Volunteer and Outreach Coordinator

Salary £25,000 + monthly travel card

About South London Cares

South London Cares is a community network of young professionals and older neighbours
hanging out and helping one another in our rapidly changing city.

Our objectives are to tackle the growing plight of isolation and loneliness not just amongst
older people but also amongst young Londoners; to help improve the confidence, resilience,
skills, connection and power of all participants so that older and younger neighbours alike
can better navigate the modern world; and to bring people together to bridge widening
social, generational, cultural, attitudinal and digital divides.

We do this because in the context of globalization, gentrification, digitization and urban

transience London has become a place of social extremes. The boroughs in which we work
at South London Cares – Southwark and Lambeth – contain some of the best-connected
young professionals in Britain living directly alongside some of the most isolated, with
particular challenges to do with deprivation, depression, loneliness, anxiety and ageing.

The result is that older people often have deep roots in their communities, but few
connections, while young professionals often have hundreds of connections but no
roots. That disconnect wastes human potential, perpetuates social division, entrenches
isolation and is ultimately corrosive for our society.

In a dynamic city like ours, these two groups have so much to gain from one another –
in shared time, laughter, new experiences and, especially, friendship.

South London Cares therefore seeks to harness the people and places around us and to
mobilise a new generation of young professionals to build relationships and share
experiences with our older neighbours in a variety of fun, authentic ways. We speak the
language of younger and older people alike – and make interaction on a personal level
mutually accessible, sociable, rewarding and fun.

We work at the cross-section of the public, private and community sectors in partnership
with local authorities, voluntary and community groups, businesses and individuals to
identify isolation where it occurs and to create new opportunities for older and younger
neighbours to share time.

Specifically, we operate four programmes. Our Outreach work identifies older people at risk
of isolation in our communities pro-actively through innovative ongoing campaigns. Our
Winter Wellbeing project, for example, supports older neighbours through multiple
interactions and interventions to stay warm, active and connected through the most

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isolating time of the year.

Secondly, our Love Your Neighbour programme matches young professionals and older
neighbours to spend time together one-to-one, often in people’s homes, to improve the life
experiences of all parties and help bring some of the outside world in for older people who
may struggle to get out. Neighbours build relationships on their own terms, enjoy meals
together, and often become long-standing friends.

Meanwhile, our Social Clubs are group activities bringing people together in community
centres, cafes, pubs, parks and local businesses to share time, laughter and cultural
exchange. Regular clubs include film nights, ‘Desert Island Discs’ evenings, ‘back to work’
business visits and themed get-togethers like summer BBQs.

Finally, our Community Fundraising offers another chance for younger and older
neighbours to contribute to their community network. Through individual physical
challenges including marathons, triathlons and Tough Mudders as well as events, corporate
partnerships, digital campaigns, regular donations and more, local people support South
London Cares in a variety of exciting ways.

About the role

You will work closely with our dedicated team to develop, deepen and expand our
outreach programme and the management of our large network of volunteers. You will
meet hundreds of older people and young professionals, helping to create friendships
across the generations, tackling isolation and loneliness of both younger and older
Londoners alike, and ensuring our safeguarding, records, and storytelling procedures are
upheld to the highest standards.

All of that requires a broad skill set, with particular emphasis on organisation and
communication, and characteristics including confidence, personal warmth, determination
and resilience. In this role you will be at the heart of the charity, enabling older and younger
Londoners to be part of the South London Cares network and participate in our
programmes.

You will lead our volunteer induction and onboarding processes, to enthuse, motivate
and mobilise dozens of young professionals to spend time with their older neighbours and
meaningfully contribute to their communities.

You will meet older neighbours in various circumstances – ranging from the most active,
outgoing fun-loving 90-somethings to people facing huge and complex personal challenges
whilst navigating complicated support systems.

You will lead our innovative, proactive annual Winter Wellbeing project, helping older
neighbours to stay warm, active, healthy and connected during the most isolating time of
year – through a combination of outreach, interventions and interactions.

You will be the chief communicator with our community partners within local statutory

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services, NHS services, housing services, charities and community groups.
To all groups, you will confidently and clearly articulate South London Cares’ vision and
the aims and objectives of the charity so that all participants and stakeholders – including
older and younger neighbours, family members, health agencies, councils and other
partners – understand the unique role we play.

When you join our team, you will work predominantly from our office space in the heart of
Brixton. A lot of your time will also be spent out in the community, encouraging older
neighbours and young professionals to join the network, holding meetings across
Southwark and Lambeth and presenting to various partner organisations key to the
successful delivery of our outreach and volunteer work and our overall vision.

We therefore need someone who understands and is motivated by the demographics

and social challenges of Southwark and Lambeth – and in particular who is passionate
about people and can clearly promote our vision for building friendships across deepening
divides in order to tackle isolation and loneliness in those boroughs.

We are looking for someone who can relate to people from all backgrounds, someone
equally comfortable discussing illness and isolation with a 93-year-old on an estate in
Peckham as they are presenting to Clinical Commissioning Groups and networking with
young professionals to generate volunteer sign ups.

You will be trusted to work dynamically and independently across this exciting young
charity, with a growing profile and backing from major local and national supporters. You
will also be provided with the development opportunities, professional support and
networks to play a lasting, transformative role in the development of the “Cares” vision and
family.

Key Responsibilities

Outreach Coordination

● Lead, plan and deliver South London Cares’ proactive outreach in the community,
facilitating and supporting older neighbours to be involved in our core activities;

● Lead, design, deliver and report on our annual Winter Wellbeing project from October –
March, reaching pre-agreed targets to identify isolation in our communities, supporting
older neighbours to stay warm, active, healthy and connected through targeted
interventions;

● Support the Head of Programmes with recruitment and onboarding of an Outreach

Officer who will work with you for the duration of the Winter Wellbeing project;

● Support and manage the Outreach Officer during the Winter Wellbeing project, with
weekly supervision and Professional Development Reviews;

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● Design and deliver inclusive and effective promotional materials specifically tailored to
encourage and motivate older neighbours to join the network and drive engagement with
our programmes through posters, letters, leaflets and digital media content;

● Work with our outreach partners across the public, private and community sectors –
receiving referrals from local authorities, health professionals and other sources,
communicating with our internal team, and delivering outcomes for neighbours and
volunteers;

● Present on South London Cares’ purpose and core activities to existing and potential
partners in the community – including health professionals, housing associations,
community stakeholders and more;

● Research and manage new and existing community partnerships with the aim of to
expanding our reach and to support more older neighbours to join over the coming year
and beyond;

● Effectively administer our comprehensive Salesforce contacts database and

engagement tools to record and track the number of new interactions, partner and older
neighbour relationships and outreach activities South London Cares creates;

● Lead innovative retention efforts and re-engagement with older neighbours who aren’t
regularly attending Social Clubs through phone calls and other communication to
encourage participation and offer support through signposting to other organisations
and services;

● Work closely with our programme delivery team to support the participation of our core
activities by engaging in outreach with older neighbours new to South London Cares,
both in person directly, telephone self-referrals and website or email referrals from
partners;

● Support the participation and delivery of our Love Your Neighbour programme by
contributing to our referral and assessment processes for suitable volunteers and older
neighbours;

Volunteer Coordination

● Inspire, recruit and mobilise young professionals to volunteer, providing the best
possible experience for people interested in spending time with their older neighbours
through our programmes;

● Lead our monthly volunteer inductions for 40+ new volunteer sign ups to make our
network as inclusive and welcoming as possible;

● Manage our volunteer onboarding process, applying your personality to welcome and
screen new participants adhering to our safeguarding processes, record important
information about them, and describe activities and inspire people to get involved;

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● Design and deliver inclusive marketing materials to engage and mobilse new and existing
volunteers to participate in our programmes, including a monthly email campaign
distributing our social club programme to oversee the sign-up process via our online
booking system for our growing network of 1,250 volunteers per month;

● Support the social clubs team and fundraising team to provide appropriate recognition
and feedback to volunteers to cultivate their engagement, reward commitment and
celebrate their efforts;

● Create colourful, engaging, powerful communications and digital content including

blogs, Instagram images, Facebook and Twitter posts, case studies, reports and blast
emails;

Required Skills

• You’re an authentic, high quality communicator and storyteller – with the ability to build
and sustain relationships with diverse groups effectively and appropriately, from young
professionals, to older neighbours, to key local partners (through both written and verbal
communication);

• You are a people-person and someone who can build trust and authentic relationships
with a variety of people.

• You have high quality written and exceptional administrative skills, and are confident
designing important materials to creatively promote the work of South London Cares
externally;

• You have experience at dealing with multiple tasks, sensitivities and challenges at the
same time to the highest standard;

• You are professional with an organised approach, diligent with procedures and records
and an intrinsic understanding of the power of networks and digital media;

• You are a creative, enterprising and confident colleague, full of energy and
determination. The standout candidate will also have experience and knowledge of the
different and diverse communities across our city;

• You have the flexibility to work regular evenings and weekends in order to support the
delivery of our core activities, with time off provided in lieu;

• You are a self-starter: someone committed, tough, results orientated and focused
working alone as well as in teams; who is passionate about further developing, improving
and sustaining South London Cares over the coming months and years;

• You are able to obtain a clear CRB/DBS certification upon hire (provided);

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• You are professionally agile, and able to adapt to the rapidly changing needs of a small
but growing charity.

Desirable Qualities

• You are charismatic, fun, warm, approachable, self-starting, confident, outgoing,

creative, empathetic, determined, ambitious, flexible, resilient, discreet, organised and
professional;

• You have experience working in a small or medium sized organisation leading ambitious
and creative community initiatives, and have experience managing projects and/or
people;

• You have a good understanding of the culture and socio-economic challenges facing
south London – and can relate to and build relationships with people from all
backgrounds;

• You have an eye for design, and are confident using Photoshop, and/or InDesign.

Benefits

• Zones 1-3 travel card

• 26 days’ annual leave plus bank holiday
• Flexible working hours
• Significant opportunities for learning and development
• Staff counselling service

To apply

Please send your CV and a covering letter in PDF format to Jasmin White at
jasmin.white@southlondoncares.org.uk showing us why you feel you are right for this role.

• Application deadline: 1pm on Sunday 6th January 2019.

• First round interviews will take place on Tuesday 15th and Wednesday 16th January
2019.
• Second round interviews will take place on Wednesday 23rd and Thursday 24th
January 2019.
• Starting date of 1 March 2019 or as soon as possible thereafter.

Please note that our office is closed for Christmas from Friday 21st December 2018
until Monday 7th January 2019. Jasmin will be available via email from 10am-2pm on
Wednesday 2nd January 2019 to respond to questions.