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Head of Policy and Campaigns

Concern Worldwide is a non-governmental, international, humanitarian organisation dedicated to the reduction of suffering and working towards the elimination of extreme poverty in the world’s poorest countries. Concern Worldwide operates programmes in Health, Education, Livelihoods and HIV & AIDs in emergency and development contexts.

Job Title: Head of Policy and Campaigns
Reports to: CEO of Concern Worldwide UK

Direct reports: Policy officer, Humanitarian officer, Campaigns and Parliamentary officer

Job Location: London

Pay band: Grade 6 (£35,000 -£41,000pa), depending on experience
Contract Length: Permanent

Job Purpose:
Lead the UK Policy and Campaigns team in developing a coherent advocacy strategy for the UK around hunger and emergencies, support the end hunger advocacy strategy and international emergencies advocacy strategy for the Worldwide organisation, manage the P&C team and be an active member of the UK Senior Management Team

Main duties & Responsibilities:

Lead Development of advocacy and campaigning strategy in Concern UK

Lead the P&C Team

• To provide strategic direction to the policy and campaigns team
• To ensure that Concern develops its credibility in the UK as an effective advocacy and campaigning organization
o Through ensuring clear advocacy strategies in the area of hunger and emergencies
o Through ensuring clear campaign strategy including supporter facing strategy for the Unheard Voices campaign

• To support the Policy officer and the humanitarian officer in development of their advocacy strategies including a focus on research and lobbying.

• To support the Campaigns and Parliamentary officer in developing an effective campaigning and parliamentary engagement strategy including through production of high quality and engaging campaigning materials and campaign events.

• To manage the work plan of the P&C team, including ensuring there are time bound work plans, effective monitoring and learning.

To have a strategic overview of key relationships in the UK
• To have an overview of key policy engagements with DFID
• To have an overview of and proactively develop relations with key academic institutions including ODI, IDS, SOAS, Chatham House
• To represent the organisation externally at high level policy and campaigning fora

To support the worldwide organisation in implementing the international advocacy strategy within the UK context, including leading on certain aspects of the strategy and supporting the Head of international advocacy based in Dublin in embedding advocacy in the worldwide organisation
• To ensure that the UK office implements and where appropriate lead on the international end hunger advocacy strategy, and international emergencies strategy
• To work closely with the CEO of the Worldwide organisation to ensure that Concern is able to maximise its influence and impact through the various events he attends, committees he is part of and opportunities that come his way.
• To have an overview of UK P&C team engagement and support to the field teams in Concern country programmes
• Build a realistic work programme jointly with SAL and the Overseas Directorate based on specific engagements with country programmes with clear targets with objectives, work plan, research plans, lobbying plans around a set of common policy change objectives.

To ensure that the wider organisation both within Concern Worldwide UK and relevant colleagues Globally are kept informed of campaign and advocacy plans of the UK team.
• To coordinate within the policy team and work together with the Senior Management Team and relevant staff from other Departments, to ensure strategies within Concern UK are built jointly and there is effective internal communication and collaboration.
• To coordinate and communicate within Concern Worldwide, and thus ensure that our plans are in line with the wider organisation.
• To work with staff in the Belfast and Glasgow offices to integrate advocacy and campaigning objectives across Concern UK.

To work as part of and contribute to the Senior Management Team - especially providing strategic leadership within Concern UK on policy advocacy and public and supporter campaigning.
• To play an active role in the Senior Management Team and to support the Director and other members of the SMT in the overall management of Concern UK.
• To contribute to the leadership and strategic direction of Concern UK – especially with regard to advocacy and campaigning.
• To provide leadership to, and act as key contact in, relations with external agencies and national media.

Person specification:

ESSENTIAL
• At least five years advocacy/campaigning experience, ideally within the development sector, and with experience of developing supporter campaigns and working with supporters.
• Experience of developing advocacy strategies and an understanding of how to influence UK political structures.
• Excellent organisational and analytical skills and in particular the ability to think and operate strategically in a fast changing campaigning environment.
• Experience of working in coalitions and skills in alliance building and networking.
• Excellent communicator and skilled spokesperson, with ability to represent advocacy messages with authority and credibility to the outside world.
• An experienced manager with the ability and commitment to foster team work, collaboration, empowerment and co-ordination.
• Authoritative figure with the credibility and management experience to negotiate with senior managers within the organisation.
• Education to degree level
• A commitment to Concern’s mission and values.

Desirable
• Broad understanding of international institutions and processes, development issues and debates.
• Gender awareness and knowledge of gender in development issues.
• Willing to travel.

To apply: Please send your CV and Covering Letter to ukhrenquiries@concern.net before closing date 9th April 2010

Interview Date: 21st & 22nd April 2010

All candidates who are short-listed for a first round interview will be notified via email after the application deadline

Candidates must be legally entitled to work in UK at the time of application.

Concern has a Staff Code of Conduct and a Programme Participant Protection Policy which have been developed to ensure the maximum protection of programme participants from exploitation and to clarify the responsibilities of Concern staff, consultants, visitors to the programme and partner organization, and the standards of behavior expected of them.

In this context staff have a responsibility to the organization to strive for, and maintain, the highest standards in the day-to-day conduct in their workplace in accordance with Concern’s core values and mission. Any candidate offered a job with Concern Worldwide will be expected to sign the Programme Participant Protection Policy and the Concern Staff Code of Conduct as an appendix to their contract of employment.

By signing the Programme Participant Protection Policy and the Concern Staff Code of Conduct candidates acknowledge that they have understood the contents of both the Concern Staff Code of Conduct and the Programme Participant Protection Policy and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these two documents.

Concern receives a substantial amount of funding from external donors each year. Increasingly donors are introducing requirements whereby future funding is conditional on Concern ensuring that the names of any new employee or volunteer do not appear on terrorism lists generated by the European Union (List of person, groups and entities to which Regulation (EC No. 2580/2001 applies), the US Government (Office of Foreign Assets Control list of specially designated Nationals and Blocked Persons) and the United Nations (Consolidated List).

Any offer of employment (either paid or voluntary) with Concern Worldwide will not be made pending a clearance check being conducted on the applicant. For additional information please consult our web site or contact the Human Resource Division in our Head Office.

By submitting a formal application for paid or voluntary employment to Concern, you agree to Concern carrying out a clearance check as outlined above and that Concern will not proceed to recruit you should your name appear on any of the aforementioned lists.

Concern Worldwide is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.