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're looking for an inspiring Head of Volunteering to lead and shape the future of volunteering across Sense.
When registering to this job board you will be redirected to the online application form. Please ensure that this is completed in full in order that your application can be reviewed.
About the Role
We're looking for an inspiring Head of Volunteering to lead and shape the future of volunteering across Sense.
This is a unique opportunity to drive meaningful change, ensuring volunteering continues to play a vital role in delivering our mission. Reporting to the Chief People Officer, you'll provide organisation-wide leadership on volunteering, helping us maximise our impact, strengthen community connections, and support the long-term sustainability of our services.
Working closely with senior leaders and teams across the organisation, you'll champion inclusive, accessible and innovative volunteering opportunities that enable people from all backgrounds to contribute in ways that are meaningful to them.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Leadership
- Develop and deliver a volunteering development plan aligned to Sense's strategic priorities.
- Act as a trusted advisor to senior leaders on volunteering strategy and opportunities.
- Champion volunteering as a key contributor to organisational impact, reputation and sustainability.
- Represent Sense internally and externally, promoting excellence in volunteering.
Developing Volunteering
- Create new, flexible and inclusive volunteering opportunities across services, communities, retail and corporate activity.
- Develop frameworks, tools and guidance that support managers to recruit, engage and retain volunteers effectively.
- Build volunteering opportunities that are meaningful, accessible and rewarding.
- Develop robust KPIs to measure volunteer engagement, impact and experience.
- Use volunteer feedback to drive continuous improvement and innovation.
Inclusion and Engagement
- Promote accessible and inclusive volunteering practices across the organisation.
- Work alongside volunteers, disabled people with complex needs and families to co-design volunteering opportunities.
- Ensure volunteer voices help shape the future of volunteering at Sense.
Governance and Compliance
- Provide expert guidance on volunteering governance, risk management and best practice.
- Lead the development and review of volunteering policies and procedures.
- Ensure volunteering activities comply with relevant legislation, regulation and safeguarding requirements.
- Manage the central volunteering budget and demonstrate value for money.
About You
You'll be a passionate and experienced volunteering leader with a strong commitment to inclusion and social impact.
You'll bring:
- Proven leadership experience within volunteer management.
- Experience working in social care, health, disability services or a related sector.
- A track record of developing and growing inclusive, sustainable volunteering programmes.
- Strong coaching, facilitation and influencing skills.
- Experience using data and insight to inform decision-making and demonstrate impact.
- Budget management experience and an ability to demonstrate return on investment.
- A commitment to accessibility, inclusion and rights-based approaches.
We'd love it if you also have
- Experience supporting disabled people with complex needs.
- Experience within regulated services.
- Knowledge of retail volunteering.
- Experience of co-production and co-design approaches.
- Understanding of trauma-informed or positive behaviour support approaches.
- Experience using digital systems to enhance volunteer engagement.
Why Join Sense?
This is an opportunity to shape volunteering across one of the UK's leading disability charities. You'll join a values-led organisation where collaboration, inclusion and innovation are at the heart of everything we do.
If you're passionate about creating outstanding volunteer experiences and want to help more people make a meaningful difference, we'd love to hear from you.
Our values
Our values shape the way we behave and work alongside disabled people with complex needs to break down barriers.
- We're creating change
- We're always learning
- We're better together
To apply
Please use the link below to complete your application. Managers will use your application to shortlist candidates for interview; in relation to the Personal Specification. Therefore, it is very important you complete this section thoroughly. We would recommend that you read the job description and person specification before applying.
Please note to avoid disappointment, we advise you to submit your application as soon as possible as we reserve the right to close posts at any time.
No agency submissions please: any submissions without prior authorisation from the Sense Recruitment Team will be treated as our own and as such no fee will be payable.
Sense is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of vulnerable children and adults and expects all employees to share this commitment. Therefore, all offers of employment, where appropriate, are subject to a DBS check; level dependent on the nature of the role.
Sense is here to break down barriers alongside disabled people with complex needs. That's why we're committed to increasing the number of disabled people working across our organisation and creating an environment where everyone can thrive.
We actively encourage disabled people to apply for our vacancies and believe that a diverse range of perspectives, experiences and talents makes us stronger.
We know there's always more we can do to become a truly inclusive employer, and we're working together to achieve that. Join us and help create the change thousands of disabled people with complex needs and families told us they want to see: a world without limits.
If you need us to adjust our recruitment process to help you access our vacancies, then please get in touch with a member of the talent acquisition team. We are a Disability Confident Leader and commit to interviewing disabled people who meet the minimum criteria for a role. More information on this can be found here Our commitment as an employer | Sense Careers
We believe that every disabled person should have the opportunity to connect with others and be included in the world.



- 37 hours per week
- £40,000 – £42,000 per annum plus 6% pension contribution
- Remote
Rape Crisis England & Wales (RCEW) is the national campaigns and membership body for a network of independent, community-based Rape Crisis Centres working to end child sexual abuse, rape, sexual assault, sexual harassment and all other forms of sexual violence.
The 24/7 Rape and Sexual Abuse Support Line is a national service led by Rape Crisis England & Wales and funded by the Ministry of Justice.
We are looking for a values-led professional with strong digital project skills and a deep commitment to survivor-centred, high-quality services.
Job Summary
As the Digital Project & Product Lead for the 247 Support Line, you will lead the transformation and continuous improvement of the organisation’s digital support line infrastructure, ensuring the technology and processes that underpin survivor support are effective, resilient, and user centred.
This role sits at the intersection of project delivery, product management, and a genuine commitment to the survivors RCEW serves. The right candidate will understand that technology is only as good as the humans who use it and will bring both rigour and empathy to everything they do.
You will be responsible for the end-to-end delivery which, includes defining the product requirements, technology evaluation, procurement, implementation, onboarding, and ongoing optimisation. Working closely with operational teams, suppliers, and stakeholders, you will ensure that our support line products enable support workers to deliver high-quality, accessible services.
Key Responsibilities
Programme Delivery
· Own and drive the support centre improvement programme from procurement through to live operation, ensuring delivery on time and within budget
· Manage supplier relationships, coordinate and input into the evaluation of bids, and identify, track, and mitigate risks throughout the programme
· Maintain clear, accessible project documentation and provide regular progress updates to senior stakeholders
· Coordinate across internal teams (services, technology, legal, finance) and external partners to keep work aligned and moving
Product & Solution Ownership
· Act as product owner for the support centre platform: defining requirements which meet the needs of support workers and service users
· As part of a team you’ll evaluate technology options against a set of agreed criteria, with a focus on fitness for purpose, data security and value for money
· Oversee the bespoke configuration of the chosen platform, working closely with the supplier
· Collaborate with the Head of Service to and I.T Lead to onboard and train the team, ensuring support line workers feel confident and prepared from day one
· Following go-live, take responsibility for the continued health and development of the support centre platform and identify improvement opportunities
· Champion best practice in digital service design and products across the organisation, building internal capability over time
Information Governance & Data Protection
· Work closely with RCEW's Data Protection Officer and Senior leadership to ensure all aspects of the programme comply with relevant data legislation
Person Specification*
· A proven track record of successfully delivering digital or technology projects on time and within budget
· Able to manage multiple workstreams simultaneously in a fast-paced environment with evolving priorities
· Ability to assess complex situations, identify blockers, and develop pragmatic solutions
· Ability to gather and translate user needs into product requirements; comfortable working with service design principles and working iteratively to develop or improve digital products
· Experience and understanding of contact centre software, CRM, and/or case management platforms
· Proven ability to work across diverse teams and communicate clearly with both technical and non-technical audiences
· Thorough knowledge of UK GDPR and able to handle highly sensitive personal data and engage with difficult subject matter with care and professionalism
· A team player who builds trust quickly and works effectively across organisational boundaries
· Self-starter who can work autonomously, flag problems early, and drive work forward without constant direction
· A genuine commitment to RCEW's mission to end sexual violence and support survivors
Personal Attributes
We are looking for a skilled and versatile digital professional who combines strong delivery skills with product thinking. You do not need to be a technical expert, but you do need to be confident working with technology suppliers, communicating with both technical and non-technical stakeholders, and making sound decisions under pressure.
Above all, we are looking for someone who understands the importance of the work RCEW does and has a strong track record of delivering digital projects effectively.
Success in the role of Digital Project & Product Lead for the Support Line is determined by the ability to lead and coordinate the successful delivery of digital projects that enhance the effectiveness, resilience, and user experience of the national 24/7 Support Line. Working collaboratively with suppliers, internal teams, operational colleagues, and key stakeholders, the role will ensure that digital solutions are implemented safely, on time, and in line with service requirements.
Key measures of success include:
- Strong supplier engagement and stakeholder collaboration result in agreed solution designs that meet the operational needs of the Support Line.
- A robust project plan is developed and managed in partnership with suppliers, with key milestones achieved within agreed timescales.
- Virtual Contact Centre (VCC) upgrades are configured and delivered in accordance with agreed specifications, supporting improved service delivery and performance.
- Integration testing with existing systems is completed successfully, with issues identified, resolved, and signed off before implementation.
- Operating procedures, user guidance, and supporting documentation are developed or updated to reflect new processes and system functionality.
- Comprehensive training materials are produced, enabling Support Line staff and delivery partners to effectively use new systems and features.
- Training is delivered to relevant colleagues and stakeholders, ensuring operational readiness and confidence ahead of implementation.
- A structured Go Live readiness review confirms that technical, operational, governance, and business readiness criteria have been met before deployment.
- The VCC upgrades are launched successfully with minimal disruption to Support Line operations, supported by effective implementation planning, monitoring, and post-launch issue resolution to maximise adoption and service benefits.
HOW TO APPLY
To apply, please submit a CV and a covering letter (no more than two pages) explaining why you are interested in this role and how your experience meets the person specification.
RCEW is committed to equal opportunities and actively encourages applications from people with lived experience of sexual violence, and from people from communities which are under-represented in our workforce, including Black and minoritised communities, disabled people, and LGBTQ+ people.
All roles at RCEW are subject to an enhanced DBS check. The post-holder will have access to sensitive data relating to survivors of sexual violence and must demonstrate the highest standards of discretion and data security.
Eligibility
Applicants must have the right to work in the UK. Evidence of this will be required prior to appointment.
Additional Information
Please note: We reserve the right to close this vacancy early should we receive a sufficient number of applications. We therefore encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible.
Due to the volume of applications received, only candidates selected for interview will be contacted.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.