Editing jobs in United Kingdom

Job title: Communications Officer

Salary: PO2 £39,862 – £42,839

Hours: Full time (37 hours per week)

Contract: Permanent

Location: Merrion House, 110 Merrion Centre, Leeds LS2 8BB. Hybrid working is available.

If you have a communications background and you’re great at judging how best to share complex, sensitive and potentially inflammatory information, join us at Migration Yorkshire!

As a Communications Officer you’ll thrive on using your creativity to bring a topic to life in different ways, and you care about getting the details right. This role isn’t about attention-grabbing press releases but taking the heat out of immigration debates. As a politically neutral organisation, one of our key roles is to share impartial information in an accessible way to a range of audiences, supporting them to make informed, evidence-based choices about design and delivery of services to local communities that include people from different migrant backgrounds.

Leeds City Council is one of the largest employers in the region with over 14,000 employees. We seek to recruit and develop talented individuals who embody our council values and ambitions.

• Experience of using a website content management system such as Drupal
• Good knowledge of at least one design and image/photo editing software package such as InDesign
• Instinct to spot and develop a good story
• Excellent writing, editing and proof‑reading skills
• Enthusiasm about the integration of migrants and about ensuring that the Yorkshire and Humber region benefits from migration

We create a lot of information across the team and need someone to help us do this clearly, consistently, and in ways that keep our audiences interested. As our next Communications Officer you’ll get to grips with web content in our Drupal Content Management System, take us forward with our social media, and upskill colleagues who support our communications work.

The role is integral to our Migration Yorkshire team, sitting within the policy, research, communications and statistics team.

Migration Yorkshire supports people and organisations to achieve the most positive outcomes of migration for everyone in the Yorkshire and Humber region. Migration Yorkshire provides leadership and coordination, evidence, and practical assistance to organisations from all sectors at local, regional and national level. We believe in improving understanding, supporting the integration of migrants and maximising opportunities for all to create a more equal and enriched society. Migration Yorkshire is a partnership of councils working across the whole of the Yorkshire and Humber region and is based in Leeds. Find out more about us at www.migrationyorkshire.org.uk.

• a competitive salary and annual leave entitlement plus statutory holidays
• membership of the West Yorkshire Pension Fund with generous employer contributions
• flexible and hybrid working arrangements subject to service requirements
• a clear career pathway and continuing professional development opportunities
• a range of staff benefits to help you boost your wellbeing and make your money go further

Please complete the online application form.

Read our guidance for further advice on completing your application.

If you have any queries or would like an informal chat about the role please contact Pip Tyler, Policy and Research Manager. Call 0113 378 8188 or email pip.tyler@migrationyorkshire.org.uk.

We welcome applications from everyone and actively seek a diverse range of applicants from all backgrounds and cultures. We particularly encourage applications from, but not limited to, women, carers, veterans as well as LGBT+, ethnically diverse, disabled and care experienced people.

This role is based in the UK. Home Office guidance states that candidates must evidence their right to work in the UK prior to commencing employment, either as a UK or Irish citizen, under the EU Settlement scheme or having secured any other relevant work visa.

If you do not have the right to work in the UK, you must consider your own eligibility for sponsorship for a particular role through the Skilled Worker visa route before applying. To be eligible for sponsorship you'll usually need to be paid the standard salary rate of at least £41,700 per year or meet one of the other eligibility criteria. Please ensure you are eligible before applying.

The post holder will work flexibly across Migration Yorkshire’s communications functions, with a focus on maintaining the Migration Yorkshire website, preparing materials for publication, responding to partners, and developing our social media profile and our use of photos and video.

Migration Yorkshire supports people and organisations to achieve the most positive outcomes of migration for everyone in the Yorkshire and Humber region. Migration Yorkshire provides leadership and coordination, evidence, and practical assistance to organisations from all sectors at local, regional and national level. We believe in improving understanding, supporting the integration of migrants and maximising opportunities for all to create a more equal and enriched society. Migration Yorkshire is a partnership of councils working across the whole of the Yorkshire and Humber region and is based in Leeds.

Migration Yorkshire has a public role on migration. We are a key voice on migration in Yorkshire and Humber. We aim to set a positive and constructive agenda on migration and integration; to offer a balanced alternative to inaccurate or hostile messages about migrants; and to provide high quality, timely and accurate information. At times we speak on behalf of the region’s local authorities on migration issues. We’re politically neutral, and do not engage in campaigning.

• Help to develop and coordinate communications plans and activities across the team in line with agreed messaging, style and branding guidelines as well as funder requirements.
• Write and design informative, engaging material in a range of styles suited to diverse audiences and different formats (from newsletters and good news stories to blogs or press releases etc).
• Develop Migration Yorkshire’s social media strategy and profile: work with colleagues to increase our visibility, reach and engagement; create innovative content; and develop the team’s capacity to use social media effectively to support their migration work. Publish to social media channels, responding to queries and comments, monitoring and planning content. Set up and run new online channels as required.
• Provide responsive information to external organisations on behalf of Migration Yorkshire.
• Coordinate maintenance and restructuring of the Migration Yorkshire website and moderate web authoring across the team using a content management system.
• Identify compelling ideas for sharing information on migration, to enable colleagues to make complex, and at times contentious, data or other subject matter accessible to, and engaging for, a range of audiences; design and create or commission related materials.
• Liaise with organisations across Yorkshire and Humber to identify good news stories and potential subjects for case studies, and to source and share publicity material and ideas.
• Create or commission photos, graphics and other materials and documents as required.
• Curate a media assets library, managing the media consent recording process and following good practice in retention and deletion of data.
• Monitor UK migration and regional migration news, in order to create timely reactive digital content in collaboration with colleagues and external partners.
• Analyse and report on activity and statistics for social media and website platforms.
• Make presentations at internal and external meetings, events and workshops as required.
• Answer routine communications enquiries.
• Provide excellent customer service to all stakeholders.
• Respect the sensitive and confidential nature of the work. Follow good practice in data protection.
• Be responsive to the needs of the Migration Yorkshire team and support colleagues as required.
• Able and willing to travel across Yorkshire and Humber, and occasionally beyond the region.

• Understand and embrace Leeds City Council values and behaviours and codes of conduct.
• Committed to continuous improvement in all areas and work towards delivering the Leeds Ambitions of health and wellbeing, inclusive growth, thriving strong communities, and a resilient sustainable city.
• Able to understand and observe Leeds City Council policies and procedures.
• Carry out duties having regard to an employee’s responsibility under Health, Safety and Wellbeing.
• Participate in appraisal, training and development activities to ensure up, to date knowledge and skills.
• Be aware of and support difference and ensure equality for all working in an anti-discriminatory manner, upholding equality and diversity of Leeds City Council.
• Recognise and appropriately challenge any incidents of racism, bullying, harassment, victimisation, and any form of abuse, reporting any concerns to the appropriate person.
• Flexible and adaptable to change to assist other services as required commensurate to grade.
• The Council has adopted a flexibility protocol and the role will be expected to work within these parameters.

• A higher education level qualification or equivalent professional experience in social/digital media, marketing, communications, journalism, multimedia technology, or a related discipline.

• Experience of using a website content management system such as Drupal.
• Good knowledge of at least one design and image/photo editing software package such as InDesign, with experience of using it to create a range of digital content.
• High level of literacy and excellent writing skills, with the ability to write informative, engaging copy in a range of styles and tones for diverse audiences and different formats and media.
• Good editing and proof‑reading skills, with excellent attention to detail and a high level of accuracy.
• Enthusiastic about the integration of migrants and about ensuring that the Yorkshire and Humber region benefits from migration.
• Able to spot and develop a good story and to devise creative ways to bring complex data or subject matter to life in communications, maximising the understanding and impact of the message.
• Experience of successfully using social media to meet planned communications objectives.
• Able to work collaboratively and across teams and sectors.
• Experience in producing high quality online content.
• Experience of and skills in creating good quality, inventive infographics and/or short videos for online use, to make information accessible and engaging.
• Understanding of information governance as it applies to communications work.
• Good at managing competing priorities and able to write to deadlines.
• Good analytical skills, able to identify the key points in complex documents and summarise them in plain English.
• Able to exercise professional judgement in handling confidential, sensitive or politically sensitive content.
• Able to work independently with minimum supervision, and to take direction as necessary.
• Experience of communicating directly with the media.
• Good listening and oral presentation skills.
• Able to successfully manage projects.

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