June 2016

Dear applicant,

Thank you very much for your interestin the Digital Communications Internshipat Back Up.

Every eight hours someone is permanently paralysed as a result of a spinal cord injury. It could happen to anyone at anytime and its effects are life-changing – not just for an individual but their friends and family too.

Back Up is there for everyone affected by spinal cord injury. Our services include mentoring, wheelchair skills training and activity courses as well as support in getting back to work or school. Find out more at

Back Up is a growing national charity. This role is vital to our plans to raise our profile and to ensure that we communicate effectively. You will help to make sure that Back Up is promoted across our social media platforms, through the media and our website toensure that the right information about what we do is reaching the right people. You will get the chance to work with a wide range of people including staff based in our office in Wandsworth and our team of 400 volunteers across the UK.

Back Up aims to be a fun and rewarding place to work with an open, inclusive and supportive culture. To assist you in this role we will provide support, training and coaching. There is the potential to extend the internship and develop the role after 6 months.

To apply, please 10am, Thursday 16 June with:

•A CV with explanations of any gaps, and the names of two referees. We will only contact them after interview.

•A two-page supporting statement (saying why you want the internship and explaining how you fit the person specification).This statement is crucial; CVs alone will not be accepted. Please read the guidance below to help you make your application.

•A completed equal opportunities form (this is optional).

We will acknowledgereceipt of your application and contact you if you are invited to interview. First stage interviews will be held on Monday 27 June. If you cannot make this date let us when you apply.

Kind regards,

Natasha Theobald

Head of Communications and PR

Guidance for applicants on supporting statements

We appreciate the significant time and effort that goes into an application; we hope this guidance helps you to make the most of it.

  1. Say why you want the job
  • Don’t forget to start by explaining briefly why you are interested in this role.
  1. Explain how you fit the person specification
  • The person specification shows you the criteria we use to make decisions about who is shortlisted for interview, and ultimately who is offered the job.
  • Please address all the criteria in the person specification, in the order they are listed in the person specification. Deal with the essential criteria first.
  • The better you can evidence or illustrate that you meet the criteria, the more likely you are to be successful.

For example, if you need to illustrate that you have ‘good time management skills’, a statement which says ‘I have good time management skills’ will not score as highly as one which illustrates some of the strategies you have used to manage your time, explains how you make decisions on how you manage your time, and gives a specific example of when you have used those strategies to achieve success.

  • Keep it clear and concise, just focus on the key points; but don’t make assumptions on what we know about you or your skills.
  1. Format and length
  • We are not too fussy about the style, feel free to set it out as a simple document; it doesn’t need to be in formal correspondence style.
  • 1-2 sides A4 (max), and use a font size of at least 11pt.
  • Make sure your name is on it.

Do ask if you have any questions. We look forward to receiving your application.