Independent Advocate Jobs in Manchester, Greater Manchester
Do you want the unique opportunity to work in a fast-paced service, delivering exceptional support to families bereaved by and witness to homicide; coordinating a tailored package of support to service users and their families?
Would you enjoy working closely with Police Major Crime teams providing briefings on the work we do in the Homicide Service (HS)?
If yes, then we'd love to hear from you; we have an exciting opportunity for a Homicide Family Caseworker to join our team, you will be based in Thames Valley working 37.5 hours a week. The team you will be joining within HS covers London and South Central.
What we offer:
At Victim Support we believe in attracting & retaining the best people and offer a competitive rewards & benefits package including:
- Flexible working options including hybrid working
- 28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays, rising to 33 days plus Bank Holidays
- An extra day off for your birthday
- Pension with 5% employer contribution
- Enhanced sick pay allowances, maternity & paternity payments
- High Street, retail, holiday, entertainment & leisure discounts
- Access to our financial wellbeing hub & salary deducted finance
- Employee assistance programme & wellbeing support
- Ongoing training & support with opportunities for career development & progression
About the role:
You will be joining a passionate and committed team who provide high quality and bespoke support to service users. We pride ourselves on exceptional trauma informed advocacy and support to all service users.
You will be driven to make a difference every day with the ability to focus on the needs of vulnerable service users. You will have resilience and adaptability; understand the importance of professional boundaries; have excellent listening skills and the ability to demonstrate empathy. You will enjoy the challenge of a busy caseload and will be able to demonstrate the excellent organisation skills essential to managing a demanding and diverse workload.
Once in post you will benefit from the mandatory comprehensive training programme which will build on your existing skills and experience to prepare you for the role. Homicide Service training includes, criminal justice process; trauma informed approach to support; supporting traumatically bereaved families; personal and professional resilience.
As a fully trained Homicide Family Caseworker you will be responsible for managing your own complex caseload to the highest quality standards. You will need to be able to travel to home visits within, and occasionally outside of area, and therefore a driving license and use of a car are essential. You will be reimbursed for all travel costs.
Please read carefully the attached Job Description and Person Specification for further details, this is essential for your application.
About Us:
Victim Support (VS) is an independent charity providing a range of specialist services to people who have been affected by crime across England and Wales. We work towards a world where there are fewer victims but who have stronger rights, better support and a real influence in the Criminal Justice System. Everyone at VS is driven by our Vision Ambitions and Values to play their part in making a difference for those who experience crime and traumatic events. Working for VS gives you the opportunity to play a key role in a national charity providing high quality services to victims and witnesses and being a vital force for change.
Victim Support are committed to recruiting with care and to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Background checks and Disclosed Barring Service checks may be required.
Victim Support is committed to supporting and promoting equality and diversity and to creating an inclusive working environment. We believe having a diverse workforce at all levels allows us to represent the communities we serve and connect better with people affected by crime. We believe this can be achieved through attracting, developing and retaining a diverse range of staff from many different backgrounds. We therefore welcome applicants from all communities and monitor the diversity of applicants to analyse if we are representative of the communities we serve in terms of sex, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, trans identity, relationship status, religion or belief, caring responsibilities, age and socio-economic status. As part of our commitment to the Race at Work Charter we would particularly welcome applicants from BAME communities
How to apply:
To apply for this role please follow the link below to the Jobs page on our website, and complete the application form demonstrating how you meet the essential shortlisting criteria. Please give examples where appropriate, and show your aptitude for post. Please ensure you answer each shortlisting criteria including the need to drive and have your own mode of transport.
We looking forward to hearing from you.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early, if we receive enough suitable applications to take forward to interview prior to the published closing date.
We have an exciting opportunity for a Domestic Abuse Caseworker to join the team in Accrington, working 37.5 hours a week.
Do you want to make a difference every day? Do you want to contribute to change & improvement for those who need it? Do you have resilience & adaptability? Can you work effectively with a focus on customer service and care?
If yes, then we'd love to hear from you
What we offer:
At Victim Support we believe in attracting & retaining the best people and offer a competitive rewards & benefits package including:
- Flexible working options including hybrid working
- 28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays, rising to 33 days plus Bank Holidays
- An extra day off for your Birthday
- Pension with 5% employer contribution
- Enhanced sick pay allowances, maternity & paternity payments
- High Street, retail, holiday, entertainment & leisure discounts
- Access to our financial wellbeing hub & salary deducted finance
- Employee assistance programme & wellbeing support
- Ongoing training & support with opportunities for career development & progression
About the role:
This role is based at Accrington. Once your probation period is completed you will be eligible to apply for hybrid working. As a Domestic Abuse Caseworker, you will be:
- Focusing on victims of domestic abuse, providing a pro-active, short to medium term crisis intervention service
- Supporting victims face to face & over the telephone
- Developing individual safety plans to meet client's needs as identified in the needs & risk assessment
- Providing advocacy, emotional & practical support and information to victims including legal & civil options, housing, health & finance and support through the criminal justice system.
- Participating in multi-agency meetings acting as the voice of the client
You will need to:
- Have a good understanding of domestic abuse including the impact of domestic abuse on victims and their children.
- Understand the principles of risk assessment, safety planning and risk management for victims of domestic abuse and their children
- Understand Safeguarding issues, and the legal responsibilities surrounding these issues
- Have theoretical, practical and procedural knowledge of civil and criminal justice remedies for victims of domestic abuse and their children
- Experience of working within a multi-agency and legislative framework
- Experience of managing a complex caseload, to prioritise work and deal with competing demands demonstrating an organised and methodical approach to work
- Have strong crisis management skills and the ability to deal with stressful and difficult situations
- Have excellent communication, negotiation and advisory skills, both written and verbal when interacting with a range of agencies and individuals
- Demonstrate the ability to use IT applications competently including, Microsoft Word, Excel etc. and Case Management systems in order to keep accurate records and monitoring your performance.
- This role involves regular travel and due to the location, a driving license and access to a vehicle is considered an essential requirement.
Please see attached Job Description and Person Specification for further details.
About Us:
Victim Support (VS) is an independent charity providing a range of specialist services to people who have been affected by crime across England and Wales. We work towards a world where there are fewer victims but who have stronger rights, better support and a real influence in the Criminal Justice System. Everyone at VS is driven by our Vision Ambitions and Values to play their part in making a difference for those who experience crime and traumatic events. Working for VS gives you the opportunity to play a key role in a national charity providing high quality services to victims and witnesses and being a vital force for change.
Victim Support are committed to recruiting with care and to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Background checks and Disclosed Barring Service checks may be required.
Victim Support strives to represent the diverse communities we serve and are passionate about creating an environment where all staff and volunteers feel respected and heard. Being a diverse organisation with an inclusive culture is integral to us being able to meet our aim of ensuring that anyone who is a victim of crime gets the support they need.
As part of our commitment to the Race at Work Charter we particularly welcome applicants from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities. VS is also a Disability Confident Employer and we provide a Guaranteed Interview Scheme for candidates that are disabled and meet all essential criteria for a role.
If you have a disability, a learning difficulty such as dyslexia or a medical condition which you believe may affect your performance during any aspect of our selection process, we'll be happy to make reasonable adjustments to enable you to perform at your best.
How to apply:
To apply for this role please follow the link below to the Jobs page on our website and complete the application form demonstrating how you meet the essential shortlisting criteria.
We look forward to hearing from you.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early, if we receive enough suitable applications to take forward to interview prior to the published closing date.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as the applications come in. Don’t miss your opportunity, apply now!
Location: Home or office (Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire) working available. This role is available fully remotely.
Hours of work: This role is offered between 15 and 36.25 hours per week. This will be discussed with candidates at the interview.
Contract: This is a temporary position. Because of the uncertainty of the availability of funding, the Company cannot at this stage confirm exactly how long this will be for and cannot guarantee you any minimum or maximum period of employment.
*Candidates should be able to start as soon as possible and no later than 29 May 2024
About the role
The Welfare Scheme Assessor will be a part of a small, but committed team with big ambitions that works cohesively and effectively together to get things done.
You’ll be an important and valued member of the team and, with the support of North Lincolnshire Citizens Advice, will be responsible for ensuring client focused outcomes are met in a pressurised environment.
You’ll be the first point of contact for residents applying for support from the welfare assistance scheme. You’ll offer applicants a holistic assessment designed to maximise household income, reduce expenditure and build greater financial wellbeing.
You’ll enable people to move as quickly as possible to problem resolution and to manage their essential needs so they are less likely to fall into debt and manage cost of living increases.
You’ll be responsible for making decisions on applications for financially based welfare support and will administer funds to households who would otherwise struggle to buy food or pay essential utility bills or meet other essential living costs.
You’ll enable people to take control of their financial wellbeing and signpost them to local statutory services and community groups that provide practical, social and emotional support.
What we offer our staff
We provide an employee assistance scheme managed by LifeWorks. Benefits include:
- 24/7 - 365 telephone helpline
- LifeWorks online support website
- LifeWorks app
- 6 sessions of face to face counselling per issue – unlimited issues per annum
- Employee legal helpline
- Consulting services – financial, debt advice, housing, relocation, parenting, eldercare, work performance, health and wellness advice and much more
- Childcare and eldercare matching service
- Savings on everyday purchases and life events
- Access for family members and dependants – excluding counselling and legal advice
Annual leave: Annual leave is 25 days from 1st January to 31st December, plus 8 bank holidays. We offer additional long service leave of 5 days after 4 years of employment
How to apply:
The recruitment process and how to apply You should submit:
- A CV no longer than two pages
- Cover letter detailing how your skills and experience will help you in the role.
Applicants will be assessed and interviews offered on a rolling basis.
Citizens UK and the NRPF Partnership
Citizens UK
We are Citizens UK. We’re working together to make change on the issues that matter, from campaigning for zebra crossings on dangerous roads, to reforming the immigration system, to the Living Wage campaign.
We bring together everyday people and local organisations to build a better, fairer society. Too often communities are left out of decisions that affect their lives, but we know everyday people have the ability to shape the world around them. We develop local leaders who find solutions to problems big and small and hold power-holders to account.
We work with hundreds of civil society organisations, who we call our members - schools, universities, faith groups, charities, unions and more - to help them win change. Over the last 30 years, we’ve worked in alliance with 500+ members, trained 4,000+ community leaders, accredited 13,000 Living Wage employers, and won hundreds of campaigns.
NRPF Partnership
The NRPF partnership was set up in 2023 and is being developed by Citizens UK, Migration Exchange, and Praxis. We are working to build the necessary infrastructure for collaboration across a range of organisations, amplify their work, and build power to win change against the No Recourse to Public Funds (NRPF) condition. You can learn more about the overall initiative via our FAQs page.
Each partner contributes staff capacity and will work closely with the appointed person to ensure a positive, professional and supportive culture. The Partnership centres around:
1) Placing decision-making power and strategic vision in the hands of people doing the work
(frontline staff and people with lived experience), via a steering group and working groups.
2) Establishing a strategic pooled fund so that the steering group has sufficient budget to guide the collaboration, act, identify and seize political opportunities, and facilitate active participation of everyone involved.
3) Expanding the movement and building power, using incremental wins to build towards broader change towards the goal of ending NRPF.
The Person and the Role
100,000s people in our communities have put down roots in the UK but are denied access to the welfare safety net (No Recourse to Public Funds).
Citizens UK has worked with Migration Exchange and Praxis to raise over £2m to develop a 5 year partnership to enable the movement to end NRPF.
This Senior Project role will be a core part of the support to the steering group of the partnership to make sure it runs effectively and achieves its potential.
If you're angry about injustice in the immigration system, have good communication and relationship building skills and self organised - apply below. We are particularly keen to hear from candidates who have been through the immigration system themselves.
We are looking for a values-driven and experienced person with exceptional skills and knowledge in project management, relationship-building, and community organising. This role will lead and coordinate all project management and tactical activities necessary to support the day-to-day functioning of the NRPF Partnership. The right person will be highly motivated by joining the distinctive ethos of Citizens UK and the shared values of the NRPF Partnership, where local leaders and people experiencing injustice are in the lead, and where grassroots community organising is combined with strategies for social change.
This role is a really exciting opportunity to forge real change and to shift the power dynamics in social change work. The successful candidate will be at the heart of making change happen on one of the most important social justice issues of our time. Top Priorities
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Building and maintaining relationships and communication – maintaining excellent working relationships and effective communications with the Coordination Backbone Group (CBG), Steering Group, working groups, wider community partners involved in the NRPF partnership, and the Citizens UK Migration Team
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Managing and coordinating capacity-building and leadership development in support of the shared strategy set by the steering group– developing and maintaining the effectiveness of a capacity-building and leadership development inputs that enables everyone in the Partnership, especially those with expertise by lived experience, to fully participate across all levels of the Partnership
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Project managing all partnership implementation logistics and follow-up – managing meeting logistics from planning to scheduling to outreach to follow-up to ensure seamless participation of Steering Group and Working Group members and ensure that planned activities take place effectively in support of the goals and values of the Partnership
The role will be reporting to Assistant Director, Migrant and Refugee Organising.
Main Responsibilities
Reporting directly to X with oversight from the NRPF Partnership CBG, the post holder will be expected to manage their own independent workload, as well as support the broader CBG. The main responsibilities are outlined below:
Working with the NRPF Partnership’s key stakeholders
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Developing and maintaining relationships with Partnership stakeholders
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Working with the CBG to update outreach strategy as new needs emerge
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Building and maintaining trust and relationships across the whole Partnership and more widely (within and across sectors from migration to anti-poverty to children’s rights, etc.)
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Supporting with the facilitation of Working Group meetings
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Develop and implement ideas for action that are consistent with the goals of the project
Strategic coherence
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Supporting the coordination of activities with partners to align strategies and actions and minimise duplication
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Working with the CBG to coordinate with other related projects and coalitions to maintain a full understanding of the current landscape of local and regional activities
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Maintaining understanding of current implementation challenges and developing comprehensive solutions to address them in dialogue with partners
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Developing, maintaining, and monitoring political opportunities to support Working Groups to develop and execute on their action plans
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In partnership with the CBG and steering group, providing support to partner organisations to coordinate and collaborate on joint initiatives
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Coordinating advocacy activities across stakeholders that support the wider aims of the Partnership
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Supporting the independent learning partner to deliver evaluation and learning activities
Communications
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Organising appropriate outreach and communications efforts across the Partnership (e.g. publishing a regular newsletter, email updates, insights from learning and evaluation etc.)
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Ensuring effective internal communication with CUK organisers, leaders, and partners involved with the NRPF Partnership and with funders
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Facilitating on-going communication across the NRPF Partnership to ensure alignment of activity
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Supporting the development of any communications materials such as summary documents, brochures, FAQs, social media content, etc.
Build leadership development offer for the Partnership
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Working alongside CBG and the CUK Migration team, refine community organising and leadership development support for all members of the NRPF partnership especially those with lived experience of NRPF
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Ensuring that everyone in the group can contribute to the best of their ability by managing a training and external facilitation budget to build skills, confidence and trust
Fundraising and reporting
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Working with the CBG to develop and support fundraising bids and support reporting requirements and funder relationships
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Contributing to the budgeting process and the effective management of financial resources in the project working closely with Global Dialogue who will hold pooled funds on behalf of the partnership
Managing meeting/event logistics
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Planning and managing the logistics of all Partnership meetings and gatherings of the Steering Group, working groups and CBG (e.g., dial-in, attendance, cancellations, etc.)
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Consolidating Working Group updates for Steering Group, including summarising meeting notes and highlighting key outputs and decisions so they can be easily shared with others across the Partnership
Any other reasonable tasks as required by the line manager.
Person Specification
REQUIREMENTS
ESSENTIAL (E)
DESIRABLE (D)
QUALIFICATIONS
Degree or equivalent professional qualification (D)
EXPERIENCE
Significant proven, comprehensive experience in a project management role (E)
Experience of initiating new projects and developing them so that they become sustainable underpinned by strong values (E)
Experience of building consensus between diverse stakeholders and managing complexity in relationships (E)
Experience of organising and managing all aspects of community events, incl. logistics (E)
Proven experience of raising significant funds for charitable purposes (D)
A proven track record of delivering and reporting against targets and on budgets (D)
KEY SKILLS AND KNOWLEDGE
Knowledge of No Recourse to Public Funds and working with individuals who have an NRPF designation on their immigration status (E)
Outstanding communication skills (verbally and written) combined with the ability to liaise with stakeholders (E)
Ability to work well as part of a team, and maintain effective communication with colleagues (E)
Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to build relationships, lead, influence and motivate others (E)
Ability to act on own initiative to introduce and develop new projects and systems (E)
Proven computer literacy to include MS Office (E)
PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES
Exceptional leadership skills, with an ability to enthuse and inspire staff and volunteers (E)
A proactive approach to all areas of work with a flexible approach to work demands (E)
An appreciation and respect for different communities; including faith groups and different cultures. (E)
A strong commitment to the CUK values and the values of the NRPF partnership, which include: (E)
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Being open to new ideas (specifically ensuring that all our 121 conversations, small group discussions with the sector and funders create an environment that fosters creative problem-solving and innovation)
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Fostering connection
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Championing co-design and co-production
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Being equity-focused and enabling any one interested to participate and feed into the design and development of this work
Please note there will be recruitment webinar on Tuesday, 7th May from 14:30-15:30. Please register via the following link if you are interested in attending: https://us06web.zoom.us/meeting/register/tZwpcO-rrzsoH9ecIXUaaFbqDjaVxVSvqJLq.
Interviews are planned to take place on Thursday, June 13th (subject to change.)
Community Engagement Officer
£30,000 - £34,000 (dependent on relevant skills and experience) plus generous benefits
Location: Home-based, with occasional travel to Football Foundation offices and other sites
We are the Football Foundation - the Premier League, the FA and government’s charity that delivers outstanding grassroots facilities, more and better places to play, transforming lives and communities where it is needed most.
To help us with this important mission, we’re looking for a Community Engagement Officer to join the team and play a key role in ensuring we achieve our objectives of engaging with and increasing physical activity levels amongst the four key priority groups facing the greatest inequalities: low socio-economic groups, women and girls, disabled people and people with long term health conditions, and culturally diverse communities.
This is an exciting time to be joining the Football Foundation and this is a great opportunity to use your knowledge and experience of place-based working and community engagement to make a real difference through community sports.
About the Football Foundation
Over the last 22 years, the Foundation has awarded more than 23,000 grants to deliver outstanding grassroots facilities across England worth more than £877 million. This year, the Foundation will be investing more money than ever into facilities across England and is committed to improving the experience of playing football for everyone.
The Foundation’s goal is to unlock the power of pitches ensuring everyone has a great place to play regardless of gender, race, disability or place
The role
As Community Engagement Officer you will play a key role in ensuring the Foundation achieves its objectives of engaging with and increasing physical activity levels amongst the four key priority groups facing the greatest inequalities: low socio-economic groups, women and girls, disabled people and people with long term health conditions, and culturally diverse communities. This will predominantly be achieved through the critical support you will provide to our ambitious PlayZones Programme, as we continue to roll the programme out across priority areas of the Country.
We have an ambition to deliver in excess of 200 PlayZone facilities by 2025. To realise this ambition, we’re going to focus on investing in safe, inclusive, and accessible facilities in communities with the greatest need. We will tackle inequalities in physical activity levels and create inclusive opportunities for our priority groups to become active through recreational formats of football and other sports and activities.
With a great deal to do, the role will be pivotal in working with local groups to support them through the application process, and to ensure high quality projects are being developed based on local community need.
The role sits within the Football Foundation’s Delivery Team, the team responsible for strategic identification and capital project delivery, reporting to the Community Engagement Lead and with responsibility for a portfolio of PlayZone programme areas within one of the Delivery Team geographical regions.
You will provide critical support to applicants and work extremely closely with our network of Delivery Managers & Officers to advise and agree community engagement plans for a range of Over £25k projects – helping to ensure their engagement is robust, but that applicants also receive support and guidance as required throughout the development of their application.
Community Engagement Officers will champion the benefits of great engagement, capturing good practice, identifying successful approaches, and share knowledge and learning across the Foundation and other stakeholders.
What are we looking for?
You don’t need to follow football to apply, but it is expected that you appreciate the power of sport to change lives and have a genuine interest in using your skills and experience to help the Foundation achieve our charitable and strategic objectives.
You must be educated to HND/Degree standard, or with the equivalent experience, with knowledge of how sports development can be used for community benefit. You must have strong communication and interpersonal skills with experience of communicating with and supporting a diverse range of colleagues and customers remotely.
Your knowledge of place-based working and how to best reach and engage with local communities will be key for this role, as well as your understanding of the inequalities that exist in supporting active lives across socio economic groups, women & girls, individuals with a disability or a long-term health condition, and culturally diverse communities. You will be aware of and have experience of dealing with the operations and challenges faced by community organisations, charities, and the voluntary sector.
You must be highly organised, with working knowledge of different project management techniques and experience of managing multiple projects at the same time. While not essential, experience of producing robust reports and of using dashboards to monitor the progress of projects would be useful.
How we achieve our goals is equally important to us. We are striving to be an inclusive and diverse organisation which reflects the diverse communities, users and beneficiaries of our work and the outcomes we deliver. Becoming part of the Football Foundation team, will give you the chance to deliver a positive impact in every community in England; to help transform lives and communities through great places to play; and to be part of a supportive and inclusive staff team that works hard and plays fair to achieve its goals.
For full details of the role and requirements, please download our recruitment pack below.
What can we offer you?
The salary for this role is £30,000 - £34,000 per annum (dependent on relevant skills and experience). You will start on 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays (which increases after 2 years), plus additional time off to volunteer. We also offer a generous pension scheme (8% employer contribution), collective bonus scheme, free health care provision, a monthly gym subsidy, interest-free season ticket loan, death in service benefit and access to selected match tickets
We are committed to helping our team members maintain a healthy work-life balance, so offer flexible working around core hours to help achieve that.
Equality and Diversity Commitment
The Football Foundation is committed to, and values the principles of diversity, equality, and inclusion. We strive to provide an inclusive and supportive working environment where all our team feel respected and supported in fulfilling their potential. We encourage and welcome applications from all, regardless of background and are particularly interested to hear from individuals belonging to under-represented groups including diverse ethnic communities, individuals with a disability and those from the LGBTQI+ community.
Should you need any adjustments to the recruitment process, at either application or interview stage, please contact us at jobs @ footballfoundation. org .uk
How do I apply?
To apply, please follow the steps outlined below:
1. Please send the following to jobs @ footballfoundation. org. uk
o CV
o Cover letter - please highlight briefly and clearly how your skills, abilities and experience equip you for the role, together with your reasons for applying.
The closing date for applications is: Wednesday 22 May 2024 at midday
Interviews are currently scheduled for 30 May 2024.
Due to the volume of applications received for most roles, the Foundation only contacts candidates if they are shortlisted for interview. If you do not hear from us within two weeks of the closing date, you should assume your application has not been successful.
Please note that you must be eligible to work in the UK to apply.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.