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Befriending Manager
age concern colchester & north east essex

Job Description

About Age Concern Colchester & North East Essex

Age Concern Colchester & North East Essex is a charitable organisation that looks after the welfare of individuals of 60 years+ to support making life better in later years. Key ways that we do this are: -

- To provide support in identifying benefit applications and support in completion - £1.3m per year in benefits delivered
- A befriending service matching individuals with the needs of the older generation - we have 60+ people befriended
- Developing Volunteering in the Charity and to benefit our Community
- Connecting people in later years through The Veranda / HILL Project with clubs, activities and interest groups

The charity has gone through significant growth over the last couple of years and is now an independent charity but reaches people across Colchester and North East Essex. Recently we have been asked to deliver our services across North East Essex. It is for this reason that we are looking for a Befriending and Friendships Group Manager.

What do we offer?

Age Concern is a friendly and enjoyable place to work. We work hard but also enjoy some downtime together. Due to the nature of our work this is essential because we all have tougher days and need to be there for each other to work through these days when they happen.

The organisation is growing from one site to multiple sites and we are developing the work of the charity extensively across North East Essex. It is an exciting time to be a part of what we are doing and this opportunity is about genuinely making a big difference to people. The team have great pride in what they do, who we help and how we transform lives.

We do offer excellent coaching and support from both colleagues and the senior team. We appreciate that starting an operation from the outset can be a challenge. The good news is that we have established structures that allow us to support getting things locally up and off the ground. There is an existing befriending unit operating in Colchester, Witham and Tendring District which includes a team leader and two coordinators.

There is potential for career development and also the leadership team is dynamic and we enjoy exploring new ideas and ways to do things to grow the charity. 

What are we looking for?

Befriending Activities

- Manage, lead, develop and inspire a successful befriending team
- In conjunction with the CEO develop our story, case studies and grants for core funding and development of the service
- Develop partnerships with key organisations and partnership working to open new clubs, support with small grants
- Monitor and review team activity providing coaching, support and development
- Monitor income and expenditure with P & L responsibility for the unit
- Model excellence for the team, volunteers and those we work with
- Develop our reporting facility / compliance review through Salesforce for Charities with our Salesforce Developer
- Work closely with the CEO to develop the strategic plan
- Ensure information is maintained on systems so funding reports can be generated as required
- Support in implementation of new Community Cafe's and groups to implement effective operating standards

Your Qualities

- You will need to be outgoing, confident and able to juggle a range of priorities well
- The amount of work on Word, Computer Systems and general admin is busy so proficiency is essential
- We are looking for an inspirational leader who is keen to develop capability within the team
- Able to understand the confidential nature of our work and put in place relevant safeguarding and monitoring procedures
- You will have a genuine desire to make a difference to people in very challenging personal circumstances

Practical Considerations

- All our staff and volunteers go through the DBS process and thorough vetting (no costs)
- The role involves a balance of work on a PC and a degree of travelling across North East Essex
- You will need to have a car, licence and before joining business class insurance.
- Often we deal with people who are upset and distressed. We need an individual who is a calming influence on others and can keep a cool head, think logically and be prepared to find support before jumping to a resolution

The role is 37.5 hours a week from 9am-5pm Mon - Fri although some flexibility may be required to support outside of regular hours. There is current funding for a 3-year Fixed-Term Contract.

Finally, team is really important to us. You will be pivotal to developing a positive culture in the befriending unit for those we serve, other charities and the wider team as we grow. If you like a new challenge and are a good fit for the above apply today to join us on our mission at Age Concern and North East Essex.

The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.