Job Title: Safeguarding & Business Development Officer
Responsible to: Head of Business Development
Responsible for: No formal line management responsibility. Provides functional safeguarding oversight and support across the Youth Engagement Team and broader business development support to the Head of Business Development.
Hours of work: 40 hours per week.
(Working pattern negotiable, with some flexibility for occasional evening/weekend work to attend team meetings, training and delivery sessions.)
Salary: £32,000 per annum, to include paid lunch breaks, pension and healthcare plan
Location(s): Various within county of Worcestershire. Based in Redditch.
Organisation Context:
Worcestershire YMCA is a charity committed to supporting all young people, particularly in times of need. We are part of a worldwide Christian Movement, our local vision is to enable people to live, learn and share to build a brighter future in mind, body, and spirit. We are a registered social landlord providing housing and supported services to young people and a range of community and other services at a variety of locations.
Job Purpose:
The position requires a highly motivated and experienced Safeguarding & Business Development Officer to bring consistency to safeguarding practice across the Youth Engagement Team, and to provide wider business development support - including funding research, bid and tender writing, and funder reporting - to the Head of Business Development.
The role requires strong knowledge of safeguarding legislation and practice, excellent attention to detail, alongside strong research, writing and relationship-building skills to support income generation. This post is essential to supporting the continued growth of The Youth Engagement Team, including the additional safeguarding casework expected from the incoming full-time Responsive Mentor post, while freeing both Managers to focus on the quality and logistics of delivery, and providing dedicated capacity to support the Head of Business Development across funding, compliance and reporting on various funding streams.
Objective: To ensure that all young people accessing YMCAW's services are safeguarded to the best of the organisation's ability, and that all work is undertaken within the policies, procedures and funder requirements of the Association; so that all staff and young people enjoy a safe environment where they can belong, contribute and thrive.
To achieve this, you will:
- Bring consistency to safeguarding practice and support across all Youth and Communities direct delivery staff, working alongside both Managers and their Coordinators.
- Act as a source of safeguarding expertise and advice for staff and volunteers, ensuring concerns are identified, recorded and actioned promptly and appropriately.
- Support the Head of Business Development in funder contract compliance, monitoring and reporting against the requirements of YMCAW's funding streams.
- Track safeguarding response times, from a concern being raised to being actioned, and report on this at the agreed review points.
- Support both Managers to embed safeguarding as a standing item in team meetings, supervision and appraisal.
- Provide safeguarding induction and refresher input for new and existing staff, apprentices and volunteers.
- Maintain confidential safeguarding and compliance records in line with YMCAW's data protection and record-keeping procedures.
- Keep up to date with changes in safeguarding legislation, statutory guidance and local safeguarding partnership requirements, and cascade this knowledge across the service.
- Represent YMCAW at relevant multi-agency safeguarding forums and partnership meetings as required.
- Raise or escalate safeguarding concerns independently as required.
- Research and identify new funding opportunities - grants, contracts and tenders - relevant to YMCAW, working with the Head of Business Development to assess fit and feasibility.
- Support the preparation and submission of funding bids, grant applications and tender responses, including gathering evidence, data and case studies from Departmental Managers.
- Support the monitoring and reporting of funder and contract performance against agreed outcomes, preparing accurate returns and impact reports to agreed deadlines.
- Support the Head of Business Development in maintaining and developing relationships with funders, commissioners and partner organisations.
- Assist in preparing reports and presentations to funding bodies, senior management team and partner agencies.
- Attend regular training and development opportunities to maintain up-to-date, specialist knowledge of safeguarding, health and safety, business development and local policy developments.
- Attend service meetings as required & participate in supervision & appraisal meetings.
- Adhere to YMCAW & site policies/procedures on all aspects of Health & Safety & Safeguarding.
Person Specification
Essential Qualifications:
- Level 3 Safeguarding qualification, or working towards this
- Willingness to undertake Designated Safeguarding Lead training
Desirable Qualifications:
- Level 4/5 Safeguarding qualification or equivalent
- Relevant degree or professional qualification in social work, youth work, or a related field
- Compliance, quality assurance or risk management qualification
Essential experience:
- Minimum of 2 years' experience in a safeguarding-related role within a children's, youth or vulnerable adults setting
- Experience of conducting or overseeing risk assessments
- Experience of monitoring compliance against funder, contractual or regulatory requirements
- Experience of submitting reports and maintaining accurate records
- Experience of researching funding opportunities and/or writing funding bids, grant applications or tender responses
Desirable experience:
- Experience within the YMCA Movement or a similar third sector organisation
- Experience of managing compliance requirements across multiple funding streams
- Experience of designing or delivering safeguarding training
- Experience of chairing or contributing to multi-agency safeguarding meetings
- Experience of relationship management with funders, commissioners or corporate partners
Essential skills & abilities:
- Excellent knowledge of safeguarding policy, procedure and practice
- Strong attention to detail and record-keeping skills
- Confidence to challenge and hold colleagues to account on compliance matters, including senior colleagues
- Ability to work independently and exercise sound, escalatory judgement on safeguarding matters
- Excellent communication skills (written, verbal and presentation)
- Strong ICT skills using MS Office, email, internet, databases & CRM systems
- Strong research, bid-writing and report-writing skills
- Full driving licence with use of a car for work purposes
Desirable skills & abilities:
- Ability to be support the Christian values of the organisation and promote a Christian identity within our work with children and young people
- Training delivery / facilitation skills
Essential knowledge:
- Knowledge & understanding of confidentiality as it pertains to young people, especially vulnerable young people
- Knowledge of funder contract compliance and reporting requirements within the charity/third sector
- Understanding of the charity/third sector funding landscape (grants, commissioning, contracts)
- A thorough understanding of relevant legislation and policies relating to safeguarding children such as: The Children Act 1989 | Children and Families Act 2014 | Keeping Children | Safe in Education 2019 | Working Together to Safeguard Children 2018 | Equality Act 2010
Desirable knowledge:
- Awareness of other relevant legislation and policies relating to safeguarding children such as: The United Nations convention on the Rights of the Child 1992 | The Human Rights Act 1998 | The Education Act 2002 | LADO processes
- A good knowledge of the Christian faith
Personal attributes:
- Supportive of the Christian values of the organisation
- Clear, proven commitment to safeguarding young people and vulnerable adults
- Diplomacy and sensitivity to internal & external political issues, balanced with the confidence to act decisively on safeguarding concerns
- To be an advocate for YMCA Worcestershire
- Be able to work some evenings and weekends as required
- Has a desire to invest in the lives of young people
Additional Information: Principal Terms and Conditions of Appointment
1. This is a permanent, full-time contract of 40 hours per week.
2. Due to the nature of the role, some evening and weekend work may be required to attend team meetings, training and delivery sessions.
3. Paid annual holiday entitlement is 5.6 weeks a year, increasing incrementally to a maximum of 1.0 additional week after 5 years.
4. YMCA Worcestershire offers optional membership of a flexible defined contribution Personal Pension scheme and health care plan.
5. Employment will be conditional upon receipt of satisfactory DBS Disclosure and references, and be subject to satisfactory completion of a probation period of six months.
6. The successful candidate will be expected to comply with the YMCA's Safeguarding Children and Vulnerable Adults Policy and Procedure.
7. This post has the right to raise or escalate a safeguarding concern independently of its own line management, including directly to either the Youth Clubs and Outreach Manager or the Youth Mentoring and Schools Manager, or a more senior post holder, where necessary.
8. The successful applicant will need to be able to access sites in Worcestershire and its environs in the fulfilment of the role. A clean driving licence and access to a car is therefore a requirement of the post.
Pay: £32,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- Company events
- Company pension
- Free parking
- Health & wellbeing programme
- On-site parking
Work Location: In person
