Project Worker 2

Barnardos; Manchester; On-site; GBP 60,000 - 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading youth support charity in Manchester is seeking an Employability Coach to support vulnerable young people not in education or work. You will lead an 8-10 week motivational programme focused on enhancing employability skills and confidence. Key responsibilities include conducting mentoring sessions, developing training resources, and collaborating with local agencies. This 12-month funded position offers a supportive environment, with flexible working arrangements and additional benefits including generous leave and a pension scheme.

Benefits

Flexible working arrangements

26 days annual leave, increasing with service

Group Personal Pension with matched contributions

Interest-free season ticket loans

20% discount at Barnardo's stores

Qualifications

• Experience in engaging with young people who are not in education, employment or training.
• Proven ability to deliver employability and personal development training.
• Strong communication skills and ability to work creatively with vulnerable groups.

Responsibilities

• Support young people through an 8-10 week motivational programme.
• Conduct 1:1 mentoring sessions and measure outcomes.
• Develop schemes of work to equip young people with employability skills.

Skills

Working with young people aged 18-29

1:1 mentoring experience

Group session delivery

Local knowledge of Manchester

Addressing employment barriers

Education

Level 3 / 4 PTTLS / DTTLS

Job description

The Employability Coach role will provide a pivotal role to the development of the Barnardo's programme in Manchester and surrounding areas. Working with vulnerable young people who are not in education, employment or training, this role focuses on supporting young people through an 8–10 week motivational programme and includes improving employability skills, confidence, and self‑esteem work.

You will work assertively and creatively to engage with hard‑to‑reach young people. The Employability Coach will lead and develop the work in this area and will be responsible for providing quality Information, Advice and Guidance.

You will be responsible for contributing to, devising and developing schemes of work, session plans and resources to meet curriculum requirements and equip young people with the personal social and development skills, motivation, confidence and employability skills to progress into and sustain employment and or further education/training. You will conduct 1:1 mentoring sessions and use outcome measurement tools to track changes.

You will be responsible for supporting young people to attend work placement/trials and ultimately employment opportunities and supporting service users to apply, prepare for and sustain this employment.

The post holder will be responsible for liaising with other Barnardo's services and agencies to access additional supportive services for service users where required, and to promote the project, generate referrals and recruit 10 young people onto each cohort.

This post will involve some travel around the Manchester area. The post is a 12‑month funded role with a review for potential continuation funding.

Key Experience / Qualifications Required

• Experience of working with young people aged 18‑29 who are not in education, employment or training.
• Experience or 1:1 work with young people.
• Delivery of employability and personal and social development in group sessions.
• Excellent local knowledge of the Manchester area and organisations within it.
• Experience working with young people facing barriers to employment.
• Level 3 / 4 PTTLS / DTTLS (desirable).
• Links with employers (desirable).

Although this contract has a permanent status, please be aware that this post is subject to funding currently to 31st March 2027 and therefore, should this funding not be extended further, you may be subject to a redundancy consultation or a TUPE arrangement. This contract is due to expire on 31st March 2027.

Please note, due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.

Pay & Reward Framework

Our pay and reward approach is fair, attractive and progressive. The starting salaries are appointed between the minimum to mid‑point of the pay band, and pay steps are available to reward colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours. More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application.

Benefits

Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment, with options to work at various locations or remotely. We offer flexible working arrangements to support work‑life balance. Annual leave entitlement for full‑time colleagues is 26 days per annum, increasing to 27 days after 3 years, 29 days after 5 years, and 30 days after 7 years, with pro‑rata leave for part‑time staff. Additional benefits include service‑related sick pay from day 1, a Group Personal Pension with matched contributions, death‑in‑service cover, the Cycle2work scheme, interest‑free season ticket loans, discounts at high‑street shops, and a 20% discount at Barnardo's stores.

About Barnardo's

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and cultivating a culture where everyone can belong and thrive through inclusion and connectivity. We want our workforce to be reflective of the communities we work with and embed equality, diversity and inclusion in everything we do. We are a Disability Confident Leader and aim to be an anti‑racist organisation with anti‑racism commitments and actions. We particularly encourage applications from Black and Minoritised Ethnic and/or disabled candidates who are currently under‑represented in our workforce. For disabled applicants, we offer reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.