Senior Press Officer

THE ROYAL COLLEGE OF SURGEONS OF ENGLAND; London; Hybrid; GBP 36,000 - 42,000; Full time

Job summary

The Royal College of Surgeons of England is seeking a Senior Press Officer to enhance communication with the national press. The role includes managing press inquiries, creating media content, and developing relationships with journalists. Ideal candidates will have proven experience in media and excellent communication skills, working in a flexible environment that promotes teamwork and creativity.

Benefits

27 days paid holiday + bank holidays

Flexible working options

Enhanced contributory pension scheme

Variety of learning opportunities

Wellbeing programme

Qualifications

• At least two years' experience in a press office.
• Experience in placing stories in the media.
• Experience in writing and editing various media.

Responsibilities

• Handle incoming enquiries and brief journalists according to key messages.
• Research and write press releases and other editorial material.
• Prepare RCS England spokespeople for media interviews.

Skills

Fluent writing style

Diplomatic and persuasive verbal communication

Excellent interpersonal skills

Strong prioritisation skills

Creativity in finding stories

Education

Degree educated or equivalent experience

Tools

Microsoft Word

Microsoft Excel

Microsoft PowerPoint

Job description

Salary: £36,000
Contract Type: Permanent, full-time (35 hours).
Location: We fully support flexible working, from our superb offices in Holborn and from home. We do require staff to spend 20% of their time in the office. This is subject to role requirements.

About us

The Royal College of Surgeons of England is one of the best known professional membership organisations in the world, with a name and reputation that speak for excellence in the UK and across the globe. We provide education, assessment and development to nearly 30,000 surgeons, dental surgeons and members of the wider surgical and dental teams at all stages of their career; we set professional standards, facilitate research and champion world-class surgical outcomes for patients.

About the role

We are looking for an outstanding Senior Press Officer to work in our fast-paced press office, helping run it to the highest standard. RCS England is one of the most high-profile health commentators in the UK. You will regularly see us advocating for patients and the surgical workforce in the national press. Candidates should have experience of successfully pitching stories to national media and know what makes a good health story. You will have a fluent writing style and be confident working with senior stakeholders to brief them before interviews.

Responsibilities

• Handle incoming enquiries and provide accurate, timely and appropriate responses, briefing journalists in line with RCS England key messages and priorities.
• Participate in an out-of-hours rota for media enquiries. Time off in lieu is offered for significant out-of-office hours worked.
• Research, write and distribute press releases, features, letters and other editorial material.
• Draft articles, quotes and opinion pieces on behalf of RCS England spokespeople.
• Provide press office support to the Faculty of Dental Surgery and its Dean, as required.
• Brief the President, Council Members and senior managers on issues arising in the media.
• Act as the press lead for key projects such as RCS England guidance or campaigns. Devising and implementing communications plans, sharing project updates with the wider communications team, and maintaining a good understanding of surgical and wider health issues.
• Horizon scan for media opportunities and develop your own ideas for health coverage based on data, insights or RCS England priorities.
• Brief, support and prepare RCS England spokespeople for media interviews.
• Establish and maintain professional and trusted relationships with national and trade journalists.
• Represent the RCS England at internal and external meetings, and maintain professional relationships with press and communications leads at stakeholder organisations.
• Monitor daily media coverage relevant to surgery and the RCS England. This includes pulling together the team’s daily press cuts to be shared with Council members, Trustees, and key RCS England staff by 10am (subject to urgent media enquiries).
• Maintain and update the media sections of the RCS England website, working with the web team to develop rich digital content. Actively participate in developing our social media profile using Twitter, Facebook, and commissioning and editing relevant blogs.
• Produce evaluation reports of media coverage and communications activity.
• Undertake such duties appropriate to the grade, as required by your line manager.

About you

• Degree educated or proven extensive experience that can demonstrate the essential criteria below.
• At least two years’ experience of working in a press office.
• Experience of writing and editing for a variety of media including print and the internet.
• Good working knowledge of Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint packages.
• Demonstrable experience of placing stories in the media.
• Rigour in researching and reviewing content: able to identify key points, summarise findings and report data
• and conclusions accurately.
• Excellent writing skills: able to write fluent, compelling copy free from grammatical or other errors.
• Excellent telephone manner: diplomatic and persuasive verbal communication skills.
• Able to prioritise effectively and deliver work to deadlines.
• Demonstrable understanding of journalists’ needs and priorities.
• Ability to understand policy documents and formulate a media response.
• Collaborative and inclusive approach to build relationships with colleagues across the organisation, to
• encourage timely information sharing with the press office.
• Diplomacy and persuasiveness, to foster the trust of senior spokespeople you are briefing and advising.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and integrity, to protect the College’s reputation for providing accurate and
• reliable information to the media.
• Strong prioritisation skills and a flexible approach to respond to changing priorities and needs and manage
• reactive queries.
• Enthusiasm and creativity to seek out interesting stories and pitch them.

What we can offer you

• 27 days paid holiday + bank holidays and up to 4 college closure days
• Flexible working
• Enhanced contributory pension scheme & other leave entitlements
• Variety of learning and development opportunities
• Wellbeing programme & Employee Assistance Scheme

Interested Candidates:
If you wish to apply or if you have any questions about this position please email your CV together with a cover letter.

Any personal data collected from you, or that you provide to us, will be processed by us in accordance with our recruitment processes. If unsuccessful in your application, your information will be held by us on our database for a period of 6 months before deletion. If you would like your information removed sooner, please contact us.

Closing date: Sunday 15th June 2025

The Royal College of Surgeons of England is an Equal Opportunities Employer. We are open to all talent and we actively ensure that all qualified applicants will receive equal consideration for employment without regards to age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation.

The Royal College of Surgeons of England is committed to protecting your privacy. We are registered as a data controller with the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). All College employees are responsible for records held, created and used as part of their work for the College including patient/client, corporate and administrative records.

Records are managed according to the requirements of the Data Protection Act 2018 and ensure confidentiality. The College ensures that staff are trained to handle the information you submit to us with care and discretion, seeking advice where necessary.