Henshaws is a northern charity supporting people living with sight loss and a range of other disabilities to go beyond expectations. We believe that, wherever they are, everyone has the right to an independent and fulfilling life. Our support, advice and training enables people and their families build skills, develop confidence, help each other and look forward to a more positive future.
We are looking to appoint a PA/Reader to support a member of our team.
The successful candidate will work as part of the vision support team and provide confidential, one-to-one administrative/technical support to a visually impaired manager. The vision support team deliver person-centred specialist programmes that meet the needs of our visually impaired students aged between 18-25 years, to enable the students to access learning. Regular supervision, training and CPD will be provided to the post holder.
Key responsibilities will include:
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Reading and relaying contents of letters, minutes, data, reports, policies, general correspondence, etc. that would otherwise be difficult for manager to locate and easily read.
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Provide general admin support which might include answering the telephone, opening and sending mail, photocopying, filing, general typing, ordering stationery and other items, booking meeting rooms and hospitality, booking transport, archiving, etc.
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Maintenance of records and data recording on a management information system, MS Teams and College network to enable your manager to access and analyse information that would be difficult to independently locate.
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Scan reading, extracting/summarising key information and recording this key information in text for the visually impaired manager to access.
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Check the accuracy, presentation and layout of documents including the design and formatting of new documents.
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Organise, draft, reply, proofread and manage emails.
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Assisting in the management of electronic calendars. Organise and co-ordinating meeting requests and accessing online video conferencing meetings including Microsoft Teams.
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Transferring text/information into more accessible formats.
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Inputting and accessing information onto spreadsheets to enable the manager to access key information and analyse data.
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Prioritise workload effectively including notifying the manager of meetings, actions and agreed deadlines.
Salary: £12.71 per hour /£14,884.41 per annum (actual)
Hours: 25 hours per week, Monday - Thursdays
Weeks: 40 weeks per year (term time and set training weeks)
Holiday: 6.84 weeks
Contract: Linked to manager with access to work funding
Closing Date: 14th July 2026 at 12 noon
Internal Applicants, please complete an expression of interest detailing your skills and experience that fit this role - email to [email protected]
Please note - this a linked contract with the manager of this position and paid for through access to work.
Requirements
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Have experience in working in an administration/PA role.
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Excellent attention to detail with the ability to create letters and documents.
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Excellent time management skills with the ability to prioritise effectively.
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Experience in updating databases with accurate information.
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IT literate with a working knowledge of MS Office including Word, Excel, Outlook, PowerPoint and Teams.
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Good standard of maths and english.
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Willingness to complete training for continued professional development.
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Flexible approach to work: this role will normally be Monday – Thursday.
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Clear speech, with good intonation.
Henshaws Society for Blind People aims to employ a diverse workforce and is committed to equality of employment and welcomes applications from all sectors of the community.
Henshaws is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people and vulnerable adults. It is a criminal offence for people barred from working in regulated activity to apply for roles that require them to work unsupervised with that particular group e.g. vulnerable adults, children or both. An Enhanced DBS with barring and reference checks will be sought from the successful candidate.
Henshaws reserves the right to check social media accounts of all successful applicants.
Registered Charity No: 221888
