Vacancy: Head of Reading Communities

Job title: Head of Reading Communities

Contract: Full-time (35 hours per week), Permanent

Starting salary: £40,400 (Grade 6)

Closing date: Monday 13th October

Location: Blended between our Edinburgh Office and home

Benefits

• Generous holiday allowance
• Employee pension contribution of 5% per annum
• Possibility of flexible working
• Life assurance scheme
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to Work scheme

About the job

This is an excellent opportunity for you to join Scottish Book Trust as the Head of Reading Communities. The Scottish Book Trust Reading Communities team run a variety of programmes to promote a love of reading across Scotland.

Download the recruitment pack

Key responsibilities

• Lead the Reading Communities (RC) team, to ensure effective and timely delivery of the programme milestones and outcomes in line with the organisation’s business plan
• Work closely with the Senior Management Team on the strategic development of the RC programme to meet organisation objectives
• Works with the Senior Management Team to influence policy development in the relevant areas of SBT’s work
• Leads the RC team to engage effectively achieving cross organisational collaboration
• Develop and establish stakeholder relationships to deliver key outcomes for SBT’s work and cultivate future programme opportunities
• Works closely with the Research and Evaluation Team to set outcomes for the Reading Communities Programme, measure and evaluate impact to feed into programme development and the organisation’s wider work
• Maintain an up to date understanding of research, initiatives and policies within the sector, relevant to the Reading Communities Programmes
• Promote and support collaborative working with the Digital and Marketing Teams to communicate effectively with established and new audiences
• Work with the Fundraising Manager and Director of Programme to develop and establish funder relationships enabling generation of funding for new and existing programmes
• Line manages the Reading is Caring team and three programme Managers, coaching and empowering them to achieve high standards of performance and delivery of objectives, as well as supporting their learning and development
• Responsibility for the setting, management, and reporting of all RC Team budgets both internally and to external partners
• Be the lead authority within the RC team for generating (initiating) and supporting the development of innovative fundraising and commercial opportunities, with collective responsibility for supporting the promotion of SBT’s commercial offerings including paid learning, the SBT shop and other paid for events
• Represent and promote Scottish Book Trust at external meetings, conferences and events

Knowledge, skills and experience

You will have:

• Significant experience of leading and managing a team in a cultural, educational or charitable context
• A passion for reading and writing and the transformational impact it can have on life opportunities
• Knowledge of Scotland’s literature, library, creative education and community learning sectors with an understanding of how these intersect with health and wellbeing contexts
• Experience in developing, planning and delivering strategic programmes aligned with organisational goals
• Significant experience of setting programme outcomes, reporting performance and conducting evaluation
• Significant experience of building and maintaining relationships with funders, partners and policymakers
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent influencing and negotiation skills; highly skilled in networking and partnership working
• Highly developed interpersonal skills with a proven ability to work collaboratively across organisational boundaries
• Strong coaching and mentoring skills to support team development and performance
• Experience managing budgets, including reporting to external funders

Other information

• The post is a hybrid role with regular attendance at Scottish Book Trust offices in Edinburgh
• The post-holder must be prepared to undertake travel across Scotland, from time to time travel elsewhere in the UK, including occasional overnight stays
• Appointment will be conditional on securing a Level 1 from Disclosure Scotland
• Flexible working options are available

How to apply

Step 1: Download and complete our application forms

We do not accept CVs. To apply for this role, please complete both part A and part B of our application form, uploading them as PDFs if possible.

Download application form Part A

Download application form Part B

Step 2: Upload your completed forms to our recruitment portal

Ready to submit your forms? Click the button below and complete these steps.

• Add your contact information.
• Click 'next' when you are ready to upload your documents.
• Add your title to the document page.
• Upload (or drag and drop) the files and click 'Upload' after each document.
• When both documents are uploaded, submit your application.

(this link will open in a new window)Upload your application forms

If you have any difficulties applying or queries regarding this post, you can request support by emailing [email protected](this link will open in a new window).You can find more information about our organisation and our values.