Youth collective senior manager jobs in Birmingham, west midlands
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About us
Community rail is a unique and growing grassroots movement made up of community rail partnerships, station volunteer groups and other community-led initiatives across Britain.
Together, these organisations and volunteers deliver a wide range of initiatives, from engaging young people and building confidence in rail travel, to improving accessibility, enhancing stations, supporting biodiversity projects and creating community spaces that bring people together.
Community Rail Network is the national membership and umbrella body for the community rail movement across England, Scotland and Wales. We empower, support and champion community-led partnerships and groups, helping them create social, environmental and economic value through their work.
Our team of 22 colleagues is based across Britain, working mainly from home while coming together regularly online and in person. We are a collaborative, values-led organisation, passionate about making a difference through community rail.
We believe in nurturing talent, supporting professional development and creating an environment where everyone can reach their potential while maintaining a healthy work–life balance.
About this role and your main responsibilities
We are looking for a compassionate, collaborative and creative leader to head up our work with members. Everyone on the team is here for our members, but you will lead the way in ensuring everything we do is driven by what members need, now and in the future, to help them develop, grow and thrive. You’ll also help ensure our members have a great experience whenever they are accessing our support and services.
As a member of the senior leadership team, you’ll actively contribute towards its collective work in driving organisational performance and success, including growing investment in our work so we can make an even bigger difference for our members and the communities they serve.
Please see the attached introduction from our Chief Executive and role profile for further information about the position, including its principal responsibilities and the experience, skills and attributes we are looking for.
Other information
The role will involve regular travel across England, Scotland and Wales to raise the organisation’s profile and engage with members, partners and key stakeholders.
There is flexibility on your location given the requirement to travel and that your office will be home-based. You will need to travel to in-person quarterly team meetings (usually in London or the north of England) and to Board meetings which alternate between online and London.
It is expected that travel will be by public transport and easy access to the rail network is therefore required to ensure journeys can be made sustainably.
This is a full-time position, 37 hours per week. We use a flexi-time system with core hours 10am-3pm, and are committed to being a flexible, supportive and understanding employer. This is a permanent position with a probationary period of three months.
Successful applicants will need to provide proof that they have the right to work in the UK and provide two references.
Community Rail Network is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome applications from disabled people and Black, Asian and other minoritised groups, who meet with the skills and competencies for this role. We will provide reasonable adjustments for interviews as required.
Apply via CharityJob by Monday 7 September 2026, 12:30pm. Upload your CV and paste your personal statement into the cover letter section. Your statement should explain how you meet the experience criteria in the person specification and be no more than 1,000 words. You do not need to address the skills/abilities section at this stage; this will be assessed at interview. Please include a daytime telephone number, email address and current notice period in your CV.
Interviews will be held in Derby on 17 September. If a second round is required, it will take place online on 22 or 23 September. Interview invitations will be issued by telephone by 11 September. Unfortunately, we cannot provide feedback to unsuccessful applicants.
Non Charity Employer
21 - 50
Championing the community rail movement | Connecting people and their railways | Creating inclusive, empowered, sustainable and healthy communities
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Job Purpose
Sequence ME & Long Covid is one of the most ambitious whole-genome sequencing studies ever undertaken into ME and Long Covid, co-led by Action for ME. Building on the success of DecodeME, this proposed £20 million study will use large-scale, long-read whole-genome sequencing to analyse the entire genetic code of 9,000 people with ME and 9,000 people with Long Covid - making it the world's largest 'long-read' whole-genome sequencing study of any disease.
Current funding supports project mobilisation, partnership development, and the development of the Long Covid arm of the study, including agreeing case definitions and gathering expressions of interest from people with Long Covid. Phase 2 has recently been confirmed, backed by £4.75m from the UK government and a further £174,414 from the WE&ME Foundation, and will focus on sequencing 6,000 ME/CFS samples previously collected through DecodeME using Oxford Nanopore's long-read sequencing technology, running alongside Phase 1.
You will play a pivotal role supporting the Sequence ME & Long Covid project in several different ways. Working closely with the project's management team and other team members, you will help ensure the smooth day-to-day running of this landmark study, providing administrative support to the various people and partners involved in delivering it.
As a self-starter, you will manage a range of tasks including meeting scheduling, taking meeting minutes, preparing governance documents, event administration, and broader project support - no two days will be the same.
You will need to maintain a high level of confidentiality at all times, particularly when supporting governance meetings and handling sensitive project documentation.
As a team player, you will provide comprehensive, confidential and organised administrative support, developing a deep understanding of the project and building strong, effective working relationships with colleagues, researchers and external partners.
Remote working at home can be challenging for some and works incredibly well for others. You will need to be able to work independently, use your own initiative, and remain proactive in maintaining good levels of communication with colleagues.
Key Duties
- Help monitor inboxes and respond to routine project enquiries in a timely and sensitive manner, escalating more complex matters as appropriate
- Assist the project's management team and other team members with meeting scheduling and diary coordination
- Take accurate minutes at project, management and other project-related meetings, and follow up and track resulting actions to completion
- Prepare, format and proof-read governance documents and papers
- Maintain and update project databases including the Teams channel, ensuring documents are saved correctly, other management information/recording systems to ensure accurate and timely record-keeping. Help with the tracking of expressions of interest from potential study participants.
- Provide administrative support for project events - from planning and logistics through to on-the-day support
- Help prepare presentations, slide decks and briefing materials for internal meetings, funders, partners and participant-facing communications
- Support the drafting, formatting and coordination of project communications, such as updates for partners, funders or the wider ME and Long Covid community
- Support coordination between internal teams and external partners, including research and funding partners
- Maintain project files and documentation in line with agreed communication operating procedures with internal and external partners ensuring information is well organised, up to date and easy for the team to access
- Maintain confidentiality at all times and in line with relevant policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with GDPR and that all data consent processes have been followed in relation to data protection
- Positively promote the work of the Sequence ME & Long Covid project and Action for ME at all times
- Undertake any other reasonable activity in line with the responsibilities of the post, as requested by the CEO, Business Development & Partnerships Manager, Senior Research Manager or the project's Management Team
Person Specification
Essential skills and experience
- Organisational skills - Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple tasks across a fast-moving research project, with attention to detail and accuracy maintained under pressure
- Communication - Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to interact effectively with diverse audiences including researchers, funders and people affected by ME and Long Covid
- IT literacy - Proficient with common office software, including Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint), and able to quickly learn relevant project management, database or communications systems as needed
- Problem-solving - A creative and solution-focused mindset to address challenges and find innovative ways to improve processes
- Adaptability - Capable of managing changing priorities, working flexibly, and adapting to the needs of a fast-paced, ambitious research programme
- Initiative - A proactive approach, with the ability to work independently and take initiative, while also following clear instructions when given
- Teamwork - A collaborative team player with a proven ability to work effectively as part of a team, including a remote-working team spanning multiple partners and stakeholders
- Interest in the sector - A genuine interest in health research, the Third Sector, and a desire to take action to improve the lives of people with ME and Long Covid
- Experience - Demonstrable ability to be an effective administrator, ideally within a charity, research, or project environment. Experience supporting governance processes, events, or communications would be an advantage but is not essential
Desirable skills and experience
- Experience providing administrative support for scientific or research-related projects
- Experience writing and communicating with non-specialist or general audiences
Registered Charity
21 - 50
Our mission is to improve the lives of people affected by ME. Better meeting their needs today while taking action to secure change for tomorrow.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.