External Affairs Consultant

NATIONAL TRUST; Newry, Saintfield; Hybrid; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A prominent conservation charity is seeking an External Affairs Consultant in Northern Ireland. The role involves engaging with stakeholders to promote the Trust's mission concerning nature and heritage. Ideal candidates should possess extensive external affairs experience, strong communication skills, and a solid understanding of environmental and cultural policies. The position supports creative collaboration, requiring flexibility and problem-solving abilities. Benefits include a substantial pension scheme, holiday allowance, and hybrid working options.

Benefits

Substantial pension scheme of up to 10%

Free entry to National Trust places

Rental deposit loan scheme

Season ticket loan

EV car lease scheme

Discounts for gym memberships

Up to 32 days holiday allowance

Qualifications

• Highly experienced in external affairs and understanding NI’s political landscape.
• Experienced in delivering through partnerships with senior leadership teams.
• Knowledgeable in environment and cultural/heritage policy issues.
• A skilled communicator building strong relationships at all levels.
• Flexible thinker and problem-solver skilled at negotiating.

Responsibilities

• Play a key role in long-term horizon scanning across the policy environment.
• Support stakeholder engagement with local and national audiences.
• Champion the Trust's cause while ensuring local relevance.

Skills

External affairs experience

Understanding of NI’s political landscape

Communication skills

Negotiation skills

Project management

Job description

Important notice

In line with our redeployment policy, we’ll prioritise applications from employees who are under formal notice of redundancy.

Are you a policy professional, a strategic problem-solver, a collaborator and an influencer, with experience gained in complex organisations? Would you love the chance to make a real difference for nature, heritage and local people with National Trust’s Northern Ireland team? We’re looking for an External Affairs Consultant to join a dynamic and energetic team, engaging people in our cause.

What it's like to work here

You’ll be part of the Trust’s Northern Ireland country communications team: a flexible team who collaborate to ensure our charity’s strategy engages priority audiences locally and nationally. You’ll share practice and expertise with other external affairs consultants in the organisation, and our national policy and advocacy team. You’ll thrive on the challenge of managing competing demands.

Your contractual place of work will be the National Trust office in Belfast, with hybrid working. We’ll talk about this in more detail at interview, but you should expect to be at a National Trust site for 40–60% of your working week.

What you'll be doing

With an eye on delivery of our strategic goals, you’ll play a key role in long term horizon scanning across the policy and advocacy environment. Working with the Country Director and leadership team you’ll support stakeholder engagement, collaborating internally and externally to increase understanding of the Trust's core purpose and enhance our reputation and influence with key stakeholders, politicians, civic society leaders, business leaders and opinion formers.

An excellent communicator, you’ll champion our cause whilst ensuring relevance in our local cultural, political and policy context. You’ll also be supporting local teams to navigate their local stakeholder environment, sharing your professional knowledge and guidance. There will be many opportunities for you to be creative and innovative, as we have big ambitions to increase our advocacy impact for nature, heritage, climate change and coast. Much of what we do is through collaboration, so forming positive relationships with other organisations is an essential part of delivery in this role.

Who we're looking for

Applications from redeployees are assessed against the minimum criteria for the role. In your application, please provide details of how you meet the minimum criteria below:

• highly experienced in external affairs, and in understanding NI’s political and policy landscape
• experienced in working and delivering through partnerships and with senior leadership teams, making a proactive contribution to their success, whether that’s in public, private or third sector.
• knowledgeable and experienced in working on environment and cultural/heritage policy issues
• a skilled communicator, who can build strong relationships within diverse teams and with individuals at all levels both internally and externally.
• a flexible thinker and problem-solver, skilled at negotiating and building productive networks, and confident in using your expertise to influence decisions

Additional criteria for all other applicants:

• a critical thinker, adept at thinking long term
• proactive and organised, with experience of managing projects and a talent for multi-tasking and getting things done, strongly focused on detail, quality, cost and time.

The package

The National Trust has the motto ‘For everyone, for ever’ at its heart. We’re working hard to create an inclusive culture, where everyone feels they belong. It’s important that our people reflect and represent the diversity of the communities and audiences we serve. We welcome and value difference, so when we say we’re for everyone, we want everyone to be welcome in our teams too.

• Substantial pension scheme of up to 10% basic salary
• Free entry to National Trust places for you, a guest and your children (under 18)
• Rental deposit loan scheme
• Season ticket loan
• EV car lease scheme (for roles that meet the salary criteria)
• Perks at work discounts such as gym memberships, shopping discount codes, cinema discounts
• Holiday allowance up to 32 days relating to length of service, plus holiday purchase scheme, subject to meeting minimum criteria.
• Flexible working whenever possible
• Employee assistance programme
• Free parking at most Trust places