Our Raising Aspirations program is made up of our JD Foundation-funded Kickstart Your Future and the BNY Mellon-funded inclusive communities projects which work with young people from primary age through to college-aged students, and up to 25’s with additional needs. All these programmes focus on preparing young people for the next stage in their lives; this may be from primary to secondary school, from education into the world of work, all whilst equipping them with life skills.
The Raising Aspirations team focusses on linking businesses to schools for the mutual benefit of pupils and employees. Business engagement in schools helps raise aspirations regarding the world of work and develop students’ skills. Businesses benefit from developing communication and leadership skills while gaining a better understanding of the next generation of employees.
Applicants for this post will have a passion for education and experience working with children and young people in schools or education-related settings. You will be confident in developing lesson plans with clear learning objectives and delivering lessons or learning activities effectively. You must be a highly motivated self-starter who can work flexibly to manage different tasks and priorities. You will have a professional attitude and a confident approach to working with corporate organisations and forming partnerships with businesses and community organisations. You will have a good working knowledge of school systems and processes, education policy, and work-related learning curricular issues.
Key Tasks and Responsibilities
- Develop, deliver, and evaluate work-related learning sessions suitable for education and community settings with different aged groups which have clear learning objectives.
- Promoting Raising Aspirations activities to primary and secondary schools, colleges and age-appropriate community groups in Greater Manchester.
- Effectively managing good working relationships with schools, colleges and community settings once they have agreed to host the activities.
- The recruitment, training and management of relationships with business volunteers.
- Source and organise high quality volunteering opportunities for a wide variety of different events which will develop employees’ skills and benefit the community.
- Coordinating the monitoring and evaluation of Raising Aspirations activities in schools and colleges across Greater Manchester.
- Approaching new companies to promote volunteering for the Raising Aspirations team.
- Delivering sessions and activities with support from the Raising Aspirations team.
- Supporting the other activities within the Raising Aspirations team where appropriate.
- Liaising with key staff at schools, colleges and community settings across Greater Manchester.
- Generating and maintaining evaluative evidence to support the qualitative assessments of the impact of the programmes.
- Undertake relevant training and development opportunities, as agreed with your line manager.
- Contribute to cross-functional and Company-wide tasks and developments.
- Attend team meetings and external inter-agency meetings and events, as directed by your line manager.
- To implement and comply with all the Foundation’s policies, including the Safeguarding Children Policy and procedures and ground rules for implementing appropriate behaviour with children and young people.
- Any other duties of a similar level of responsibility as directed by your line manager or a Senior Manager.
Person Specification
Knowledge
- Knowledge of the education system generally and of work-related learning.
- An understanding of Child Protection, Equal Opportunities, and anti-discriminatory practices.
- Knowledge of issues relevant to and affecting the education and development of children.
- Understanding of corporate social responsibility (CSR).
Experience
- Experience of working with young people 10-18, preferably in an education environment.
- Experience of organising and delivering activities and activities with clear learning objectives.
- Experience of volunteering and community activities.
- Experience of organising events.
- Experience of working in education/voluntary/community settings.
- Experience in the use of IT software and of Microsoft Office applications.
Skills
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to relate well to children and adults from a wide range of backgrounds, engage them in activities which support their development and relate sensitively and confidentially to their needs.
- Ability to plan, prioritise and organise own workload.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a team.
- Ability to work to targets and set personal objectives.
- Good written communication and presentation skills.
- An empathetic approach.
Values & Attitudes
- Committed to Salford Foundation’s mission statement and ethos and to promoting this internally and externally.
- Committed to developing people’s skills.
- Committed to treating people equally, respecting differences and challenging prejudice and discrimination.
- A positive, enthusiastic and ‘can do’ approach to work.
- Committed to your own learning and development.
- Committed to being a team player and helping others when required.
Special Conditions
- This post is subject to an enhanced-level DBS check.
- The post-holder must hold a full driving licence and have a car available to be used for business purposes.
