The Opportunity
This role is central to shaping and delivering the Social Mobility Foundation’s media, public affairs, and campaigning work, alongside the Campaigns Manager. You will influence changemakers - including politicians and journalists - through strategic media, political, and social media interventions. You will also collaborate with our Young Campaigners to amplify their voices and co-create impactful campaigns with them that drive systemic change.
1. Helping to plan and deliver campaigns activity, both planned and reactive, including:
- Organising campaign events e.g. Parliamentary receptions and communicating our campaigns online and on social media.
- Assisting the Campaigns Manager to commission research and polling support our campaigning.
- Monitoring parliamentary activity, and horizon scanning - considering how political developments may affect our campaigning work, providing opportunities and risks.
2. Leading our media work to maximise the impact of our campaigning, building awareness of social mobility as an issue amongst influential and informed audiences:
- Developing and executing media and communication plans to support our campaign goals.
- Monitoring the media and responding to stories that allow us to land our key messages, share our point of view and platform SMF young people.
- Responding to requests from journalists for comment and advising and briefing members of staff on how to respond.
3. Co-create campaigns alongside our Young Campaigners and engage them in delivering and designing campaign activity:
- Developing and facilitate spaces for our Young Campaigners to co-create campaign activities and take actions to influence changemakers.
- Working with young people to share their experiences, through speaking at events and other campaigning opportunities.
- Training and supporting young people to speak to the media, ensuring safeguarding processes are embedded and providing follow up pastoral support where needed.
See attached job description for more detail on the key responsibilities in the role
Person Specification
- Experience of working within a media, campaigning, public affairs or political environment.
- Excellent understanding of the UK political system and political processes and a thorough understanding of public affairs tactics.
- Experience of planning and delivering projects or campaigns in a charity, political or media context.
- Excellent copywriting skills, with experience of writing press releases, quotes, interview briefings, social media posts and opinion pieces.
- Experience of successfully influencing policy or practice.
- Experience of speaking to journalists, succinctly describing our positions, handling media enquiries and making recommendations to senior colleagues on next steps.
See attached job description for more detail on the person specification
Benefits
- 36/37 days (England & Wales and Scotland respectively - includes bank and public holidays and three days to be taken between Christmas and New Year) plus up to 3 days additional annual leave increasing with length of service.
- Time off in lieu for work outside contractual hours
- Employer pension contributions of 5% plus salary sacrifice contribution the equivalent of Employer National Insurance after a satisfactory completion of your probationary period
- Flexible work options such as hybrid working, flexitime, part-time
- Cycle to Work scheme
How to Apply
If you are interested in applying for this role, please head over to our website by 23:59, Tuesday 2nd December and submit:
a) A cover letter (no longer than 700 words) outlining your previous experience, your motivation and your suitability for the role.
b) A 500-word op-ed written for our CEO, Sarah Atkinson on why the government should make large employers report on their class pay gap, linking this to a recent news hook, relevant events or political moments happening soon.
c) A short email pitching your op-ed to the comment editor of the Guardian.
Please note that generic applications and CV’s will not be considered.
Registered Charity
21 - 50
We unlock potential, broaden horizons and create opportunities for young people
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Safety and Assurance Officer
Location: Homebased, based in the Southern Area
Contract: Full time, permanent
Salary: £32,000 gross per annum
Closing Date: 21 November 2025
Are you a Safety Specialist looking for a new opportunity?
The Marine Society & Sea Cadets (MSSC) is the leading maritime charity for youth development and lifelong learning. We are a vibrant and growing charity inspiring young people to achieve their potential through challenge and nautical adventure and also enabling seafarers and maritime professionals to realise their potential through learning and career development. Working with our employees, cadets, and volunteers, we have built a strong vision and five-year Future Ready strategy to meet the growing demand for what we provide, both for young people, seafarers and maritime professionals – and the thousands who aspire to be the sea cadets and marine professionals of the future. It is also about equipping them to achieve their potential and thrive in a rapidly changing world, while growing our charity to benefit even more people – including those from under-represented or marginalised groups.
We are currently looking for a Safety and Assurance Officer to join our team.
About the role
The Safety & Assurance Officer (SAO) is an employee of the MSSC and a member of the MSSC National Safety Assurance Team (NSAT). This is a home-based role, with a primary focus on the Southern area, predominantly the South-East. The SAO will report to the Head of Safety, Health, and Environment.
The SAO will work closely with other SAOs and will be functionally accountable to:
The Head of Inshore Boating for inshore boat assurance
The Staff Royal Marines Officer for weapons and ammunition safety and security assurance
The role requires regular travel within the area of responsibility and, on occasion within the UK. It will involve evening and some weekend work to fulfil the role’s responsibilities.
Requirements
Qualifications: Good general education and NEBOSH (or equivalent), with completion required during probation if not already held.
Safety & Environmental Management: Experience implementing safety and environmental management systems, conducting risk assessments, and working within formal assurance frameworks.
Incident Management: Experience managing, investigating, and reporting incidents.
Training & Support: Ability to deliver training, guidance, and support to non-specialist staff or volunteers on safety, health, environmental, and assurance matters.
Workload & Volunteer Management: Proven ability to manage a busy workload and effectively support and manage volunteers.
Responsibilities
Join the Marine Society & Sea Cadets as a Safety and Assurance Officer, ensuring the highest standards of safety, health, environment (SHE), and operational compliance across our units and facilities.
You’ll lead assurance inspections, maintain compliance with legislation and organisational regulations, and support the safe management of weapons, armouries, and inshore boating activities. Working closely with other members of the National Safety and Assurance Team (NSAT) and Area teams, you’ll oversee safety at events, camps, and competitions, conduct audits, and monitor incident reporting.
This role plays a vital part in upholding the safety and welfare of our cadets and volunteers through proactive assurance, training, and continuous improvement.
For further information, please download theIf you are interested in this role, please apply now!
Benefits
25 days annual leave per annum, increasing with length of service
Hybrid working for many roles
Volunteering Leave
Life assurance (4x salary)
Private medical insurance
Generous pension (employer contribution up to 10%)
Cycle to work scheme
Access to the Marine Society Digital Library
Wellbeing portal and EAP with 121 counselling
Employee development: We are investing in our employees' development and have an annual calendar of learning and development opportunities, designed to support employees to develop into their roles and stretch them to achieve their full potential.
Additional Information
MSSC positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates from all backgrounds. Equity, diversity, and inclusion really matters to us, so we can best serve our beneficiaries from every community. We work to ensure a fair and consistent recruitment process and aim to be a charity where diversity of experience, identity and skills are valued and welcomed. MSSC is an equal opportunities employer.
We recognise our responsibilities to safeguard and protect the young people and vulnerable adults with whom we work. We do all we can to promote their health, safety and wellbeing, and we expect our staff to share this commitment and work in line with safeguarding policy, the MSSC’s values and ethos of inclusivity. We adhere to safer recruitment practices and therefore employment is subject to detailed pre-employment checks for successful candidates, including references and criminal disclosure checks and the completion of a disclosure questionnaire.
All successful applicants are required to attend safeguarding training and undergo pre-employment checks including a criminal record check.
Thank you!
The Case Coordinator will work closely with the Head of Direct Work to ensure the delivery of high-quality Independent Social Work Reports (ISWRs) across the direct work strand of SWWB. The Case Coordinator will supervise volunteer social workers, carry out social work assessments themselves, and support quality assurance processes to maintain excellence in social work practice.
