Communications Officer
Contract: Permanent role
Location: Hybrid – a mix of work from home and London office (this will be a minimum of one or two days per month when settled, more at the start of your employment)
Starting salary: £25,000 to £28,000
Closing date for applications: Monday 13^th May
Expected week of interviews: w/c 20^th May

Charity People is delighted to be partnering with Dystonia UK to recruit a Communications Officer to join their small and growing team. A charity supports people living with dystonia; an often debilitating and painful disorder that is lifelong and is estimated to affect around 100,000 people in the UK, Dystonia UK is a lifeline for many. In addition to running vital support groups, this small but mighty organisation actively lobbies on behalf of patients and runs national awareness campaigns to help increase understanding of a condition that can be hugely debilitating.

The organisation is expanding and is looking for a talented Communications Officer to work closely with the Director of Fundraising and Communications in a role that will be busy, hands on, and key to communicating the amazing and important work this organisation undertakes to its audiences.

Key responsibilities within the Communications Officer role will include:

• Writing engaging copy for a variety of mediums including both printed and digital
• Support the Director of Fundraising and Communications in creating and designing digital and print collateral for campaigns and events
• Lead on the design and publication of high-quality digital and print information about Dystonia UK, its services, projects, and about dystonia, the condition, and medical services.
• Work closely with the Director of Fundraising and Communications to identify and communicate key news items and be responsible for the production and dissemination of the e-marketing
• Manage Dystonia UK’s social media channels on a day-to-day basis ensuring all activity is in line with the charity’s brand and communication strategy and work closely with the Directors to produce and develop the social media content schedule
• Engage directly with the organisations community by drafting private messages, replying to comments, and passing actions on to other members of staff where required.
• Creating and adapting content for each channel to maximise reach and engagement.
• Work with colleagues to provide event support by creating content to promote the event, liaising with speakers and partner organisations, and attending conferences and events where required
• Plan and organise activities to raise awareness of Dystonia UK, tying in with other notable calendar events such as Dystonia Awareness Month
• Support the Director of Fundraising and Communications to ensure that the organisation’s branding is upheld in all aspects of external communication.
• Support the Director of Fundraising and Communications to develop branded merchandise.
• Support the Director of Fundraising and Communications to create the annual communications plan and contribute to the development of the marketing and communications strategy.

Dystonia UK is a small charity, and this is a busy role where someone with some communications experience will have the opportunity to work closely with a dynamic Director to really develop their skills and expertise both operationally and strategically. You’ll be in a position of responsibility and will be able to work autonomously whilst also working with closely with and being supported to learn.

We would love to hear from you if have the following skills and experience:

• Previous demonstrable experience in a communications or marketing role including experience of writing website copy that is optimised for SEO, experience of design and content creation, and of copywriting for different audiences
• Experience of using social media platforms to convey an organisation’s message to audiences, and of tailoring your social media output depending on platform and audience
• Experience of planning social media posts and of how to grow audience numbers
• Excellent written communication skills including creative copywriting and the ability to present complex information clearly
• High level of attention to detail and strong creative design skills
• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to communicate with a wide range of people and audiences both internally and externally
• Proven ability to manage own workload and ability to deliver to agreed deadlines.
• High-level skills in IT, including design packages such as Canva.

If you’re interested in hearing more about this opportunity, please send your CV to Alice at Charity People in the first instance.

Charity People and actively promotes equality, diversity, and inclusion. We match charity needs with skills and experience of candidates, irrespective of age, disability (including hidden disabilities), gender, gender identity or gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. We do this because we know greater diversity will lead to even greater results for the charities we work with.

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive a high volume of applications.