Community Network and Partnerships Worker

Job Description - Community Network and Partnerships Worker

About us:
Skerton Community Association (SCA) is dedicated to enhancing the lives of Skerton residents by providing essential services including community groups, education, youth programs, and support into employment. Established by residents for residents, SCA has served as a hub for positive change in the community for 27 years. We're looking for a dynamic Community Network and Partnerships Worker to expand our reach, strengthen partnerships, and continue growing our impact following the receipt of a 3-year National Lottery Community Fund award to develop this role. Position Overview: The Community Network and Partnerships Worker will be a key ambassador for SCA, working closely with community members, local organisations, and partners to ensure that our delivery and support offer provided at Skerton Community Centre is accessible, relevant, and beneficial to those we serve.

Key Responsibilities:
Community Engagement & Outreach
- Local community outreach and relationship building, ensuring through listening to the community, provision at Skerton Community Centre meets identified needs.
- Liaison, networking and collaboration with our statutory (local authority/council, health, education), voluntary and private sector partners to develop joint initiatives that meet community needs and increase the use of SCA facilities.
- Attendance at relevant children, families and community focused partner meetings to elevate awareness of SCA and foster new partnerships.
- Showcasing Skerton Community Centre and the community at partner and other meetings/events to raise the profile, promote its activities and achievement, and to ensure the views and needs of the community are prioritised.
- Serve as a positive, approachable public presence for SCA

Program & Service Development
- Coordinate and participate in organising a range of events, workshops, and fundraising activities.
- Support direct delivery colleagues where needed with hands-on involvement in activities and events.
- Work alongside colleagues and the board to continuously develop a relevant and accessible weekly programme of community and needs-led activities. Reporting & Evaluation
- Work with colleagues to jointly monitor and evaluate our service effectiveness, gathering feedback from our community members to identify positive outcomes and impact as well as gaps in provision and areas for improvement.
- Prepare insightful reports for the Trustees, summarizing program outcomes, effectiveness, and recommendations.
- Support organisational growth through continual service improvement.

Fundraising & Bid Writing
- Maintain and develop positive relationships with funders, including grant makers, sponsors and individuals.
- Support fundraising efforts by engaging with donors, attending events, and developing innovative campaigns.
- Developing strategies to promote the use and profile of Skerton Community Centre, maximising use of social media, publicity opportunities and liaison with the local media.
- Manage SCA’s digital presence, including website updates and social media platforms, to promote our services and community impact.

Key skills and attributes include:
Essential criteria:
Skills and Knowledge
- Personable and able to develop a positive rapport with individuals while maintaining a strong sense of professionalism and maintaining boundaries.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including networking and presentation skills and the production of clear written and oral reports
- Confidence working both independently using initiative and as a proactive part of a team. - Good organisational and time management skills, with the ability to multi-task and plan and prioritise your workload
- Administrative and IT skills (MS Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint,) and the use of these to maintain records and produce reports
- The ability to deal with information in a confidential manner and respond with sensitivity

Experience
- One or more years’ experience of working in a role that involved a level of community engagement, networking and/or partnership work in either the voluntary, statutory or private sector
- Experience of working with people and communities that are facing multiple challenges (e.g. poverty, unemployed poor educational outcomes, isolation/loneliness, poor mental and/or physical health etc)

Other
- A flexible and non-judgemental approach to people and work plus an understanding of inclusion and equality and your responsibility under the Equality Act 2010
- Empathy with service users, recognising the importance of meeting and responding to identified needs
- An understanding of the voluntary sector and a commitment to the aims and objectives of SCA

Desirable Criteria Including flexible working required, evenings, weekends, home-based etc

Qualifications: Qualified to Level 2 or above and have functional skills in Maths and English

Other
- Experience of dealing with