Careers

Salary: £30,000 pa

Reports to: Chief Executive

Location: The White Ribbon office in Hebden Bridge, West Yorkshire.

Hours of Work: 35 hours per week

Holidays: 25 days plus bank holidays

Pension: 6% employer contribution

Key relationships: CEO, Board of Trustees

Deadline: 1:00 pm on Monday 13 May 2024

About Us: White Ribbon UK is the leading UK organisation working to prevent men’s violence against women and girls by showing what men can do to promote equality and create a culture where women live free from violence. We reach many thousands of people a year, but we can’t do any of this without passionate and highly effective people working within our team.

About the role: We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced Executive Support Officer to join our team. This is a crucial role, supporting the CEO to ensure the smooth running of White Ribbon UK. You’ll be a key point of contact, proactively managing all aspects of Executive Support for the Chief Executive. You will be working as part of a passionate team with a strong commitment to preventing violence against women.

You will be ideal for a highly organised, flexible, experienced in providing executive support, used to working on your own initiative and comfortable with multi-tasking. You will be a confident organiser, able to exercise judgment, a diplomatic approach, and problem-solving skills. You will have the ability to think two steps ahead, guided by our strategic and operational priorities. You will bring attention to detail and skills in prioritisation, time management and task completion. Your written and verbal communication skills will be first-rate. You will be comfortable handling confidential material with the utmost discretion.

This will be a busy, varied and important role supporting the Chief Executive to make sure their day-to-day workload supports White Ribbon’s strategic priorities, and that they are well supported in all aspects of governance and compliance.

Additional Information:

• We welcome applications from candidates who may be returning to work after a pause in their career or looking to balance a role with their wider caring or parenting responsibilities.

• For this role, we are open to conversations around flexible and/or hybrid working but our expectations are that majority of time will be spent in our office each week.

• This is a new role, and you will help develop and shape it to meet the needs of White Ribbon UK.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Provide dedicated administrative and operational assistance to the White Ribbon UK Chief Executive, to support them in delivering their strategic objectives and ensure the smooth functioning of their day-to-day activities, managing the flow of information, responding to email, and acting as a liaison between the Chief Executive and other stakeholders and coordinating communication.

• Manage and schedule the CEO’s diary proactively and productively and in line with their

priorities, schedule meetings, handle travel arrangements and ensure they are fully briefed for all internal and external meetings and events.

• Organise and provide administrative support for meetings, and events including Board and Subcommittee meetings, maintaining the Board business calendar, ensuring that agendas are clearly defined, papers are prepared and distributed, attending meetings, take and circulate minutes, and where necessary making practical arrangements, such as booking venues.

• Provide governance support for the White Ribbon board including, monitor the action tracker for board meetings and subcommittee meetings ensuring that actions are progressed, managing the policies timetable, ensuring that policies are reviewed and submitted for Board approval in line with legislation and best practice, managing the Risk Register, and ensuring all filing required for statutory compliance is completed by deadlines, including the Charity Commission, Companies House.

• Ensure that WR has the necessary insurances in place including Employers Liability, Public Liability and Contents Insurance.

• Manage and organise electronic and paper-based information systems, supporting compliance with Data Protection and Freedom of Information Acts, ensuring that the database including the CRM, and other applications up to date, that confidentiality is maintained at all times, in line with data protection.

• Manage the administration of HR function including, HR files, creating annual leave records for all staff, ensuring annual leave is being tracked and taken by all staff, the process of absence reporting and monitoring, and ensuring all staff are briefed in Health & Safety encouraging individual responsibility for such. Supporting the recruitment of new staff, developing job packs, placing adverts, organising interviews and paperwork for those short listed and notification of outcomes.

• To be the first point of contact with WRUK stakeholders, sorting and prioritising incoming email, calls, and mail, responding to queries and directing to other members of the team as required.

• Manage the administration of the White Ribbon office including overseeing repairs and maintenance of office equipment and contracts., liaising with landlord/ town hall relating to tenancy, maintain and monitor stock levels and order office supplies as needed and looking after visitors to the office. To ensure that the offices are clean, well maintained, and the space is effectively organised.

• To undertake any other work as could be expected of an Executive Support Officer.

• Perform ad-hoc duties as required including providing cover for others as needed.

• Undertake any other tasks that may reasonably be regarded as appropriate for a role of this nature within White Ribbon UK.

Contribute to:

• an enthusiastic, positive working environment within White Ribbon UK

• identifying own training and development gaps and seeking opportunities to learn in different ways.

• developing effective procedures and working practices

• building strong relationships with colleagues to ensure the smooth running and development of White Ribbon UK

• the growth and sustainability of White Ribbon UK

Person Specification:

• A strong track record as a skilled and experienced administrator, including experience of working as, or in, a governance, clerking or executive assistant role for a senior director, chief executive or board.

• Excellent diary management and organisational skills including the ability to plan, prioritise and deliver both day to day and longer-term objectives.

• Evidence of working to a high standard with an eye for detail and accuracy, able to follow and understand directions with minimal support and supervision.

• Able to employ a high level of integrity and discretion when dealing with confidential matters, handling confidential and sensitive information with tact and diplomacy.

• Proven project management skills, with the ability to juggle a wide range of competing demands and work effectively under pressure.

• Strong verbal and written communication, with the ability to communicate effectively and tactfully with a wide variety of people in person, on the phone and in writing.

• Experience of delivering a range of high-quality communications materials including minutes, reports and presentations.

• Experience of setting up and running systems and processes to support workflows, and ability to communicate them effectively to others.

• Experience of event organisation and management.

• Excellent ICT skills, including Office 365 applications, databases, and proficiency in digital tools and collaboration platforms.

• Able to work occasional evenings or weekends.

• Commitment to ending violence against women and girls.

• Understanding and demonstrable commitment to equal opportunities, diversity, and inclusion.

How to apply: Please send your CV and covering letter (not more than 2 sides of A4) to Tracey Noble tracey.noble@whiteribbon.org.uk by 1:00 pm on Monday 13 May 2024. No agencies.

Salary: This is a voluntary unpaid role. Expenses are paid if travel is required.

Deadline: Monday, 20 May

Background: White Ribbon UK’s mission is to prevent men’s violence against women through addressing its root causes. 

• Raise awareness of what constitutes violence (the continuum) and the link between dominant masculine norms, gender inequality and violence against women

• Shift societal attitudes, systems and behaviours around masculinity that help to perpetuate gender inequality and therefore men’s violence against women

We do this though our unique approach which engages men and boys as primary changemakers in addressing the root causes of violence against women. 

We:

• Place men and boys at the forefront of preventing violence, supporting them to recognise and change their own behaviours, listen to women, be positive role models and take steps to create a more gender-equal society

• Build a network of people (men, women, groups and organisations) who have the knowledge and tools to take action and influence and engage others

• Support organisations (often male dominated) to make commitments that change their workplace culture to be more equal and safer for women, influence wider society and engage men and boys in this

• Advise and advocate for policy changes that promote gender equality and the role of men and boys in this.

• Are accountable to women

Our organisation is led by our board of trustees, who are responsible for the governance and strategic direction of White Ribbon UK. We are seeking new trustees to support our important work. All our trustees are expected to become a White Ribbon Ambassador or Champion, if not already.

If you are someone who is committed to our aims, and have either one, or a combination of, the following skills and experience, and is interested in governance, we would like to hear from you.

• campaigning and policy development

• fundraising

• finance

• law

• media and communications

• an academic background issues around men’s violence against women

• corporate environments

About the White Ribbon UK Board of trustees: White Ribbon is led by our board of trustees, who are responsible for the governance and strategic direction of White Ribbon UK, ensuring that we remain viable and sustainable as well as keep closely to our mission so that we continue to make a real difference through our work.

There are up to seven Board meetings per year which are held online starting at 6.30pm. Trustees are expected to be a member of at least one subcommittee with three to four additional meetings per year. Trustees may need to be available to offer more ‘hands-on’ help and advice from time to time depending on their area of expertise.

Our trustees must have:

• a commitment to ending men’s violence against women

• a willingness to devote the necessary time and effort

• integrity

• strategic vision

• good, independent judgement

• an ability to think creatively

• a willingness to speak their mind

• an understanding and acceptance of the legal duties, responsibilities and liabilities of trusteeship

• an ability to work effectively as a member of a team and to take decisions for the good of White Ribbon UK

• Board members have a collective responsibility. This means that trustees always act as a group and not as individuals.

White Ribbon UK benefits from having a wide range of trustees – each with their own experience, expertise and skills. We are striving to be a diverse and inclusive organisation and welcome applications from all who feel the they can contribute to the future of White Ribbon UK.  Due to the nature of our work, it is important that we have both men and women on our board.

This is not only great opportunity for you to share your skills and experience with us but also to build upon this and extend and develop your skills.  You will be able to extend your professional contacts and become part of our team.

Duties of a White Ribbon UK trustee:

• Ensuring that the White Ribbon UK pursues its stated objects (purposes), as defined in the Memorandum and Articles of Association, by developing and agreeing a long-term strategy

• Ensuring that White Ribbon UK complies with its memorandum and articles of association, charity law, company law and any other relevant legislation or regulations

• Ensuring that the organisation applies its resources exclusively in pursuance of its charitable objects (ie the charity must not spend money on activities that are not included in its own objects, however worthwhile or charitable those activities are) for the benefit of the public

• Approve operational strategies and policies, and monitor and evaluate their implementation

• Support and provide advice on White Ribbon UK’s purpose, vision, goals and activities

• Ensure that key risks are being identified, monitored and controlled effectively

• Safeguarding the good name and values of White Ribbon UK

• Ensuring the effective and efficient administration of the organisation, including having appropriate policies and procedures in place

• Ensuring the financial stability of the organisation

• Protecting and managing the property of the charity and ensuring the proper investment of the charity’s funds

• Provide support and challenge to White Ribbon UK’s CEO in the exercise of their delegated authority and affairs

• Following proper and formal arrangements for the appointment, supervision, support, appraisal and remuneration staff

• Contribute to regular reviews of White Ribbon UK’s own governance

• Attend Board meetings, adequately prepared to contribute to discussions

• Use independent judgment, acting legally and in good faith to promote and protect White Ribbon UK’s interests, to the exclusion of their own personal and/or any third party interests

• Contribute to the broader promotion of White Ribbon UK’s objects, aims and reputation by applying skills, expertise, knowledge and contacts

How to apply: Please send your CV and a cover letter (maximum of two A4 pages) explaining your motivation for applying, your interest in the role and how you meet the requirements for the position to Tracey Noble at tracey.noble@whiteribbon.org.uk with White Ribbon UK Trustee in the subject line. Cover letters should be typed in Arial font with a minimum text size of 10 point font.

Interviews will be held at a mutually convenient time. For an informal discussion about the role, with one of our current trustees please email info@whiteribbon.org.uk

Download job description here.