- Location: Home-based anywhere in the UK with travel for meetings. Option to work from our Bristol or London offices.
- Closing date: 7 September 2026, 12pm
- Interview date: Wednesday 16th and Thursday 17th Sept, and a second round interview (if necessary) on Monday 21st Sept 2026
Change lives in a life-changing career
When a child or young person is diagnosed with cancer, their whole world can feel like it’s falling apart. Independence is taken and confidence is stolen. Stability no longer exists. The future suddenly feels uncertain.
The impact of cancer on young lives is more than medical. And that impact can be felt by entire family. That’s why we exist. Our specialist social workers help children and young people with cancer and their families navigate the emotional and practical impact of cancer.
We remove barriers, solve problems and prioritise wellbeing. And we stop at nothing to make their voices heard and their unique needs understood, so they can get the right care and support at the right time
About the role
We're looking for an Impact, Evaluation & Learning Lead with experience in impact measurement, evaluation and organisational learning to join our Research, Learning & Systems Change Team within the Innovation, Policy & Systems Change Directorate.
This is an exciting opportunity to shape how Young Lives vs Cancer understands, measures and improves the difference we make for children and young people with cancer and their families. You'll lead the development of evaluation and learning approaches across the charity, helping us understand what's working, what needs to change and where we can create even greater impact.
Working collaboratively with colleagues across services, policy, engagement, fundraising, digital and data teams, you'll bring together evidence, data and lived experience to generate meaningful insights that improve services, inform strategic decisions and strengthen our influence beyond the organisation. You'll be equally comfortable thinking strategically and delivering hands-on evaluation activity, turning complex evidence into practical recommendations that drive change.
We're looking for someone who is curious, analytical and passionate about improving outcomes for children and young people with cancer. You'll enjoy working with complexity, asking challenging questions and helping build a culture where evidence and learning are used to make informed decisions and drive continuous improvement.
This role is subject to a Criminal Record Check. In the event of a successful application, a Basic Criminal Record Check will be completed. A previous conviction is not necessarily a barrier to employment. We encourage qualified applicants to apply, and we will consider each case individually.
What will I be doing?
No two days are the same at Young Lives vs Cancer. So, summarising your ‘day to day’ isn’t easy. Here are some of the main things you’ll be doing, but you’ll find more details in the job description.
No two days are the same at Young Lives vs Cancer. So, summarising your day-to-day isn't easy. Here are some of the main things you'll be doing, but you'll find more details in our Role Details document.
- Leading the development and delivery of Young Lives vs Cancer's impact measurement and evaluation framework.
- Designing and delivering robust evaluations using a range of approaches to understand outcomes, impact and learning.
- Bringing together data, research, lived experience and operational insight to identify trends, opportunities and areas for improvement.
- Translating complex evidence into clear, accessible insights, reports and recommendations for colleagues, leaders, funders and partners.
- Developing approaches that strengthen organisational learning and support evidence-informed decision-making across the charity.
- Working with colleagues and partners to improve data quality, measurement systems, reporting and access to organisational insight.
- Building relationships with external partners, researchers and funders to strengthen evaluation capability and identify new opportunities for collaboration and learning.
What do I need?
Diverse perspectives and unique skillsets are at the heart of Young Lives vs Cancer. If you're passionate about making a positive impact and eager to learn, we encourage you to apply, even if you don't meet the criteria and person specification fully. Your potential is what matters most to us, and we’re committed to fostering an inclusive and supportive work environment to help you develop.
The key skills we’re looking for in this role are:
- Experience leading or delivering impact measurement, evaluation and learning activity within the charity, public or related sectors.
- Experience designing and implementing robust evaluations using a range of methodologies, including mixed methods and theory-based approaches.
- Strong ability to analyse and synthesise qualitative and quantitative evidence, data and lived experience insights to support decision-making.
- Experience developing or applying outcomes frameworks, theories of change or impact measurement frameworks.
- Ability to communicate complex evidence clearly and influence a wide range of stakeholders through reports, presentations and discussions.
- Strong stakeholder management and relationship-building skills, with experience working collaboratively across teams and with external partners.
- A strategic, curious and improvement-focused mindset, with a passion for using evidence to improve outcomes for children and young people.
What will I gain?
For people to reach their full potential, they need the right environment. As a member of Team Young Lives, you’ll be made to feel supported, valued and appreciated. Here’s how we do it:
- Flexible working: we’re open to working hours outside of 9 - 5 and we can talk through your flexibility requirements at interview stage
- Wellbeing, Thinking & Growth Days: four days a year to to step back from the day-to-day and focus on your own learning and development
- Generous annual leave allowance
- Great family/caring leave entitlements
- Enhanced pension
- Access to our employee savings scheme
To find out more about our benefits package, have a look on our website.
Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging
At Young Lives vs Cancer, we recognise that opportunities for too many people remain a condition of their sex, ethnicity, class, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation – or a combination. This has never been acceptable to us as an organisation. We don’t just accept difference, we value it, celebrate it, nurture it and we thrive because of it.
We’re on a journey to be reflective of the diverse children, young people and families we support. We know we aren’t there yet, and we’re passionately committed to taking actions and making changes to be a truly diverse, inclusive and equitable organisation. This includes taking anti-oppressive action and removing barriers in our recruitment practices. We particularly welcome applications from members of minoritised communities. Our Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Belonging strategy will tell you more.
To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed. We recognise the benefits of AI, but if you're considering using it to submit your application, we encourage you to reflect on the value AI adds. AI tools often lack the personal touch and authenticity that set candidates apart. We want to hear your unique perspective, experiences, and skills, so we encourage you to tell us about your skills and experiences in your own voice.
Accessibility
We’re committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we’ll always aim to be as accommodating as possible. Please let us know in your application form of any adjustments or access requirements we could make to help you with the application process and interview.
To arrange an informal chat, please contact Rosanna Thomasoo.
#ShowTheSalary #NonGraduatesWelcome
Salary: £30,000 per annum
Hours: Full-time, 37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday 9:30am – 5:30pm
Contract Type: Permanent
Location: Liverpool (Hybrid, 2/3 days working from home)
Reports to: People Manager
THE CHARITY
Suicide is the leading cause of death of men under 35 and three quarters of those who die by suicide are men. James’ Place exists to save the lives of men in suicidal crisis through delivering clinical services. We are a charity currently offering free, life-saving therapy to suicidal men at our centres in Liverpool, London, Newcastle and Birmingham.
James’ Place was set up by Clare Milford Haven and Nick Wentworth-Stanley after their twenty-one-year-old son, James, died by suicide ten days after a minor operation. James had no history of mental illness or depression and had sought urgent help for anxiety and suicidal thoughts but didn’t find it.
James' Place was set up to make the experience of finding help as easy as possible. We offer men who are experiencing a suicidal crisis a brief, intensive, therapeutic intervention in a safe environment. Men who walk through the door at James’ Place will be in a space where they feel valued and respected. We provide a calm and peaceful environment both inside the centres and in our outside spaces, accessible to men who visit us as well as their friends and families. We have so far treated over 5,100 men who might otherwise have been unable to access the support they desperately need.
THE OPPORTUNITY
We are excited to offer a new opportunity to join a growing charity as a People Coordinator in our expanding Finance and Resources Directorate. As a People Coordinator, you will work closely with the People Manager and wider team to place our people, culture and values at the core of James’ Place, acting as a trusted and compassionate first point of contact for staff and managers.
You will provide advice and administrative support that enables fair, consistent and legally compliant HR practices, whilst ensuring every interaction is handled with sensitivity, professionalism and respect. From maintaining accurate records and supporting employee relations to coordinating recruitment, onboarding and training, your work will help create a seamless and supportive employee experience grounded in integrity, collaboration and care.
Beyond process, this role is central to fostering an inclusive, people-first culture where wellbeing, engagement and development are prioritised. You will contribute to meaningful charity-wide diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) initiatives, support managers to build capability, and help ensure colleagues feel valued and empowered to deliver life-changing outcomes for men in suicidal crisis.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
HR Advice and Administration
- Act as a first point of contact for managers and staff, providing general HR advice and guidance
- Manage a central HR email inbox, responding to both internal and external queries in a timely, professional and sensitive manner, always maintaining privacy and confidentiality
- Preparation of letters, contracts, job offers, and other HR administration, with oversight from the People Manager
- Collaborate with the Finance Team to ensure variations in contracts and payroll changes are communicated effectively
- Maintain accurate employee records and HR documentation using our HR portal, monitoring staff professional registrations, certifications, and training requirements
- Ensure compliance with employment legislation, regulations and statutory requirements, promoting fair and ethical workplace practices
- Monitor general HR trends, identify patterns and produce reports as required
Employee Relations (ER)
- Provide ER support, advice and guidance to managers
- Escalate unresolved or complex ER queries to the People Manager as appropriate
- Monitor ER trends, identify patterns and produce reports for the People Manager and senior leaders as required
- Conduct ER case administration including meeting coordination, minute-taking, and producing reports
Employee Lifecycle
- Coordinate recruitment and onboarding processes, including pre-employment checks, including references, DBS checks, right-to-work verification, and professional registrations
- Act as a superuser for our Applicant Tracking System (ATS) to coordinate recruitment and selection processes
- Coordinate the leavers process including issuing acknowledgements and letters, arranging exit interviews and other exiting administration duties
Learning, Development and Training
- Maintain training records, tracking completion, certification, and expirations
- Ensure mandatory training is assigned during the onboarding process, completed and recorded, extracting regular reports for managers
- Support managers in training coordination including scheduling, managing attendance, supporting evaluation and reporting on impact
People, Culture and Values
- Contribute to an inclusive, people-first culture, strengthening diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) initiatives, development pathways and wellbeing so that our people can deliver the best outcomes for men in suicidal crisis
- Support employee engagement, wellbeing initiatives and other HR projects, in collaboration with the People Manager, and report on their results
- Demonstrate commitment to the James' Place values of Focus, Bravery, Compassion, Professionalism, Collaboration, Respect and Hope through all aspects of work.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
This role is ideal for an individual with generalist HR experience, an understanding of HR policies, procedures, and employment law, and a genuine passion for supporting others. You will have excellent communication, organisation and conflict-resolution skills with the ability to manage competing priorities and work both independently and collaboratively.
You will demonstrate a genuine commitment to creating a positive, inclusive employee experience, embody the James’ Place values in all that you do, and actively promote diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging.
The ideal candidate will be detail-oriented, confident in handling sensitive information, and capable of extracting and reporting on data to support informed decision-making, with strong IT proficiency across workplace systems.
Essential
Qualifications and Memberships
- CIPD Level 3 / Foundation Qualification or equivalent
Knowledge, Skills and Experience
- Experience of working in a generalist HR (or related) role
- Knowledge of HR policies, procedures, and employment legislation
- Excellent interpersonal, communication and conflict-resolution skills
- Excellent organisational, administrative and attention to details skills
- Ability to covey information clearly and effectively, both verbally and in writing
- Ability to manage time effectively, prioritise workload and meet deadlines
- Ability to record, capture and interpret data to inform evidence-based decision making
- Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle sensitive information with discretion
- Strong IT skills with the ability to learn new systems quickly and efficiently
- Competency with current office technology including MS Teams, Microsoft 365 applications, and emails and calendars
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team
Values
- Genuine passion for creating a positive, supportive and inclusive employee experience
- Ability to engage and act in accordance with organisational values and professional behaviours
- Ability to promote diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging
- Ability to work collaboratively with others
- Ability to be transparent, honest and show discretion when needed
Desirable
- Experience of working in the third sector, therapeutic environments or health-based settings
- Understanding of, and interest in, mental health and suicide prevention
WE OFFER
- A 7% employer contributory pension scheme
- Family friendly policies
- Death in service insurance scheme
- 25 days plus bank holidays leave entitlement (FTE), including enhanced holiday allowance with incremental rises after qualifying period
APPLICATION PROCESS
How to Apply
To apply, please use the online application system to submit your CV detailing your experience, roles and responsibilities, and answer the three competency-based questions. We recommend for you to use the STAR (Situation, Task, Action, Result) method as a way of clearly and concisely outlining your skills, knowledge and experience.
Here at James' Place, we want you to feel comfortable in sharing your authentic selves and personal experiences, so we ask that you do not submit an application that has been formulated by AI. You may wish to use AI to support with structural aspects such as grammar and formatting, however your application must reflect your own genuine experiences, critical thinking and creativity.
Key Dates
Closing date for applications: Friday 28th August, 9am
Interviews are expected to be held Tuesday 8th September.
Next Steps
If your application is shortlisted, we will contact you by email following the closing date to invite you to an in-person interview with up to three members of the James’ Place team. You will be able to choose a convenient interview slot using our self-service scheduling system.
The interview will be competency-based, giving you the opportunity to demonstrate your skills, knowledge, and experience in relation to the role requirements outlined in the person specification.
If your application is not shortlisted, we will contact you by email within two weeks of the closing date to let you know the outcome of your application. We encourage you to register for future job alerts here, so we can keep you informed about other opportunities at James’ Place that may be of interest to you.
Support
If you have any queries or experience challenges with the application process, please email [email protected].
James’ Place is committed to promoting a diverse and inclusive community. Our aim is that no job applicant, temporary worker or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of age, disability, gender and transgender status, race and ethnicity, religion and belief (including no belief), marriage or civil partnership status or sexual orientation.
If you have a disability or health conditions which means you'd benefit from any adjustments to the interview process to help you perform at your best, please do let us know in advance.
Any job offers made are subject to the receipt of two relevant satisfactory employment references. We expect this to include one from your most recent or current employer. Any job offers made are also subject to a satisfactory DBS check and a Right to Work in the UK check.
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