your communication skills on the quality of your personal statement and CV as well as any presented achievements. 

About Elrha 

Elrha is a global charity that finds solutions to complex humanitarian problems through research and innovation. We fund and support projects that go on to shape the way in which people across the world are supported during a crisis. We are based in the UK, but our roles have a global reach. We’re an established and respected part of the humanitarian community, working closely and meaningfully with our fellow networks and actors to make change happen. 

Remote Working 

Elrha employees are currently working remotely within the UK in line with UK Government guidance. In Spring 2022 we will transition to flexible and hybrid ways of working (i.e. a mixture of remote/home and office-based working) as social distancing restrictions ease. 

We are happy to discuss flexible working options at interview. 

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion 

Elrha is committed to diversity and equality of opportunity in all aspects of our work both external and internal. We strive to be an inclusive employer and particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups such as returning parents or carers who are re-entering work after a career break, people who are LGBTQ+, from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, with a disability, impairment, learning difference or long-term condition, with caring responsibilities, from different nations and regions, and from less advantaged socioeconomic backgrounds. 

Salaries and benefits 

Jobs are positioned within the salary structure on the basis of evaluation. New employees will usually be appointed at the bottom of the grade, however the appointed salary may also take into account the relevant experience a candidate brings to a role. Elrha is committed to paying staff in a fair and equitable way and will benchmark all salary offers in line with the pay of existing staff. 

Elrha also has a comprehensive benefits package including 25 days holiday entitlement which increases year on year, 5% employer pension contribution (3% employee contribution) and life cover. 

 Pre-employment Checks 

Any employment with Elrha will be subject to the following checks prior to your start date: 

• a satisfactory police record check to include a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and/or an International Criminal Record Check (If applicable) 

• receipt of satisfactory references 

• proof of eligibility to work in the national location for this role 

Elrha is a wholly owned subsidiary of Save the Children. We are able to benefit from a range of support services provided by Save the Children UK, including recruitment systems. For this reason you will be directed to Save the Children UK’s job portal upon clicking ‘apply’. 

Please ensure you read the full job description and complete the Personal Statement as requested in the application process. We look forward to hearing from you. 

Closing date: 30 January 2022 Interviews: w/c 7 February 2022 

Are you highly organised with good grant management skills? Are you committed to improving humanitarian outcomes and do you believe that research and innovation should be at the centre of efforts to improve humanitarian effectiveness? Could you communicate effectively with a range of external stakeholders, at all levels of seniority, both verbally and in writing?

We are looking to recruit a highly effective programme officer to join our dynamic humanitarian innovation team. You will provide effective management across our portfolio of innovation grants and support the operational delivery of the programme and innovation management activities.

You will need to demonstrate

• Experience of coordinating grant management processes or similar, including excellent administration and organisation skills 

• Excellent communication skills with the ability to liaise with a diverse range of grantees 

• Ability to understand and monitor financial expenditure reports 

• A resourceful, proactive approach with the ability to work in a constantly changing environment. 

• A strong interest in humanitarian innovation and the impact it can have on those living in crises 

About Elrha 

Elrha is a global charity that finds solutions to complex humanitarian problems through research and innovation. We fund and support projects that go on to shape the way in which people across the world are supported during a crisis. We are based in the UK, but our roles have a global reach. We’re an established and respected part of the humanitarian community, working closely and meaningfully with our fellow networks and actors to make change happen. 

Remote Working 

Elrha employees are currently working remotely within the UK in line with UK Government guidance. In Spring 2022 we will transition to flexible and hybrid ways of working (i.e. a mixture of remote/home and office-based working) as social distancing restrictions ease. 

We are happy to discuss flexible working options at interview. 

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion 

Elrha is committed to diversity and equality of opportunity in all aspects of our work both external and internal. We strive to be an inclusive employer and particularly encourage applications from under-represented groups such as returning parents or carers who are re-entering work after a career break, people who are LGBTQ+, from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, with a disability, impairment, learning difference or long-term condition, with caring responsibilities, from different nations and regions, and from less advantaged socioeconomic backgrounds. 

Salaries and benefits 

Elrha is committed to paying staff in a fair and equitable way and will benchmark all salary offers in line with the pay of existing staff. 

Elrha also has a comprehensive benefits package including 25 days holiday entitlement which increases year on year, 5% employer pension contribution (3% employee contribution) and life cover. 

Pre-employment Checks 

Any employment with Elrha will be subject to the following checks prior to your start date: 

• a satisfactory police record check to include a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and/or an International Criminal Record Check (If applicable) 

• receipt of satisfactory references 

• proof of eligibility to work in the national location for this role 

Elrha is a wholly owned subsidiary of Save the Children. We are able to benefit from a range of support services provided by Save the Children UK, including recruitment systems. For this reason you will be directed to Save the Children UK’s job portal upon clicking ‘apply’. 

Please ensure you read the full job description and complete the Personal Statement as requested in the application process. We look forward to hearing from you. 

Closing date: 30 January 2022 Interviews: w/c 7 February 2022