Job Description

ABOUT INQUEST

“INQUEST is an organisation that shines a light into the state’s darkest corners, often on behalf of society’s most vulnerable people." - The Guardian

Founded in 1981, INQUEST is the only charity in England and Wales providing expertise on contentious deaths and their investigation to bereaved people, lawyers, other advice and support agencies, media, parliamentarians and the general public. Its range of cases includes custody and detention, multi-agency failings or where wider issues of state and corporate accountability are in question. 

Our integrated model of working covers:

• Family casework: We advise and support bereaved families to navigate the complex investigations and legal processes and work with them to establish the truth concerning the circumstances of the death.
• Policy change: We use the evidence we gather from our casework, alongside research and statistical data, to expose failures and achieve systemic and legislative change.
• Campaigning: We exert pressure on government and public bodies to ensure accountability and reduce the numbers of deaths. We work with the media to shine a light on failings.
• Social Justice, Social Change: We work in partnership with our supporters and families to set the agenda and create a movement for change.

ABOUT THE PROJECT AND THE ROLE

Underpinning all our work is our commitment to working with families to seek the truth and feel empowered to hold state agents to account and become self-advocates for systemic change.  As such, we provide additional support for families who wish to engage with INQUEST’s wider work, including events and online forums. We also work with families so they engage with media and parliamentary and policy work.

The Family Participation project, funded by the Big Lottery Fund’s Reaching Communities, is a fairly new strand of work, and is integral to our overall organisational objectives.

The aim of the post is:

• To work with a coalition of families in order to grow a community of advocates calling for reform and for a recognition of their rights;

• To empower families with the skills, resources and confidence to make their voice heard across a range of platforms;

• To enhance, strengthen and develop family input and involvement into INQUEST’s work, campaigns and strategic development and ensure families are at the heart of our work;

• To strengthen and develop engagement and guidance for the families we work with and their family members.

This role is a key strategic priority for INQUEST, reflected in our strategic plans for 2018/21. Working closely with the casework and policy team, the overall staff team, senior management and an external evaluator, you will be involved in developing, implementing, monitoring and evaluating the project, and will play an active part in shaping its family participation component.

INQUEST offers a very generous package of staff benefits, including 30 days of annual leave and an annual employer pension contribution of 8%.