Grade & Salary: Associate Organiser, £27,953 per annum 

Full time role with part time possibility. Flexible working available and some unsociable hours required.

Contract: 12 month fixed term contract- chance of extension if funds available   

Based: Scotland (focused in Scotland, UK wide) 

Citizens UK:

Citizens UK is a people power alliance of diverse local communities working together for the common good. Our mission is to develop leaders, strengthen civic organisations and make change. Our 550 member communities are deeply rooted in their local areas and connect every day to the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Through the method of community organising we enable people experiencing powerlessness to develop their leadership and come together with the power and strategy to make change.  

This leads to hundreds of neighbourhood improvements - from zebra crossings outside primary schools to renovated public toilets in cemeteries. And it leads to some of the biggest campaign impacts in the UK, such as winning over £2 billion of wages through the UK Living Wage campaign, securing a legal cap on the cost of credit to control exploitative lending, and ending the detention of children for immigration purposes. We enable local campaigns to grow into large-scale social change projects such as the Living Wage Foundation, Parents and Communities Together (PACT), and Sponsor Refugees, that form an integral part of our theory of change. The most prominent of these is the rapidly growing Living Wage Foundation with a network of over 13,000 accredited Living Wage Employers across the UK.  

Citizens UK is a people power alliance of diverse local communities working together for the common good. Our mission is to develop leaders, strengthen civic organisations and make change. Our 550 member communities are deeply rooted in their local areas and connect every day to the lives of hundreds of thousands of people. Through the method of community organising we enable people experiencing powerlessness to develop their leadership and come together with the power and strategy to make change.  

This leads to hundreds of neighbourhood improvements - from zebra crossings outside primary schools to renovated public toilets in cemeteries. And it leads to some of the biggest campaign impacts in the UK, such as winning over £2 billion of wages through the UK Living Wage campaign, securing a legal cap on the cost of credit to control exploitative lending, and ending the detention of children for immigration purposes. We enable local campaigns to grow into large-scale social change projects such as the Living Wage Foundation, Parents and Communities Together (PACT), and Sponsor Refugees, that form an integral part of our theory of change. The most prominent of these is the rapidly growing Living Wage Foundation with a network of over 13,000 accredited Living Wage Employers across the UK.  

Together We Can:

The Together We Can team is a project of Citizens UK working to build the power we need to make the UK more welcoming. 

We believe in the importance of standing with our neighbours, wherever they were born. By working together across difference, we can tackle injustice and win change on the issues that matter to refugee migrant, and diaspora communities. 

The Together We Can team consists of community organisers working with leaders on local and national campaigns as well as two specialist projects: Sponsor Refugees and Refugees for Justice. 

Citizens UK Migrant and Refugees organising team:

The Migrant and Refugee Organising Team is a specialist team of organisers within Citizens UK working to build the power we need to make the UK more welcoming. 

We believe in the importance of standing with our neighbours, wherever they were born. By working together across difference, we can tackle injustice and win change on the issues that matter to refugee migrant, and diaspora communities.  

Refugees for Justice (R4J) is part of the part of the Migrant and Refugees Organising team. It is a refugee-led campaign for justice, accountability, and change in the UK asylum accommodation and support provision system based in Glasgow. The group was launched in the aftermath of the Park Inn Incident in Glasgow (26 June 2020) and the mishandling of asylum accommodation and support during COVID-19 pandemic that led the deaths, injuries, and physical and psychological harm on people in the asylum system and wider community. R4J uses community organising and strategic litigation to challenge and change UK asylum support and accommodation provision, including the use of detention-like institutional accommodation and associated conditions. 

Purpose:

The principal responsibility of an Associate Organiser is their own development: learning the craft of Community Organising under the guidance of an experienced Community Organiser. They work intensively with a small assignment under close supervision, growing their experience, skill, and responsibility incrementally. An Associate Organiser is working towards becoming a competent practitioner of the craft of broad-based community organising methodology, and focuses on the building of relational power, the identification and development of leaders, the strengthening of member institutions, leader-led public actions, and the winning of systemic change. 

This role is specifically to organise in Refugees for Justice (R4J), Together We can and the Migrant and Refugee Organising Team, to work with leaders with experience of the immigration system and to act to change it. The role may also involve collaboration between other CUK projects where appropriate and relevant. 

Main Responsibilities:

Working as an Associate Organiser on Refugees for Justice project in the Migrant and Refugee Organising Team at Citizens UK your main responsibilities will include: 

Contribute towards the goals of the Refugees for Justice and Together We Can team:

• Build relationships with people who have experience of the immigration system or who may be important allies, speaking to at least 3 people per day through 121 conversations. 

• Support the R4J leadership team to develop and achieve change  

• Work with colleagues in the Citizens UK Migrant and Refugee Organising Team and to run local and national campaigns and leadership teams 

• Work alongside existing community organisers in Scotland to support their work on migration justice  

Build relational power to further the goals of Refugees for Justice Project 

• Actively participate in the development of a comprehensive power analysis appropriate to the desired sphere of influence for each assignment 

• Establish working relationships with identified leaders and move them into action, incl. as part of the wider alliance; taking the initiative to establish new relationships as required 

• Conduct 121s to develop relationships with leaders and understand their concerns. 

• Tell a wide range of Community Organising stories effectively to influence others and achieve Citizens UK’s goals 

Identify and develop relational leaders prepared to act with others for the common good 

• Identify and discern actual and potential leaders with the passion and ability to drive change  

• Proactively create opportunities for leaders to develop, in particular tertiary or new leaders; nominate them for training on the core taster curriculum 

• Successfully deliver training workshops in local institutions and on the core taster curriculum at a local level 

Managing day-to day R4J Task  

• Provide administrative assistance to R4J team in processing contracts, commissioning, partnerships, invoices, and other operational paperwork. 

• Support R4J Project Manager and volunteers with record keeping volunteer expenses and purchase of equipment. 

• Any other reasonable tasks as required by the project manager. 

Support leaders through the Cycle of Action to create change 

• Support member institutions in running listening campaigns 

• Organise neighbourhood actions, demonstrating increasing independence in working without the need for close supervision  

• Take the lead in supporting groups of leaders through the cycle of action on neighbourhood issues; aiming to achieve neighbourhood wins 

• Evaluate the effectiveness of actions; demonstrating ability to incorporate lessons learned into future actions 

Contribute to R4J’s financial viability through effective fundraising & financial management  

• Write regular updates on the work to be shared with the funders and maintain a healthy relationship with them 

• Work with a senior organiser on securing any additional funding needed for the campaign 

• Keep record of Day-to-Day R4J spending and able to claim expenses through our platforms such as Kissflow  

Contribute to effective teamwork 

• Be proactive concerning personal professional development and wellbeing, i.e., by reading widely, developing a healthy work-life balance, and demonstrating ability to reflect on own organising craft and improve on self-identified weaknesses 

• Work effectively with colleagues and participate in a team 

• Produce all required reports and follow Citizen UK’s procedures on time and to the required standards 

Participate in the development of the craft of Community Organising

• Commit 10 working days pa to the preparation, delivery, and evaluation of Citizens UK National Community Leadership Training or other local or regional trainings. 

Manage social media 

• Regular update of our campaigning on our social media platform 

• Post our activities on social media such as (pictures, videos, interviews etc )  

Person Specification 

Requirements (E) Essential (D) Desirable 

QUALIFICATIONS 

• Bachelor’s degree in any subject or equivalent (D) 

• Subject of relevance to community work or community organising is desirable (D) 

EXPERIENCE 

• Previous campaign experience (D) 

• Evidence of having acted in a leadership role with peers or in local community activities (e.g., organising clubs or societies) (E) 

• Experience of project management; evidence of having delivered work on time and to standard (E) 

• Able to demonstrate previous experience of ‘learning by doing’ in a work or project environment; evidence of being open to feedback and comfortably coachable (E)  

• Lived experience of the Immigration System (E) 

KEY SKILLS & KNOWLEDGE 

• Excellent interpersonal awareness – ability to listen well and appreciate a viewpoint or opinion that is different from one’s own (E)   

• Excellent concern for impact – ability to adapt own behaviour to address the needs or concerns of someone else (E) 

• Good communication skills – able to speak with conviction and passion; and to make a logical argument (E) 

PERSONAL QUALITIES AND VALUES 

• A self-starter with ability to take initiative and work independently (E) 

• A passion for justice (E) 

• A positive enthusiasm for working with faith congregations, trade unions, schools, and other community organisations (E) 

• An interest in and experience of politics and public life (E) 

• Able to work in a team (E) 

• Willingness to work within accountable relationships (E) 

• Self-motivated and adaptable (E) 

The successful applicant will be required to undertake a satisfactory Enhanced DBS check. DBS checks are renewed on a 3-year cycle.