Senior Communications and Engagement Manager

Age International, part of the Age UK Group, is a charity that champions the rights and meets the needs of older people in low and middle-income countries. We work with partners to provide life-saving emergency support, improve healthcare access, and campaign for systemic change for older people everywhere.

With ambitious plans, this is an exciting time to join Age International as the Senior Communications and Engagement Manager, leading a high performing team within an integrated Communications, Influencing and Campaigns function. Excellent communication and leadership skills are required for this role, for which you will be managing a team of three.

You will lead our communication around Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) appeals, amongst other key collaborations. Your evident track record and passion for communications and engagement, including via public campaigning, will help our work onto its next stage.

We are a small and dedicated team, proud of our creative approaches to amplifying the work and increasing the impact of what we do to support older people around the world.

Please note that due to the Hybrid nature of this role, the successful applicant will be required to commute to the central London co-working hub on a regular basis. We anticipate this being a minimum of twice a week.

Age UK Internal Grade: 5L

Must haves:

The below competencies will be assessed at the indicated stage of the recruitment process:
Application = A, Interview = I, Test = T, Presentation = P

Experience
* Substantial experience of developing and delivering a communications & engagement strategy. (A, I, TP)
* An experienced line manager, with a track record in running a well organised function, clarity around roles/responsibilities and ways of working, and supporting the professional development of a team. (A, I)
* Evidence of expanding audience reach and UK public engagement, ideally including leading (or collaborating) on campaigning activity and growing a supporter base. (A, I, TP)
* Experience of managing high value relationships and collaborative approaches with external stakeholders and partners. (A)
* An experienced brand guardian, with a track record in maintaining and developing brand awareness. (A, I)
* Experience of content commissioning, including contracting freelancers/agencies and managing to budget & on time. (A, I)
* A track record in keeping abreast of digital trends & opportunities, and acting as the organisational point of contact on digital issues. (A, I)
* Budget compliance & management experience, maintaining the relevant policies & processes. (A)
Skills and Knowledge
* Excellent verbal & written communication skills, utilised to present, internally/externally & through overseeing our written outputs. (A, TP)
* Effective project management skills & adept at leading project teams, with target setting, monitoring & reporting in place. (A, TP)
* Excellent time management, the ability to work at pace and maintain momentum on complex projects. (A)
* Strong people management skills and experience, including performance management and professional development. (A, I)
* Understanding of what Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) means in relation to this post, and the ability to incorporate equality practices into all aspects of the work. (A,I)
Personal attributes
* A talented communications professional, with an eye for high quality design and strong written copy. (A)
* A clear thinker who can lead a team under pressure, and support it to manage multiple (often competing) priorities. (A, I)
* A collaborative and supportive colleague who champions the function / team. (A,I)

Great to Haves
Experience
* Hands-on experience of crisis communications and reputational management. (A)
* Experience of managing or working alongside a public campaigning function, and the range of tools and approaches used. (A, I)
* Ideally, experience of 'supporter journey' implementation, data management, and using digital platforms (eg. Engaging Networks). (A, I)
* Practical insight into the benefits of integrated approaches, including with policy, programmes & fundraising colleagues, to build more effective communications & engagement. (A)
Skills and Knowledge
* A proficient editor with a passion for high quality copy. (A)
* A clear grasp of the importance of amplifying older people's voices, and how this can be achieved. (A, I)
* Knowledge of the international development sector, and/or charity sector, and of working within complex networked organisations. (A, I)

What we offer in return

• Competitive salary, 26 days annual leave + bank holidays + annual leave purchase scheme
• Excellent pension scheme, life assurance, health cashback plan and EAP
• Car Benefit Scheme, Cycle to Work Scheme and Season Ticket Loan
• Techscheme - buy any tech from Apple or Currys, up to £1000, and spread the cost over 12 months, interest free
• Blue Light Card Scheme
• You Did It Awards - recognition awards from £100-250.

Additional Information

Supporting statements and anonymisation
Candidates are expected to provide a supporting statement that explains how they meet the competencies annotated with an ‘A’ in the job description, to assess suitability for the position. Age UK acknowledges and accepts that AI may be used to support the application; we do expect candidates to personalise experience, knowledge and skills and failure to do so, may result in your application being rejected.

CVs will be anonymised by our recruitment system when you apply for a role. Our system is unable to anonymise supporting statements. Please could you remove any personal information including your name before you upload to support our inclusive recruitment process. All equalities monitoring information is also anonymised and not shared with the hiring panel. Your name and address will only be known to us if invited for interview.

Equal opportunities & Disability Confident Scheme
Age UK is an Equal Opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates, regardless of age, sex, race, disability, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital/civil partnership status, or pregnancy and maternity. Age UK is a Disability Confident Scheme employer. Due to high numbers of applications received, Age UK reserves the right to limit the overall number of interviews offered, and therefore, it may not always be practicable or appropriate to interview all disabled people that meet the minimum criteria for the job.

Reasonable adjustments
Disabled job seekers can access reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process. All requests for reasonable adjustments are considered on a case-by-case basis, in collaboration with the disabled job seeker to best meet their needs, please contact the Recruitment Team. Disability disclosures will be kept confidential and only shared on a need-to-know basis to support the implementation of adjustments. Disclosures will not be used to inform hiring decisions.

Age UK is able to provide Skilled Worker sponsorship for eligible roles only. If this applies to you, please contact the recruitment team to discuss. If the role is not eligible for Skilled Worker sponsorship you will need to have a pre-existing Right to Work in the UK.

Age UK is committed to safeguarding adults at risk, and children, from abuse and neglect. We expect everyone who works with us to share this commitment.

Early application is encouraged as we will review applications throughout the advertising period and reserve the right to close the advert at any time.

Age UK politely requests no contact from recruitment agencies or media sales. We do not accept speculative CVs from recruitment agencies nor accept the fees associated with them.