Communications Assistant

The Vacancy

Islamic Relief Worldwide (IRW) is a faith-based humanitarian relief and development organisation working to save and transform the lives of some of the world’s most vulnerable people.  Established in 1984, with an active presence in over 45 countries, we strive to make the world a better and fairer place for those affected by poverty, conflict and natural disasters. In the UK, IRW has a partner whose main role is to raise funds, raise awareness, carry out advocacy and support domestic programmes: this partner is called Islamic Relief UK (IRUK).

Islamic Relief UK (IRUK) is actively recruiting for the position of ‘Communications Assistant’ on a full-time, permanent basis to join its dynamic Communications & Creative Content department. The role will be based from its Waterloo Office, London. The organisation is currently operating to a hybrid working model.

The purpose of the role is to provide comprehensive administrative and financial support to the Head of Communications & Creative Content and the Communications & Creative Content Department. To establish and maintain effective communication with all departments and between offices and other functions of IRUK to ensure effective cross-organisational communication of activities, events and achievements through the development and management of an internal comms strategy and plan. . To provide support to the Communications & Creative Content Department in order to ensure the effective delivery of the Communications & Creative Content Strategy and work plan.

The successful candidate must have:

• Working as Comms Coordinator or Assistant, or providing support to a Head of Department/senior manager
• Attending and minuting managerial/departmental meetings and assisting with the production of reports
• Working with budgets and maintaining financial records
• Managing diaries and correspondence
• Successfully providing administrative support to a busy department, including collating, monitoring and disseminating information to key stakeholders
• Working collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders as part of a team
• Producing and/or delivering internal communications plans
• Writing copy in order to share information, preferably with an internal audience
• Excellent organisational, numerical and administrative skills
• Strong written communication skills necessary to draft letters, minutes, reports and other documentation
• Strong verbal communication skills with an excellent telephone manner
• Excellent interpersonal skills and confidence to deal with people at all levels
• Flexible and adaptable
• Advanced knowledge of Microsoft Office suite, including Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Numerate and literate with a good standard of education
• Good understanding of the NGO sector
• Ability to demonstrate confidentiality and handle sensitive material
• Ability to produce accurate minutes of meetings and draft/edit written documents and correspondence independently
• Ability to plan, prioritise and deliver to tight timescales
• Ability to work effectively on own initiative and as part of a diverse team, without close supervision
• Ability to work methodically with excellent attention to detail

For more information, please click on the Documents tab above to view the full Job Description.

If you are talented, reliable, service-minded, resilient and a highly motivated professional looking for a meaningful career, with a strong commitment to IRW’s mission and values of sincerity, excellence, compassion, social justice and custodianship, please apply by completing our online application form.

For more information on the excellent company benefits we offer our employees, please visit our website.

PLEASE NOTE: Interviews are expected to take place on 10/10/2024.

Pre-employment Checks:

Any employment with Islamic Relief will be subject to the following checks:

• screening clearance
• proof of eligibility to live and work within the UK
• receipt of satisfactory references

Please note, for UK-based roles, we are only able to accept applications from candidates who are eligible to work in the UK. We are unable to progress applications which would require sponsorship.

Our values and commitment to safeguarding

IRW is committed to preventing any type of unwanted behaviour at work including sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse, lack of integrity and financial misconduct; and committed to promoting the welfare of children, young people, adults and beneficiaries with whom IRW engages. IRW expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment through our code of conduct. We place a high priority on ensuring that only those who share and demonstrate our values are recruited to work for us.

The post holder will undertake the appropriate level of training and is responsible for ensuring that they understand and work within the safeguarding policies of the organisation.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records checks. IRW also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme.

In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment.

By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures.

Islamic Relief is an equal opportunities employer