Join our team: Communications and Engagement Officer Role, Healthwatch Brent
Job Title: Communications and Engagement Officer
Reporting to: Healthwatch Manager (Brent)
Contract: Fixed Term – 12 months
Hours: 30 hours per week (4 days per week)
Salary: £26,875 per annum, pro rata
Location: Hybrid working – (usually 3 on the ground in Brent)
Closing date: 7th September 2025
We welcome applications from people with transferrable skills and qualities, and people with diverse employment histories and personal backgrounds. This post is for 22.5 hours per week but would happily consider applicants who would like fewer hours / job shares.
Healthwatch was set up in 2013 to champion the rights of health and social care users and hold the health and social care system to account for how well it engages with the public.
Healthwatch’s remit covers all publicly funded health and social care services for adults and children.
The Advocacy Project delivers Healthwatch Brent, Healthwatch Westminster and Healthwatch Kensington & Chelsea – three of 152 local Healthwatch organisations What we do - The Advocacy Project. We’re building on the important work that’s been done to date, while bringing new insights from the voices of seldom heard groups.
About the role
The main aim of this role is to engagement and communications. We need the postholder to have a passion for hearing our community. “What really matters” to them”?
As well as a keen focus on what the community would like to know and if necessary, act on. (e.g what services re changing, being closed or launched).
In addition, the post holder promotes Healthwatch by explaining what the service can offer residents and stakeholders, and encouraging people to get involved. You’ll be a skilled communicator, comfortable networking and engaging with a diverse range of residents.
This role will take you to our foodbanks, dementia and autism cafes (to name a few) as well as into council and National Health Service (NHS) Meetings. So you must be able to alter your communication and engagement style to ensure you get the best possible outcome from every contact.
Your role will involve finding innovative ways to present the information the team gathers to key audiences. This will range from face-to-face conversations with partners and funders through to producing imaginative materials. This includes producing accessible reports and presentations to make sure we can maximise the impact of people’s feedback with the aim to improve services.
You will be responsible for a variety of internal and external communications across all range of platforms including our website, social media channels and newsletter. You’ll also stay well informed of health and social care issues that may impact residents an produce informative and engaging content for our websites, keeping it fresh, inclusive and relevant.
Working as part of a small team, you’ll be involved in many aspects of the organisation. You’ll need to be flexible, with a ‘can do’ attitude to meet the evolving needs of the service. In return we will ensure you are well supported and mentored so you feel you have the tools and confidence to deliver your role.
The post holder may also be required to support the Healthwatch Westminster and RBKC teams so it’s essential that you are flexible and embrace change.
Key responsibilities
Engagement (Healthwatch Brent)
- Identify opportunities for community engagement that support the delivery of our annua work plan.
- Take a lead role in making sure all Healthwatch Brent activities involve people from all sections of the community, including seldom heard communities.
- Deliver community engagement presentations, promoting the services that local Healthwatch offers.
- Develop effective relationships with local groups to promote the Healthwatch service and share platforms to capture people’s views and experiences.
- Keep abreast of good engagement practice and actively seek out innovative ways to capture and express people’s views/experiences, including engagement techniques appropriate to different audiences.
- Work in partnership with key stakeholders from the grassroots network to support engagement in projects, including co-production and joint communications.
Communications
- Create a variety of engaging and up-to-date digital media content across all social media channels, including web content, Twitter and Facebook.
- Identify service improvements in our communication that are inclusive (we have a large under 35 year old population as well as a less digital confident community.
- Create regular updates, circulating these to inform key stakeholders of changes to services and support interest and engagement in local issues.
- Design reports, presentations and stationary templates for the Healthwatch service, making sure all materials keep to the Healthwatch brand guidelines.
- Answer and respond appropriately to calls about the service, collaborating with the team to give signposting support via phone and email.
- Keep up to date with best practice from Healthwatch England, by reading, attending courses and networking.
- Carry out any other tasks needed for the service to run smoothly, as directed by the Healthwatch Manager.
General responsibilities
- Service improvements are key, so we value ideas for change / improvement and efficiency gains.
- Participate in team meetings, training and organisational development.
- Record your activity to ensure accurate capture of time spent and impact achieved.
- Contribute to reports either through proof reading, providing information or developing the first draft.
- Keep to our policies, including health & safety, safeguarding and risk regulations.
- Work to our mission, vision, and values.
- Work flexibly to meet the needs of the service, in line with the changing local and national landscape and carry out other projects and tasks as needed.
Person specification
Essential
- Experience / understanding of promoting user empowerment and user choice.
- Experience producing communication materials for a variety of channels and audiences.
- Experience / good understanding of working with diverse communities, particularly seldom heard groups.
- Understanding of health inequality and the role Healthwatch can play in helping local people to address these.
- Reasonable understanding of the NHS / social care, particularly the role of user/citizen involvement in developing services.
- Experience of project management; ability to manage multiple projects effectively and meet deadlines.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to work effectively with a wide variety of stakeholders ranging from residents, colleagues, partners, trustees and commissioners.
- Excellent organisational skills, ability to take initiative and plan your own workload.
- Commitment to working within The Advocacy Project and Healthwatch code of conduct, equality and safeguarding policies.
- Willingness to attend further training and to adopt new procedures.
- Willingness to promote Healthwatch and The Advocacy Project in line with our mission, vision and values.
Desirable
- Evidence of ongoing personal development and training related to the role.
- Previous experience of working within a Healthwatch service or other community service.
- Experience coordinating and working with volunteers
Benefits of working for us
We are a great team focused on both individual and collective growth and development.
We are committed to providing an empowering, flexible and supportive working environment for all our staff.
Our employee benefits include 30 days annual leave (including up to 3 days between Christmas and New Year), participation in a pension scheme with 6% employer contribution, access to a free confidential counselling service, and an interest-free travel/bike loan.
All our staff are supported to learn and develop in a variety of ways, including a wide range of community development and on the job experience (well supported).
We are a Disability Confident Committed and Mindful Employer.
If you would like to know more about the work we have focused on, have a look at our website at Home | Healthwatch Brent
How to apply
Upload your application via our website on www.advocacyproject.org.uk/work-for-us
Include your CV and a supporting statement explaining why you think you are the person we’re looking for and how your experience meets the person specification.
If you are keen to work on a more flexible basis just let us know how many hours you would like to commit to. We are very happy to consider a job sharing arrangement.
Please include examples from paid or voluntary work, and life experiences. We only accept applications from candidates who upload both a supporting statement and CV.
It’s a legal requirement that you are eligible to work in the UK for all our posts.
If you have any questions, please get in touch on HR@advocacyproject.org.uk / 020 8106 0640.
