News and media relations manager jobs in bollington, cheshire
Assistant Communications Officer
Do you have experience working in a fast paced press office or communications team and are looking to take your next step? Are you skilled in juggling tasks and enjoy the buzz of a busy comms office? Mencap is recruiting for an Assistant Communications Officer - a vital role across our PR and social media teams, helping bring together our day to day work - this position is hugely varied with bags of opportunity to learn and grow in the role.
The role is full time (37.5 hours per week) with hybrid working at home and in the London Office. We know that work is something you do not just a place you go. At Mencap we give office-based colleagues and teams more flexibility about where the work is done.
About the role of Assistant Communications Officer:
- You will be supporting both the media team and wider communications team to help us reach as wide an audience as possible.
- Supporting the media team with day-to-day tasks such as writing and issuing the daily news summary, managing rotas, assisting with compiling monthly reports, take part in the team rota to be the first point of contact for media requests coming into the organisation - via press phone and media inbox.
- Supporting the media team with campaign press - writing press releases and creating social media content, pitching stories to journalists, setting up media interviews and writing briefing documents and work with the social media team to monitor our social channels and interact with followers where required.
You will be a crucial cog in ensuring the smooth running of the press office with:
· Strong organisation and time management skills to keep the team running efficiently and manage your varied workload.
· At least 1 years experience within communications.
· Have good initiative.
*This is not an exhaustive list of the role, please see the attached job description for more information.
This role closes on Wednesday 23rd July 2025 and first interviews will be Wednesday 30th July via Microsoft Teams.
At Mencap, we value a diverse and inclusive workplace and we intentionally plan for the success of our colleagues in everything we do. We welcome applications from everyone, so come as you are and join us. Together we are Mencap!
Benefits
Here at Mencap, we offer an impressive range of benefits designed to support and reward our employees to ensure that our teams feel valued and appreciated.
Our benefits package offers 32 days of paid holiday (including bank holidays, pro rata), along with a range of perks such as discounts at leading high-street retailers, access to health cash plans, interest-free loans, and many more exciting offerings.
For more details on what we have to offer, please see the attached document outlining all the fantastic benefits available to you as a member of our team!
About Mencap
Our vision is for the UK to be the best place in the world for people with a learning disability to live happy and healthy lives.
We're here to support people with a learning disability, their families and their carers. We fight for a kinder, fairer and more inclusive society for people with a learning disability to live in.
At Mencap, everyone works with people with a learning disability either providing support or advice, or alongside one another as colleagues.
Belonging at Mencap is for everyone, every day, everywhere.
· Everyone is expected to treat people well and make Mencap an inclusive organisation.
· Every day we grow and learn. It’s okay to make mistakes but we learn from them and make changes
· Everywhere people will feel respected, valued, and safe to be themselves.
We have Belonging network groups that meet online and are open to all colleagues. The groups include people who identify as Black and Asian, LGBTQIA+, disabled or with a long- term health condition, women, parents and carers, and their allies.
We want to encourage everyone to apply to work at Mencap and we offer a variety of different contract types and working patterns. We’re not looking for specific experience. It is your personality and values that will make you a great colleague. We will train and develop you to succeed in the role you’re applying for.
Thank you!
Who we're looking for
Brilliant storyteller with confidence in their digital marketing, copywriting and PR skills.
Changemaker who is excited about embedding and championing our new brand.
Motivated communicator who will improve engagement with our stakeholders.
Creative leader who enjoys a proactive and responsive environment.
Impact and evidence champion to influence target audiences, raise awareness and garner support.
Values-led collaborator who will build strong relationships with our team, members and strategic partners.
Our focus is on creating libraries of tomorrow with children and young people today.
We want all children and young people to feel at home at the library, to be understood, empowered and inspired. Our collaborative network is made up of member, partners and supporters. We believe in the need for safe spaces and real-life connections to support the demands of modern life. Together, we’re creating change, and you can be a part of it.
Our charity is going through a rebirth, with a new name, strategy and brand identity launching this autumn. This is a pivotal time for a passionate, skilled communicator to join our team. We’re looking for someone to bring the energy and expertise to take us into this new chapter and to new heights, maximising impact and reach.
We are an Arts Council England Investment Principles Support Organisation. Our members are leaders in children and young people’s public libraries and schools library services (SLS).
What’s important to us needs to be important to you too. We want to focus on impact, to work openly, to collaborate with and learn from others, to take the time to care for ourselves and each other, and to have fun together. We want to build an environmentally sustainable charity, and we want to be celebrated as an inclusion changemaker in the sector.
Experience as a communications professional is essential and you’ll be energised by the opportunity to:
- Raise our profile higher within the sector.
- Raise awareness of the range of activities and impacts libraries deliver for children and young people through research, evidence and compelling communication.
- Develop, manage and deliver targeted advocacy for public libraries and schools library services.
- Maintain and cultivate proactive relationships with advocacy and influencing partners to ensure children and young people are always represented in national policy discussions.
- Embed and champion a strong brand, which supports our members and resonates with new stakeholders to ensure we are the ‘go to partner’ for children and young people’s libraries.
- Maximise our use of existing and new research and data to evidence the impact of library services for children and young people’s and schools library services.
- Promote the sector-leading work of our charity, grow our membership and develop new and innovative ways to increase our reach and engagement.
- Develop a strong case for support to attract new funders and supporters.
We are committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we’ll endeavour to be as accommodating as possible. If you would like to discuss specific requirements, please get in touch.
Further information including the role description and application form is available on our website.
Registered Charity
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Creating libraries of tomorrow with children and young people today.