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London Development Officer - Social Farms & Gardens

SOCIAL FARMS AND GARDENS
London
Full-time
17th August 2026
Listed today

Come and join the Social Farms & Gardens team!. 

We are looking for someone interested in organisational development, with a flair for supporting community gardens, city farms and care farms. The role will suit someone methodical, creative, and comfortable with groups of people. This role does not include any practical gardening or farming activities.

We look forward to hearing from you.

Apply by: Midday Monday 17 August 2026.

Interviews: Thursday 27 August. 

Hours: Three days a week (22.5 hours).  Ideally to include Tuesdays.

Salary: Starting salary of £33,573 FTE including London Weighting.

Pension: 5% of salary for standard contracted hours after successful completion of a 3-month probation period.

Holiday:  33 days pro-rata per year including bank holidays. 

Overview:
To support the delivery of a popular, enjoyable programme of training, networking and events designed with and for city farms and community gardens. The programme improves the long-term viability of individual city farms and community gardens and builds the network as a whole, contributing to the sustainability of vibrant local communities throughout the capital. 

The London Development Officer is part of a London team of two, working closely with the London Development Manager, and staff of city farms and community gardens, including the trustees of the London Association of City Farms and Community Gardens. The London team works with the wider team of Social Farms & Gardens based in the UKs countries and regions.

The London programme is well-established and well-regarded. 
Annual outputs include:  

  • Training days designed and delivered by SF&G members
  • Networking tours of community growing spaces
  • Showcase events including the London Harvest Festival

Links to more about this work: 

Social Farms & Gardens is an equal opportunities employer that understands that the best employees may not always be the best at job applications or interviews. We try to make our recruitment processes relatively stress-free.

You do not have to meet all elements of the Person Specification to be considered for the role.

We do not ask for any formal qualifications as not everyone thrives in a school setting.

We would like you to submit these three documents by email:  

  • A CV
  • A Personal Statement giving specific examples of your experience for each element of the Person Specification
    These will be anonymised to minimise bias
  • A cover page with personal details

And complete an Equal Opportunities form, online. 

Please see the job pack for more details. 

Job description 

Responsibilities and Key Tasks (All with support):

Support and engagement for city farms and community gardens:

  • Work with the London Learning & Development Manager and London’s city farms and community gardens to design and co-ordinate networking events, peer-to-peer learning, training days and larger events for a wide range of people that work and volunteer at community growing organisations.

    This includes identifying trainers and venues from within the network of city farms and community gardens, promotion, facilitation and follow-up. It also includes printing, designing forms, gathering feedback, shopping for refreshments, taking photos and creating a good atmosphere where everyone feels safe and supported and also enjoys themselves.

  • Regular liaison with London growing sites to share insights, raise awareness of support available and identify issues. 
    This is usually through form of site visits, phone calls and emails.
  • Facilitate networking and communication betweencommunity growing organisations, supporting them to share good practice, foster closer working relationships and address sector concerns.
  • Take the lead on regular small networking events to bring together community growers from different organisations.
  • Option to design and deliver training and webinars from your own skillset if this meets the needs of farms and gardens.
  • Regular profile raising via social media, newsletters, the SF&G website, and in-person and on-line events to support the programme.
  • Be part of a team organising and promoting of the London Harvest Festival. This is an annual horticultural and animal show which brings together community growing organisations in September.
  • Link with SF&G colleagues from across the UK’s countries and regions to dovetail London work with SF&G’s other programmes including the Community Land Advisory Service, academic working group, and national conferences.

Monitoring, Evaluation and Dissemination of Learning:

  • Help gather information on effective approaches to volunteer management, income diversification, partnerships, personal resilience and evaluating and communicating impact.
  • Support monitoring and evaluation including contributing to impactful, well-designed reports and liaising with external researchers.
  • Liaise with other organisations that support community growing to maximise joint impact and minimise crossover.
  • Raise the profile of the positive impact of city farms and community gardens with the cultural, business, statutory and charity sectors.

Resourcing and Administration:

  • Promote SF&G programmes through social media, newsletter and website.
  • Keep records on Social Farms & Garden’s CRM (We use Civi).
  • Regularly respond to queries and provide information, advice and signposting.
  • Create or contribute to funding applications for SF&G.