Community Development Manager

RSPB; Belfast City District; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Pension Scheme

Life Assurance Scheme

26 days Annual Leave (Pro-Rata)

Job summary

RSPB NI is seeking a passionate Community Development Manager to lead engagement activities for the PeacePlus Nature project in Northern Ireland, co-designing programmes and building strong partnerships. You will oversee a small team and travel to rural areas to engage communities and youth effectively.

The role focuses on empowering local people, delivering education sessions, and driving community-led conservation actions across diverse groups, with hold of a full driving licence and access to

Qualifications

• Able to design, coordinate and deliver community engagement programmes that involve young people and achieve agreed participation outcomes.
• Able to lead and supervise a team to deliver programme activities, manage workloads and deadlines.
• Able to build effective relationships with diverse stakeholders to support project delivery.
• Able to communicate complex information clearly through presentations, meetings, and reports.

Responsibilities

• Lead the co-design and delivery of the RSPB’s PeacePlus Nature engagement programme.
• Line manage 3 Community Engagement Officers to implement programme activities.
• Build partnerships within the project and with schools, youth organisations, community organisations, landowners and local authorities.
• Ensure cross-community and cross-border cooperation in training/upskilling activities.
• Develop and oversee the rollout of the Environment Leaders Programme in the project areas.
• Drive the creation of educational and engagement resources.
• Plan and coordinate education sessions, site visits, and volunteer opportunities.
• Monitor and evaluate programme success and report on KPIs and community impact.
• Provide support to the project team to support the wider aims of the PeacePlus Nature project.

Skills

Community engagement

Team leadership

Stakeholder management

Communication

People management

Conservation knowledge

Rural engagement

Job description

Location: RSPB Northern Ireland – This role includes travel

Contract: Fixed Term, ending July 2029

Hours: Full-time, 37.5 hours per week

Benefits: Pension Scheme, Life Assurance Scheme, 26 days' Annual Leave (Pro-Rata)

PeacePlus Nature is an ambitious €20.8 million programme that brings together nine partners to tackle the decline in priority species and habitats in Northern Ireland, and the border counties of Ireland.

The project, supported by PEACEPLUS, a programme managed by the Special EU Programmes Body (SEUPB), will work to restore blanket bog, lowland wet grassland and limestone grassland and priority species from breeding waders to Marsh Fritillary Butterfly.

RSPB NI in partnership with BirdWatch Ireland, Butterfly Conservation, Monaghan County Council, River Blackwater Catchment Trust, Truagh Spirit, Lough Neagh Partnership, NI Water and An Taisce - The National Trust for Ireland, will work to deliver this.

About the Role

We’re looking for a passionate and experienced Community Development Manager to lead RSPB NI’s engagement activity as part of this project; co-creating inspiring conservation experiences, building strong partnerships, and nurturing and upskilling the next generation of environmental leaders. This role is about more than just project delivery.

You will manage and lead a small team, and together you will build connections across diverse community groups and help people take action for the natural world. If you believe in the power of people to protect wildlife, are driven to inspire meaningful change and empower young people and communities to become champions for nature, this could be the role for you.

From fostering youth leadership to creating meaningful community experiences, you’ll play a key role in shaping a more nature-positive future. If you believe in the power of people to make a difference, we’d love to hear from you.

PEACEPLUS is a cross-border funding Programme supported by the European Union, the Government of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, the Government of Ireland, and the Northern Ireland administration

This post will:

• Lead the co-design and delivery of the RSPB’s PeacePlus Nature engagement programme.
• Line manage 3 Community Engagement Officers to implement programme activities.
• Build partnerships within the project and externally with schools, youth organisations, community organisations, landowners and local authorities.
• Ensure cross-community and cross-border cooperation in training/upskilling activities.
• Develop and oversee the rollout of the RSPB’s Environment Leaders Programme in the project areas.
• Drive the creation of educational and engagement resources.
• Plan and coordinate a series of education sessions, site visits, and volunteer opportunities.
• Monitor and evaluate programme success and report on KPIs and community impact.
• Provide support to the project team to support the wider aims of the PeacePlus Nature project.

Essential skills, knowledge, & experience:

• Able to design, coordinate and deliver community engagement programmes that involve young people and achieve agreed participation or engagement outcomes.
• Able to lead and supervise a team to deliver programme activities, manage workloads and achieve agreed project milestones and deadlines.
• Able to build effective relationships with a wide range of stakeholders, including community groups, schools, youth organisations and partner organisations, to support project delivery.
• Able to communicate complex information clearly through presentations, meetings, reports and engagement activities with a range of audiences.
• Able to manage staff performance and maintain productive relationships with stakeholders to support successful delivery of community engagement activities.
• Knowledge of practical conservation techniques and habitat or species management, gained through work, volunteering, study or training.
• Able to engage effectively with people living or working in rural communities.

Additional Information:

• This is a fixed-term role until July 2029, full-time for 37.5 hours per week.
• This role will require travel in rural areas where public transport is not available. We envisage that the successful candidate will hold a full driving licence that is valid in the UK and access to a suitably insured vehicle.
• The RSPB reserves the right to extend or make this role permanent without further advertising dependent on business needs at the end of the contract term.

We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from 6th October.

We are committed to developing an inclusive and diverse RSPB, in which everyone feels supported, valued, and able to be their full selves. To achieve our vision of creating a world richer in nature, we need more people, and more diverse people, on nature’s side. People of colour and disabled people are currently underrepresented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we are particularly interested in receiving your application.

The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.

The RSPB is a licenced sponsor. this role is not eligible for UK Visa Sponsorship - the successful applicant will need to have a pre-existing Right to Work in the UK in order to be offered an employment contract.

As part of this application process you will be asked to complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above.

Contact us to discuss any additional support you may need to complete your application.