Job Description

Job Title: / Programme Officer
Department/Area / Children’s and Youth Work
Reporting to: / Head of Children’s and Youth Work
Direct Reports: / None
Location: / Church House, Tavistock Place, London WC1H 9RT
Travel: / Occasional travel in UK.
Working Hours: / 35 hours per week. Some evenings and weekends required.
Salary Band: / Band 4
Job Summary: Plans, project manages and delivers programmes, projects and events agreed by the Children’s and Youth Work Committee as directed by the HCYWD.
Background: Policy & national Children’s and Youth Work programmes are determined by the Children’s and Youth Work Committee on behalf of the United Reformed Church’sGeneralAssembly(the governing body of the United Reformed Church).
The Children’s and Youth Work department plans and delivers the policy and programmes under the direction of the Head of Children’s and Youth Work.
There are a number of sub-committees and boards associated with the Children’s and Youth Work and the inter-action with them is included below. The level of involvement with each of these bodies will vary from time to time depending on the priorities for the role as determined by the Head of Children’s and Youth Work.
The United Reformed Church has 13 Synods, of which most employ a Children’s and Youth Development Officer (CYDO). CYDOs have responsibility for their own synod’s children’s and youth work programmes but offer 25% of their time to participate in national programmes.

Principle responsibilities and duties

Programmes

  1. Develop, project manage and deliver agreed Assembly programmes as directed by the Head of Children’s and Youth Work Development (HCYWD).
  2. Implement agreed processes and programmes, as agreed by the HCYWD, to encourage and enable the full participation of children and young people within the life of the URC.
  3. Support children’s work, Pilots and youth work within the life of the URC, maintaining links with Children and Youth Development Officers (CYDOs) and Synod workers as directed by HCYWD.
  4. As a member of the staff team, participate in the Youth Assembly. (The Youth Assembly is run and managed by young people for young people. The staff role is therefore to offer support as the need arises and not to manage the event.)
  5. Manage the Child Friendly Church Award programme, supporting the work at synod level. Moderate the award recommendations made by synods.
  6. Project manage and deliver Assembly Pilots activities as agreed by the Pilots Management Committee. Support delivery of the Pilots Officers training programme (may include some training delivery) and support the training and development of Regional Pilots Officers as directed by the HCYWD.
  7. Project manage the development (including editing of material produced by others) and appropriate sharing of Pilots resources; act as a member of the Pilots Publication Board.
  8. Promote and coordinate the updating of the C &YW website to support work in local churches in line with the objectives of the CYWC. Prepare and distribute monthly e-newsletter.
  9. Attend meetings of the Consultative Group on Ministry amongst Children (CGMC), a Churches Together in Britain and Ireland (CTBI) network.
  10. Deputise for the Head of Children’s and Youth Work Development as requested.

Working with Committees and Volunteers

This section lists the type and level of interaction that this role has with committees and other groups. It will vary from time to time and as directed by the HCYWD.

  1. Children’s and Youth Work Committee: delivers programmes of the Committee under the direction of the HCYWD. May be required occasionally to attend meetings.
  2. Pilots Management Committee: will attend meetings, generally 3 times per year.
  3. Pilots Officers and Pilots Companies: contact as required by points 6 and 7 in Programmes above or as directed by HCYWD.
  4. Pilots Publications Board: Act as member of this board.
  5. FURY (Fellowship for United Reformed Youth) Committee: to be determined (FURY is currently being restructured).
  6. Youth Assembly: as described in point 4 in Programmes above.
  7. CYDOs and other synod youth workers (paid and voluntary): contact will be through participation in programmes and activities as described in the Programmes section above.
  8. Church youth workers (paid and unpaid): contact will be through participation in programmes and activities as described in the Programmes section above.
  9. Other denominations: As described in point 9 in Programmes above.

This role is not a member of General Assembly or Mission Council and is not expected to have direct contact with these bodies or the regional and national synods of the URC except as described above.

Updated November 2017

______

Expected Standards

  1. Promote a culture of open and effective communication to enable constructive relationships with colleagues and internal and external contacts.
  2. Act in ways that support a culture which promotes equality and values diversity.
  3. Promote, monitor and maintain best practice in health, safety and security.
  4. Work collaboratively to develop a customer service culture which fosters continuous improvement.
  5. Take responsibility for own personal development and develop skills and knowledge to enable effective work performance.
  6. Ensure compliance with data protection principles and practice.
  7. Ensure all Assembly programmes, projects and events are run effectively and kept within budget.
  8. Ensure all activities are in compliance with United Reformed Church (URC) Safeguarding policy and practice.

This job description reflects the overall scope and responsibilities of the role. However, it is not an exhaustive list and the job holder is expected to undertake any other reasonable duties that might be requested. All jobs change or evolve over time in order to meet organizational or departmental needs and this job description will therefore be subject to periodic review and change if required.

Person Specification

Job Title: Programme Officer
Requirements / Essential / Desirable / Measurement
Education and qualifications /
  1. Relevant qualification or experience in youth and children’s work preferably in a Christian setting with GCSE passes (grade A-C) in English and Maths
/
  • degree level standard or equivalent

Knowledge & Experience /
  1. Proven track record of working with volunteers
  2. At least 2 years working with Children and young people, preferably in a church environment
  3. Project management
  4. Organising events
  5. Writing, editing, production of published resources
  6. Youth and children’s work programme development
  7. An understanding of Faith development in children and young people
  8. A commitment to addressing issues of discrimination and inequality in an inclusive Christian denomination
/
  • the United Reformed Church and its structures
  • promotion of events and resources
  • training delivery

Skills and
Abilities /
  1. MS Office suite, particularly Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint (intermediate level) and Access (basic)
  2. Excellent interpersonal and communication
  3. An eye for accuracy and detail
  4. Ability to work independently and as part of a team
  5. Ability to manage a complex workload
  6. Ability to work within a budget
  7. Working with varied media trends, techniques and opportunities

Other /
  1. Willing to work within the Christian ethos of the United Reformed Church
  2. Willing to travel within the UK, when required
  3. Willing to work flexible hours
  4. DBS check
/
  • clean driving license

1