Hiring Alert - Communications Officer - Recruitment closed

We are excited to announce we are hiring our first Communications Officer for NTUK. You will work alongside the team, members and the NTUK Board to develop and deliver effective communications campaigns through social media and the press, building the public profile of NTUK and awareness of the National Trails family. As well as high quality, inclusive content, this post will support media relations and delivery of public relations activities, to support wider public affairs and stakeholder relations. You will also support our membership delivery, as a point of contact for relevant member questions and advice and coordination of a Communications special interest group.

Responsible to National Trails UK CEO, this is a three day a week role, with options for flexible working to enable you to manage your work life balance. This is a one-year fixed term contract which we are working to find funding to extend. We are a fully remote team, who meet up quarterly to work in person, and all occasionally travel to National Trails around the UK.

- Salary – £25,000 per annum pro rata, which is equal to £15,000 a year

- Annual leave – 25 days a year pro rata, equal to 18 days a year. In addition, the office is closed between Christmas and New Year

- Closing date: 4th September and first stage interviews will take place online on 10th and 12th September.

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About National Trails UK and this role:

The National Trails are inspirational, designated long distance routes covering over 6000 miles of rural, urban and coastal environments across the UK. They allow millions of people to experience the nations’ spectacular habitats, diverse communities and unique heritage.

National Trails UK, (NTUK), is the membership organisation for the National Trails. We are the only dedicated champion for the National Trails in England, Scotland and Wales, working with and supporting the National Trails to make sure National Trails are truly accessible to all, delivering for people and for nature. We are a small team working across the UK to support our members while also establishing National Trails UK.

As the first Communications Officer for NTUK, you will work alongside the team, members and the NTUK Board to develop and deliver effective communications campaigns through social media and the press, building the public profile of NTUK and awareness of the National Trails family. As well as high quality, inclusive content, the post will support media relations and delivery of public relations activities, and our membership delivery, as a point of contact for relevant member questions and advice and coordination of a Communications special interest group.

The successful candidate will be passionate about identifying and breaking down barriers people face in accessing the outdoors, including representation. A team player, they will have excellent time management skills, able to deliver high quality work with conflicting deadlines on time and on budget. They will be an excellent communicator, with proven experience of building successful campaigns on social media. They will have excellent writing and content creation skills, with understanding and experience of delivering accessibility-first comms and media worthy content.

The successful candidate may have some experience of working in membership organisations and working with the press and in public relations. They may also have experience of as supporting stakeholder engagement with those in and around government.

Full role description

You will:

- Develop, deliver and evaluate an integrated communications plan for NTUK, primarily focused on X, Instagram and LinkedIn, in line with our strategy

- With the wider team, field enquires from NTUK members, and be the first point of contact for members’ questions about communications, providing advice on effective, inclusive communication and representation

- Write, edit and deliver the NTUK Newsletter and other member communications

- Manage key contact lists, including members

- With the CEO, develop and run a Communications Special Interest Group

- Develop and manage relationships with other charities, grassroots communities, local businesses and community groups and influencers to promote NTUK and to deliver our strategy

- Support media monitoring to ensure we are accurately tracking and recording our media coverage

- Work with the CEO to proactively develop media relations, engage journalists and place content in media outlets to build our profile and promote our campaigns through the media

- Support the writing, production and distribution of proactive and responsive press releases and statements

- Monitor social media audiences and trends, identifying opportunities for us to further increase both the profile of NTUK and the National Trails family

- Managing and updating a database of target media; briefing staff

- Support the CEO in public relations work, such as mapping and monitoring key stakeholders

- Support the delivery of policy influencing events to deadline and to budget.

- Support the team in the management of the budget.

There may be a requirement for some out of hours working in this role during particularly busy periods.

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If you have any questions about this role, please get in touch with Polly Martin, CEO, polly@nationaltrails.uk, for an informal chat.

To apply for this role, please email Polly, with Communications Officer in the subject field:

- A CV (up to 2 pages)

- An informal cover letter (up to 3 pages), OR a three minute videos, sent via WeTransfer, which shows how your experience and skills make you suitable for this role and in particular why working with National Trails UK is of interest to you. This could include links to relevant posts / a portfolio.

Closing date: 4th September

First stage interviews will take place online on 10th and 12th September.

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