Community Connector - Funding & Governance

Inspire South Tyneside; South Shields; On-site; GBP 25,000 - 35,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading community organization in South Tyneside is seeking a Community Connector to engage and support local organisations. This role focuses on building relationships and enhancing community participation through governance advice and capacity building initiatives. Ideal candidates will possess strong interpersonal skills and a commitment to community values.

Qualifications

• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to form relationships with community members.
• Understanding of the VCSE sector and commitment to equalities.
• Knowledge of charity regulations and policies.

Responsibilities

• Engage and mobilise skills of community organisations.
• Support local organisations with governance and funding.
• Build relationships to enhance community participation.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Community engagement

Networking

Solution-based approach

IT literacy

Job description

Job Purpose

Inspire has a team of Community Connectors who work collaboratively with some shared areas of responsibility and a thematic ‘specialities’.

The Community Connectors core purposes are on engaging, mobilising and connecting the skills, knowledge and talents of every community based organisations into the wider South Tyneside system. They focus on what is ‘strong’ not what is ‘wrong’. They are very comfortable encouraging community leaders and professionals to keep reaching out to bring in the assets and energies of people and resources who are often left out. They are community weavers, intent on bringing the community together relationship by relationship, strength by strength.

The thematic speciality of this role in particular is to support and develop organisations in South Tyneside though governance and organisational structure advice, funding support and information and capacity building.

Responsibilities

1. Take an asset based community development approach to working alongside communities to make connections, build conversations and increase opportunities for interaction, participation and social action.

2. Use, promote and support the development and impact of Plinth, our community engagement platform

3. Recognise, value and amplify the lived experience of our communities and consider how this could be embedded in our system.

4. Work in a locality to ensure visibility and connectivity across South Tyneside

5. Build strong relationships across community organisations – be the first port of call

6. Identify and support local organisations and individuals who wish to work to strengthen community assets

7. Develop and lead on thematic or place based networks and projects

8. Facilitate access to advice, training, support to maximise capacity, resources and social action

9. Alongside colleagues in the Community Connector team support and promote volunteering in the Borough including recruitment of volunteers

10. Assist in the development of new organisations providing advice and guidance in developing governance processes and policy development

11. Support organisational start ups through advice on structural choices

12. Provide timely and useful funding advice and support to South Tyneside organisations and support organisations in accessing funding opportunities

13. Develop and maintain positive relationships with funders and ensure strategic insight is shared effectively.

14. Host an annual funders fair in South Tyneside

15. Lead on internal governance for Inspire South Tyneside

16. Establish and maintain positive relationships with statutory partners, local businesses and others as appropriate to build effective partnerships

Qualifications, Experience and Skills

Essential

1. Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to form and maintain appropriate relationships with community members, colleagues, public sector employees and appropriate agencies across a geographical area

2. A people person who is happy to chat to anyone at any time about any subject. Must be able to engage and work effectively with people from different backgrounds in ways that appreciates their assets and is sensitive to their needs. Able to keep confidences. Able to identify and support community based strengths and assets

3. Understanding of and commitment to the VCSE sector

4. Able to demonstrate knowledge of equalities and diversity issues, including understanding of barriers to participation and inclusion and evidence of addressing this in practice.

5. Strong relationship builder with excellent partnership working and networking skills.

6. Able to demonstrate a solution based approach to resolving project issues and delays and a common sense approach to getting things done.

7. Knowledge of charity regulations, legal structures and appropriate policies and procedures

8. Ability to understand and read annual accounts, spotting anomalies or areas of concern

9. Experience of monitoring and evaluating work and producing written reports and funding applications

10. IT literacy

11. Commitment to co-production