At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead initiatives to engage communities with England's rich heritage and historic sites.
- Company: Join Historic England, a champion of the nation's historic environment.
- Benefits: Enjoy 28 days holiday, hybrid working, and a generous pension scheme.
- Other info: Flexible working options available to support work-life balance.
- Why this job: Make a real impact by connecting people with their heritage and culture.
- Qualifications: Experience in leading teams and delivering community engagement projects.
The predicted salary is between 60000 - 70000 £ per year.
We are the public body that looks after England’s historic environment. We champion historic places, helping people understand, value and care for them. Historic England has a fantastic opportunity for you to join us as our Participation Director. This is a full time permanent position. The location of this role is National where we offer hybrid working, you will be based in one of our following offices and from home - Newcastle, York, Manchester, Birmingham, Swindon, Bristol, Portsmouth (Fort Cumberland), London and Cambridge.
We offer a wide benefits package including a competitive defined benefit pension scheme to which we make 28.97% employer contributions, a generous 28 days holiday, corporate discounts, free entry into English Heritage sites across the country and development opportunities to ensure you achieve your goals.
The application process will involve providing a CV and cover letter (maximum two pages, outlining your relevant experience for the role).
What you will be doing
You will be responsible for developing and embedding strategies and programmes that help people across England to discover and connect with their heritage, increasing engagement with Historic England (HE) and the historic environment through our nationally important Archive collections and engagement programmes, which include learning (Heritage Schools), community engagement, inclusion grants and participation programmes (e.g. Blue Plaques). Through the power of partnership, storytelling, capacity building and audience led approaches, you will lead your teams to unlock the power of heritage for people and places, embedding inclusive practice and centring social impact.
Reporting to the Director of Communications and Engagement and working as part of the Communications and Engagement Leadership Team, you will help shape the direction of Historic England’s engagement and participation activity, ensuring our vision and mission are well understood and supported in society, and by key stakeholders. As a member of the Corporate Leadership Team, you will work together with senior colleagues across Historic England to embed our strategic priorities for people and places, including delivery on government priorities and income generation opportunities.
You will share your expertise and passion, ensuring the organisation’s knowledge, resources and voice are leveraged beyond Historic England, and we are actively working together with more people and partners to the benefit of people and places. Working closely with the Marketing & Digital Director, Philanthropy & Income Development Director and Communications Director, you will ensure that our presence continues to grow and gain positive recognition on a national stage, with new and current audiences, and that we are in an open conversation about how we can all work together to take action for heritage and the historic environment. You will work with a range of internal and external senior stakeholders and community partners.
Who we are looking for
- Experience of leading multi-disciplinary teams in a participatory engagement discipline
- Experience of successfully creating and delivering integrated engagement activity in an arts, culture, or heritage setting.
- Experience of project delivery including community led approaches, and co-creation with communities.
- Experience of initiating and leading projects within a strategic framework
- Excellent leadership and management skills, including culture change
- Strategic thinking skills
Please note your application will be scored and assessed against the above criteria. We are an equal opportunity employer which values diversity and inclusion. If you have a disability or neurodiversity, we would be happy to discuss reasonable adjustments to the job with you. Having won the Gold Award from MIND for workplace wellbeing in seven consecutive years, we also recognise the importance of a healthy work-life balance. We are an inclusive employer and believe that flexible working options are for everyone. We want to make sure our working arrangements don’t prevent anyone from joining us because of their personal circumstances. We also want to provide you with the best balance in your home and work life that we can. We are open to considering options including job sharing, part-time working, compressed hours working and different working locations, including hybrid working.
Why work for Historic England
We are committed to promoting equality of opportunity for everyone. Diversity helps us to perform better and attract more people to support our work. We welcome and encourage job applications from people of all backgrounds. We particularly encourage applications from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic candidates and candidates with disabilities as they are underrepresented within Historic England at this level. Historic England wants all of our candidates to shine in the recruitment process. Please tell us what we can do to make sure you can show us your very best self.
You can contact us by email at recruitmentTeam@Historicengland.org.uk if you have any recruitment queries. At Historic England we use a hiring system called Applied. Applied is a behavioural science-backed recruitment platform that reduces bias, improves quality of hire and increases diversity. You will answer a selection of questions that allow our hiring teams to test your skills and suitability for the role. At Historic England, we value the expertise and individuality each candidate brings and want to hear about this in your own words. If you require the use of AI tools or other resources to support your application, we ask that all information is factually accurate, original, and reflects your own experience. To best represent yourself, we encourage you to write in your own words and use AI-generated content only as inspiration—not as direct input.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Participation Director
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Join networks like the National Council for Voluntary Organisations (NCVO) or local charities to meet professionals in the sector. Attend events and workshops to build relationships and learn about potential openings at organisations like Radix Solutions.
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We think you need these skills to ace Participation Director
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion for the Cause:In the nonprofit sector, it's super important to demonstrate genuine passion for the mission of Radix Solutions. Use your cover letter to showcase any personal experiences or volunteer work that connects you to their social impact initiatives. This emotional connection can really help your application stand out.
Highlight Relevant Experience:When crafting your CV, be sure to include any relevant projects or roles that showcase your skills in social impact. Whether it's community organising, fundraising, or advocacy, highlight what you've done and the difference it's made. Don’t just list tasks; quantify your achievements and the outcomes of your efforts.
Tailor Your Documents to the Role:For a full-time role like Participation Director, ensure your CV and cover letter specifically address the responsibilities outlined in the job description. Use their language to describe your skills and experience, making it easy for the hiring team to see how you fit into their vision.
Emphasise Teamwork and Collaboration:Nonprofits thrive on teamwork, so make sure to emphasise your collaborative experiences. Whether you've worked in a team setting, partnered with community organisations, or facilitated group projects, highlight these experiences in your application. Show them you understand the importance of working alongside diverse individuals to achieve shared goals.
How to prepare for a job interview at Radix Solutions
✨Show Your Passion for Social Change
When we’re prepping for interviews in the nonprofit space, it's vital to demonstrate our genuine passion for social impact. Be ready to discuss not just your skills and experiences but also why you care about the mission of Radix Solutions. Sharing personal stories or insights can really make us stand out.
✨Highlight Project Experience
We should focus on specific projects we've worked on that align with the goals of social impact. Whether that’s a community initiative, volunteering, or a class project, having solid examples that showcase our role and the outcomes will resonate well with the interviewers.
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Let’s brush up on tools and methodologies commonly used in the nonprofit sector, like project management software or outcome measurement frameworks. Being able to speak fluently about these will show that we’re not just passionate but also knowledgeable and ready to hit the ground running.
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