Support coordinator jobs in yate, bristol

About Pathfinders Neuromuscular Alliance

Pathfinders is a user-led charity run by and for people living with muscle-weakening conditions. We support disabled people and those who employ personal assistants (PAs) through peer support, information, training, and advocacy. We believe in the power of lived experience and centre disabled voices in everything we do.

About the Role

We are looking for a highly organised and motivated Project Coordinator to lead the delivery of an exciting new learning and development project for individual employers and personal assistants. The project will support people who employ PAs through direct payments and their PAs to develop the knowledge and skills they need through videos, peer-led training, discussion sessions, and case studies.

You will oversee the planning, coordination and delivery of the project, ensuring activities run smoothly, are well-attended, and meet the needs of learners. You’ll work closely with people with lived experience of employing PAs, guest speakers, partner organisations, and the wider Pathfinders team to deliver high-quality, accessible training and resources.

We strongly encourage applications from people with lived experience of employing PAs, or who have supported others to do so.

Key Responsibilities

• Coordinate the delivery of the training project, including scheduling and facilitating sessions, managing communications, and tracking progress against objectives.

• Work with Pathfinders staff, guest speakers and people with lived experience to produce a series of bite-sized training videos for PAs and employers.

• Organise and support delivery of:

  • Fortnightly peer-learning sessions for PA employers

  • Monthly case study sessions for PAs

  • Monthly “Train the Trainer” classes for employers

• Engage and support participants, including managing bookings, sending reminders, and providing follow-up information.

• Promote the project in collaboration with our communications team and external partners, including disability charities, PA networks, and local authorities.

• Gather feedback, measure impact and contribute to reporting for the funder.

• Support participants to access additional training opportunities (e.g. SfC resources, the Individual Employer Fund, local training).

• Ensure accessibility and inclusion are embedded in all activities.

Person Specification

Essential:

• Strong project coordination skills and the ability to manage multiple activities simultaneously

• Excellent communication and people skills – confident talking to diverse audiences including disabled people, PAs, professionals and partner organisations

• A clear understanding of the challenges and responsibilities of employing personal assistants

• Good digital skills and confidence using online platforms like Zoom, Google Drive, Microsoft Office and social media

• Ability to work independently, manage time effectively and meet deadlines

• Committed to inclusion, accessibility and user-led values

Desirable:

• Lived experience of employing PAs or supporting someone who does

• Experience creating or coordinating learning content or training sessions

• Experience working in the disability, health or social care sector

• Knowledge of direct payments and personalisation in adult social care

Timeline:
We are expecting funding for this role to be confirmed on 30 June and if this is confirmed, we are hoping to get started as soon as possible. The closing date for this role is therefore 30th of June, with interviews to be held between 1st-6th July. 

Job Description: Food Sourcing and Gleaning Officer 

Reporting to: Head of Food and Logistics

Department: Operations 

Salary: £25,000-£27,000 per annum 

Hours: 37.5 hours per week (8.30am – 5pm) 

Working Pattern: Monday to Friday, 08:30-17:00 

Contract: Fixed Term until 31st March 2026 

Benefits: 32 Days annual leave inclusive of bank holidays per annum. 5% employer pension contribution. There will be a requirement to work some bank holidays.

Location: Bristol or Plymouth, with requirement to travel across the region 

About FareShare South West 

FareShare South West joins the dots between food waste and hunger, empowering communities to turn an environmental problem into lasting social good. We rescue tonnes of quality surplus food from the industry and share it with charities and schools to bring health, dignity, and routes out of poverty for people across the south west. Our supportive volunteering and employability programmes offer local people the opportunity to thrive. 

By joining us, you’ll be part of an inclusive, friendly team in a small but fast-growing charity that helps fight the injustice of who gets to afford a healthy diet. FareShare South West is an independent local charity, working in partnership with FareShare UK. By being part of the national FareShare network, we can help rescue more food. By being small and independent, we can remain close to our local partners and people and continuously adapt to meet the needs of local communities. The member charities we share food with transform lives, using food to connect people with other support and routes out of poverty, including children and families, people on low incomes, homeless people, refugees, domestic abuse survivors, people in recovery, older people, and many others. 

Purpose of the Role 

The Food Sourcing and Gleaning Officer plays a key role in FareShare South West’s mission to reduce food waste and fight hunger across the South West. You will be responsible for developing FareShare South West’s network of local suppliers, increasing the number of donations of good to eat surplus food to the organisation. The role also includes a focus on gleaning, this is the mobilisation of volunteers to pick surplus farm crops to be sent out to our network of charities. This forms part of a gleaning pilot project that is happening in 2025-26.

As an ambassador for FareShare South West, you will provide excellent customer service to food suppliers and work closely with our operations and logistics team to ensure food is transported safely, efficiently, and with care. 

Key Responsibilities 

Local Food Sourcing 

• Support delivery of the Local Food Sourcing Strategy to build a sustainable and expanding supply of local food. Complementing national food partners and matching this with the needs of a diverse Community Food Member base. Delivering a consistent supply of food throughout the year whilst adapting to seasonal fluctuations, and specific projects. 

• Research potential food sources by geography, type, and sector (retail, wholesale, producer, grower). 

• Conduct outreach to establish and broker supplier relationships, including on-site visits and securing food supplies in line with growth plans. 

• Participate in working groups with other FareShare regional centres to share local food sourcing opportunities and share best practice on gleaning projects. 

• Implement a gleaning project involving volunteers to harvest surplus produce from farms across the South West. Working closely with the corporate volunteer coordinator to organise and support gleaning activities. 

• Track and report the success of these gleaning activities in line with the projects KPIs.

• Expand the network of surplus food suppliers in the South West, with emphasis on Cornish companies. 

• Work with the Communications team to develop supplier engagement content such as impact stories, case studies, and visual materials. Also support the planning and execution of an event to engage more food suppliers.

Logistics 

• Coordinate logistics to cost-effectively receive surplus food. Supporting the Head of Food and Logistics in managing dedicated vehicles for food collection and liaising with warehouse staff to optimize use of the van fleet for additional collections. 

• Oversee safe and compliant movement of stock across sites to maintain adequate inventory levels for order fulfilment.

• Serve as a point of contact with FareShare UK and other regional centres on food sourcing and logistics matters. 

Food Management 

• Managing ad-hoc food offers from FareShare UK, balancing operational and storage capacity across sites. 

• Collaborate with warehouses and membership teams to understand member needs and allocate unusual food and non-food offers efficiently. 

• Act as liaison between operations teams and external suppliers, providing feedback and escalating issues as needed. 

General 

• Represent FSSW in local partnerships and collaborations focused on reducing food waste and surplus. 

• Maintain accurate and accessible records of food sourcing activities and provide timely performance updates to Head of Food and Logistics for monthly Food & Logistics reporting. 

• Contribute to annual budgets and strategic planning as required. 

• Ensure compliance with FareShare national policies, procedures, and relevant legal frameworks. 

• Undertake other administrative duties as necessary. 

• Support the food team function in the absence of the Head of Food and Logistics.

Person Specification 

Essential Criteria 

• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills, able to build and maintain trusted relationships and foster collaboration. 

• Experience managing diverse stakeholder relationships, preferably in the food or operations industry.

• Experience in supply chain, or logistics coordination, ideally in the charity or food sector. Showing a high level of attention to detail. 

• Understanding of food safety, health and safety, and compliance related to food handling and transport. 

Contract: Temporary for a maximum of 1 year

Job ref: V539 – 2

Hours: 15 hours per week (flexible days/ hours but some evening and weekend work required)

Salary: £9,523.80 for 15 hours per week (£22,222.20 FTE)

Location: 2 roles in Whitton, 1 role in Gainsborough an 1 role in Belstead Hills

Closing date: 26th June 2025 at noon

Interview date: TBC but will be in person in central Ipswich

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications

Job Purpose: 

Volunteering Matters are partnering with Active Suffolk to recruit  6 Community Connectors to work in the following areas of Ipswich: 

• 2 x Whitton 

• 1 x Gainsborough

• 1 x Belstead Hills 

The ideal candidates will have strong local knowledge of the area and preferably, live within the community they are assigned to. In this role, you will have conversations with local residents (aged 18+) to capture lived experience around barriers, motivations, perceptions of being physically active in the local community. You must be a confident communicator and able to work off your own initiative.

The information collected will be shared with project partners and local stakeholders to guide further learning and community development, with the goal of securing future funding for further investment in these areas. 

Responsibilities 

• Identify, plan and create opportunities to have conversations with local residents around being physically active in the local community

• Identify community needs – gather information from local residents on what they value the most, the challenges they face, and what services or initiatives could benefit them. This could be done through informal conversations, community meetings, surveys 

• Share ideas with the local community and project partners/ stakeholders 

• Signpost to information and support for residents wanting to get more involved with their local community 

• Build relationships and networks locally to promote and create opportunities for conversations. 

• Conduct conversations safely and effectively in a range of settings (eg cafes, outside local schools, community events etc) to reach a diverse range of local residents 

• Participate in regular team meetings to support learning, problem solving and collaboration 

• Work within agreed budgets and utilise community resources and venues to undertake conversations 

• Skills & Experience:  

• Strong connections with and experience of the Whitton, Gainsborough and Belstead Hills areas of the town. Preference would be from applicants living in these areas. 

• Enthusiastic, friendly and approachable manner 

• Experience of bringing people together in your community 

• A confident self starter – some who is creative and can use their own initiative

• Flexible and proactive 

• Great at putting people at ease and building rapport 

• Excellent listening and communication skills 

• Excellent organisational and IT skills including ability to manage workload and prioritise effectively 

About us 

At Volunteering Matters we use volunteering’s unique power to bring people together and build stronger, more resilient communities across the UK.   

 We bring people together to resolve some of society’s most complex issues.  From social isolation and loneliness; improving health and wellbeing; building skills, confidence, and opportunity; to ensuring young people can become change makers in their community, the impact that we make is great.  And we won’t stop until everyone in the UK has the opportunity to thrive.       

People-led and impact driven, we are a national charity that is deeply embedded in local areas across the UK.  We operate in five regions: London and the South East; Wales and the West of England; East of England; the Midlands and North West England; and Scotland and North East England.  We also have an Employee Volunteering Team with over 25 years’ experience, acting as a broker to provide tailor-made solutions to employers. We turn local knowledge and energy into action and progress, building stronger communities and a better future for all.

Our Values & Way of Working:

In all that we do, we embrace a philosophy of ‘Freedom within a Framework’ and are guided by our values: Empowering, Inclusive, Compassionate, Positive & Straightforward.
This job description is intended to include the broad range of responsibilities and requirements of the post. It is neither exhaustive nor exclusive but while some variations will be expected, these will be at an appropriate level for the role.

Diversity & Inclusion

Volunteering Matters welcomes all applicants and are keen to ensure our team reflects the diversity of the UK and the communities we serve. We encourage applications from disabled, LGBT and Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, along with candidates with any protected characteristics and from disadvantaged groups.

Disability Confident & Reasonable Adjustments:

We guarantee to interview anyone with a disability whose application meets the minimum criteria for the role. Please provide evidence in your application, which demonstrates that you meet the level of competence required in the “Experience/Skills” section of this advert. To be considered for a guaranteed interview or to discuss any reasonable adjustments during the process.
We have also committed to the following pledges which positively encompass our recruitment and selection processes and methodology: The Promise, Show The Salary, Salary History.

Benefits

Our employee benefits reflect our culture which is built on an approach of full flexibility with accountability, and designed to let you make your most positive contribution; we offer Flexible Working by Default (re hours & place of work), Unlimited Annual Leave, Employee Pension scheme, Life Assurance, Cycle to Work Scheme, Season Ticket Loan, Employee Assistance Programme, enhanced sick and family leave. We are also open to discuss job share applications.

GDPR Statement

If you apply for a role with us, we will retain your contact details including your name, address, email address and phone number to help us manage your application for up to 6 months.  We will not use your personal data for any other purpose or share it with any third party. You can contact us at any point to update your personal information or ask us to delete it from our records.