Community Connector (Redeployment 24467) in Lowestoft

Suffolk County Council

Address: Butterflies Children's Centre, Castle Hill, Beccles, NR34 7BQ or Hawthorn Family Hubs, Hawthorn Drive, Ipswich, IP2 0QY - Community based

Salary: £40,777 per annum (pro rata for part time)

Hours: 2 x part time posts, flexible working options available

Contract: Permanent

This post is only open to current Suffolk County Council staff on redeployment only.

• Post 1 - 25.5 hours per week based at Butterflies Children's Centre, Castle Hill, Beccles, NR34 7BQ
• Post 2 - 18.5 hours per week based at Hawthorn Family Hubs, Hawthorn Drive, Ipswich, IP2 0QY

At Suffolk County Council, we believe every child and young person should have the opportunity to live their best life. Our Children and Young People's Services work alongside families, communities and partners to provide the right support at the right time, helping children and young people thrive. We are looking for passionate and motivated Community Connectors to join our Youth and Communities Service. This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in shaping how services work together across Suffolk, supporting our Families First ambitions and helping to create stronger, more connected communities.

Your role and responsibilities

As a Community Connector, you will help strengthen relationships between schools, health services, voluntary and community organisations, Family Hubs, the Integrated Front Door and Family Help teams. You will act as a key link across the system, helping partners work together more effectively to improve outcomes for children, young people and families. The role is focused on collaboration, community development and system improvement rather than holding a caseload. You'll use local insight, partnership working and innovation to help identify need, develop solutions and ensure families can access the right support as early as possible.

You will:

• build and strengthen multi-agency partnerships across education, health and community organisations.
• support clear and effective pathways between services, ensuring children and families receive coordinated support.
• use local data, intelligence and feedback to support service development and continuous improvement.
• support the delivery of Suffolk's Early Help Strategy and Families First programme.
• work closely with Family Hubs, schools and community organisations to identify strengths, needs and opportunities within local communities.
• facilitate partnership meetings, communities of practice and shared learning opportunities.

You will need

We're looking for someone who is passionate about improving outcomes for children, young people and families through effective partnership working.

You will have:

• a Level 5 qualification, or equivalent knowledge and experience in a relevant field.
• experience of working with children, young people and families, communities or partner agencies.
• strong relationship-building and networking skills.
• experience of bringing together a range of stakeholders to achieve positive outcomes.
• excellent communication and facilitation skills.
• the ability to analyse information, identify trends and help shape local solutions.
• a commitment to safeguarding, inclusion and delivering high-quality services.
• a full and current driving licence and have access to personal transport or meet the mobility requirements of the role through other reasonable and suitable means.

This role would suit candidates with backgrounds in community development, early help, education, youth work, family support, public health, partnership working or related fields. This aligns with the service's need for expertise in community development, partnership working, education and family support.

If you believe you can succeed in this role, even if you don't meet all requirements, please still apply. We would appreciate the opportunity to consider your application.

The team

Our Youth and Communities service brings together Suffolk County Council’s universal early help, youth and community-based provision and forms a core part of the Families First system. The service includes Family Hubs, Community Connectors, Young Persons Workers and other preventative and community-facing services. We work closely with the Integrated Front Door, Family Help, Safeguarding and wider partners so children, young people and families can access the right support early and within their communities. Partnership working is at the heart of our approach. You will work alongside colleagues across Children and Young People’s Services, Public Health, education, health, policing, and the voluntary and community sector to strengthen prevention, early intervention and joined-up working.

Empowering Everyone

We’re big believers in potential, possibility and the power of different ideas. We’re always searching for ways to encourage, respect and enable everyone to be the best they can be. We want to represent the diverse communities we serve. We welcome applications from all individuals, especially those from groups that are currently underrepresented in the organisation, as shown in our Workforce Equality Report.

For more information

Please contact Julia Haig for a casual conversation. You can reach them by calling 01473 260751 or emailing Julia.Haig@suffolk.gov.uk.

How to apply

1. Read the Job and Person Profile (JPP) (docx).
2. Click ‘Apply Now’ to start your online application.
3. Upload a supporting statement answering the following questions below (no more than 400 words per question). You should use the Supporting Statement template.

1. Give an example of how you identified a gap or need within a community and helped develop a solution to address it, including how you engaged local partners, residents or stakeholders with differing priorities to gain commitment and deliver a positive outcome.

2. Tell us about a multi-agency meeting, workshop or community forum that you facilitated. How did you ensure all voices were heard and what did the group achieve?

3. Describe a time when you used data, feedback or local intelligence to inform a decision, improve a service or identify an emerging need. What was the result?

4. Tell us about a situation where you identified a safeguarding concern or significant risk. What action did you take and how did you ensure the appropriate support was in place?

5. This role involves working independently across a wide range of partners, priorities and locations. Can you provide an example of how you managed competing demands whilst ensuring high-quality outcomes?

Please specify in your application the post you are applying for. Please note: Without a supporting statement, your interest will not be progressed. Any supporting documents must be in either PDF or MS Word format.

For guidance on completing your application, please see our How to Apply page. We value authentic applications that showcase your genuine skills and experiences, so we encourage you to present your own work and ideas throughout the process. You can also read our Using AI in Your Application and Interview guidance to understand acceptable and unacceptable use of AI. If AI is used inappropriately, your application may not be progressed.

Do you need any reasonable adjustments to help you to apply? If you are disabled and/or have additional support needs, you can request reasonable adjustments. You can do this by contacting our Recruitment Team at recruitment@suffolk.gov.uk or 03456 014412. You can find examples of possible adjustments on our Reasonable Adjustment pages. If you're invited to the next stage, you’ll have another chance to request adjustments.

Closing date: 11.30pm, 1 September 2026

This authority is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. A DBS check will be undertaken for the successful candidate.