Community Engagement Executive

Contract type: Fixed term (18 months), full time

Reports to: Senior Community Engagement Manager

Location: Premier League Offices, Paddington, W2 1HQ

Overview

Working flexibly as part of the Community Engagement team you will support the delivery of the Premier League Fans Fund and Premier League Kicks Programme. We are currently recruiting for two roles within the team. These roles include supporting Club Community Organisations (CCOs) across the Premier League, EFL, National League, Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship. You will help to co-ordinate the grant giving process, deliver funding briefings, review applications and monitoring reports, issue grant offer letters, monitor performance and gather insight and best practice.

You will interact with the CCO network and partners on a daily basis, ensuring they have the capabilities needed to deliver the funded activity to the best possible standards, whilst understanding the specific needs of key stakeholders and local communities. You will play an active role in enhancing the existing provision to improve reach and impact, supporting the development of strategy, and organising inspirational events.

Who we are

Established in 2010, the Premier League Charitable Fund is one of the biggest sports charities in the world, with an annual budget around £35m. The independent charity supports CCOs in delivering high quality projects that help young people to achieve their potential and evidences its success to key stakeholders.

Aligned with the Premier League Communities Strategy, the Premier League Charitable Fund aims to create positive and lasting sporting, social, educational and health outcomes for wide range of beneficiaries, especially children and young people. The Premier League Charitable Fund team supports and inspires impactful work of over 100 CCOs across the Premier League, EFL, National League, Women’s Super League and Women’s Championship. In turn, their work directly benefits more than 500,000 individuals at thousands of community venues and schools each year.

The Premier League Kicks programme is currently delivered by 93 CCOs and uses the power of football and sport to inspire young people aged 8-18. The programme creates opportunities for young people who are at risk of anti-social behaviour, youth violence and/or from high-need areas to regularly engage in football, sport, mentoring and personal development opportunities.

The Premier League Fans Fund currently supports 99 CCOs through a range of fan-focused and fan-led projects, helping to foster a sense of belonging through meaningful fan engagement. This includes schemes for under-represented groups, to further develop an inclusive and welcoming matchday experience for everyone. Delivery is often themed around tackling inequalities to create community cohesion, covering areas like equality, diversity, and inclusion, mental health and wellbeing, physical health and wellbeing, providing education and training opportunities, supporting employability, and/or sustainability.

Our hybrid-working model also allows you some variety on your place of work, offering you the chance to work from home on some days each week. Where possible, you will attend the office or club/site visits in line with our company policy. All staff liaise closely with their line manager to manage their time appropriately and according to their work and team requirements.

The role

Project Management and Development:

• Ensure that projects we fund are effective, good quality, provide value for money and are delivered in accordance with minimum operating standards and any contractual obligations as set out by the Premier League Charitable Fund Board and/or funding partners.
• Assessment of applications and grant monitoring reports across Community Engagement projects. Use performance monitoring data, qualitative information and insights gathered from the assessment of project delivery to help inform future delivery models.
• Work flexibly as part of the Community Engagement team to develop and maintain relationships with CCOs, funders and partners to engage them in the support and delivery of Premier League Kicks and Premier League Fans Fund.

Learning and Evaluation:

• Undertake meetings and visits to individual CCO projects as part of the ongoing assessment of project standards and to gain insight at the point of delivery, reporting findings back to the Premier League Charitable Fund Board, Premier League and other relevant partners.
• Establish and facilitate regular forums for individual CCO staff to come together to share learnings, best practice and/or receive training. This may include the organisation and coordination of national coordinator conferences, learning and evaluation events and/or regional networks.
• Regularly review CCO data to identify trends and subsequent options for best practice, case studies, feedback and club support. Work with the Premier League Charitable Fund/Premier League Communications and Digital teams to provide relevant information and identify best practice/case studies for PR purposes and events where required.
• Work cross-departmentally to support ongoing research and evaluation projects covering the delivery and impact of Community Engagement provision.

CCO Support and Development:

• Liaise with CCO staff to provide support as required, including sharing of best practice and guidance on areas of their development via regular newsletters and other communication channels.
• Build and manage relationships with CCO staff at a range of levels to ensure that their needs and the needs and programme requirements are met.
• Liaise with CCO staff to identify training needs and work with the Premier League Charitable Fund Learning and Events Manager to develop relevant training provision.
• Work with CCOs and Premier League partners where relevant to develop central resources and toolkits to distribute across the network, ensuring these meet practical requirements of participants as well as programme brand guidelines.

Events:

• Work with Community Engagement Team colleagues, the Learning and Events Manager, Premier League, and external consultants to lead or support on the planning and delivery of a range of Community Engagement Team events including the Premier League Kicks Cup and the Premier League Disability Festivals.
• Coordinate logistics to support CCO training courses, conferences and regional network meetings.

Safeguarding

Wider PLCF and Community Engagement team support:

• Take responsibility for safeguarding in all your work and consult with the Safeguarding Team to understand and support the complex safeguarding and risk requirements of Community Engagement programmes and events, and CCO delivery.
• Work with the Premier League Charitable Fund lead for equality, diversity and inclusion to effectively embed best practice into all Community Engagement programmes and events, and CCO delivery.
• Support across other areas of the Premier League Charitable Fund’s provision, including training, conferences, resource development, CCO delivery and national and regional events.
• Share in Premier League Charitable Fund’s values and participate as a full member of the PLCF team, and where appropriate, carry out other duties as may reasonably be required, including deputising as appropriate, and giving support to other members of the team at busy times.
• Ensure PLCF is connected to other initiatives, policies and organisations working in the same fields through participation in a range of relevant external forums and networks.
• Share in PLCF’s values and participate as a full member of the PLCF team, and where appropriate, carry out other duties as may reasonably be required giving support to other members of the team at busy times.

Requirements for the role:

• Strong project management, planning and organisational skills, including the ability to engage with a complex network of stakeholders.
• Ability to work independently under pressure, make sound judgement calls and solve problems at pace.
• Ability to communicate well to a range of audiences, and using different mediums, with written skills to an excellent standard.
• Ability to work collaboratively and flexibly.
• Knowledge and/or experience of grant-making processes, including approaches to monitoring, evaluation and learning.
• Understanding of the community sport and/or youth engagement sector including policy, initiatives and legislation relevant to the programmes which could include high-need areas and at-risk young people, or the ability to acquire it.
• Knowledge and understanding of the role that sport and physical activity can play in addressing important societal issues.
• Ability to identify trends and analyse project data, both qualitatively and quantitatively, preferably in a community based setting and communicate findings.
• Excellent negotiation, interpersonal and relationship management skills.
• Experience planning and delivering events and/or conferences.
• High level of computer proficiency, particularly with MS Office packages. Experience of using Salesforce CRM would be advantageous.
• An understanding of, and commitment to, equality, diversity and inclusion and how it relates to the role.
• Willingness to travel within England and Wales as and when appropriate.
• A commitment to safeguarding and have a satisfactory enhanced DBS check to be completed.

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