Senior policy and public affairs manager jobs

Citizens UK 

Citizens UK is the UK’s biggest, most diverse and most effective people-powered alliance. We bring communities and local organisations together to work on issues that matter; from campaigning for zebra crossings on dangerous roads, to reforming the immigration system, to the Living Wage campaign. We have a track record of winning change through hundreds of local and national campaigns. We know everyday people have the ability to shape the world around them. We believe that through developing local leaders, we can drive nationwide change and create community-led solutions to big and small problems.

Citizens UK has played a pioneering role in introducing and developing community sponsorship of refugees in the UK. In response to the Syrian refugee crisis in 2015, we campaigned successfully for the introduction of community sponsorship in the UK. Citizens UK was then instrumental in proving the model can work in the UK and through training, advocacy, and coordination, we have helped hundreds of local groups welcome thousands of refugee families. In 2022, Citizens UK expanded its work by launching the Communities for Ukraine programme, matching Ukrainian refugees with UK hosts and most recently has run Communities for Afghans, resettling dozens of refugees. Throughout, it has combined grassroots organising with national advocacy to build a sustainable, community-led model of refugee resettlement. In 2025, we campaigned successfully to persuade the Government to introduce ‘named sponsorship’, giving communities greater choice in who they would sponsor. This creates a huge opportunity to grow community sponsorship and to enable UK civil society to step up and honour our proud tradition of offering sanctuary.

Head of Community Sponsorship Role 

This is a rare opportunity to lead Citizens UK’s community sponsorship campaign and help build the movement that will be at the heart of a community-led welcome.

This new role comes at an exciting and crucial time, as we seek to build and embed this new form of named community sponsorship in the UK. As Head of Community Sponsorship you will lead on our strategy to develop named sponsorship as a transformative part of the UK’s approach to refugee resettlement and community power. This will involve building a broad-base of civil society partners ready to sponsor refugees and to add their voice to the campaign. You will lead on the campaigning and advocacy strategy as we ensure quality in the Government policy and cross-Party political support. Citizens UK acts as the Lead Sponsor for local community sponsorship groups and you will oversee their ongoing support and further engagement.

The role foster collaboration with Citizens UK Organisers and alliances, develop sustainable funding strategies, and ensure alignment with Citizens UK’s broader migration and transformation goals. The role will work alongside Citizens UK’s Migrant and Refugee Organising Team and will contribute to the efforts to build the power to create a more welcoming country. You will lead on relationships with senior stakeholders, policy makers, and funders, and support the creation of campaigns and resources to expand public awareness and support for community sponsorship. With responsibilities spanning communications, and external representation, the role is key to shaping Citizens UK’s refugee resettlement strategy and building its national impact as a driver of cohesion. 

Working as the Head of Community Sponsorship for Citizens UK, reporting to the Assistant Director for Migrant and Refugee Organising (MARO), your main responsibilities will include: 

Career Pathway Headings 

Objectives 

Contribute to Citizens UK and Project Strategic Objectives 

• Build a broad and deep engagement across civil society in named sponsorship, demonstrating the potential for scale and the big tent of support.

• Develop and implement campaign approaches that secure policy goals and build cross-Party political support.

• Develop strategy that develops the leadership of local Citizens members and refugees, strengthens civic institutions and builds trust across difference.

Build and Manage Projects & Achieve Work Targets Effectively 

• Oversee multiple work strands, working in partnership. 

• Develop and manage project workplans, KPIs and budgets, ensuring delivery to time, standard, and impact goals. 

• Establish systems for performance tracking, evaluation, and continuous improvement across project streams. 

Learning, Expertise, Wellbeing & Inclusion 

• Act as a senior expert in sponsorship strategy; coach and mentor staff and partners, and facilitate learning across departments and projects. 

• Influence and lead the integration of equity, wellbeing and refugee voice into strategic decisions and delivery frameworks. 

Develop and Manage External Relationships 

• Lead high-level relationships with national and senior stakeholders, including government departments (e.g. Home Office), civil society institutions and funders. 

• Build and manage partnerships that advance sponsorship reform and position Citizens UK as a sector leader. 

• Ensure stakeholder experience is consistently excellent and take the lead on resolving reputational risks or tensions. 

Communications 

• Act as a senior spokesperson for Citizens UK’s sponsorship work in the media, at public events, and in government or civil society forums. 

• Lead the design and implementation of a high-profile communications strategy to influence narratives on refugee welcome and community leadership. 

• Ensure communications align with ethical storytelling principles and amplify sponsor and refugee voices responsibly. 

Develop and Manage Internal Relationships 

• Lead and develop high-performing cross-functional teams, with clear expectations, direction, and collaboration structures. 

• Effectively line manage senior staff and foster shared leadership culture across sponsorship and Citizens UK team 

• Ensure that the community sponsorship strategy is aligned with Citizens UK’s other campaigns and work closely with other members of Migrant and Refugee Organising team. 

• Contribute to senior leadership structures, including strategic planning processes and transformation initiatives. 

Generate Income and Resources 

• Initiate and grow significant and sustainable income streams to fund Citizens UK’s sponsorship work. 

• Develop and lead high-value funding partnerships with trusts, foundations and strategic donors. 

• Demonstrate strong budget oversight and ensure effective use of financial and human resources in sponsorship delivery. 

Personal Specification 

(D) Desirable, (E) Essential 

Qualifications 

• Degree or equivalent experience in a relevant field such as migration, social policy, international development, or community organising (D) 

• Management or leadership qualification, or relevant CPD in project or programme management, public policy, or team leadership (D) 

Experience 

• Proven experience in leading complex, multi-stakeholder programmes related to refugee resettlement, community organising, or social impact (E) 

• Demonstrable track record of strategic leadership in a charity or community-focused setting (E) 

• Experience of managing cross-functional teams to deliver against ambitious organisational goals (E) 

• Experience of developing and sustaining strategic partnerships with civil society organisations, local authorities, or government departments (E) 

• Experience in leading campaigning and influencing strategies to secure changes in Government policy (E) 

• Experience of designing and implementing systems for monitoring, evaluation, and learning to track progress and report to funders and or government stakeholders (D) 

• Demonstrable experience of driving collaborative campaigns or outreach efforts that engage diverse communities (E) 

Key skills and knowledge 

• Strong leadership and team coordination skills – able to motivate, direct, and support multidisciplinary teams across multiple workstreams (E) 

• Excellent project and performance management skills – able to set strategic priorities, delegate effectively, and ensure accountability (E) 

• In-depth knowledge of refugee resettlement systems, community sponsorship models, and UK migration policy, including recent developments affecting Afghan and Ukrainian pathways (E) 

• Knowledge and skills in community organising and an understanding of how community sponsorship and campaigning connect with and support the method and aims of organising (E) 

• Outstanding written and verbal communication – confident in producing compelling cases for support, policy communications, and public messaging (E) 

• Ability to design and deliver stakeholder engagement strategies, with a clear understanding of influencing policy and public opinion (E) 

• Skilled in developing and managing strategic partnerships with funders, policy-makers, and community groups (E) 

• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills – able to assess complex challenges, identify risks, and implement effective solutions (E) 

Personal qualities & values 

• A mission-driven leader with a passion for refugee rights, community empowerment, and social justice (E) 

• Politically astute and able to navigate relationships with stakeholders from civil society, government, and grassroots communities (E) 

• Collaborative and people-centred, able to work constructively across teams and with volunteers, refugees, and community leaders (E) 

• Committed to embedding refugee leadership and lived experience into programme design and delivery (E) 

• Resilient, adaptable, and able to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced and evolving policy environment (E) 

• Comfortable working within an accountable team culture – open to feedback, reflective practice, and continuous improvement (E) 

• Willingness to work occasional evenings or weekends, and to travel when necessary to support programme delivery (E) 

Note: 

At Citizens UK, we work with communities to develop leaders, strengthen organisations, campaign for change and organise across difference. This work is rewarding and can be challenging; it requires a personal commitment to inclusion, a willingness to listen and disagree respectfully, and an interest in working in an organisation where our staff, member institutions and leaders will come from a diversity of backgrounds and often hold views that may be very different from our own. More information about how we operate within this context and build trusted relationships across difference can be found on our website and is covered in induction. Onboarding and navigating this relational culture, and type of work, is supported by line managers and further training. 

Position

MSF UK is looking for a creative and collaborative Multimedia Producer to join the new (and growing!) Brand and Content team. This is a fantastic opportunity to work with passionate and talented colleagues in a fast-paced environment, producing social media and digital content that builds awareness, raises money, inspires action and sounds the alarm for the world's biggest medical crises. As the ideal candidate, you'll have stellar video production skills with motion graphics experience, backed up by strong digital design capabilities. You'll bring energy and a bucket load of creative ideas and you'll help coordinate cross-channel teams to deliver outstanding communications.

Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Mon-Fri

Duration: Permanent

Location: London - hybrid, 2 days per week in London Office (Wednesdays and Thursdays)

Salary: £40,682.16- £49,722.64 per annum | Salary is offered in line with our pay framework and typically starts at the entry point of the band. Salary increases are considered annually and are subject to our appraisal and performance review process.

Job Purpose:

Creative ideation and production of high performing, short form native social media content (paid and organic, with a focus on video) in collaboration with the social media team; translating and evolving the brand into a strong social media identity; project management support for cross channel content projects. This role is ideal for someone who has a background in design, video production and motion graphics with an instinct for good storytelling and experience in applying both to short form social media and digital advertising content production.

Content creation will predominantly focus on adapting content sent by international teams for the UK social media environment and UK brand, working with content from our database and shooting with teams in the UK office. There will also be opportunities for feeding into briefs for UK driven story collection and working with the materials collected to develop brand focused impact content. 

Knowledge, Skills & Experience:

Essential

• Strong design and visual identity background, with proficiency in motion graphics and basic illustration and animation,
• Expert in Adobe Creative Cloud (After effects, Animate, Premiere Pro, Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign) 
• Proven experience of developing ideas for, and producing native social media content that both holds attention and reinforces a consistent, professional brand personality identity
• Strong digital marketing and communications understanding 
• Ability to translate and evolve brand guidelines in a social media context 
• Experience creating engaging title sequences, idents, transitions, basic illustrated animations, kinetic typography, moving infographics and basic visual effects for digital and video content 
• Lives and breathes social media, keeping up to date with trends and experience developing content that allows brands to capitalise on them in an authentic way
• Strong understanding of audiovisual storytelling 
• Strong and versatile portfolio showcasing design and video production skills and creativity, particularly in short form, vertical video channels 
• Proven ability to adapt visual style and tone to suit a wide range of audiences, formats and disciplines 
• Strong creative skills including comms and content idea generation, problem solving, storytelling – be an ideas factory!
• A source of inspiration and creative education for others, particularly around social media creative 
• Flexibility and ability to work under very tight deadlines 
• Proven ability to manage projects independently 
• Commitment to the aims and values of Médecins Sans Frontières 
• Highly experienced in the practical use of personal IT equipment and Microsoft Office 365 suite.
• Highly experienced in effectively collaborating and communicating within a hybrid working environment utilising Teams, SharePoint, One Drive and Yammer 
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work cooperatively in a dynamic but complex organisation 

Desirable 

• Proficient in camera operation/lighting/sound 
• Understanding of accessible/inclusive design principles and experience of implementing accessibility guidelines 
• Comfortable taking a brief but also supporting non-comms/content experts to express their design needs and draw out the information you need to get a clear brief 
• Experience of collaborative workflow and asset storage systems 
• Sound project management and workshop facilitation experience 
• Good knowledge of world affairs and a demonstrable understanding of and commitment to humanitarian issues.
• Experience in the practical use of personal IT equipment and Microsoft Office 365 suite. The ability to effectively collaborate and communicate within a hybrid working environment utilising Teams, SharePoint, One Drive and Yammer.

HOW TO APPLY

Please check that you have included the following in your application:

• An up-to-date CV 
• Letter of Motivation, which is a supporting statement demonstrating how your skills and experience position you to meet the key accountabilities of the role 
• Links to your portfolio or examples of your work – please include full links rather than hyperlinks 

Incomplete applications will not be considered. We encourage early applications as we reserve the right to close applications before the advertised closing date, or if a suitable candidate is found.

Recruitment timetable:

• Closing date for applications: 19 Feb 2026
• Pre-screening Task: Candidates who are longlisted will be invited to complete a pre-screening task designed to assist us in shortlisting.
• Interview: Week commencing 2 March 2026
• Projected start date: as soon as possible

We welcome applications from people who have significant legal aid experience in public law, housing law, and/or community care law, and who have undertaken strategic litigation. If this is you, and you meet the minimum criteria for the Legal Director role, we encourage you to apply.

Please note: We do not expect the postholder to generate legal aid income at a multiple of their salary. While we do aim to grow legal aid income across the team to an initial target of £25,000–£30,000 per annum, the focus of this role is on developing high‑quality legal aid practice and building sustainable income collectively, as part of a mixed‑income organisational model. We particularly welcome applications from people from Black and minoritised communities, disabled people, LGBTQ+ people, people from working-class backgrounds, and people with lived experience of the issues we work on. We are committed to building a team that reflects the communities we serve, and we know that lived experience and diverse perspectives strengthen our legal practice and our work for systemic change. 

The Legal Director is a newly created senior leadership role and will lead and shape Release’s legal services, setting the strategic direction and ensuring the delivery of high‑quality, client‑centred representation. The role will expand access to justice through strong legal aid provision, embed harm reduction principles across all legal work, and uphold rigorous regulatory and ethical standards. It will also play a key role in sustaining Release’s commitment to training and developing the next generation of social justice lawyers.

This pivotal post combines oversight of a multidisciplinary legal team with movement‑driven advocacy and strategic litigation. The Legal Director will identify and pursue high‑impact cases to challenge unlawful policies and drive systemic change, while building strong external relationships with affected communities, policymakers, and partners. Working collaboratively, the role will co‑create innovative models of legal support that respond to emerging needs and amplify the voices of people most affected by drug laws and wider structural injustice.

As Legal Director, you will:

Set Strategic Direction: Define and implement strategies to expand legal aid provision, improve access to justice, and embed harm reduction principles across all legal work.
Lead and Inspire: Oversee a multidisciplinary team of solicitors, legal advisers, and volunteers, fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability, and innovation.
Ensure Excellence and Compliance: Maintain rigorous regulatory standards whilst driving forward progressive, client-centred approaches to legal practice.
Advance Systemic Change through Strategic Litigation: Identify and pursue high-impact cases to influence legislation, challenge unlawful policies, and dismantle barriers to justice for people who use drugs and other marginalised communities.
Engage Externally: Build powerful coalitions by engaging with affected communities, policymakers, stakeholders, and advocacy networks to drive legal and social reform.
Co-Create Innovative Service Solutions: Develop new models of legal support that respond to emerging needs, leverage technology, and amplify the voices of those most affected by drug policy and laws by working in partnership with them. 

This role is ideal for a visionary and inspiring leader who combines legal expertise with a commitment to social justice, harm reduction, and systemic transformation.

Person Specification

Essential

• Minimum 9 years + post qualified solicitor with a current practising certificate, and
• Minimum 7 years + significant experience in legal aid supervision and regulatory compliance, and
• Minimum 3 years + proven leadership and team management skills, and
• Minimum 3 years + strategic litigation or test cases, and
• Strong commitment to social justice, harm reduction, and trauma-informed practice.

Desirable

• Experience working in a charity or non‑profit organisation.
• Experience supporting, contributing to, or developing test case work, policy‑linked casework, or other legal work aimed at achieving wider systemic or community impact, including through indirect, collaborative, or emerging roles.
• Understanding of the impact of drug policy and criminalisation on marginalised communities.
• Experience in developing new services, partnerships, or funding‑linked delivery models.

Royal Liverpool Philharmonic is now seeking an exceptional and visionary Director of Development to lead its fundraising at a pivotal moment in its evolution. This newly created senior role reflects a step change in ambition as the organisation embarks on an exciting new chapter of growth, partnership and global profile. Reporting to the Chief Executive and sitting on the Executive Team, the Director of Development will inspire and lead a talented development team while playing a central role in shaping the organisation’s future direction. You will spearhead major fundraising initiatives, including a landmark capital campaign to realise plans for a new recording, rehearsal and creative centre — envisaged as an “Abbey Road of the North” — designed to support future talent, innovation and the wider creative economy of the Liverpool City Region. Alongside this, you will help secure the long-term success of Royal Liverpool Philharmonic’s award-winning artistic, learning and community programmes.

The successful candidate will be a dynamic, relationship-driven leader with a strong track record of securing transformational income within complex, mission-led organisations. You will bring strategic vision, deep knowledge of the philanthropic landscape, and the confidence to unlock new sources of support from individuals, trusts, foundations and corporate partners. Crucially, you will play a leading role in articulating a clear, compelling and cohesive external narrative for Royal Liverpool Philharmonic — one that brings together its heritage, ambition, social impact and future aspirations — and ensure this story resonates powerfully with funders, partners, civic leaders and audiences. Passionate about music and culture, you will be an inspiring leader, a trusted advisor to the Board and Executive, and a persuasive ambassador for an organisation that exists to enhance and transform lives through music.

Job title: Programme Assistant, Enquiries 

Line manager: Team Leader, Enquiries (Senior Officer, Enquiries in Team Leader’s absence) 

Salary: £30,000 

Type of contract: Permanent 

Start date: 16th February 2026 or shortly thereafter 

Benefits: 

• Challenging and rewarding work, always life-changing, sometimes lifesaving 

• Competitive salary 

• Team and individual training opportunities 

• Commitment to performance and personal development 

• Hybrid working, home and office (minimum 2 days each week in the office) 

• Eight hours each day Monday – Friday, with flexible working by arrangement around core hours of 10am – 4pm 

• 25 days plus Bank Holidays annual leave entitlement 

• 8% employer pension contribution 

• Convenient office location at Elephant and Castle, close to Tube (Bakerloo and Northern lines) and bus routes 

Role purpose statement: The Programme Assistant, Enquiries plays a vital role in the Fellowship Programme working directly with academics facing immediate risk in their home countries to carry out due diligence or signposting. This includes managing an individual caseload, dealing with prospective applications and general enquiries, providing administrative support to the Enquiries team as well as support across the Fellowship Programme when needed. 

Organisational Background 

The Council for At-Risk Academics is a UK-registered charity founded in 1933 under the leadership of William Beveridge, to rescue academics suffering persecution under the rise of Nazism and facilitate their continued work in safety. Sixteen Cara Fellows from the 1930s and 1940s became Nobel Laureates, and many more innovators in their fields, including, Nikolaus Pevsner, Lise Meitner and Karl Popper. A number of Cara’s founders and Council members also personally provided places and/or funds to help individual academics; and Cara, known in the 1930s as the AAC, later the SPSL, was closely involved in the successful effort in 1933 to bring to London the Warburg Institute art library, which had been prohibited by the Nazis, and six of its staff. The Fellowship Programme is the continuation of the rescue mission operation started in 1933. 

Cara has been a lifeline to academics at risk for over 90 years, as and when world events have placed them in the line of fire: Hungarian Uprising, Cold War, Apartheid South Africa, Iran, Latin American Juntas, Vietnam, Kosovo, DRC, Rwanda, Sudan, Zimbabwe etc. and, more recently Iraq, Turkey, Yemen, Palestine, Syria, Afghanistan and Ukraine. Cara support is typically framed as temporary sanctuary offered at times of heightened risk. 

Cara Objectives ‘To assist academics who have been, or are, or are at risk of being, subject to discrimination, persecution, suffering or violence on account of race, religion, nationality, membership of a particular social group, or political opinion, to relieve needs among them and their dependants and ensure that their specialist knowledge and abilities can continue to be used for the benefit of the public.’ 

‘To advance education by supporting academics and their educational institutions in countries where their continuing work is at risk or compromised, to ensure that such academics and institutions can continue to fulfil their critical role as educators for the public benefit.’ 

This is a critical time to join our dedicated and friendly Fellowship Programme team as we expand our capacity to support at-risk academics from the Middle East, Sudan, Myanmar, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Russia and many other countries. 

Role & Responsibilities  

Casework  

• Signposting prospective applicants to the application form. 

• Manage own caseload, preparing cases for eligibility review, including arranging calls to speak with applicants, booking English language tests, and gathering all relevant documentation.

• Escalating complex cases to the Team Leader as required. 

• Maintain accurate and GDPR-Compliant records of casework activity. 

• Researching international affairs to develop understanding about risks applicants face. 

• Researching potential hosts for academic placements and liaising with external stakeholders in relation to applicants. 

• Attend weekly case review meetings with the team. 

Administration   

• Provide general administrative and logistical support, including answering phone enquiries. 

• Manage the general enquiries inbox, alongside another colleague, answering emails about the enquiries’ process, the Fellowship Programme and Cara. 

• Signpost enquiries to relevant colleagues internally and to other organisations where applicable. 

• Contribute to report writing. 

• Present and collect data on general enquiries and applications to the Programme. 

• Ensure safekeeping of confidential information. 

• Maintain excellent detailed records of correspondence, documents, and activities. 

• Provide administrative support to colleagues on projects as required.

Managerial Support  

• Contributing to Fellowship Programme policy changes and decision-making. 

• Provide advice and guidance to colleagues. 

Ad Hoc Responsibilities  

• Show adaptability and willingness to take on additional work when necessary. 

• Support the Fellowship Programme and Cara as a whole with ad hoc responsibilities.

Responsibilities also include related activities that might arise in relation to the Fellowship Programme as required by the Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executive & Fellowship Programme Manager, and other senior colleagues. 

Person Specification 

Essential:  

• Bachelor’s degree 

• Fluent English (spoken and written) 

• Proactive with a willingness to learn 

• Confident and empathetic with strong interpersonal and communication skills 

• Ability to work under pressure in a fast-paced environment 

• Keen team player who is ready to support and help colleagues 

• Excellent record keeping and attention to detail 

• Ability to work independently and in a team 

• Good time management with ability to prioritise and independently work to deadlines 

• Understanding of issues of confidentiality

• Interest in and commitment to the work of Cara 

• Confident use of Microsoft package 

• Awareness of current global issues

• Ability to handle difficult conversations with sensitivity and resilience 

Desirable 

• Master’s or equivalent experience 

• Casework experience 

• Arabic language skills are desirable. Other foreign languages (such as Farsi/Dari, Pashto, Ukrainian and Russian) will also be considered 

• Salesforce/CRM software experience 

• Experience in a supporting role with people with lived experience of forced migration or other forms of severe adversity