JOB DESCRIPTION Job title Schools Development Officer Salary Reporting to Head of Youth Work Holidays £29,500 - £31,500 pro rata based on experience 33 days a year (inclusive of bank holidays) – pro rata Location Key Relationships Unitas Youth Zone, 76 Montrose Avenue, Edgware, HA8 0DT Hours 20 hours a week – (fixed rota) Young people and parents, Head of Youth Work, Programme Manager, Unitas Youth Zone Coordinators, sessional staff, volunteers, partners and stakeholders Main Purpose This role will lead on one of Unitas’ most important programmatic initiatives, which we see as having significant potential for growth in numbers. This is our work in and with local schools. Reporting directly to the Head of Youth Work and working closely with colleagues from across the organisation, you will drive a growing and value-adding presence in schools during term-time. Our Trustees have recently approved a new strategy with four key objectives. This role will play a vital part in the following of these objectives: • Increasing the number of young people who attend – we want to significantly increase the attendance of existing members whilst at the same time attracting new members Within these strategic objectives, some key performance goals will be: Increase our active membership through schools’ engagement Improve programming • • • Reflect youth voice in programme planning In terms of impact, we want to see this role: • Build and develop key partnerships with schools in the local community. • Drive a culture of high-quality delivery across Unitas, supported by skilled, motivated staff and volunteers. Duties and Responsibilities – General • Be a role model for young people and present a positive “can do” attitude. • Take personal responsibility for own actions. • Commit to a culture of continuous improvement. • Work within the performance framework of Unitas Youth Zone and OnSide • Represent Unitas Youth Zone positively and effectively in all dealings with internal colleagues, and external partners. • To have great energy to establish positive relationships with young people and the wider youth work team and visitors to the Youth Zone. • To work directly with children and young people to develop their social skills and build their confidence by delivering programmes of activities and services. • Comply with all policies and procedures, with reference to safeguarding, codes of conduct, health and safety and equality and diversity to ensure all activities are accessible. • To be alert to issues of safeguarding and child protection, ensuring the welfare and safety of Youth Zone members is promoted and safeguarded, and to report any child protection concerns to the Designated Safeguarding Leads using the safeguarding policies, procedures, and practice (training to be provided) 1 • To assist with any promotional activities and visits that take place at the Youth Zone • To actively promote the Youth Zone and positively contribute towards increasing Youth Zone membership. • To be continually creative and innovative with the use of space, equipment, and resources to maintain young people’s interest. • To ensure the participation of young people in activities and that their ideas contribute fully to the delivery and evaluation of activities. • To always promote and safeguard the welfare of children and young people. • To carry out any other reasonable duties as requested by the SLT • To role model a positive, can-do, young people-focused and collaborative way of working • To be willing to step in and step up and not see the below set of duties and responsibilities as exhaustive Duties and Responsibilities – Specific • To design and develop engaging educational programmes aligned with the UK curriculum and school priorities • Set clear objectives, outcomes, and success measures for the programme • Build and maintain strong relationships with schools, teachers and educational bodies • Promote the programme to schools and encourage participation • Gather feedback from educators and students to continuously improve the programme • Organise and oversee workshops, events, or learning activities • Track participation and impact through surveys, reports, or assessment tools • Analyse data to measure programme effectiveness and identify areas for improvement • Report on programme outcomes to funders, stakeholders, or senior management • To deliver on the programme in multiple schools and support motivated staff and volunteers • Manage the programme budget, ensuring cost-effective delivery • Build a team of sessional staff and possibly other Coordinators to work in schools and ensure that they are trained and supported so that what they deliver is of excellent quality • Secure funding or sponsorship where needed • To manage the Jack Petchey Foundation Achievement Awards programme at Unitas, including ongoing monitoring, evaluation and reporting directly back to the funders • To work flexibly to ensure the needs of the members are met, including disadvantaged children and young people and those with disabilities or additional needs • To be creative and adaptable even in circumstance where limited resources are available • Due to the nature of this role, we would expect you to take most of your annual leave outside of term time. Approval for leave during school term time is at the discretion of the Head of Youth Work PERSON SPECIFICATION Good candidates for this role will possess the following skills, knowledge, experience, and personality. Selection Criteria* A = Application Form I = Interview Experience Face to face activity delivery, working with children and young people (aged 8 years up) both in groups and individually Experience of delivering schools and/or activity programmes and/or targeted personal development programmes Experience of supporting young people who are at risk, underachieving and/or have social or emotional barriers to participation Experience of working in a team and alongside volunteers Experience of building and maintaining strong relationships with schools and other external partners Organising a programme of youth work activities Experience of working with challenging young people Essential or Desirable Method of Assessment Essential A & I Essential Essential Essential Essential Desirable Desirable A & I A & I A & I A & I A & I A & I 2 Skills and Abilities Strong commitment to children and young people and an ability to engage and build positive relationships with all young people, including disengaged and disadvantaged young people Ability to develop good professional relationships with children, young people and adults Ability to work with young people to develop their social education by providing programmes of activities, services and facilities that are fun and enable young people to develop Ability to coach, encourage, motivate and provide reliable support to children and young people Confident in managing a group of children and young people Ability to deliver high quality activity programmes with children and young people who face social exclusion, disadvantage and disaffection identify and challenge discrimination and Ability discriminatory behaviour, taking appropriate action as necessary Excellent written and verbal communication skills Knowledge and Understanding Understanding of the principles of working with children and young people Understanding of issues affecting young people’s lives Knowledge of health and safety, diversity awareness and safeguarding best practice and how these relate to children and young people Delivery of activities within an equality framework to Qualifications Introduction to Youth Work or Youth and Community Work NVQ / VRQ Level 1 or Level 1 Sports Leaders Award / PGCE or other teaching qualification Personal Qualities Positive and enthusiastic Punctual and reliable Essential A & I Essential Essential Essential Essential Essential A & I A & I A & I A & I A & I Essential A & I Essential Essential Essential Essential A & I A & I A & I A & I Essential A & I Desirable A Essential Essential A & I A & I A & I A & I A & I A & I A & I Commitment to personal and professional development Essential A flexible attitude to work and a readiness to perform a variety of duties to ensure an efficient and effective service Willing and able to work in the evenings, at weekends and in a residential setting A willingness to cover events, holidays and staff absence Essential Essential Essential DBS clearance and committed to Safeguarding children Essential Unitas Youth Zone are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people, and vulnerable groups. This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check. The strength of the OnSide Network of Youth Zone is the diversity of its people, we place huge value on different people doing things in different ways and we welcome applications from what might be considered non- traditional backgrounds. The one thing we all have in common is our desire to raise the aspirations of young people across the country. We are an equal opportunity employer. All applicants will be considered for employment without attention to race, colour, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, veteran, or disability status. 3