All Things Urban

Centre for London is the capital’s dedicated think tank. Our mission is to develop new solutions to London’s critical challenges and advocate for a fair and prosperous global city.

In this role you will lead Centre for London’s communications team to build the Centre’s established profile, grow its influence and shape policymaking in the capital.

This role would suit someone who has experience of developing and implementing powerful campaigns that have grabbed the headlines and helped to create positive change. To do this job well, you’ll need to be able to distil complex research reports into compelling communications strategies that achieve impact. You might have held a similar role in a charity or an academic organisation and, ideally, you’ll have management experience.

This is a three or four day-a-week role with a strategic focus. You will lead on the delivery of our communications strategy, supported by a Senior Communications Officer, part-time Communications Officer and Senior Designer. You will also be the driving force behind the Centre’s public affairs activity, working closely with senior management to increase our influence among the policy community.

Centre for London has a broad focus. This means that one day you might be speaking to a journalist about our research on affordable housing, the next day you could be writing a communications strategy for a conference on sustainability. You don’t need to be an expert in all the policy issues we work on – but you will need to be able to learn quickly and think creatively.

The successful candidate will join the team soon after London elects its next Mayor, and as Britain negotiates its future relationship with the EU. This is an exciting time to join us and help build our profile within City Hall, government and across the city.

Full details can be found in the job description. If you meet the criteria in the person specification and are excited about this opportunity, we’d love to hear from you.

The successful candidate must have permission to work in the UK by the start of their employment.

Leading Centre for London’s Communications function:

• Oversee the delivery of the organisation’s 2020 communications plan working closely with the Director and SMT, including, but not limited to:
  -- Developing and implementing communications plans to ensure that every project reaches its target audience and achieves impact.
• Developing and maintaining the Centre's media relationships and campaign networks.
• Driving the Centre's public affairs activity, working with colleagues in events and research to identify opportunities to develop and deliver activities such as parliamentary receptions and the Centre's presence at party conferences.
• Promoting the Centre's work and reputation as a politically independent think tank and telling stories of its impact.
• Ensuring the smooth roll out of a brand review and working with the Senior Designer to bring the team along with the changes.
• Develop and deliver campaigns to promote Centre for London’s research, recommendations and events, extending the organisation’s reach and influence among targeted audiences.
• Provide overall strategic programme management to ensure planning, communication systems and processes are in place and being followed.
• Monitor and evaluate the Communications Team’s activities and progress; producing reports as required.
• Acting as relationship manager for some funders and sponsors – ensuring they're briefed on project communications plans and any benefits are delivered.

Budgeting & Financial Management:

• Oversee financial planning and management for the organisation’s communications function. Ensure team and project budgets and forecasts are up to date, that projects are delivered on time and that expenditure is managed effectively.
• Manage resourcing and coordinate the availability of appropriate staff skills and capacity, procuring services from external agencies, suppliers and consultants where required.
• Coordinate and ensure effective regular reporting to sponsors and trustees, working collaboratively with colleagues to meet financial, quality and timeframe expectations. Leadership
• Manage and develop communications team staff and contractors. Maintain a team and organisational culture that attracts and retains talent. Ensure clear guidelines, resources, and procedures for team members to carry out their work. Identify and address training needs and skills gaps as required.
• Support SMT in the development and implementation of business planning, organisational strategy and a clear narrative for Centre for London.
• Support SMT in strategic leadership; identifying and leading change or improvement across the organisation while supporting others to become leaders
• Confidently brief and work with the Trustee Board. General Responsibilities and Duties
• Undertake the duties of the job description in accordance with the operational policies of Centre for London, including but not limited to the diversity policy and code of conduct.
• Maintain good working relations with Trustees, staff, volunteers and other stakeholders.
• Present the organisation in an appropriate and professional manner to its stakeholders.
• Contribute to the development and growth of the organisation through working in accordance with its wider objectives, corporate philosophy and values.
• Assist at Centre for London events outside of normal working hours as necessary.
• Undertake any other reasonable duties as may be required.

Applicants be passionate about London and must show commitment to the mission of Centre for London; to develop new develop new solutions to London’s critical challenges and advocate for a fair and prosperous global city.

Experience

• Significant experience of working in a media/PR environment with an existing network of press and PR contacts (essential)
• Experience of public affairs with an understanding of London issues and policymaking (desired)
• Experience of developing and implementing strategies across multiple communications channels, including social media, digital, branding and media (essential)
• Experience of managing the communications function of an organisation (essential)
• Experience of personnel management and supervision (essential)
• Experience of managing corporate relationships, ideally using a CRM (desired)
• Outstanding written and oral communications skills (essential)
• Confident and proficient in MS Office applications including Word, Excel and PowerPoint (essential)

Skills/Competencies

• Leadership. Confident suggesting and developing new creative ideas and approaches, being able to constructively challenge others’ thinking.
• Excellent attention to detail whilst able to maintain a strategic perspective.
• Professional and confident communication skills (written and verbal). Able to build productive relationships with senior stakeholders.
• Highly organised. Able to create clear project plans, prioritise multiple tasks, manage pressures and delegate.
• Strong IT proficiency, including MS Office, Salesforce, MailChimp and WordPress CMS.

To apply

• Please follow this link to complete the application information
• Your application should show how your experience and achievements to date would make you a suitable candidate for this role (no more than three pages total).
• Your application should be saved as a single PDF with your application ID as the title. Please check that your name isn’t included on your CV or cover letter.
• Email your CV and cover letter to jobs@centreforlondon.org with the subject line “Head of Communications”.

Please note, applications will only be submitted when the form has been completed and your pdf received via email.

Deadline – 9am on Monday 16March 2020

Expected interview dates – w/c 23 March 2020

Expected start – early June 2020.

£38,000 to £45,000 (pro rata for part time)

We’re not fully sure whether this role is open to international candidates. If you would need visa sponsorship or work authorisation, we recommend checking directly with the employer before applying.