Marine Conservation Society New Youth Engagement Officer Scotland · hybrid £26k–31k

Youth Engagement Officer

Home-based within the Central Belt of Scotland (with regular UK travel)

About Us

We are a leading UK environmental charity dedicated to protecting our ocean - defending crucial habitats, regenerating vital ecosystems and inspiring volunteers. We unite communities, governments, and industry, and champion science-based solutions for cleaner, healthier seas to tackle the climate and nature emergency.

We are currently looking for a Youth Engagement Officer to join us on a permanent, full-time basis, working 35 hours per week.

The Benefits

• Salary of £26,358 - £31,132 per annum
• 25 days’ annual leave plus Bank Holidays, and extra closure days at Christmas
• 8% employer pension contributions (no match required)
• Sick pay at full pay for 8 weeks, then 8 weeks at half pay (after probation)
• Flexible working and remote-first approach
• Health and wellbeing support, plus an employee assistance programme
• A paid volunteering day to support a charity of your choice

This is a rewarding opportunity for an experienced youth engagement professional with a background in outdoor, environmental or marine education to join our passionate organisation.

You’ll have the chance to inspire the next generation to care about and act for the ocean, creating experiences that give young people the confidence, knowledge and space to make their voices heard.

Plus, with a remote-first approach, flexible working, and strong wellbeing support, you’ll benefit from a package designed to give you greater balance and flexibility.

The Role

As a Youth Engagement Officer, you will lead our youth engagement activity, inspiring young people aged 5-25 to connect with and take action for the ocean.

You will design and deliver engaging resources, workshops, projects and events for young people, focusing on informal learning, and working directly with youth groups, clubs, universities, colleges and community organisations.

Building our youth engagement capability, you will train and support staff, volunteers and group leaders while developing partnerships that extend the reach of our work.

You will also co-ordinate the Youth Ocean Network and Youth Advisory Panel, creating opportunities for young people to have a voice and get involved.

Additionally, you will:

• Establish and run an annual national youth engagement event
• Co-ordinate youth residentials with external partners
• Develop a yearly youth engagement communications plan
• Line manage and support seasonal youth interns
• Monitor and evaluate activities to understand their impact and inform future delivery
• Identify new networks, platforms and promotional approaches
• Contribute to internal and funder reporting

About You

To be considered as a Youth Engagement Officer, you will need:

• Experience designing and delivering youth engagement activity
• Experience planning and delivering outdoor, environmental or marine education sessions in a non-school setting
• Experience working directly with children and young people across a wide age range (5 to 25)
• Experience leading a cross-organisational project from planning through to delivery
• The ability to plan and deliver experiential learning sessions that work for mixed-age or mixed-ability audiences
• The ability to monitor and evaluate projects or programmes and use evidence to inform future planning and reporting
• The ability to navigate the informal education sector's networks, systems and annual scheduling to spot and act on engagement opportunities
• The willingness to travel across the UK, including overnight stays (with a full driving licence and access to a vehicle where venues aren't served by public transport)

Please note, you’ll need to complete first aid training and hold a satisfactory DBS or PVG check before starting, due to regular contact with children and young people.

Closing date

Wednesday 7 October 2026

Interviews

w/c 19 October 2026

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early should we receive a sufficient number of suitable applications.

Other organisations may call this role Youth Engagement Co-ordinator, Youth Engagement Worker, Youth Development Officer, Youth Development Co-ordinator, Youth Project Officer, Youth Project Co-ordinator, Youth Outreach Officer, or Youth Outreach Worker.

Webrecruit and The Marine Conservation Society are equal opportunities employers, value diversity and are strongly committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all employees and all applicants for employment. Equal opportunities are the only acceptable way to conduct business and we believe that the more inclusive our environments are, the better our work will be.