Entry level and Contract jobs

Deliver hands-on advice, outreach, training and mentoring as part of a new countywide partnership programme.

This four-year role, funded by The National Lottery Community Fund, sits at the heart of the Small and Mighty (SaM) infrastructure support programme, delivered by a partnership of Community First Oxfordshire, OCVA, Oxford Community Action, Charity Mentors and Volunteer Link-Up, working directly with grassroots voluntary, community, faith and social enterprise groups. You’ll help organisations navigate challenges, build capacity and connect with others through outreach clinics, tailored training and collaborative spaces. Alongside staff within partner organisations and the existing CFO and OCVA team, you’ll play a key role in strengthening Oxfordshire’s community sector for the long term.

Job-share will be considered.

This role will provide administrative support for the TRaC team and our associates – a small team who work to ensure maximum impact of our organisation. It will help to centre lived experience in the co-production of our activities by supporting inclusive recruitment of disabled people and accessible participation across the TRaC team’s work.

You will need to be experienced in, or willing to learn about, the barriers disabled people face in transport and street space and how to ensure our work is fully accessible. Ideally, you will bring your own lived experience to this role.

We are looking for someone who is organised, a great problem-solver, and who can take a proactive approach to the tasks they are asked to complete. You will need to be able to prioritise and meet multiple deadlines. We also need someone who is confident in ensuring our work is accessible to people with a range of access needs.

Location:  Across London

Closing date: 26 April 2026

Interview dates: 12 - 15 May 2026

Whether your empathy towards homeless people has its roots in personal experience or your compassionate nature and determination to help, when you join Thames Reach on our 12-month Traineeship programme, you’ll be making a difference and taking the first steps towards a great career.

About us…

Thames Reach runs projects and services that help to end homelessness in London. We work directly with homeless people on the streets and in hostels.  We work to prevent vulnerable people from becoming homeless.  We help formerly homeless people get their lives back on track and help people find work and access training and volunteering opportunities.

Is our mission easy? No, but we never give up on people. Last year we helped more than 15,000 people.

Is our work rewarding? Yes, in every sense. We’re listed as one of the top 100 Best Workplaces in the UK.  There’s no better place to develop or transfer your skills and build a fulfilling career.

About this role…

Every role at Thames Reach is about ensuring that the users of our services find and sustain a decent home, develop supportive relationships and lead fulfilling lives. On our structured Traineeship scheme, you’ll gain first-hand experience and on-the-job training in what we do. You’ll be expected to work full time on a rota basis. Our placements involve a range of working patterns such as shifts, including evenings and weekends, night work in our fast-paced Rapid Response Outreach team and Monday to Friday 9-5 roles.

The key features are:

• A thorough induction, followed by two six-month placements at our projects, one of which will be hostel-based.

• With supervision and training from experienced employees to help our clients to get off and stay off the street with access to appropriate services.

• Learning about and assisting with necessary administration and record-keeping.

The kind of things we’re looking for:

• Compassion, determination and a desire to play your part in ending street homelessness.

• Good basic admin and IT skills.

• Good team working skills

• The resilience and commitment to work in a challenging, ever-changing environment.

• An understanding of street homelessness and its impact on people’s lives – applicants who have experienced homelessness are particularly encouraged to apply.

What you can expect…

• A generous pension contribution - we contribute 6.5% to your pension when you contribute 1.5%.

• A range of other benefits including generous holiday allowance – 24 days per year, wellbeing support, cycle to work and season ticket loans.

• High quality on-the-job training with the opportunity to develop the skills needed for a career in our front-line services.

• Potential job prospects – although this is not guaranteed, many of our trainees have gained permanent employment at Thames Reach or in related organisations following completion of the programme.

• Application Support – we encourage candidates who would like support with their application to get in touch before applying. 

Please note that we cannot guarantee location of placements for successful intakes.

Thames Reach welcomes applications from people with transferable skills and fresh perspectives.

To apply visit our website and complete our application form.

We are committed to achieving a diverse workforce that reflects the communities we serve. We value, respect, and celebrate diversity. We welcome and encourage applicants from all sections of the community regardless of their history of homelessness, sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, or religious belief.

Thames Reach is committed to safeguarding. Applicants must be willing to undergo pre-employment screening appropriate to the post, including, but not limited to checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service. Having a criminal record will not exclude you from applying but you will be asked to provide further details as most posts are considered exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

We’re an award-winning charity running local learning centres in the heart of the communities where the young people we support live. Our centres provide a high-impact education programme which includes practical learning support, pastoral care, and motivational and confidence-building activities for young people aged 7-18. Our aim is to enable students from the least advantaged neighbourhoods to realise their ambitions and achieve their wonderful potential.

As the UK’s leading university access organisation, our staff team is helping over 50,000 young people each year at its 44 learning centres and extension projects across England and Scotland, and we plan to scale-up our provision to 50 centres over the coming years.

We are looking for someone who will enjoy working each day with young people and who will thrive in a frontline, community-based, fast-paced and rewarding role. You will be taking up a fixed-term contract as an Education Worker at our
centre in Norwich.

Location: IntoUniversity Norwich
Contract: Full-time, fixed-term until August 2026
Applications close: 9am Monday 13th April 2026
Start date: As soon as possible, to be agreed directly with the successful candidate

Salary

£28,250 per annum

What could my day look like?

The Education Worker role is a frontline, fast-paced and rewarding role where no two weeks will look the same. A typical day will have different activities, possibly spread between the IntoUniversity centre, partner schools and the offices of a corporate partner.

In the morning, you might be setting off with resources to run a workshop for sixth-form students in their secondary school. In the afternoon you may be setting up the classroom ahead of running Primary Academic Support for young people in your IntoUniversity centre. On other days, you may be travelling to a corporate partner to run a business simulation workshop for 15 year-olds or leading a group of final year primary school students on a campus visit for their graduation.

As an Education Worker, you’ll always be delivering the programme as part of your centre team, which means that any delivery is always a team effort.