Programme officer jobs in Leeds
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We’re looking for a collaborative, highly organised Youth Engagement Project Officer, who is passionate about building opportunities for children and young people in libraries.
You’ll have great communication skills and enthusiasm for platforming young people’s voices. You’ll also know how to manage priorities, keep projects within deadline and budget, and accurately collect and compile data. As a natural people-person, you’ll feel confident supporting library teams, partners and colleagues and be happy taking initiative.
We’d especially love to hear from you if you have created opportunities for children and young people to be heard and involved in decisions that affect them, and if you’ve been involved in supporting the delivery of projects. Experience of libraries is not required as you’ll have lots of opportunities to learn about our sector in this role.
About the work
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 national network is made up of members from library services, 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.
We are an Arts Council England Investment Principles Support Organisation. Our members are leaders in children and young people’s public libraries and school library services.
Libraries Rising and The Reading Agency were recently successful in securing funding from the Arts Council to deliver a two-year programme, to place young people at the heart of shaping the future library reading experience. The two-year project forms part of the legacy of the National Year of Reading 2026 and will work with young people and library services across nine regions of England to co-create new approaches, resources and digital innovations that build on the strengths of libraries and inspire more young people to read for pleasure.
Who we’re looking for
We’re looking for someone who lives our values - progressive, collaborative, kind, aspirational and inclusive.
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 are building an environmentally sustainable charity, and we want to be celebrated as an inclusion changemaker in the sector.
Our application process is open to everyone and anyone with the experience we’re looking for. We have a diverse board of trustees, and we are developing the diversity of our staff team. We particularly welcome applications from people from racialised communities, trans or non-binary individuals, and those with hidden or visible disabilities.
Job purpose
As Youth Engagement Project Officer, you’ll work closely with the Programme Manager, the wider Libraries Rising team, The Reading Agency, library services and young people to support the delivery of this project, and to develop our wider support of libraries with their youth engagement work.
What you’ll bring to the role
You’ll be:
- A strong communicator, confident with building relationships and keeping everyone on track.
- Experienced in working with young people and partner organisations.
- Committed to platforming young people’s voices, especially those who are underserved by their communities, marginalised, or experiencing deprivation.
- Committed to co-creative practice and working with, not doing to.
- Experienced in creating, developing and implementing effective systems and procedures.
- Experienced in providing operational, administrative and project support, with digital skills including use of Microsoft Office and supporting remote teams.
- Experienced in providing in person and online event planning and support.
- Aware of GDPR implications and requirements.
- Committed to your own professional development.
Employee benefits
- 25 days annual leave (pro rata) plus Bank Holidays
- 5% employer pension contribution
- Employee Assist Programme – including 24/7 counselling, health support and legal helpline.
- A range of discounts on retail, entertainment, travel and wellbeing.
Additional information
If you have any questions about the role, please get in touch.
All applicants must have an existing Right to Work in the UK.
Please also note that appointment will be made subject to collection of two references and a satisfactory DBS check or evidence of a current DBS certificate.
Please submit your CV and a covering letter OR answer the questions by clicking on Apply Now.
• Applications close: 9am, Monday 17th August 2026
• Interviews: Tuesday 25th August 2026 (online)
• Start date: as soon as possible, to be agreed with the successful candidate
If you would like to discuss specific requirements, please get in touch with us.
Registered Charity
1 - 5
Creating libraries of tomorrow with children and young people today
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
We are looking for someone who cares deeply about our ambitious plans, and who has the skills to manage large scale programmes, whilst also being able to independently take action to deliver operational tasks.
Your work will be central to enabling our continued growth, directly supporting the development of strong partner relationships and shaping the experience they have across our programmes, so that they can deliver excellent outcomes for babies, children and young people.
Role Overview
We are looking to appoint three Programme Officers, who will be responsible for supporting programme delivery and programme operations at the Reach Foundation.
We have 3 vacancies across our portfolios of work:
Role 1: Programme Officer (Leadership)
This includes our x100 programmes across the West, East, Yorkshire and Greater Manchester, our leadership programme with A Million Realities, and newly established place based leadership programmes for heads and executive leaders.
Role 2: Programme Officer (Cradle-to-Career)
This includes our Cradle-to-Career catalyst, foundations and leadership programmes (which are each distinct phases of our Cradle-to-Career core offer), our Accelerator programme, and a number of bespoke Cradle-to-Career catalyst programmes run directly for partner organisations.
Role 3: Programme Officer (Educational Breakthroughs)
Helping to launch our newest strand of work, developing and growing ‘educational breakthroughs’ that enable all children to enjoy lives of choice and opportunity. This will include delivery of existing elements of our ‘breakthrough portfolio’ (Languages for All, developing mapping/ data tools to support local breakthroughs, re-imagining key stage 3 for Lift Schools) and supporting new clients as we begin partnerships with them.
Each role has a distinct portfolio of programmes you will support, but the duties, skills and capabilities required for each role are aligned. We expect the three Programme Officers to work together closely to ensure consistency of delivery across our work, to share learning and to develop a community of practice.
You will work closely with the Directors responsible for each programme, alongside our Events and Operations Officers, who work across all programmes, to ensure our programmes are planned and delivered to a high standard.
The role of the Programme Officer has three core areas of responsibility:
1. Programme Planning and Project Management
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Project manage multiple, simultaneous programmes across the portfolio with rigour. Work with other programme managers to embed consistent programme management across our organisation.
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Work with the Events and Operations Officers to complete the annual calendar-setting process, setting event dates and key programme milestones. Ensure all events are appropriately staffed.
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Utilise Asana to monitor project milestones, proactively identify off-track delivery risks, and lead status updates during programme meetings to ensure timely intervention.
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Champion the use of HubSpot (CRM) and set up progress dashboards alongside evaluation colleagues.
2. Programme Delivery
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Improve (or establish) processes that ensure that every participant on our programmes has a great experience from the moment they find out about us, to when they exit working with us.
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Manage the main programme inbox, serving as the responsive, warm, and professional first point of contact for routine enquiries from participants and external partners
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Coordinate regular, high-quality programmatic communications (e.g. programme blasts or event invites) to keep participants informed and engaged throughout the year. You may author these, or work with others to ensure they are circulated in a timely manner.
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Ensure all programmatic data collection is in line with GDPR guidelines.
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Support in programme administration tasks, such as preparing papers for steering group meetings, taking minutes and circulating actions.
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Actively participate in cross-organisational reviews, sharing delivery insights in order to improve the quality of our work.
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Programme-Specific Deliverables:
Participant Recruitment & Onboarding: Lead the end-to-end application and onboarding journey for new programme cohorts, including coordinating assessment or sign up windows, distributing welcome materials, and managing intake data.
Coaching Offer Management: Act as the end-to-end operational lead for the leadership coaching offer, managing coach-matching logistics, scheduling, and tracking completion rates.
Contract and Agreement Tracking: Administer the distribution and tracking of Service Level Agreements (SLAs), ensuring signed copies are received prior to delivery.
3. Stakeholder and Relationship Management
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Coordinate the operational onboarding of new bespoke partners, guiding both internal and external senior stakeholders through this initial phase
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Invest deeply in building strong, warm, and respectful relationships with senior external stakeholders across identified bespoke partnerships, acting as a point of contact for any queries and ensuring excellent customer service
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Develop strong relationships internally, particularly with Regional Directors or Breakthrough Project Leads , providing them with regular progress updates, risk assessments, and actionable recommendations ahead of key delivery milestones.
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Actively collaborate with fellow Programme Officers to share operational learnings, standardise delivery templates, and build a supportive internal community of practice.
Please review the attached Job Description for more details.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.