Job summary
The Communications and Engagement Officer plays a vital role in the Comms and Engagement Team. The role includes planning, organising and delivering straightforward communications tasks, events and projects, and contributing to larger and more complex campaigns and consultations.
Like all members of the team, the Officer is responsible for seeking out new and exciting stories across the Trust for our internal and external communications channels, and creating compelling content from these.
Other key tasks may include monitoring the mailbox, triaging requests, updating planning grids, logging media requests, monitoring and evaluating data from our activity, and compiling and sending out regular roundups to internal and external groups.
Reporting to the Communications and Engagement Manager, the post holder will develop strong working relationships with staff across the Trust and wider health and care system.Success in this post relies on good interpersonal skills, the ability to priorities and balance a large and diverse workload.
Above all, the Communications and Engagement Officer will be keen to get involved, to learn from the rest of the team and to share their own skills and knowledge, to support Whittington Health's vision of helping local people to live longer, healthier lives.
Please download the Job Description and Person Specification PDF for a full description of this role.
Main duties of the job
External communications
- Seek out potential good news stories across the Trust that might be useable externally.
- Take photographs and capture audiovisual material to be used internally and externally, and ensure appropriate consent for photography and video use is captured.
- Draft content for regular proactive stories including media releases, web copy, tweets, and Facebook posts.
- Support the team to respond to media requests in a timely way, working with senior and/or clinical staff where required, issuing corrections when appropriate.
- Use excellent judgement to appropriately deal with information of a sensitive nature.
- Liaise with designers and print agencies, including drafting briefs, gathering quotes, preparing content and final production of materials.
Internal communications
- Draft the Trust's weekly staff email roundup, liaising with contributors to ensure information is provided in an accurate and timely manner.
- Update content on the Trust intranet, liaising with key staff across the organisation to deliver an effective communication tool for the organisation.
- Support the running of internal in-person and digital meetings and events.
- Use new templates and distribution platforms for staff newsletter(s), working with other directorates to provide professional expertise to train them in producing high quality and engaging content for their staff.
- Distribute communication and campaign materials, such as posters, leaflets and other publications.
About us
The Communications and Engagement Team supports the 5,000 staff and the 500,000 people the Trust cares for and supports at our hospital site and across the community. The team also builds and maintains positive relationships with regional and national health and care organisations and commissioners, local authorities, councillors and MPs, other local partner organisations, and local, regional and national media.
The Team plays a key role in managing and enhancing the reputation of the organisation. It leads and/or contributes towards campaigns, media management, communications with staff and external stakeholders, community engagement, corporate publications, patient information, service changes and major incidents.
The members of the Communications and Engagement Team also exemplars of the best of the Trust's culture, living the organisation's ICARE values and underpinning all their work with Equity.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Digital communications
- Create and publish content across our digital channels, and monitor and evaluate effectiveness to continuously improve.
- Ensure that the Trusts website is up-to-date, supporting teams to manage their own content where necessary.
- Provide professional advice to staff on how to use digital communications effectively.
- Work to maintain and improve the Trusts reputation via social media.
- Ensure that the Trust responds to social media responses and enquiries as appropriate.
- Monitor the teams corporate email account, using judgement to triage, respond or re-direct accordingly.
- Help create, edit and publish content including films, podcasts and animations for social media and online platforms, either in-house or working with external suppliers.
Engagement
- Support engagement work across the Trust.
- Support the team in identifying issues, projects or teams that could benefit from engagement with local communities.
- Be part of Trust representation at external engagement events.
- Identify opportunities to engage with local communities.
- Use a range of communication channels to engage and encourage two-way dialogue with communities and key stakeholders.
General
- Support regular campaigns and projects that engage patients, visitors and staff and keep them well informed.
- Provide communications and engagement advice to staff, including around production of collateral (such as brochures, leaflets or videos) to help inform and engage patients, families, visitors, staff and partners.
- Ensure our communications on all levels (including directors, patients, staff and external partners/stakeholders) actively engages the audiences and wherever possible provides an opportunity for further involvement.
- Participate in regional health communications networks and support opportunities for collaborative working with colleagues from other health and care organisations.
- Promote the use of the corporate brand identity, ensuring that all Whittington Health documentation promotes a consistent image of the Trust in line with national NHS identity requirements, local brand identity, and all relevant accessibility requirements.
- Act as first point of contact to provide a response or advice to ensure all internal and external enquiries are answered quickly and accurately, taking into account highly sensitive or confidential issues and using judgement where necessary to signpost to the most appropriate person.
- Ensure hospital sites are well presented with updated and accurate Trust information on display.
- Supporting procurement in the team, by submitting and receiving requisitions using the procurement portal, and keeping accurate records of team procurement.
Event management
- Support the team to arrange dates and venues for staff briefings/external visits, liaising with staff where appropriate.
- Support the team in delivering a range of events, including the Trusts annual general meeting, awards ceremonies, open days, fundraising events, engagement or consultation events, official openings and royal and ministerial visits.
Responsibility for finance and physical resources
- Work with suppliers such as graphic designers and print/fulfilment companies to price up projects and support the team in any tender process/purchase of goods or services to ensure the Trust gets good value for money.
- Support the team in ensuring that various projects operate within agreed budgets.
Responsibility for policy/service development
- Contribute ideas for shaping, developing and updating communication related policies and procedures.
Leadership and staff management responsibility
- Provide occasional cover or deputise for the Senior Communications and Engagement Officer and/or Communications and Engagement Manager in appropriate circumstances.
- Provide supervision of any interns, apprentices or volunteers when required.
Physical working conditions and environment
- The role is based at Whittington Hospital with travel to the Trusts other sites across North London as and when required. The post holder will be required to participate in meetings at any sites, as well as travelling to other locations on an ad hoc basis as necessary.
- The role may require occasional weekend and/or evening working during community and engagement activities such as statutory consultations, staff award events, and public engagement exercises.
- The post holder will be expected to carry posters and other collateral and event materials across Trust sites and to external locations.
- This is a non-clinical post which requires occasional manual handling, for example moving boxes of publications/ setting up rooms for meetings and events and some moving of furniture.
Other duties
- To undertake any other duties commensurate with the grade as requested.
Job description
Job responsibilities
Digital communications
- Create and publish content across our digital channels, and monitor and evaluate effectiveness to continuously improve.
- Ensure that the Trusts website is up-to-date, supporting teams to manage their own content where necessary.
- Provide professional advice to staff on how to use digital communications effectively.
- Work to maintain and improve the Trusts reputation via social media.
- Ensure that the Trust responds to social media responses and enquiries as appropriate.
- Monitor the teams corporate email account, using judgement to triage, respond or re-direct accordingly.
- Help create, edit and publish content including films, podcasts and animations for social media and online platforms, either in-house or working with external suppliers.
Engagement
- Support engagement work across the Trust.
- Support the team in identifying issues, projects or teams that could benefit from engagement with local communities.
- Be part of Trust representation at external engagement events.
- Identify opportunities to engage with local communities.
- Use a range of communication channels to engage and encourage two-way dialogue with communities and key stakeholders.
General
- Support regular campaigns and projects that engage patients, visitors and staff and keep them well informed.
- Provide communications and engagement advice to staff, including around production of collateral (such as brochures, leaflets or videos) to help inform and engage patients, families, visitors, staff and partners.
- Ensure our communications on all levels (including directors, patients, staff and external partners/stakeholders) actively engages the audiences and wherever possible provides an opportunity for further involvement.
- Participate in regional health communications networks and support opportunities for collaborative working with colleagues from other health and care organisations.
- Promote the use of the corporate brand identity, ensuring that all Whittington Health documentation promotes a consistent image of the Trust in line with national NHS identity requirements, local brand identity, and all relevant accessibility requirements.
- Act as first point of contact to provide a response or advice to ensure all internal and external enquiries are answered quickly and accurately, taking into account highly sensitive or confidential issues and using judgement where necessary to signpost to the most appropriate person.
- Ensure hospital sites are well presented with updated and accurate Trust information on display.
- Supporting procurement in the team, by submitting and receiving requisitions using the procurement portal, and keeping accurate records of team procurement.
Event management
- Support the team to arrange dates and venues for staff briefings/external visits, liaising with staff where appropriate.
- Support the team in delivering a range of events, including the Trusts annual general meeting, awards ceremonies, open days, fundraising events, engagement or consultation events, official openings and royal and ministerial visits.
Responsibility for finance and physical resources
- Work with suppliers such as graphic designers and print/fulfilment companies to price up projects and support the team in any tender process/purchase of goods or services to ensure the Trust gets good value for money.
- Support the team in ensuring that various projects operate within agreed budgets.
Responsibility for policy/service development
- Contribute ideas for shaping, developing and updating communication related policies and procedures.
Leadership and staff management responsibility
- Provide occasional cover or deputise for the Senior Communications and Engagement Officer and/or Communications and Engagement Manager in appropriate circumstances.
- Provide supervision of any interns, apprentices or volunteers when required.
Physical working conditions and environment
- The role is based at Whittington Hospital with travel to the Trusts other sites across North London as and when required. The post holder will be required to participate in meetings at any sites, as well as travelling to other locations on an ad hoc basis as necessary.
- The role may require occasional weekend and/or evening working during community and engagement activities such as statutory consultations, staff award events, and public engagement exercises.
- The post holder will be expected to carry posters and other collateral and event materials across Trust sites and to external locations.
- This is a non-clinical post which requires occasional manual handling, for example moving boxes of publications/ setting up rooms for meetings and events and some moving of furniture.
Other duties
- To undertake any other duties commensurate with the grade as requested.
Person Specification
Education and qualifications
Essential
- Educated to a degree level, or equivalent qualification, or equivalent communications experience
- Further qualification or experience in communications, marketing or journalism
Skills and abilities
Essential
- Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills, including the ability to turn complex information or jargon into plain English and produce materials for a wide range of audiences
- Ability to brief people clearly and succinctly
- Ability to prioritise across competing demands and a busy workload.
- Ability to communicate effectively and confidently with all levels of staff, external agencies and the general public
- Excellent organisational skills with ability to see tasks through without supervision to tight deadlines
- Proficient in and quick learner of digital platforms such as email marketing (eg mailchimp, Govdelivery) social scheduling (Hootsuite, Buffer) etc
- Graphic design and video/audio editing skills, using a common platform such as Canva or Adobe Creative Suite
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Experience working in a communications and engagement role
- Experience of using digital tools for communications and engagement, including analytics and evaluation
- Experience supporting the planning and delivery of events
- Experience of delivering communication and engagement projects
Desirable
- Experience of working in the NHS or other public sector organisation
- Knowledge and understanding of the NHS, how it is organised and the political environment in which it operates
Personal qualities
Essential
- Positive and creative, generating new ideas and taking them forward
- Collaborative and happy to both learn and share knowledge
- Strong negotiating skills and an ability to build a rapport and trust at all levels of the organisation
- Discreet and trustworthy with confidential information
- Calm and resilient under pressure
Person Specification
Education and qualifications
Essential
- Educated to a degree level, or equivalent qualification, or equivalent communications experience
- Further qualification or experience in communications, marketing or journalism
Skills and abilities
Essential
- Excellent written, verbal and presentation skills, including the ability to turn complex information or jargon into plain English and produce materials for a wide range of audiences
- Ability to brief people clearly and succinctly
- Ability to prioritise across competing demands and a busy workload.
- Ability to communicate effectively and confidently with all levels of staff, external agencies and the general public
- Excellent organisational skills with ability to see tasks through without supervision to tight deadlines
- Proficient in and quick learner of digital platforms such as email marketing (eg mailchimp, Govdelivery) social scheduling (Hootsuite, Buffer) etc
- Graphic design and video/audio editing skills, using a common platform such as Canva or Adobe Creative Suite
Knowledge and Experience
Essential
- Experience working in a communications and engagement role
- Experience of using digital tools for communications and engagement, including analytics and evaluation
- Experience supporting the planning and delivery of events
- Experience of delivering communication and engagement projects
Desirable
- Experience of working in the NHS or other public sector organisation
- Knowledge and understanding of the NHS, how it is organised and the political environment in which it operates
Personal qualities
Essential
- Positive and creative, generating new ideas and taking them forward
- Collaborative and happy to both learn and share knowledge
- Strong negotiating skills and an ability to build a rapport and trust at all levels of the organisation
- Discreet and trustworthy with confidential information
- Calm and resilient under pressure
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
Additional information
Disclosure and Barring Service Check
This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.
Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).
From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).
