Re: Policy and Information Officer
Ref: RoM 33
Date: 22/07/ 2013
Dear Applicant,
Thank you for your interest in the above post. Enclosed is a pack containing:
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Background Information (for the RSG’s latest Annual Report, please see our
website)
Job Description
Person Specification
Application Form
Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form
Rehabilitation of Offenders Form
Please send your completed application form to:
Recruitment Panel, Roma Support Group, P.O. Box 23610, London, E7 0XB
or email to: mihaela@romasupportgroup.org.uk clearly stating the subject: Job Title and
Reference Number of the post you are applying for.
Please note that the deadline for completed applications is Monday, 19th August at
5 pm. Applications received later will not be considered. I would also like to stress that
we do not accept CVs.
Interviews will be held at the Roma Support Group’s office in Canning Town on the
12th and 19th September 2013. You will be informed by telephone if you have been
short listed, therefore could you provide us with daytime and evening telephone numbers.
If you do not hear from us, please assume that your application has not been successful.
Unfortunately, we cannot reply to those candidates, who have not been shortlisted.
I wish you every success with your application and thank you for your interest in the
Roma Support Group.
Sylvia Ingmire
(RSG Co-ordinator/ CEO)
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Job Description
Title:
Policy & Information Officer (ref: RoM 33)
Responsible to:
Roma Support Group’s CEO
Location of Post:
L.B. Newham, Canning Town
Purpose of Job:
You will be responsible for developing the Roma
Support Group’s policy positions, ensuring that they are
informed by experiences and views of Roma refugees
and migrants in the UK. You will effectively
communicate their perspective to key stakeholders at
regional, national and European levels, contribute to
policy debates and the development of new Romarelevant strategies.
Hours:
14 hours per week
Salary:
£27,300 pro rata; (actual: £10,920 per annum), inc. LW
(NJC scale SO1)
This post is funded by the Barrow Cadbury Trust for 1 year.
Context of the Job:
The Roma Support Group (RSG) is a registered Charity and a Company Limited
by Guarantee. The organisation was established in 1998 in order to improve the
quality of life of Roma refugees and migrants. At present the organisation delivers
the following projects and services: a/ General Advice & Advocacy for Roma
families; b/ Advocacy for Roma Elder People; c/Aspiration Project for Young
Roma; d/ Art Development Project; e/ Sport Activities (football & karate
sessions); f/ Promoting an understanding of Roma Culture through training,
consultation, disseminating of our resources and a delivery of Roma Culture
Workshops in schools.
Roma refugees and migrants are amongst the most discriminated and socially
excluded minorities in the UK. They have the shortest life expectancy, the lowest
educational attainment and are one of the most vulnerable to poverty groups in
Britain. There is an urgent need to facilitate their social, economic and political
inclusion to ensure that social justice, fairness and equality are at the heart of their
process of integration in the UK.
The need and demand for our work is reflected in our casework statistics. At
present we provide assistance to over 870 Roma families from Poland, Czech
Republic, Slovakia, Romania, Lithuania, Balkan countries, etc. Our centres are
located around high concentrations of Roma people in the L. B. Newham and
L. B. Hammersmith & Fulham.
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With a wealth of data collected from our services and projects, the RSG is
uniquely placed to gather evidence of disadvantage and the challenges that Roma
people face in London and across the UK. This data provides us with an
extremely potent tool to create well-informed policy positions, campaigns and
contributions to the national debate, making us one of the best informed Roma-led
charity organisation in the UK. We want to use this information to influence
policy makers and co-shape new strategies and best practice.
This work is increasingly important for the RSG, particularly due to the
diminishing support for Roma communities, lack of specialised services and the
transient nature of professionals working with Roma refugees and migrants. We
are now building our capacity to manage and deliver a more effective approach to
our policy, information and campaigning work and you will play a vital role in
this process.
Job Outline:
Central to the Roma Support Group’s (RSG) advocacy and campaigning role is our policy
and information work, which will be vital to our engagement with central and local
governments, EU decision makers and other key players in the policy making area.
Using evidence from our casework, London-based Roma Refugee and Migrant Forum,
focus group meetings and our work in other regions, the Policy and Information Officer will
develop RSG’s policy positions, provide information and build strategic relationships with a
wide range of stakeholders. S/he will also disseminate findings internally and externally
through e-bulletins and local/ regional meetings with Roma activists and professionals
working with Roma communities.
Policy and Information Officer will work closely with the Roma Advocacy and Campaign
Project Worker in co-facilitating Roma Forum in London, as well as empowering Roma
advocates to represent their communities at strategic meetings with policy and decision
makers and participate in local/ regional campaigns.
Policy and Information Officer will be line-managed and supported by the CEO
and will collaborate closely with all members of the Roma Support Group’s staff,
as well as volunteers.
Main Duties and Key Responsibilities:
Policy & Information Officer will be expected to work as a member of a team
under the overall supervision of the CEO. However, s/he will be expected to
perform many of the duties outlined below independently and working on his/ her
own initiative.
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a. Policy & Information Work:
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You will develop the RSG’s external relations programme and policy
influencing work by building strategic relationships with parliamentarians,
senior civil servants and other key stakeholders.
You will represent Roma refugees and migrants’ perspective to the
European Commission, MEPs, Office of the Commissioner for Human
Rights, etc.
You will conduct policy and information research.
You will co-develop the RSG’s policy positions based on the evidence
provided by Roma Refugee and Migrant Forum, Roma focus group
meetings, casework and research.
You will prepare internal briefing notes and responses to public
consultations.
You will take part in external meetings with research, policy and other key
stakeholders.
You will respond to media enquiries, provide information and policy
perspectives for media briefings.
You will write and disseminate quarterly e-bulletins to statutory and nonstatutory agencies working with Roma communities across England.
You will develop working relationships with Roma initiatives and
empower Roma activists from different regions of the UK using RSG’s
database of current contacts.
Together with Roma Advocacy and Campaigning Worker, you will be coresponsible for running a strategic Roma Refugee & Migrant Forum in
East London.
b. Supervising Volunteers:
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You will outreach, recruit and support volunteers through induction
sessions, in-house training, referrals to external training, regular
supervisions and on-going support.
You will ensure that all volunteers have DBS checks before they start their
work.
c. Other Project – Related Duties:
 You will review the work plan, targets and aims, as well as provide
regular reports to the RSG’s Co-ordinator, Project Steering Group and the
Management Committee (MC).
 You will set up a monitoring and evaluation plan to measure the impact
of local/ regional/ national policy and information work.
 You will be required to monitor and evaluate your work on a regular basis
and write reports to funders, the RSG’s website, Annual Report, etc.,
when necessary.
 You will be responsible for establishing, running and administrating the
Project Steering Group, which will meet four times per year and whose
aim is to oversee the development of the policy and information work.
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You will take part in training, which will be relevant to your work. You
will discuss your training needs with the RSG’s Co-ordinator.
d. General Responsibilities:
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You will be administratively self-sufficient in terms of writing your
letters, leaflets, reports, etc.
You will be attending the Roma Support Group’s staff meetings,
supervisions, AGMs, Policy Days, etc.
You will carry out the responsibilities of the post with full regard to the
Roma Support Group’s Equal Opportunities Policy, Outreach Policy,
Health and Safety Policy, financial procedures and other procedural
guidelines.
You may be required to identify appropriate funders and apply for funding
under the supervision of your line manager.
Other duties as required.
e. Special Responsibilities:
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You will occasionally work outside of normal hours, especially if you
organise or participate in an event. Extra hours worked will be
compensated by time off in lieu.
Additional Information:
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Because you will be working with vulnerable people, you will undergo a
DBS check before you commence your work.
The RSG has a small staff team and everyone is expected to work together
as a team, contributing to shared tasks as well as taking responsibility for
their own area of work.
Terms and Conditions
1. Salary: £27,300 pro rata; (actual: £10,920 per annum), inc. LW
2. Hours of Work:
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14 hours per week excluding lunch meal breaks;
Hours of work will be fixed but with some flexibility and will exclude
meal breaks;
You may have to work occasionally outside of normal hours due to the
vagaries of the job. Extra hours will be compensated by time off in lieu.
You must inform the RSG’s Co-ordinator/ CEO prior to undertaking any
overtime for which you wish to be compensated by time off in lieu.
3. Location:
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You will be based at the main office in Canning Town (L.B. Newham) but you
will also visit our outreach venue in White City (L.B. Hammersmith & Fulham)
4. Annual Leave:
You will be entitled to 9.5 days of annual leave. The allowance for the annual
leave for a full time worker (working 35 hours per week) is 24 working days per
year plus public holidays that fall upon the days that the worker would normally
work.
5. Probation Period:
All appointments are subject to a six-month probationary period.
6. Notice Period:
The notice period required to be given by either side is not less than 4 weeks and
it must be done in writing.
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PERSON SPECIFICATION
Job Title: Policy and Information Officer
Criteria
Experience and
Knowledge
Essential Requirements
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Skills and
Abilities
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Qualifications
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Knowledge and empathy with issues
affecting Roma refugee and migrant
communities in London ;
Knowledge and understanding of
Roma culture;
Knowledge of immigration law in
relation to asylum-seekers, refugees
and migrants;
At least 2 years of experience of
policy change and information
work;
An understanding of the UK and EU
social policies that affect Roma
refugees and migrants;
Knowledge of the working of
Parliament, central government,
local authorities and the EU;
Knowledge/ experience of working
on public affairs campaigns;
Experience of monitoring,
collecting and analysing data and
project evaluation;
At least 2 years of experience of
volunteer supervision, project
management and development;
Excellent writing, editing and
proofreading skills (e.g.: drafting
key reports, press releases,
summarising documents, etc.);
Excellent verbal communication and
presentation skills;
Ability to communicate complex
information clearly;
Ability to listen to others and work
in a non-judgmental way;
Ability to establish trust-based
relationships with a wide range of
stakeholders and partners;
Ability to work collaboratively;
Analytical and conceptual thinking
skills;
Numeracy and statistics skills;
Ability to plan, prioritise and
manage your own workload within
a pressurised environment;
Ability to follow procedures and be
administratively self-sufficient
Desirable requirements
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Fluency in Romanes
and /or one of East
European languages,
i.e. Polish, Slovak,
Czech, Romanian.
.Ability to design and
produce your own
publicity material;
To be educated to degree level or
equivalent and demonstrate
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Relevant
Personal
Characteristics
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Special Job
Circumstances
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considerable experience and ability
in the skills listed above
Adaptability and flexibility;
Ability to negotiate and influence,
and a positive approach to solving
problems;
Ability to proactively build
relationships;
Motivation, drive and perseverance;
Enthusiasm, willingness to take
responsibility for own work areas
and “can do” approach;
Innovation and creativity;
Ability to pay close attention to
detail, deliver accurately and to
deadlines;
Commitment to and understanding
of Equal Opportunities and
confidentiality;
A sense of humour!
Willingness to attend meetings and
training as required ;
Willingness to work flexibly, which
may require evenings or weekends
for which time off in lieu will be
given;
Be a good team worker
demonstrating loyalty and
commitment to the organisation and
team members;
Candidates will require a high
degree of mobility to travel around
London.
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Clean Driving
License
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ROMA SUPPORT GROUP
APPLICATION FOR EMPLOYMENT
This form will be photocopied, so please type your answers or write clearly in
black ink. Please use the same size (A4) paper for any additional pages.
Please return the form to: The Recruitment Panel, Roma Support Group,
P.O. Box 23610, London, E7 0XB or email to:
mihaela@romasupportgroup.org.uk
Please read the guidance notes for applicants before completing this form.
Post Applied For (Ref No)
RoM 33
How did you find out about the post?
__________________________________________________________________
1. PERSONAL DETAILS
Surname:
First Name(s):
Address:
Post Code:
Tel. No: (Home):
(Mobile):
(Work):
Please tick if it is not convenient
for us to contact you at work
2. REFERENCES
Please give the details of two referees, not relatives, the first of which should be
your present or most recent employer. Please note that referees may be
approached prior to interview, so please indicate if this is a problem.
Name:
Name:
Address:
Address:
Telephone No.:
Telephone No.:
Occupation:
Occupation:
3. SUMMARY OF EDUCATION & QUALIFICATIONS
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(Most recent first)
Dates
Institution, Qualifications obtained
4. OTHER RELEVANT TRAINING
Dates
Details of Training
Please continue on a separate sheet if necessary
5. YOUR WORK EXPERIENCE
Please give details of your present job or, if you are not working, your last job.
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Name and address of employer (and type of business):
Dates: from … until …
Position held:
Salary:
Other benefits:
Notice period:
Reason for leaving or seeking new employment:
Please give a brief description of your duties and responsibilities:
6. PREVIOUS EMPLOYMENT
Please give details of your previous jobs. Put your most recent job first. Give
details of any gaps in your employment history including unemployment.
Dates:
Name & Address
of Employer
Duties &
Achievements
Reasons for
Leaving
Please continue on a separate sheet if necessary.
7. SUPPORTING STATEMENT
In this section you should demonstrate how you meet the requirements for the job.
Relate your skills and experience to each area of the Person Specification. If you
feel you need more space, please continue on a separate sheet.
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8. DECLARATION
The Roma Support Group reserves the right to confirm the factual basis of any
information you have provided. If any particulars given by you in this application
form are found to be false or if you willfully omit or suppress any material facts,
you may be liable to dismissal if appointed.
I declare to the best of my knowledge the information provided on this form
is correct.
Signed:
Date:
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ROMA SUPPORT GROUP
EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES
The Roma Support Group is committed to take positive steps to ensure that noone is treated less favourably on the grounds of race, gender, marital status, sexual
orientation, nationality, ethnic or national origin, colour, creed, religion, disability
or age (legal restrictions excepted).
To assist us in monitoring our policy, and for no other reason, please answer the
following questions.
This information is treated as strictly confidential and this form will not be used in
the selection process.
Completing this section of the application form is voluntary.
POSITION APPLIED FOR:
SURNAME:
FIRST NAMES:
1. Please show which group best describes your ethnic origin or descent by
ticking one of the boxes below:
Bangladeshi
Black African
Black Caribbean
Chinese
Indian
Pakistani
White
Roma/Gypsy
Other
If “Other”, please state:
2.
Have you a disability we should know about?
If yes, please give some further details:
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REHABILITATION OF OFFENDERS ACT 1974
(EXCEPTION) ORDER 1986 FORM
Name (in full, please print):
_________________________________________________
Post Applied for:
_______________________________________________
We would draw your attention to the following statement:
“Because of the nature of the work for which you are applying, this post is exempt
from the provisions of Section 4 (2) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974
(Exceptions) Order 1986. Applicants are, therefore, not entitled to withhold
information about convictions and cautions which for other purposes are “spent”
under the provisions of the Act”.
The following questions must be answered by all applicants. You should provide
details about all pending or spent prosecutions, convictions and cautions. The
information should include the approximate date, the offence and the Court or
Police Service which dealt with the offence.
DO YOU HAVE A PROSECUTION PENDING OR HAVE YOU EVER
BEEN CONVICTED AT A COURT OR CAUTIONED BY THE POLICE
FOR ANY OFFENCE?
YES/NO (please tick)
IF YES PLEASE GIVE DETAILS AND DATES IN THE SPACE BELOW.
DECLARATION:
I understand that, if it is found that I have withheld information or included any
false or misleading information above, I will be disqualified from the
appointment, or, if already appointed, this will render me liable to dismissal
without notice. I understand that the information will be kept securely by the
RSG.
I hereby declare that the information I have provided is accurate.
Signed:
Date:
Please return this form with your Application Form
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