Duration: Fixed term – 12 months (Parental Leave cover) 

Salary: £45,000 per annnum   

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

Disclosure Level: Basic. This role involves indirect work with children. 

Reports to: Deputy Programme Director (Operations) 

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  

The Baby Friendly Initiative is one of three UK programmes at UNICEF UK. It is based on a global accreditation programme of UNICEF and the World Health Organization and is designed to support breastfeeding and parent-infant relationships by working with public services to improve standards of care. In the UK, the Baby Friendly Initiative is commissioned by various parts of the health service to provide support, training, networking, assessment and accreditation. 

The Communication and Resources Specialist is part of the Baby Friendly office team and works closely with the Programme Director, Deputy Programme Directors, Professional Leads, Events & Services Manager and Programme Support Officer. The team has many remote based Professional Officers who work part time for UNICEF UK alongside other health professional roles. The role also requires working with other UNICEF UK teams including Media, Advocacy, Creative Content and Digital teams.  

ABOUT THE ROLE 

The post holder is responsible for developing, managing and implementing communication strategies, resources and creative production and improvement of printed or digital materials. The post holder will act as brand guardian and work with colleagues to ensure all communications and materials are participatory and inclusive. 

Infant feeding and parent-infant relationships can be emotive subjects. The Baby Friendly Initiative aims to provide unbiased and evidence-based information on these issues for health professionals and parents, in order that families are enabled to make informed choices about feeding and caring for their babies. The post holder will have an important role in ensuring this information is communicated both sensitively, accurately and in a culturally sensitive way for audiences. 

The role supports the delivery of the programme to support  

• over 700 UK maternity units, neonatal units, health visiting services, children’s centres services and university programmes along their accreditation journeys  

• an extensive range of training courses and e-learning materials for over 3,000 learners each year and Annual Conference with around either 900 delegates in person or 2500 delegates virtually. 

What we will expect you to achieve 

• Lead on the development, production and evaluation of high-quality digital and printed resources, working with the team to develop content, ensuring this is accurate, aligned with UNICEF UK and Baby Friendly Initiative policy, up to date and appropriate for a health professional audience.  

• Apply specialist communications knowledge to enhance, develop, deliver and evaluate a comprehensive communications strategy for the programme – supporting the internal and external profile raising of the programme – its effectiveness and impact, via regular mailings, website and social media. 

• Work with media office and management team to manage Baby Friendly in the media including supporting on the development of presentations for external audiences, writing statements and case studies, responding to enquires and monitoring relevant stories that may have an implication for the work or reputation of the programme. 

• Horizon scan news and media, using UNICEF UK tools where appropriate, to identify news, media and articles related to the BFI programme, topics include breastfeeding, infant feeding, early childhood development, pregnancy, maternity and parenthood. 

• Manage, evaluate and improve the BFI website, newsletter and social media presence ensuring content is accurate and engaging, and managing developments, analytics and upgrades as required. 

• Work with the team to ensure all communications and materials are participatory and inclusive. This will involve collaborating and co-producing resources that reflect the needs of different communities to help inform on BFI standards and policy.  

• Lead on sourcing images for print and digital materials, including planning and overseeing photoshoots as required and managing the image library and maintain copyright. 

• Ensure that all Baby Friendly Initiative materials meet Baby Friendly branding requirements and style, adhere to General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) and UNICEF UK Safeguarding procedures. 

• Build and maintain BFI communications resources including, but not limited to: case studies, infographics, photos/videos, leaflets etc.  

• Take responsibility for the resources and materials preparing for the Annual conference and lead on audiovisual support during the event, including liaising with speakers, proofreading and editing and other duties as required. 

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 

Communication 

• Produces excellent, engaging and accurate copy 

• Translates complex ideas into clear, impactful messages for a range of audiences 

• Communicates complex ideas using a variety of methods and media to engage and win 

understanding 

• Extracts and constructs powerful and engaging stories from programme activities 

• Communicates with empathy and sensitivity, ensuring messaging is inclusive, respectful and appropriate. 

Creating and Innovating 

• Thinks of new, interesting and effective ways of getting messages about the programme to 

the people who need to hear them 

• Confidently contributes well thought through ideas and sees them through to implementation 

• Continually scans the external environment for trends, insights, ideas and good practice to 

share with team 

Efficiency and Effectiveness 

• Effectively manages conflicting priorities across projects 

• Systematically plans, leads and manages projects 

• Responds flexibly, adaptably and positively to unforeseen events and changing circumstances 

Digital First 

• Utilises digital technology, media and tools to achieve programme objectives 

Collaboration 

• Works collaboratively within the team and with wider UNICEF UK colleagues, sharing expertise, know-how and ideas 

• Works collaboratively with a range of external stakeholders 

Relevant experience 

• Leading on complex communication projects, ideally in the public sector 

• Developing high quality resources and publications, ideally in the public sector 

• Writing and editing for a range of publications or media 

Specific knowledge and skills 

• Basic page design, layout skills and familiarity with desktop publishing software (e.g. InDesign) and Content Management Systems (e.g. WordPress) for managing websites 

• General knowledge of key issues affecting children and families in the UK