University Access Officer (Maternity Cover)

This Fixed Term Contract vacancy is for a University Access Officer (maternity cover) to work in London, working in up to four schools between Monday and Thursday, and working from home on Fridays. Our schools are shown on the map of The Access Project schools on our website.

The University Access Officer works with school staff at all levels, volunteer tutors and coaches, and with the rest of The Access Project’s team to ensure that the delivery of our programmes is optimised.

• Work directly with students, mentoring in a meaningful, professional and safe manner.
• Engage with school staff, your Programme Manager and students to ensure that you have fully enrolled cohorts across all programmes.
• Coordinate the delivery of the programmes across allocated schools, acting as the sole on‑site representative of The Access Project.
• Assess student progress towards being able to make successful university applications.
• Upload information onto the Salesforce database in a timely manner (training is provided).
• Work proactively with school staff to ensure their cooperation and timely completion of activities, enabling effective communication to contribute to the smooth running of the programmes.
• Present at termly school meetings with Senior Management to report on our programme’s progress.
• Support the wider team by attending university site visits which take place on occasional Saturdays and weekday evenings (paid time off is provided).
• Any other responsibilities reasonably deemed necessary by The Access Project’s Programme Managers or Director.

• All the above responsibilities, with the addition of:
• Match students for 1:1 tuition with volunteer tutors.
• Monitor student attendance to 1:1 tutorials and/or coaching sessions and devise innovative solutions to encourage attendance.
• Manage volunteer tutor attendance to tutorials through weekly monitoring systems.
• Monitor the impact of tutorials and intervene as appropriate.
• Build and manage relationships with volunteer tutors to ensure they have a positive experience of the programme.
• Manage students’ relationships with volunteer tutors through monitoring of systems, emailing and making phone calls.
• Work collaboratively with the Tuition & Coaching team to escalate attendance issues with students and schools and coordinate the effective delivery of coaching and group tuition offers.

• Demonstrable skills in mentoring groups of students and in 1:1 settings.
• Excellent organisational and time‑management skills, with the ability to deliver multiple programmes and projects.
• Ability to communicate and influence impact fully at all levels.
• Resilient and adaptable.
• Ability to work towards and meet deadlines with a problem‑solving mindset.
• Ability to effectively time‑manage and actively prioritise.
• Ability to work independently, in busy school environments, with an ownership mindset.
• Skilled in building and maintaining excellent relationships with young people and school staff/leaders.
• Good sense of attention to detail.
• Ability to take action to keep young people safe and raise concerns.

• Experience of working in a multi‑site environment.

You will be provided with regular training so that you can develop your skills and succeed in the role. There is support from your line manager (Programme Manager), as well as guidance from more senior University Access Officers and the wider University Access Officer team across The Access Project. There are opportunities for progression, including several additional responsibility roles which are available for University Access Officers to apply for once they have completed their probationary period successfully.

• 25 days annual leave per annum (pro rata) plus Bank Holidays and 5 Winter closure days.
• PerkBox – offering shopping discounts, gym memberships, holidays, learning and much more.
• Employee Assistance Programme, a 24‑hour helpline for staff.
• Online Medical assistance – access 24/7 to a qualified GP within minutes, with referrals and prescriptions available same‑day.
• Interest‑free travelcard loans.
• Travel‑allowance for expenses over £10 per day, where applicable.
• Cyclescheme loans.
• 2 paid Volunteering Days.
• 1 paid Wellbeing Day.
• Employer’s pension contributions (3 %).
• Learning and Development opportunities.

The Access Project welcomes requests for flexible working arrangements.

The Access Project aspires to represent the diversity of communities across the UK at all levels of the organisation and proactively takes steps to support this. We are committed to creating a culture where the experiences and voices of people from marginalised backgrounds are listened to and valued; where their skills are appreciated and their talents nurtured. The Access Project is an equal opportunities employer and we welcome applications from people from all backgrounds, including those who are Black, Asian or other ethnic minorities, disabled, care‑experienced, from low socio‑economic backgrounds, and who are LGBTQIA + . We particularly welcome applications from people with lived experience in reference to our mission. We are proud to be a Level 1 Disability Confident employer; if you require any reasonable adjustments, please contact us.

The Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) (Amendment) Order 1986 applies to posts where there is access to children. This means that applicants for employment that involves working with children and young people must disclose anything listed in their criminal record, with the exception of protected cautions and convictions. All disclosures are carried out in the strictest confidence and are made only in connection with your application for employment and for no other purpose. The application for a DBS check at a level appropriate to the job role will be activated before your first day of work. Members of staff who are not eligible for a standard or enhanced DBS check are required to undertake a basic DBS check only in line with legal requirements. If you are selected for appointment to the role, you will be subject to this procedure.