Action for Conservation is a grassroots charity using pioneering approaches to inspire and empower young people from diverse backgrounds, between the ages of 12 and 24, to become the next generation of environmental leaders. We are looking to appoint a Programme Coordinator to join our team in Bristol and support the delivery of our core programmes for young people and our wider intergenerational nature restoration initiatives in the South West of England and Wales.

If you share our passion for youth-led solutions to the climate and environmental crisis, this is an exciting opportunity to join our Programmes team and be at the heart of what we do. As a Programme Coordinator, you will be responsible for delivering our core programmes across your region, working closely with the regional Programme Manager to plan, coordinate and run a wide variety of events and activities for young people from school workshops and online webinars to outdoor sessions and residential summer camps. In doing so, you will inspire young people to connect with nature in new and exciting ways, support them to design and deliver environmental action projects that benefit wildlife and their local communities, and empower them to have a voice on environmental issues they care about. To succeed in this role, you will be a highly proactive, organised and self-motivated planner and a great facilitator who is able to engage and build positive relationships with young people in a range of settings.

ABOUT THE ROLE – SOUTH WEST PROGRAMMES COORDINATOR 

Start date: As soon as possible, expected early to mid-December
Contract type: Full-time, permanent
Starting salary: £27,039.68 - £28,190.31 depending on experience
Location: Bristol (hybrid), with regular regional and occasional national travel
Working hours: 35 hours across five days; evening and weekend work will be required, including residential visits, for which time off in lieu (TOIL) can be taken

KEY DUTIES

In this role you will:

Engage schools, youth groups and young people in our programmes

• Recruit schools, youth groups and young people to take part in our programmes.
• Plan and deliver workshops, webinars, events and activities that develop young people’s environmental knowledge and skills and inspire them to take action in their communities.
• Create exciting content and educational materials for young people.

Support young people to experience, connect with and take action for nature

• Support young people to experience and connect with nature, through inspiring workshops, hands-on action days, residential camps and other activities.
• Support and mentor young people to imagine, plan and deliver environmental action projects to tackle an array of environmental and social issues that are important to them.
• Support the development of ‘Urban Action Sites’ in your region, local green spaces where young people can embed and maximise the impact of their environmental actions, building strong links to their communities.

Lead on programme coordination and support with safety, evaluation and communications

• Be responsible for the general coordination and manage the logistics to deliver our programmes.
• Manage risk, health and safety and safeguarding during programme activities.
• Evaluate the effectiveness of our programmes and measure the impact of young people’s projects and activities.
• Grow and manage our network of volunteers in your region.

Having trouble picturing yourself in the role? You can read what some of our current team members say about their experience working at Action for Conservation in the Recruitment Pack.

WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR

Candidates must have the experience, knowledge and skills listed as ‘Essential’ (E) and these will be assessed throughout the application process. Meeting the criteria listed as ‘Desirable (D)’ would be an advantage, but these are not essential to be considered for the role, so don't be discouraged from applying!

Experience

• Working with young people, ideally aged 12 to 18. (E)
• Organising events and activities from start to finish, including general event and logistics management, safeguarding, health and safety and risk management. (E)
• Supporting young people to design and deliver campaigns or environmental action projects. (D)
• Working with young people with additional needs. (D)
• Monitoring and evaluating programmes and activities, including using Salesforce to record data. (D)

Knowledge

• Environmental knowledge demonstrated through post-secondary education and/or relevant work or volunteer experience. (E)
• Good understanding of the barriers to young people, and particularly young people from disadvantaged and/or ethnic minority backgrounds, in engaging with environmental issues. (E)
• Good knowledge of the region you will be working in and its unique challenges and opportunities. (D)

Skills, abilities and attributes

• Ability to engage, inspire and motivate young people, especially those who are different to you, and get them excited about nature. (E)
• Excellent communication skills – in writing, verbal and through formal facilitation – with the ability to adapt your communication style to different environments and audiences. (E)
• A positive, proactive, self-reliant and solutions-oriented approach to work. (E)
• Excellent organisation and time management skills and the ability to prioritise and work to deadlines across various programmes as well as adapt to changing circumstances. (E)
• Flexible and adaptable approach to working hours in order to meet the needs of the young people we work with. (E)
• Commitment to Action for Conservation’s vision, mission and values. (E)

WHY WORK WITH US?

You’ll be joining a young, mission-driven team who truly love what they do. Working with young people is always rewarding, sometimes challenging and never boring, and you’ll get to experience first-hand the positive impact that your work has. We work hard whilst maintaining a positive work-life balance and spend lots of time outdoors.

In 2023, we were recognised by Escape the City as one of the top progressive places to work from over 13,00 nominations, after a rigorous assessment across six criteria, including Mission, Impact, People, Planet and Innovation.

Some of the benefits of working at Action for Conservation include:

• 33 days of annual leave (including public holidays), plus one additional day for each year served up to a maximum of 38 days
• Up to 5 days of paid professional development leave and up to 4 paid volunteer days each year
• A workplace pension with 3% employer contributions
• Access to flexible working to help you maintain a healthy work-life balance
• Regular team and organisational away days in the great outdoors
• Joining a growing organisation with the possibility to progress within the team as opportunities arise
• A robust training package and a bespoke development plan, co-developed with your line manager, to support your progression and career aims
• Opportunities to develop new skills and knowledge such as public speaking, youth engagement, group facilitation, practical conservation, and others
• Opportunities to share your voice and shape the direction of our work, ensuring that our content is relevant and reflective of your interests and the issues facing your community
• Seeing the impact of what you do, as you transform young people's lives.