Social Justice Officer in Rotherham

To promote, encourage and support social justice and climate justice action across the Diocese of Sheffield. The Social Justice Officer will be a senior practitioner who will play a key role in encouraging and equipping people to step out in faith beyond our church walls, responding to issues of poverty and injustice and working with others to transform the communities around us, be that local, city-wide, our nation and to the wider world.

The work of the Social Justice Officer will be shaped by the Church of England’s Five Marks of Mission — proclaiming the good news of the Kingdom through presence and relationship; responding to human need by loving service; seeking to transform unjust structures of society, to challenge violence of every kind and to pursue peace and reconciliation; nurturing new believers; and safeguarding the integrity of creation — understood not as abstract principles, but as lived, local commitments.

The postholder will help nurture social justice action by listening carefully to local, regional, national and international needs, building partnerships with relevant local and national organisations, and enabling creative, responsive initiatives that meet gaps in social justice provision. The postholder will represent the Diocese at the local and regional level as needed.

The role will cover three key aspects: Data Collection, Networking & Connecting, Engaging & Reporting, to be a leading voice for social justice and action in the diocese:

• Promoting the case for why Christians should be involved in this sort of action
• Highlighting good practice
• Feeding into borough and regional networks, the social justice challenges our parishes are encountering in communities

You will work as part of the Diocese of Sheffield central support team. This means that you will have access to the support of colleagues in communications, discipleship development, growing leaders, mission area support, data analysis and project management, and colleagues working in the Racial Justice Programme, the Environment Team and in Parish Nursing services. You will be expected to collaborate with these colleagues, strategically and practically, to support the delivery of the social justice work.

The post holder will have the opportunity to collaboratively shape the priorities and workplace for the role. However, we anticipate that the following few years could look as follows:

• Year 1 – listening, parish audits, mapping of social justice activity, assessing local priority issues/areas of interest. Identify a maximum of 3 areas to focus on as a diocese and recommend these to the Bishop’s Council after review by any suitable sub-groups, e.g., the Board of Faith and Justice or equivalent.
• Year 2 – develop connections into local and regional networks where priority issues/areas of interest align with what you’ve found in year 1. Resources and comms to encourage, inspire and support social justice in our parishes.
• Year 3 – continue to focus on the 3 priority areas and review change and learning since the start of the work.

We recognise that social justice is a huge topic area and will welcome the post holder working collaboratively to identify some areas of focus for the next few years of the strategy, to the end of 2031. This is a post which is funded by a grant from the National Church, currently up to the end of 2028. There will be further opportunity for us to review and extend the role if further funding is available, with the current expectation that this could be until 2031. Regular reviews on this will take place. We have a strong record for applications and grants, but we are not in a position to give guarantees.

Main duties and responsibilities:

• Data collection: Creating and documenting an understanding of the term Social Justice and what it means in this context / for this season for The Sheffield Diocesan Board of Finance as a Christian organisation. Compile a mapping audit - using information already collected (e.g. Stats for Mission) and some gathering of relevant info - to develop a current picture of social justice good practice happening across the diocese and understand local needs. Use the data audit and other relevant data to report on work that contributes to all five Marks of Mission, especially marks 3 to 5. Use data to help support decision-making and for sway to MPs, public sector organisations, etc., and to speak into civic spaces along with other voluntary, community, and faith organisations.
• Networking & Connecting: Being the go-to person in the Diocese to contact about different social justice issues to make sure that action happens. Supporting Bishop’s Advisors and other volunteers on matters of social justice. Connecting with key organisations, e.g., local voluntary community groups, faith groups, public sector groups, and other partners/networks, to help connect people working to address similar local needs, as well as finding common connections regarding concerns for global issues. Connecting the dots to link different groups with similar needs, including other denominations/faiths, and resource-sharing. Advocacy and shared campaigns with partners – political, civic, charity, faith, and national church. Connect with other Diocesan initiatives, e.g. Lights for Christ and growing lay leaders. Ensuring social justice and action are linked to discipleship and leader development. Liaise and work closely with relevant Diocesan project leads, including the Net Zero Programme Manager and the Racial Justice Officer.
• Engaging & Reporting: Create a bank of resources which are instinctive and easy to access (developing content to be passed to the Communications Team to be curated). Such as how to make a start with community engagement and community audits. Working with other colleagues to develop comms on the gospel imperative and how Marks of Mission interlink. Identify a maximum of 3 key areas (1 to be a global / world issue) for a diocesan-wide focus and to promote through teamwork and partnership networks - understanding of challenges/barriers to engagement by theme, (e.g. in line with other civic and community current priorities, such as tackling loneliness or food poverty). Help parishes engage with food banks, homelessness, and refugees. Establish an effective and efficient structure of reporting to ensure boards/ governance bodies within the Diocesan structure are appropriately engaged and informed, e.g., the Board of Faith and Justice and Bishop’s Council.

The post holder is required to:

• Support the ethos, aims and objectives of the Sheffield Diocesan Board of Finance
• Keep up to date with developments in their area of work.
• Collaborate with the Net Zero Project Manager and Environment team as appropriate, where there is overlap with social justice issues and in line with identified priorities.
• Support communication and publicity, via the Communications Team, for social justice initiatives, including social media, local newsletters, and noticeboards.
• Participate in performance management and appraisal/personal development reviews.
• Engage in training and continuous professional development activities.
• The post holder may be required to work outside normal office hours, including occasional weekend working, subject to time off in lieu.
• The post holder will comply with all standards, policies and procedures set by the diocese, including, but not limited to, those governing safeguarding, health and safety, GDPR, confidentiality and equal opportunities.
• To attend team meetings and regular one-to-one meetings with your line manager.
• To work as an autonomous and lone practitioner, ensuring adherence to the Diocese of Sheffield’s systems for lone workers.
• To participate in annual development review with direct line manager.
• To ensure confidentiality and data protection processes are in place, and policies are adhered to at all times.

This role description provides a guide to the duties and responsibilities of the post and is not an exhaustive list. The post holder may be asked to undertake any other relevant duties appropriate to the post. The role description will be amended over time, in full consultation with the post holder, to meet the needs of the Diocese.