External Affairs Officer

Ellwood Atfield; Greater London; On-site; GBP 52,000 - 78,000; Full time

Job summary

Ellwood Atfield is supporting a leading London housing association through a transformation of its corporate affairs function. The role sits at the heart of a busy press office and public affairs operation, building trusted relationships with reporters, MPs and councillors to articulate ambitious housing plans.

You will help protect reputation, deliver proactive communications, and develop incident handling plans that support crisis situations as they arise, contributing to how the organisation

Qualifications

• Experience in media relations, corporate affairs or public affairs, in‑house, agency, civil service or parliament.
• Able to deliver campaigns proactively and meet deadlines.
• Able to draft handling plans, press statements with minimal oversight.
• Understanding of UK political landscape and reporters, MPs, councillors.
• Strong written, verbal and visual communication skills.

Responsibilities

• Deliver key aspects of an integrated external communications programme engaging the media, MPs, councillors and other key stakeholders.
• Maintain and protect the organisation’s reputation and external profile by responding to press enquiries in a timely manner.
• Co-ordinate and manage the out-of-hours press office rota and monitor the media inbox.
• Monitor and respond to social media commentary, flagging anything that could pose a reputational risk or attract media attention.
• Produce the daily ‘in the news’ briefing and manage the media monitoring service, providing analysis of coverage volume and sentiment.
• Contribute to regular proactive briefings to MPs, councillors and other elected representatives.
• Develop and implement handling plans on key incidents, including crisis situations, as needed

Skills

Media relations

Public affairs

Crisis communications

Stakeholder engagement

Press briefing/writing

Job description

Ellwood Atfield is thrilled to be supporting a leading London housing association, providing social and affordable homes to more than 100,000 people. The organisation is partway through a significant transformation, with a renewed corporate affairs function tasked with building reputation, supporting change, and navigating incidents and crisis as it tells the story of a purpose-driven organisation addressing the UK's housing crisis.

The opportunity

This is a chance to sit at the heart of a busy press office and public affairs operation, building trusted relationships with reporters, MPs, councillors and other stakeholders at a genuinely pivotal moment for the organisation. You will help articulate ambitious plans for new and existing homes, and make a tangible contribution to how the organisation is seen by the people and communities it serves.

Main responsibilities

• Deliver key aspects of an integrated external communications programme engaging the media, MPs, councillors and other key stakeholders.
• Maintain and protect the organisation’s reputation and external profile by responding to press enquiries in a timely manner.
• Co-ordinate and manage the out-of-hours press office rota and monitor the media inbox.
• Monitor and respond to social media commentary, flagging anything that could pose a reputational risk or attract media attention.
• Produce the daily ‘in the news’ briefing and manage the media monitoring service, providing analysis of coverage volume and sentiment.
• Contribute to regular proactive briefings to MPs, councillors and other elected representatives.
• Develop and implement handling plans on key incidents, including crisis situations, as needed

Key skills and experience required

• Experience in media relations, corporate affairs, public affairs, government relations or political engagement, gained in‑house, in an agency, the civil service or parliament.
• A track record of working under your own initiative to deliver business‑critical communications campaigns proactively, accurately and to deadline.
• Able to draft handling plans, press statements, correspondence and briefing notes accurately and with minimal oversight.
• A good understanding of the expectations of reporters, MPs, councillors and other key stakeholders, with an active interest in the UK political landscape.
• Excellent written, verbal and visual communication skills, able to translate complex issues into clear, compelling messaging for varied audiences.
• A critical thinker with an eye for detail, able to scan the horizon and anticipate reputational risk before it emerges.

Equality statement

We are an equal opportunities employer and promote diversity across our profession to ensure every individual has the opportunity to perform at their best. If you have not done so already, please let us know if you require any support so we can make the right adjustments and considerations should they be required.