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Closing date: Monday 07 October 2024
Location: Halton Sensory Services, 126 Widnes Road, Widnes, WA8 6AX
Hours: 22.5h per week
Salary: £25443.50 pro rata
Contract: Permanent
Interview date: 31/07/2024

We are an established charity dedicated to raising awareness of vision impairment and empowering those living with a vision impairment across North East Wales, Cheshire and Halton.

We are seeking a passionate and dynamic Community Engagement Coordinator to lead on building connections, raising awareness, and fostering engagement across Halton.

Don’t just take our word for it, here are some comments from other Community Engagement Coordinators:

“What I love about my role, is bringing people together and seeing new friendships develop outside of the social & activity groups.”

“It’s such a varied role, where each day is different. It’s great to meet different groups of people and get to know the members of our social groups. Having small conversations and identifying where we can help people and make a big impact on their lives, is a great experience.”

The Role:

As the Community Engagement Coordinator, you will be the face of our organisation out in the community in Halton, working closely with local groups, stakeholders, and volunteers to drive engagement with our services and projects. You will cultivate meaningful partnerships to expand our outreach, facilitate social groups, and work with our service users to identify unmet needs.

This is an exciting and dynamic role; and an excellent opportunity to play an influential role in a respected charity, to apply your skills and experience to make a real difference, and to be part of a friendly and passionate group.

 Key Responsibilities:

• Build and strengthen relationships with community groups, local organisations and stakeholders by attending events and meetings.
• Develop and deliver an engagement strategy, alongside the Halton Services Manager and the Community Engagement Coordinators in the other counties.
• Develop online and face to face activity/support groups.
• Recruit and manage volunteers to support activity groups.
• Identify community services and activities available and accessible to people with vision impairment.
• Work with organisations to strengthen accessibility of existing community services.
• Keep statistical information for monitoring and evaluation.
• Gather feedback from the community to inform future projects and service improvements.
• Inform service users of upcoming events by phone and mail.
• Respond appropriately to correspondence and referrals and record on the in-house database.
• Encourage service users to sign up for the Vision Support newsletter.
• Identify areas where service users could benefit from a referral to other Vision Support services or external services.
• Take part in supervisions, appraisals and team meetings, and undertake training appropriate to the post.

This is a dynamic role, and it is not possible to cover all potential responsibilities in the job description, therefore, it is expected that the post-holder may be required to carry out tasks not specifically covered within their job description.

About You:

You are a highly motivated, people-oriented individual with a natural flair for building relationships and engaging with diverse audiences. You are organised, enthusiastic, and passionate about community development and social change.

Essential Criteria:

• Minimum of 5 GCSEs or equivalent (including maths and English) at grades A* to C.
• Minimum of 2 A Levels or NVQ Level 3.
• Good IT skills Ability to write reports and keep statistical information.
• Excellent communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Ability to build and maintain strong relationships with a wide range of stakeholders.
• Strong organisational and project management skills.
• Creative thinking and problem-solving abilities.
• Flexible approach to workload, willingness to learn new tasks and keep up to date with good practice.
• Flexibility to travel within the region and work very occasional evenings or weekends.

Desirable:

• Experience working with volunteers or community groups.
• Previous experience working within the charity, non-profit, or public sector.
• Experience of partnership working across organisations.
• Understanding of vision impairment.
• Experience in coordinating events, campaigns, or projects
• Understanding of safeguarding and working with vulnerable groups

Benefits:

• Flexible working arrangements (remote work with regional travel)
• 26 days annual leave plus bank holidays, increasing to 32 days after 5 years’ service
• Pension scheme
• Access to an Employee Assistance Programme with 24/7 counselling
• A full induction with a chance to meet the whole team
• Regular teambuilding days
• Opportunities for career development and training
• A chance to make a real difference

Join us and be part of something extraordinary. Help us make a lasting impact on the lives of those living with a vision impairment!

General/Additional Information

• The post holder is expected to follow the organisation’s Employee Handbook.
• Confidentiality – It is expected that all employees understand that our work with service users is confidential and that personal details about service users

or their families should not be divulged to members of the public.  A breach of confidentiality will result in disciplinary action.

• It is expected that the postholder will cover tasks not specifically covered within their job description therefore flexibility is required.
• Awareness training (including listening skills, attitudes to vision impairment, causes of vision impairment, suitable equipment, and sighted guiding techniques) will be given. Ongoing training and regular staff meetings will follow induction.
• Applicants are advised that contact with guide dogs may be necessary within the workplace.
• Vision Support operates a no smoking policy within its buildings.

Vision Support reserves the right to close this advert early if a suitable candidate is found.