Project and Volunteer Engagement Officer (Rugby River Champions) School of Geography, Earth and Environmental Sciences 106726 Grade 6

Position Details

School of Geography Earth and Environmental Sciences

Location: University of Birmingham Edgbaston Birmingham UK

Full time starting salary is normally in the range 33002 to 35608 with potential progression once in post to 39906

Grade: 6

Part Time (22.5 hours per week)

Fixed Term contract up to January 2028

Closing date: 14th January 2026

UK travel may be required for this role

Our offer to you

People are at the heart of what we are and do.

The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years andweare equally proud to be recognised as a leading global want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond support them to succeed and celebrate their success.

We are committed to helping the people who work here todevelopthrough our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programmewhichprovides allprofessionalservices staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full almost 5000professionalservices jobs in a wide-range of functionsin Edgbaston andin our campus inDubai there are plenty of opportunities foryou to be able to develop yourcareer at the University.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas innovation and warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we areand how we work.

Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees andtothe success of the University and depending on the role we offer avarietyof flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible addition you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 dayspaid holidaya year one paid day a year for volunteering occupational sick pay and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.

The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus including main bus routes and a train station on campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool shopsplaces to eat and drinkour own art gallery museum and botanical gardens.

Find out more about thebenefits of working for the Universityof Birmingham

Role Summary

The successful candidate will play a key role in establishing and delivering the new Rugby River Champions citizen science initiative - a community-based project focused on river health monitoring. They will support volunteer networks provide training and resources develop communications and glean community feedback to enhance participation and impact. The volunteer engagement officer will be expected to display strong organisational skills to plan prioritise and deliver activities while also representing the project within the University of Birmingham and Rugby Borough Council. The pos tholder will be expected to work in the Rugby area although flexibility will be required and some time will also be spent on university campus particularly during the earlier stages of the role.

Main Duties

The volunteer engagement officer will initially learn from the already established Birmingham River Champions. They will work closely with university personnel leading this initiative and will receive tailored support and training in this space before applying this to the Rugby area. You will manage various elements of the Rugby River Champions programme supporting delivery across multiple workstreams. Responsibilities will include:

Volunteer Engagement and Support

• Identifying and connecting with potential volunteer networks across the Rugby area.
• Once established deliver training on ecological and water chemistry citizen science techniques related to river health monitoring.
• Supporting volunteers in their monitoring activities via field supervision and email communications.
• Communicate project developments and volunteer achievements viadifferent social media platforms.
• Gathering volunteer perceptions and feedback via basic social science research.

Project Reporting and Delivery

• Determine short term priorities for own work ensuring you maximise quality efficiency and continuity.
• Supporting the analysis of citizen science outputs and research by preparing spreadsheets and calculating basic statistics.
• Preparing progress reports for project leads or other meetings.
• Disseminating project updates to volunteers via newsletters and community events.
• Where relevant act as main point of contact for and facilitate the processing of project related procurement contracts and invoicing.

Project Management and Administration

• Monitor progress on volunteer numbers and fulfilment identifying potential issues and where required recommending improvements to processes.
• Support budgetary monitoring and management including reporting.
• Assessing and escalating issues and risks with project managers as appropriate.

Other responsibilities

• Assist with stakeholder management developing and maintaining regular contact with internal and external stakeholders to understand requirements.
• Support the Universitys sustainability agenda through resource efficient working.
• Promote equality and values diversity acting as a role model and fostering an inclusive working culture.
• Any other duties commensurate with the grade.

Required Knowledge Skills Qualifications Experience

• Educated to Degree level (or equivalent qualifications). Where no equivalent qualification is held significant practical relevant experience and expertise in a similar role will be required.
• Significant practical experience in a project management and/or administrative role(s).
• Experience working with community groups volunteers or citizen science initiatives.
• Experience in project coordination including administration scheduling and resource management.
• Experience producing newsletters reports or outreach materials.
• Evidence of literacy and numeracy with the ability to write clearly and to produce and analyse information and data.
• Strong organisational and project management skills with ability to prioritise tasks and meet deadlines.
• Excellent interpersonal and communication skills with ability to engage and motivate volunteers.
• Experience with budgetary management.
• Highly proficient IT skills including the wider MS Office suite of programmes including Excel and PowerPoint.
• Experience in social media communication (e.g. Instagram and/or Facebook updates reaching community groups LinkedIn posts).
• Ability to develop and maintain effective relationships with a range of stakeholders (community academic local government).
• Willingness to work outdoors in varying conditions when supporting volunteer field activities.
• Flexible and adaptable approach to work including occasional evening or weekend commitments for community events.
• Familiarity with social science research methods (desirable).
• Understanding of freshwater ecology water quality monitoring or related environmental issues (desirable).
• A full UK driving licence (desirable).
• A high degree of initiative personal judgement resourcefulness flexibility and a self-motivating approach.
• Knowledge of the protected characteristics of the Equality Act 2010 and how to actively ensure in day-to-day activity in own area that those with protected characteristics are treated equally and fairly.

Informal enquiries to James White email:

View our staff values and behaviours here

Use of AI in applications:We want to understand your genuine interest in the role and for the written elements of your application to accurately reflect your own communication style. Applications that rely too heavily on AI tools can appear generic and lack the detail we need to assess your skills and experience. Such applications will unlikely be progressed to interview.

We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyoneon our website.