Vocation Coordinator

Vocation Coordinator

Part-time (28 hours per week)

Closing date: 30^th June 2024

Interview dates: Week commencing 1^st July 2024

Location:

• Home or office based, but with occasional travel around the UK as required.
• Occasional visits to the Back Up office in Wandsworth, London and surrounding area.

Salary:

From £25,000 to £29,000 (pro rata) per annum dependent on experience.

Are you passionate about making sure people get the support they need to transform their lives? Are you committed to enabling people to raise their aspirations and return to work or volunteering post spinal cord injury?

If so, Back Up could offer you an inspiring and fulfilling role making a significant difference to the lives of people affected by spinal cord injuries.

About the role:

When a person or their family member sustains a spinal cord injury it is a life changing experience. For many it is a huge concern as to whether they will be able to return to their current occupation or employer or whether they will ever be able to work or volunteer again following their spinal cord injury.

Back Up’s vocation service aims to be the leader in supporting people with spinal cord injury to return to work and our Vocation Coordinators are the main point of contact to help service users reach their vocational goals. They work in partnership with spinal units and other stakeholders such as employers to raise aspirations, coordinating activities such as our Skills for Work courses and Careers Fair, as well as providing telephone support to service users.

You’ll be a confident communicator with excellent organisational skills in person, in writing and on the telephone. You’ll enjoy planning and delivering work to see projects through; be that independently or as part of a wider team.

Lived experience is an advantage; but most important is your sharing our commitment to transform the lives of everyone affected by spinal cord injury.

For full details please see our role description.

About us:

At Back Up, we have big ambitions. Over the next few years, we’re going to be transforming the lives of even more people affected by spinal cord injury.

Together we’ll be working hard to make sure everyone affected by spinal cord injury has access to the support they deserve; and we are the only spinal cord injury charity in the UK providing specific services on vocation and services to children and young people.

At Back Up, inclusion is at the heart of everything we do. Please read our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy Statement. We are committed to creating an inclusive working environment where all our employees are encouraged to reach their full potential, and individual differences are valued and respected. We particularly welcome applications from those from black, Asian or ethnic minority backgrounds or those with higher level spinal injuries.

In 2024 Back Up won The Times and The Sunday Times Spotlight Award for Best place to work for disabled employees. As well as this, Back Up has been voted one of the top ten charities to work for (Third Sector Best Charities 2020). The enthusiastic, inclusive and supportive spirit of our very skilled staff ensure excellence in the services we deliver.

How to apply

Please apply by emailing recruitment@backuptrust.org.uk by midnight on Sunday 30^th June 2024 with:

• A CV detailing salary information for your most recent post and two referees, one of whom should be your present or most recent employer. We will contact them after interview.
• A (maximum) two side A4 supporting statement, saying why you want the job and explaining how you meet the criteria in the job description.. This statement is crucial; CVs alone will not be accepted.
• A completed equal opportunities form. This form will be kept separate from your application, and not viewed by the recruiting manager. It is used to help us assess the diversity of our applicants to ensure our processes are fair to all. It is optional to fill in but it will help us improve and maintain high standards.

We will acknowledge receipt of your application, and then let you know if you are to be invited to interview.  First interviews will be held from the week beginning Monday 1^st July 2024.  If you cannot make any of those dates, please indicate this when you apply.

What will the process involve?

The process will involve at least one interview round which will be either in person or online. There will be a panel interviewing you and you may be asked to complete a task beforehand to present to the panel. If you need any support or adjustment to the recruitment process at any step, do please ask and we’d be pleased to work with you to put these in place so that you can perform to the best of your abilities throughout the process and demonstrate your suitability for the role.  Please email recruitment@backuptrust.org.uk

Guaranteed Interview Scheme

As a ‘Disability Confident’ employer we are committed to the inclusion of candidates and employees with disabilities. If you have a disability and meet the minimum criteria of the role, set out as essential criteria in the job description, we will invite you to interview. Please let us know if you would qualify and want to take advantage of this scheme by emailing: recruitment@backuptrust.org.uk.

Don’t meet every single requirement?

At Back Up we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every criteria in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyway. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles at Back Up.