Refugee Jobs

About BDCA: BDCA is a dynamic community-led charity that has been serving the residents of the London Borough of Newham since 1998. Our motto is, “working together to change lives and transform our community” and over the past two decades we renovated four previously dead, disused spaces into lively local hubs. From these venues, our diverse team of locally-based staff and volunteers deliver targeted activities for people of every generation from children and their parents, young people and elders too. We also run programmes providing accessible sports, healthy food, poverty support and volunteering. Across all these projects, our mission is to break down barriers, bring people together and build people up.

Job Aim:To lead a fun, engaging and exciting programme of activities for young people across the economically disadvantaged but beautifully diverse E6 area within the London Borough of Newham. You will lead the delivery of BDCA’s Youth project, in line with our commissioning contract with Newham Council’s Youth Empowerment Service. Our project provides the following youth activities in East Ham over 49 weeks of the year for young people aged 9-19:

• Three outdoor Multi Use Games Area sports sessions per week in BDCA’s sports field.
• Three indoor youth hub sessions per week in BDCA’s sports pavilion, which includes workshops such as Junior Gym, screen acting, Muay Thai, healthy cookery sessions, calming crafts and sports.
• Weekly EKO Pathways after school youth club session specifically supporting children who have been excluded from mainstream education due to social, emotional, behavioural and mental health needs.
• Two outdoor parks MUGA session.
• Weekly Youth Theatre Club, led by a local acting workshop facilitator.
• Three-week summer holiday scheme for up to 120 children per day.
•  Annual ‘Stepping Up’ youth leadership programme offering training/ mentoring/ paid work experience / accredited Sports Leaders Awards for up to 30 young people each summer.
• Several offsite trips and residentials throughout the year - as often as match funding allows.

You will be part of a team who are passionate about BDCA’s values of: INCLUDING all local young people by welcoming them into safe spaces and positively engaging with those who often get left out. CELEBRATING their creativity and skills so they have confidence and support to thrive despite their challenges. EMPOWERING them to step up and speak out as local leaders who make positive change in our community and beyond.

The Communications and Information Officer is responsible for our external communications, our social media channels, and maintaining and managing our website. Working mainly with colleagues from the Sector Support and Grants team initially, to raise awareness about the impact of our work as well as the work of the legal advice charities we support. The role will also support Events and Fundraising team to achieve greater participation in our fundraising events, and better engagement with supporters across the legal sector. The role holder will help to create and implement a sustainable communications plan and social media strategy, generating innovative content to grow our online presence and increase engagement.

We are looking for someone who is passionate about access to justice and enthusiasm for our work and commitment to social justice and equal opportunities for all.  You will bring excellent digital skills; experience in a communications and marketing, public relations and/or digital role; and a proven ability to effectively write and edit copy for different audiences.

Main duties and responsibilities

• Creating contents and planning communications
• Website management
• Social media management
• Events and fundraising
• Contact management system management
• Public relations
• Data protection

Person specification, essential criteria

• Enthusiasm for the cause and our work; commitment to social justice and equal opportunities for all
• Excellent digital skills, including experience of content management systems such as WordPress
• Experience in a communications and marketing, public relations and/or digital role and understanding of organisational branding
• Proven ability to effectively write and edit copy for different audiences
•  Confidence with IT including Microsoft Office suite
• Excellent proofreading, copywriting and editing skills
• Proven ability to communicate with a wide range of people and to liaise effectively with other organisations
• Excellent attention to detail
• Good eye for design and some experience with design software such as Canva or InDesign
• Ability to work well under pressure; strong organisational skills to work in a busy environment with competing demands
• Highly motivated, with ability to work on own initiative as part of a small team
•  Flexibility and willingness to learn new skills; professional, reliable and responsible
•  Ability to occasionally work outside office hours as required (with time off in lieu), particularly in the build-up to events, on the days of events and in other busy periods
•  A positive attitude to problem-solving and finding new solutions

Benefits

• 25 days of annual leave, increasing to a maximum of 31 days with the numbers of years in the organisation (pro-rata for part time) plus bank holidays (pro-rata for part time)
• Hybrid working
• Flexible working options
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Contribution to pension scheme (5% employer, minimum 3% employee)
• Continuing personal development opportunities
• Enhanced maternity/adoption and paternity leave pay

Please see attached Recruitment Pack for more details and specifications about the role.