Salary: £55,000 per annum  

Hours: 35 hours per week. Other flexible arrangements may be considered 

Disclosure Level: Enhanced : This role involves some direct work with children 

Team: Rights Respectong Schools Team 

Reports to: RRSA Programme Director 

Location: Working from home, in Scotland. Regular local travel to schools and at least quarterly meetings at UUK offices at 1a Westfield Avenue, Stratford, London, E20 1HZ

At the UK Committee for UNICEF (UNICEF UK), we pull together to achieve the best possible results for children in danger around the world.  We believe in an inclusive workplace and in the power of fulfilled colleagues who share the same values and goals, enjoy their work and are motivated to do their utmost for children.   

Our work is guided by the UN Convention of the Rights of the Child (UNCRC) and the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which recognise the universality of children’s rights. 

ABOUT THE TEAM  

Within the Advocacy, Programmes, Safeguarding and Sport Directorate, the Rights Respecting Schools team works with schools in the UK to champion school improvement through children’s rights. Over 5000 schools and 1.7 million children and young people are actively engaged in the programme. 

ABOUT THE ROLE 

The RRSA Senior Professional Adviser works closely with the Programme Director and is responsible for supporting the delivery of the Rights Respecting Schools Award and associated advocacy objectives. Alongside the Programme Director, the Senior Professional Adviser is a key spokesperson for RRSA with public service partners, media, supporters, political stakeholders, and other leaders.  

What we will expect you to achieve 

• Be accountable for the promotion, development and growth of RRSA in a designated area.  

• Build positive relationships with key stakeholders including government organisations, other rights organisations, and in particular schools, senior leaders and children and young people within own area.  

• Ensure consistency in guidance, materials, and accreditation processes provided by your sub-team and across the UK.   

• Work with the RRSA leadership team to continually review and refresh the RRSA programme to ensure it remains optimally focused on its vision and targets  

• Provide effective leadership to your RRSA sub-team ensuring that targets are established and communicated in a consultative manner, opportunities and risks are identified, and all individual plans delivered on time against identified KPIs.  

• Foster a culture of continuous innovation within the sub-team, including monitoring and evaluating effectiveness and sharing lessons learnt, with the aim of keeping the programme fresh, up to date and relevant to our key supporters.    

• Develop, model and promote a positive, engaging and inclusive working culture, by motivating and supporting individuals, encouraging collaboration and integration across the RRSA sub-team and the wider RRSA team. Nurture a safe and open working culture where wellbeing is at the centre of what we do.  

• Provide guidance and expertise on issues related to child rights education to UNICEF UK colleagues while building strong and effective working relationships.  

• Demonstrate and model a commitment to our shared values, behaviours and inclusive practices (known as Our Shared Commitment) in all aspects of your work. 

BEHAVIOURS, EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS 

This section contains the essential behaviours, experience, knowledge and skills needed in order to be effective and successful in this role. All criteria in this section are essential. 

Effective behaviours 

Supporter driven and mission aligned  

• Is committed to children and their rights and motivated to work towards achieving a world that is fit for every child.  

• Considers partners’ needs and pressures, balancing their expectations with doing what’s right for children  

Digital First  

• Utilises digital media and tools to achieve specific engagement objectives and is open to exploring how to make use of digital further   

• Invests time in acquiring the knowledge and skills to develop effective approaches to managing information  

Inspiring great teamwork  

• Encourages a supportive and positive working environment where questions/opinions can be expressed appropriately  

Leadership  

• Provides strategic direction, sets clear objectives, clarifies expectations and agrees the parameters for each person’s authority and accountability.  

• Promotes a results focused culture, engaging and guiding others to achieve ambitious goals  

• Values diversity, respecting and drawing on colleagues’ different perspectives, skills, experience and knowledge  

Relevant experience   

• Leadership and management experience in a relevant field relating to child rights education e.g. senior school leadership, local authority education services etc ideally managing a regional or remotely based team   

• Experience of working for, or with, relevant public services, including in-depth knowledge and understanding of school and education service structures, culture and significant issues facing these services   

Specific knowledge and skills  

• In depth understanding of approaches to child rights education as this applies to UK schools. 

• Ability to engage, empathise with and motivate school and local authority staff. 

• Demonstrate a strong commitment to, and knowledge of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.