Recruitment
and Development Officer
Immediate start

Values

Mercy Ships was founded in 1978 by Don and Deyon
Stephens, two committed Christians who had a vision to
follow the model of Jesus by showing love and mercy to
people marginalised by poverty and disease.
Mercy Ships is a diverse community made of people
from all walks of life. While not all of our staff are
Christian, we align with and respect the values that
underpin Mercy Ships’ work: love, integrity, and
excellence.

In sub-Saharan Africa, nine out of ten people can’t
access safe surgery. The need for Mercy Ships is
clear – we strive to provide safe healthcare for those
who need it most.

 We look forward to hearing from you.

 Shelley Pigott,
 Executive Director, Mercy Ships UK

Now is an exciting time to join Mercy Ships UK.
With a growing supporter base, a talented
staff team and ambitious targets to reach over
the next five years, we are looking for a talented
Recruitment and Development Officer
to join our team.

Mercy Ships is a Christian charity, bringing free, safe
surgery to people across sub-Saharan Africa. For more
than 45 years, Mercy Ships has visited more than 55
developing nations. We are passionate about serving
those in need and leaving a lasting impact for the
future by  working alongside governments, supporting
healthcare systems and delivering training within the
countries we visit. Our volunteer crew bring expert care
on board our two hospital ships. Sixteen Mercy Ships
offices around the world collaborate on fundraising,
recruitment and public relations.

Mercy Ships UK

The UK currently raises circa £9 million a year to
support Mercy Ships’ operations, benefiting from a
diverse base of committed funders and partners.
As well as providing financial resources for surgeries,
healthcare, education and local partnerships.
Mercy Ships UK recruits over 400 professional
volunteers with medical, maritime and many other skills
to crew the world’s largest charitable hospital ships –
the Global Mercy and the Africa Mercy – bringing direct
medical care to thousands of individuals and leaving
a sustainable legacy of hope and healing in
every nation we visit.

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Since 1978, Mercy Ships has brought
hope and healing to more than 2.88
million people through free, life-changing

Our Mission

Mercy Ships follows the 2,000 year-old model
of Jesus, bringing hope and healing to the
world’s forgotten poor.

Our Vision

Mercy Ships uses hospital ships to transform
individuals and partner with nations.

Our Values
Following the model of Jesus, we seek to:
    Love God

    Love and serve others

      Be people of integrity

      Strive for excellence in all we say and do

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Impact

Since 1978, Mercy Ships has brought hope and healing
to more than 2.88 million people through free,
life-changing healthcare and training. Our volunteer
professionals have performed over 122,000 surgical
procedures and provided more than 556,900 dental
procedures to those in desperate need. Alongside
this, we have trained more than 55,500 local
professionals in their area of expertise, equipping
them to go on and impact over 252,000 others within
their own communities.

Mercy Ships has proudly served across more than
55 of the world’s poorest nations. Today, we have
two remarkable hospital ships in service:

   The Global Mercy: the world’s largest civilian
hospital ship, featuring 6 state-of-the-art operating
theatres, 199 patient beds, the capacity for 640 crew,
and a gross tonnage of 37,856.

   The Africa Mercy: with 5 fully equipped operating
theatres, 85 patient beds, space for 470 crew, and a
gross tonnage of 16,572.

Together, these ships represent a unique and powerful
force for good, bringing hope, healing, and lasting
change to those who need it most.

Our work
Mariama’s story

Mariama is a lively and healthy baby, but a severe facial
cleft strained her joyful smile. This facial cleft affected
7-month-old Mariama’s lip and nose, making it difficult
for her to eat and causing her parents to worry about
their child’s future.

Since paediatric services capable of treating baby
Mariama’s condition were not available near the family,
local doctors directed her father to Senegal’s capital city
in hopes of finding help.

It was there that he heard about a hospital ship capable
of providing healing for his little girl.

Soon after, Mariama received an operation onboard
the Africa Mercy that repaired her cleft lip. After surgery,
Mariama and her family stayed at the HOPE Centre,
where her mother learned how to make nutritional baby
formula and learned about the importance of nutrition
for her child. Now, Mariama is home with her family,
happy and healthy!

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History of
Mercy Ships

Founded in 1978 by Don and
Deyon Stephens, Mercy Ships
has worked in more than 55
countries, providing services
valued at more than £1.3 billion.

By improving healthcare delivery in
every country visited, Mercy Ships
is working to eradicate the diseases
of poverty. Mercy Ships follows the
model of Jesus by “bringing hope
and healing to the forgotten poor”,
helping people of any faith or none.

Mercy Ships delivers a customised
five-year partnership model with
every country we are invited to
support. Relationships are built
with the national government
and ministry of health, so that the
specific needs of each country are
met; we work to strengthen the
country’s healthcare systems and
drive policy change.

The aim is to tackle the root causes
of the problems rather than just the
consequences.

Mercy Ships UK (a key member of the
Mercy Ships global partnership) was
founded in 1996. We run the
two largest charity hospital ships
in the world: the Global Mercy
and the  Africa Mercy.

Behaviours

We put beneficiaries first

Our performance impacts lives, so we
strive for the very best results.

We are open to challenge

We challenge current norms, ideate,
create and develop.

We expect the best

We consistently seek the best in
and for others.

Together in everything

We are a relationally-driven team.

Effective interaction

We communicate with clarity
and purpose.

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  Ensure a high-touch, positive candidate experience.
  Host, participate in and promote webinars,
  presentations, podcasts, and other recruitment

functions/activities.

  Maintain current knowledge of Mercy Ships’
  departments, policies, and procedures regarding
  minimum commitments, volunteering requirements,

and position requirements.

  Collaborate with the Global Recruitment team; share
  best practices and networks.
  Collaborate with the Comms team on sourcing and

event initiatives to ensure a high level of branding and

  professional content.
  Travel to attend exhibitions, partnership meetings

and other events.

  Other duties as are within the scope, spirit and purpose
  of the job as requested by the line manager, Director
  or Chief Executive.
  Post holder will actively follow Mercy Ships UK policies.
  Maintain confidentiality in all areas of work at
  Mercy Ships UK and International.

As duties and responsibilities change, the job
description will be reviewed and amended in
consultation with the post holder.

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Role Description

Main Workbase: 12 Meadway Court, Stevenage SG1 2EF

Contract: Permanent, full time (37.5 hours per week).
Hybrid with a minimum of two days per month in the
office. Regular travel required, including internationally
at our annual summit.
Line Manager: Lead Recruiter

Salary: £30,000 – £35,000 (DOE)

Benefits:

    25 days annual leave + bank holidays, increasing + 1 day

with each year of service, up to 30 days annual leave

    Up to 7% employer pension contribution

    Travel and training loans

    Free parking onsite

Main Purpose
The Recruitment and Development Officer is
responsible for supporting the Lead Recruiter in
identifying, engaging and supporting prospective
volunteers to join the bold mission of Mercy Ships.
You will manage the Talent Community, ensuring all
candidates receive regular communication, matching
them with available dates and ensuring our ships
are staffed efficiently. You will also help to grow
existing partnerships and actively source new
partnership opportunities.

Main Responsibilities
  Build and evaluate applicant sources by researching

and developing relationships with professional
associations, trade schools, organisations, etc.

  Provide information regarding Mercy Ships
  opportunities, and maintain rapport with

community contacts.

  Support with managing existing partnerships and
  developing new partnerships.
  Manage the Talent Community to ensure all
candidates receive regular communication
and matching them with available dates.

  Engage and expand the existing network of potential
candidates. This includes and is not limited to the
current leads, talent community, alumni network
and should build from staff/crew referrals, industry
contacts, hiring sites, schools and training centres etc.

  Actively source candidates, utilising online

tools and search resources, cold calls, and existing

  partnership networks or available resources.

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Person Specification

Attribute

Essential

Desirable

Education/
qualification

   Educated to degree level or relevant

    Relevant professional qualification.

experience.

Proven
experience

    Proven work experience as a Recruiter

    Experience in a similar role in the

or similar role.

third sector.

   An experienced communicator,

both verbally and in writing, with
Christian audiences.

Skills and
abilities

    Excellent communication skills.

    Knowledge of data mining and Boolean

search methodology.

    Good administrative skills and

knowledge of Microsoft packages.

    An understanding of charities.

    Understanding of marketing
automation tools, customer
relationship management
platforms, and databases.

    Capacity to learn new systems,

tools, and applications.

    Experience with SalesForce.

    Experience using LinkedIn

Recruiter.

   A good awareness and passion
for  international development
in sub-Saharan Africa.

   An in-depth understanding of
the Christian charity sector.

    Knowledge of relevant jobs boards,

publications, and groups to source regional
candidates.

    Experience of digital marketing on social

media platforms.

    Experience managing Talent Pools.

    Ability to determine the most strategic

sourcing method for different candidate
roles and credentials.

    Ability to balance multiple priorities while

remaining delivery focused.

Personal
qualities

   Honesty, integrity and a passion to

serve others.

   An eye for detail.

   Creative and innovative, with a passion for

driving brand awareness.

   Self-starter / self-motivated.

   Calm and professional under pressure.

   Adaptable and positive approach.

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Equal opportunities

Mercy Ships UK is an equal opportunities employer.
We welcome applications from all individuals and
value diversity in our workforce.

DBS check

Candidates will be asked to declare any ‘unspent
convictions.’ Further information can be found here.

Eligible roles may require a Disclosure Barring Service
(DBS) check.

How to apply
to join us in transforming lives:

Please send a CV and cover letter detailing your

relevant experience and why you want to work for

Mercy Ships to:

careers@mercyships.org.uk

Salary : £30,000 – £35,000 (DOE)

Don’t delay applying as we screen applications on
receipt and reserve the right to close early.

Hope.
Healing.
Transforming Lives.

Registered Charity No: 1053055. Registered Charity in Scotland No. SC039743.

Company No: 3147724 (England and Wales)