Project Coordinator (Part-time)

We have ambitious plans to make our much-loved centre more modern, accessible and inclusive, and to help promote a more sustainable future.

The Hill End Charitable Trust are looking for an enthusiastic and organised person to be our new project coordinator – working with our Centre Director on a wide variety of tasks to create and deliver the projects we need to transform our site and buildings.

The Hill End Outdoor Education Centre has been providing unique outdoor learning experiences to children and adults since the 1920s. Our mission is to provide exciting and meaningful day and residential learning experiences that inspire children, and every visitor, to enjoy and value nature and the outdoors. Managed for decades by local authorities, Hill End is now an independent charitable trust seeking to create a more sustainable future. 

The Role

We are seeking a Project Coordinator on a part-time basis to help us create and deliver our vision to develop our site and buildings for the future. This includes modernising our existing facilities, improving access and becoming more environmentally sustainable.

These are ambitious plans and we are not expecting to achieve everything at once. We are looking to create a series of distinct, prioritised projects so we can move forward and need more people capacity in our small team to do so.

The Project Coordinator is a new role, and will undertake the essential administrative, communication, planning and reporting needed to help make our plans a reality. In the first instance, this will be to assist with key building renovations and improvements such as creation of disabled facilities.

The Project Coordinator will not necessarily have formal project management experience, but must be able to pull together a wide-ranging set of requirements, create and improve processes and practices that will allow us to better manage our site development in future.

This role might suit someone wishing to work either three full days or part of each working day. We are happy to discuss flexible working hours.

Principal Duties

These will include:

Gathering and analysing management data

• Using customer bookings and finance systems to extract key information.
• Defining and reporting on key metrics to evaluate the progress and success of projects.
• Collating and using data as required to help with other key strategic tasks such as cost-benefit analysis and business cases.
•  Providing data as required to support business planning, funding bids, marketing and communication.

Project communication

• Identifying and engaging with a wide range of key stakeholders, such as partners, customers, contractors, consultants and planners.
• Putting in place systems for better project communication, internally and externally.
• Assisting with scheduling of tasks and meetings.
• Reporting as necessary to the Centre Director and Trustees.

Project coordination

• Helping to define project aims, needs and budgets in line with our strategic priorities.
• Obtaining quotations, costings and development options for Hill End to review and approve.
• Assisting with legal and contractual considerations.
• Putting in place new and robust systems to record project progress and next steps.
• Defining and improving existing management systems.
• Helping to create a new project management model for future development.

Knowledge, experience, skills and personal attributes required

The Centre has a small, dedicated staff who are all committed to the aims of the charity. The successful applicant will share the values and enthusiasm of the team. Hill End is outdoor-focussed and they should be prepared to embrace this outlook in their work and join in wholeheartedly with making the Centre a success.

The successful applicant must have:

·         Excellent organisational skills, able to pull together complex tasks.

·         The ability to prioritise and work to deadlines.

·         Good communication and collaboration skills.

·         A capacity to learn new systems quickly and thoroughly.

·         Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

·         Proficiency in standard office software packages (e.g. Microsoft Word and Excel).

·         Self-motivation and able to work without close supervision.

·         Awareness of their responsibility to protect the safety and promote the welfare of young people visiting the Centre.

·         A satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

It would be an advantage to an applicant to have:

·         A good overall standard of education.

·         Project management experience.

·         Previous experience with the construction industry or planning.

·         Enthusiasm for education and outdoor learning.

Application Procedure

To satisfy the requirements for safer recruitment, we need to ask for a full employment record. Details of any gaps between jobs or between finishing education and employment must be provided.

Please apply by submitting the following:

• A cover letter explaining your previous experience relevant to the position.

·         A CV including employment history and full contact details of at least two referees.

The closing date for applications is 12pm on Friday 31 May 2024

Interviews will take place on Tuesday 4 June 2024

Hill End is committed to safeguarding children and young people.  All post holders in regulated activity are subject to appropriate vetting procedures and a satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

You can read more about Hill End on our website, and access key documents such as our Safeguarding Policy and our Equalities and Diversity Policy and Commitment.

This post is kindly funded by the Oxfordshire Community Foundation Step Change Fund – focusing on capacity building and strengthening of Oxfordshire’s charitable sector.