Student pastoral support worker jobs

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 graduates 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 Edinburgh.

The role at a glance

Contract: Full-time, fixed term until August 2026.

Start date: As soon as possible, to be agreed directly with the successful candidate. 

Working hours
Mon and Thurs: 09:30-18:00
Tues, Weds, Fri: 09:00-17:30

(Some additional weekend & unsocial hours will be required)

Education Workers are based at one of our IntoUniversity learning centres and work directly with young people, schools and families on a daily basis. It is therefore not a hybrid role and is based full-time in our centres.

Location

Edinburgh (Craigmillar)

The role requires intermittent travel in your region (usually within the day) this can involve journeys times of 1 hour+. Occasional travel out of your local area e.g. to London is also required, this may include overnight stays.

Salary

£27,400 per annum. This will rise to £28,250 per annum from 1st September 2025.

Annual leave
33 days (inc bank & public holidays) + 3 closure days (two in December and one in July) + additional length of service entitlement (one day per year of service, up to 5 days)

Staff benefits

• Employer pension contributions of 6% (and up to 8% after two years)
• Year round ‘early finish’ Fridays at 4.30pm
• Summer working hours (finish at 1pm on Fridays for six weeks in the summer), pro-rated for staff joining after January in the same year 
• Employee Assistance Programme including access to wellbeing and legal support 
• Life Assurance scheme with Aviva including SmartHealth service with access to 24/7 online GP appointments
• Interest-free new starter loans of up to £1,000
• Cycle to Work Scheme and Travelcard Loan Scheme
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, shared parental and adoption pay and sick pay allowances
• Staff in FOCUS – rewards, competitions and prizes across the year

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. 

This pioneering role is based in Furzedown in the London Borough of Wandsworth, a thriving and creative community. The post holder will be working primarily with Mitcham Lane Baptist Church and Furzedown Youth Centre.

Mitcham Lane Baptist Church (MLBC) is a friendly, informal, multi-cultural Baptist church, based in Furzedown, in the borough of Wandsworth, London. It is made up of Christian believers from a wide variety of backgrounds, who unite around our aspiration values to be a people who walk our talk and to Love God, Love People and Love Life.

At MLBC we aspire to be an inclusive community which builds people up. Our God is a creative God, blessing us with different skills, gifts and personalities so we strongly believe in unity and diversity. We want all people regardless of their background or Christian experience to find a place to belong. We want to be people that are open and honest with one another.

In seeking to pull together the threads of Loving God, Loving People and Loving Life we are a registered Fairtrade Church, an A Rocha UK Eco Church, a Foodbank Welcome Centre and have several mission partners across the globe.

Furzedown Youth Centre (FYC) is a community Youth Centre, owned and managed by a partnership of four local churches. FYC has been serving the Furzedown area for over 20 years. The aims of FYC are:

• to reach out to the many, mainly unchurched, local young people, school years 6 - 13, to provide a safe place for them to gather, free from negative behavioural influences, for example, drug and gang related crime.

• to engage young people in high quality recreational activities within a supportive Christian environment. Helping to promote their social, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being, thereby enabling them to grow in maturity as individuals and members of society.

• to share the unconditional love of God with them - by service and example - with the hope that, ultimately, they may  understand more about the good news of Jesus Christ.

 • to build and strengthen links with the local community

The contrast of the two organisations gives the dynamic combination of both outreach into the community via the open programming of Furzedown Youth Centre and discipleship of those young people who find themselves connected to Mitcham Lane Baptist Church.

Key Details:

Location: Mitcham Lane Baptist Church & Furzedown Youth Centre

Reporting to: Pastor of MLBC

Hours: 37.5 hours per week (flexible, includes evenings and weekends/Sunday services)

Salary: Competitive, based on experience and qualifications (£27,000 - £29,500pa)

Annual Leave: 25 days + 8 Public Holidays.

Contract Type: 3 years fixed term (subject to 6-month probation)

Occupational Requirement: Practicing Christian (Equality Act 2010)

Enhanced DBS check required.

Right to work in the UK required.

How to apply: Click the CharityJob Apply button below. You’ll be asked to submit a CV.

Closing date: 20 July 2025.

Key Responsibilities include:

• Programme Leadership
• Strategic Development & Planning
• Pastoral & Relational Work
• Volunteer Development
• Administration & Communication
• Safeguarding & Compliance

This job is for you if:

·      You are a committed Christian with active church involvement and a desire to grow and deepen their personal faith.

·      You are able to become an active member at MLBC.

·      You have a minimum three year’s experience in youth work (11–18 age group).

·      You hold a relevant qualification in Theology, Youth or Community work.

·      You have the ability to lead and inspire youth, volunteers, and community partners.

·      You have strong organisational and time management skills.

·     You are a good communicator, both one-to-one and in groups.

·      You have an understanding of inner-city youth culture and contemporary challenges.

·      You are confident in your knowledge of safeguarding legislation and procedures.

·      You can demonstrate a willingness to work flexible hours including evenings/weekends.

·      You thrive in a team but also have high levels of self-motivation and initiative.

We are not able offer visa sponsorship to candidates living outside of the UK.