Job Title: Policy & Advocacy Manager

Department: Public Sector Engagement / Engagement Group

Reports to: Policy Director

Grade and Salary: Manager, £46,000 - £53,000

Contract: Permanent, full time

Location: Hybrid / London, EC4A and homeworking

The opportunity:

Since our launch, the UK social impact investment market has grown rapidly to more than tenfold the size it was a decade ago. Big Society Capital has played a key role in this extraordinary growth, investing over £900 million and bringing in over £2 billion alongside us from other investors who care about making a positive difference in the UK.

We are now at a pivotal moment where the UK faces multiple complex social challenges at a time of constrained public spending and so the need for Social impact investment has never been greater or more urgent. Ultimately there aren’t enough taxpayer funds to tackle major public issues from homelessness to ill-health prevention.  Big Society Capital plays a key role working across government to find opportunities to harness private capital alongside public spending to make a greater social impact. At the same time our influencing work informs and changes government policy to help create the environment for social impact investment to thrive and grow, ultimately creating positive social impact throughout the UK. Now is an exciting time to join the team and make a real difference.

The Policy & Public Affairs manager plays a key role in building relationships across parliament and government and  helps advance social impact investment with decision-making bodies. Building on their own and Big Society Capital’s existing relationships and networks, they foster effective relationships with politicians, officials, special advisors, think tanks and other government stakeholders to help land our key messages and recommendations.

The role works across the Engagement and Investment Groups to expand these relationships and networks as well as monitor the latest government activities and opportunities for Big Society Capital. This includes initiating and writing internal and external briefings and important budget and other submissions to government on a regular basis.

The manager is also responsible for  the delivery of the Social Outcomes programme with government under the direction of more senior employees, operating autonomously and taking initiative to produce high quality policy reports, events, and social media content at pace. They foster strong relationships with investment intermediaries and other social sector stakeholders to work collectively to advance this programme at pace.

What you will do:

Manage Big Society Capital’s government engagement programme in the following areas:

·       Lending for social enterprises, charities and small businesses in the most disadvantaged communities

·       Social and affordable housing

·       Investment in tech for good

 
With senior support, manage lead Big Society Capital’s government engagement programme in the following area:

·       Public service provision for people with multiple and complex needs.

·       Investment in impact venture

 
Analyse the external environment for policy impact

·       Provide updates on proceedings of the UK Parliament and civil service for Parliamentary monitoring and provide relevant updates for senior staff members

·       Advise on impact for our public sector engagement strategy and programmes

·       Work with Policy Director to refine Big Society Capital’s work on manifesto influencing

 
Communicate Big Society Capital’s key messages effectively with stakeholders

·       Develop relationships with politicians, political advisers, civil servants, non-departmental public bodies, regulators, think tanks and other policy and public affairs professionals to advance social impact investment

·       Foster strong relationships with investment intermediaries and other social sector stakeholders in the Social Outcomes market system

·       Help design effective messages  to land with senior government stakeholders

·       Produce briefing materials, policy papers and other collateral

·       Collaborate with the media team to build relationships with senior political press

 
Represent Big Society Capital externally

·       With senior input, manage Big Society Capital’s participation at party conferences and other party-led events

·       Lead the planning and delivery of Big Society Capital events with senior government stakeholders e.g., MP visits, Number 10 Roundtable

·       Spot opportunities for Big Society Capital participation in other key stakeholder events where our input is imperative e.g., inquiries, report launches, networking receptions

·       Attend morning and evening events when required and represent Big Society Capital in the UK and occasionally elsewhere

What you will bring:

Skills, Abilities and Attributes

·       Passion for our mission to improve lives in the UK through social impact investment

·       Excellent relationship builder with both internal and external stakeholders

·       Ability to work closely as part of a small team with very good influencing and interpersonal skills

·       Self-starter able to work with limited direct supervision and to both initiate and drive new work areas

·       Flexibility to take on and manage a variety of projects with different working styles, clients and deadlines

·       Hunger for continued learning and development

·       Structured thinker able to deal with complexity and uncertainty

·       Resilient and able to respond to changing external (especially political) environment as well as varied demands from stakeholders

·       A confident and effective communicator when writing and speaking

Embody Big Society Capital core values:

Ø  Purposeful – We are passionate and energetic in our work to bring about our long-term vision of a thriving social investment market that enables positive social impact.

Ø  Pioneering Spirit – We give our team the autonomy and flexibility to be entrepreneurial and creative. We have the courage to push boundaries and a restless drive for change

Ø  Openness – We listen, learn, experiment and collaborate.  And we are adaptive and flexible in responding to what we learn.

Ø  Rigorous – We take a rigorous approach in all we do.  We expect the highest standards and continually strive for excellence

Ø  Respectful – We are genuine in both our approach and aspiration.  We value each member of our team and our partners for what they bring.

Experience

Essential -

·       A background in government, parliament,  the civil service, or a policy or public affairs role

·       Strong understanding of Westminster landscape and political media, ideally with existing contacts

·       Strong people and networking skills. Proven ability to lead on and manage a wide range of relationships, including at senior levels, and engage with people with diverse viewpoints

·       Strong communication skills, especially in clear writing around complex technical topics

Desirable -

·       Experience of drafting policy submissions and responses to government enquiries

·       Proven project management experience

·       Strong understanding of at least one of the UK social sector, responsible/ethical investment and UK social policy development

Don’t meet every requirement? Studies have shown that women and people from racialised communities are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. If you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

·        Location: We are a UK-based business with an office in the Chancery Lane area of London, accessible to a number of public transport links. Colleagues typically spend 40% - 60% of their working hours in the office, and the remainder from home. We hope that this working pattern encourages Big Society Capital employees to achieve a healthy balance between work and personal life, as we adapt to the needs of our diverse workforce. 

·        Right to work: For this role we ask that all candidates have the right to work in the UK.

·        Equality, Diversity and Inclusion: Big Society Capital is committed to being a diverse organisation that is truly representative of the communities we serve. We therefore welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds, particularly those under-represented in the social impact investment sector (e.g. people from LGBTQIA+; racialised; disabled; under-served communities) 

 We are an equal opportunities employer with an inclusive environment where all employees can contribute to their fullest potential. We want every colleague to be able to deliver their work with dignity, equality, comfort and independence. Our office is fully accessible with step-free access and an open-plan set up. We are open to accommodation requests regarding assistive technologies, accessibility tools, flexible working or any other reasonable adjustments that will make working or visiting here more accessible for you. If you have a disability or other access needs and require any support to assist you through the recruitment process, please get in touch with Ruth Davidson (People and Talent Manager) at rdavidson@bigsocietycapital.com 

How to apply:

Please apply via Applied by midnight Sunday 22 October.

Applied is a platform designed to minimise unconscious bias in recruitment. You will be asked some work-based questions which are reviewed anonymously by the hiring panel. Please note, while you will upload your CV, it will not be viewed by panel members at this stage, so we ask that you give full consideration to each answer. 

Please note: we screen for answers generated by Chat GPT. To get a 5 star score, we ask that your Applied answers are authentic and reflect your own knowledge, skills and motivations.  

As a Disability Confident employer, we guarantee an interview for all candidates with disabilities who meet the minimum criteria for the job. We are defining a disability in accordance with the Equality Act 2010, as a person who has a physical or mental impairment, and the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities. You will be asked in your Applied application whether this applies to you.  

Open Hour

If you have any questions about the position before making an application, we invite you to a virtual Open Hour with Tess Godley (Policy Director), Kelly Furlong (Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer), and Nica Gordon (People and Talent Officer) at 4pm on Thursday 12th October 2023. This is an open opportunity to meet the team and to explore the role and Big Society Capital a little further before you apply. (For anonymity, attendees will have the option to remove their name. and switch videos off). Please contact Nica Gordon: ngordon@bigsocietycapital.com if you would like to attend.

Interviews  

                  Round 1 interviews will be held online week commencing 23rd October.

                  Round 2 interviews will be held in person week commencing 30th October.

                  You can find out more about our recruitment approach here.