Senior Youth Worker - Sports & Partnerships

Vacancy at The Way Youth Zone

Senior Youth Worker - Sports & Partnerships

Salary £ 28768 - 30973

The Way Youth Zone

Details

The Senior Youth Worker (Sports Coordinator) is a practice‑leading role responsible for delivering consistently high‑quality youth work within a defined specialist area, while contributing to the overall culture, safety and effectiveness of the Youth Zone. The role combines front‑line youth work delivery with leadership responsibilities, including supporting staff, modelling excellent practice, and maintaining strong safeguarding, behaviour and inclusion standards. Senior Youth Workers act as trusted adults for young people and as role models for colleagues, helping to ensure that every session reflects Our Way and provides young people with safe, welcoming, aspirational and youth‑led experiences. 

Working closely with other Senior Youth Workers and the Youth Services & Safeguarding Manager, the post holder plays a key role in shaping the Youth Zone offer, supporting staff confidence and accountability, and responding effectively to challenge, risk and complexity within delivery. Alongside leading the sports offer, the postholder will develop and coordinate partnerships that enhance opportunities for young people, including sports clubs, schools, colleges, community organisations, governing bodies and employers. They will act as a key ambassador for The Way Youth Zone, helping to grow participation, progression routes and externally funded opportunities through effective partnership working 

Youth Work Delivery & Session Leadership 
 

• Lead and deliver high‑quality, youth‑led sports and physical activity sessions that are engaging, inclusive and aligned with the Youth Work Curriculum and Our Way.
• Use sport as a tool to build confidence, resilience, teamwork and positive behaviour.
• Build strong, trusted relationships with young people and ensure their voice actively shapes activities and delivery. - Lead session a minimum of once a week alongside another senior youth worker

Safeguarding, Health & Safety 
 

• Uphold safeguarding responsibilities at all times, acting promptly and appropriately on concerns in line with organisational policy and training.
• Ensure safe delivery of sports activities, including appropriate use, storage and checking of equipment.
• Maintain clear expectations around behaviour, boundaries and safe participation within physical activity spaces including weekly sweeps of the MUGA. - Complete and review risk assessments for sessions, activities and off‑site delivery, ensuring agreed control measures are followed.

Staff Support & Practice Leadership 
 

• Support and mentor Youth Workers, bank staff and volunteers within sports delivery, providing guidance and informal supervision on session.
• Model high‑quality youth work practice, professionalism and accountability.
• Contribute to inductions, briefings and reflective conversations to support staff confidence and development. - Formally line manage staff and volunteers responsible for the role appropriately

Programme Coordination & Development  
 

• Coordinate the sports and physical activity offer, ensuring activities are accessible to young people of all abilities and backgrounds.
• Work collaboratively with other Senior Youth Workers to ensure a balanced and complementary Youth Zone programme.
• Work with sports Youth Workers to continually evolve the offer
• Develop clear progression pathways for young people into coaching, sports leadership, volunteering, qualifications, employment and community sport opportunities.

Partnership Working & Organisational Contribution 
 

• Develop and maintain productive relationships with schools, colleges, sports clubs, National Governing Bodies, charities, community organisations and local employers.
• Coordinate partner-delivered sessions and projects, ensuring quality, safeguarding and positive outcomes for young people.
• Act as the key point of contact for sports and physical activity partnerships within The Way.
• Represent The Way Youth Zone at external forums, meetings, events and networks to promote the organisation and strengthen community connections.
• Work with the fundraising and communications team to identify and showcase partnership impacts and opportunities.

Monitoring & Reporting 
 

• Ensuring all projects are monitored and reported on accurately
• Base and end MeApps are completed to an appropriate timeline
• Develop reports and dashboards to track progress alongside data team
• Gather impact stories across universal activities and projects 
  

Essential 

• Significant experience delivering youth work with children and young people aged 8–18 (up to 25 with additional needs
• Experience planning and delivering sports or physical activity sessions in a youth, education or community setting
• Strong understanding of safeguarding, health & safety and risk management within physical activity environments
• Experience supporting, mentoring or guiding Youth Workers, volunteers or sessional staff
• Ability to manage behaviour positively and respond calmly to challenging situations
• Enhanced DBS clearance & DSL training (or willingness to obtain)
• Experience developing, maintaining and coordinating effective partnerships with external organisations.
• Sports degree, coaching, sports leadership or fitness qualification (or similar)

Desirable  

• Recognised youth work qualification (Level 3 - 6)
• Experience using sport as a tool for engagement, inclusion or youth development
• First Aid qualification (or willingness to undertake)
• Experience working with schools, sports clubs, National Governing Bodies or community organisations.

Skills & Competencies 

• Strong ability to engage and motivate young people through sport and physical activity
• Confident session leadership and positive behaviour management
• Sound understanding of safe practice and risk within physical activity environments
• Ability to coach, encourage and appropriately challenge young people
• Confidence supporting staff and volunteers to deliver high‑quality sessions
• Commitment to inclusion, equality and youth‑led practice
• Ability to influence and engage a wide range of stakeholders.
• Strong organisational and project coordination skills.
• Ability to identify opportunities and turn ideas into practical programmes.
• Confident written communication and reporting skills.

We define accountability as taking ownership of your responsibilities, being equipped and empowered to fulfil your role, and continuously reflecting and adapting through self-awareness to grow and support others. 

In this role, success looks like: 

• Young people regularly engage in sports and physical activity sessions and feel confident, included and motivated
• Sports sessions are safe, well‑run and positively managed
• Young people demonstrate teamwork, resilience and positive behaviour through participation
• Staff supporting sports delivery feel confident and supported
• Sports provision contributes to retention and regular attendance and is clearly embedded as part of a balanced Youth Zone offer
• Young people regularly access progression opportunities through external partnerships.
• Positive, sustainable partnerships ensure The Way is viewed as a trusted and valued organisation to work with.
• Partnership-funded projects are delivered successfully and achieve agreed outcomes.

You’ll be accountable for: 

• Delivering safe, inclusive and youth‑led sports sessions
• Maintaining safeguarding, health & safety and risk management standards
• Supporting staff and volunteers to deliver quality sports provision
• Coordinating sports activity in line with organisational values and priorities 
  Developing and maintaining strategic partnerships which enhance opportunities for young people.
• Coordinating partner-delivered activities and ensuring they align with The Way's standards and values.
• Monitoring and reporting partnership outcomes and impact.

The Way Youth Zone is committed to being an inclusive employer. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and communities, and we’re proud to be youth-led in everything we do. 

Benefits

33 days holiday (inclusive of bank holidays); birthday day off; free gym access; subsidised on-site canteen; Employee Assistance Programme; access to bespoke training and mentoring.

Notes

This is a full time, 40 hour a week post.

The intention is for the successful candidate to commencement employment on 1st September