Shaping Our Lives is embarking on an exciting period of growth and development. Having recently received a four-year grant through the National Lottery Community Fund (NLCF), we will be focusing on renewing the role of Disabled people in the age of change, further solidifying our role as experts in the field of inclusion, and strengthening our current practices. 

We are looking for an enthusiastic, self-motivated and experienced Communications and Marketing Officer to help us shape our communications strategy, support our growth, and create accessible, engaging, and informative content.

Shaping Our Lives is a user-led organisation that hosts a national network of user-led groups, service users and Disabled people. We are a non-profit making organisation chaired by Peter Beresford OBE (Emeritus Professor of Social Policy at Brunel University). The management board and National User Group are all Disabled people and / or from marginalised communities who are committed to inclusivity and diversity.

We specialise in user-led research and inclusive involvement practice, ensuring that diverse and excluded communities are represented in the policy making, planning, and delivery of health and social care services.

We work in an accessible and inclusive way and are committed to the equal involvement of people from marginalised and oppressed communities. 

Our vision

A society in which everyone has equal life chances and support for independent living. A society which prioritises inclusion. 

Our mission

We work with people, especially those facing the biggest barriers, to build better more inclusive services and support.

Our aims

• To promote best practice inclusive involvement of people who use health and social care services locally and nationally.
• To provide resources and research to support organisations and people who take part in engagement activities to have a meaningful and influential experience.
• To deliver inclusive involvement guidance, training and methods so health and social care providers can create better and more effective services for the people who use them.
• To ensure that the experiences of people who use health and social care services are considered by policy and planning personnel.
• To give a shared voice and provide a network to user-controlled organisations.
• To work in an equal and accessible manner so everyone can take part.

For more information, visit www.shapingourlives.org.uk.

Job overview

Location: Home based with occasional travel in England.

Hours: 3 days per week / 21 hours per week (Monday to Friday).

Salary: £30,000 per annum (£18,000 pro rata for 3 days per week / 21 hours per week).

Contract type: Permanent contract with 6-month probation period.

Responsible to: Head of Projects

Benefits: 3% employer contribution to pension (or as current legislation), 25 days annual leave plus 8 bank holidays (pro rata) and HMRC tax-free working from home allowance (pro rata).

We work flexibly and are open to discussing working arrangements that enable you to thrive in the role.

Purpose of the job

The Communications and Marketing Officer will be critical to the future growth of Shaping Our Lives.

They will ensure we maintain a strong national profile with a range of audiences and a close working relationship with our network members.

This post requires someone with a year's experience (paid or voluntary) of the following aspects:

• Knowledge of accessibility best practice and how to make content accessible.
• Short and long campaign planning.
• Writing email bulletins, newsletters, marketing communications, and social media posts.
• Writing website content and managing websites.
• A strong understanding of the role and application of social media to raise an organisations profile.
• An ability to be both proactive and reactive to opportunities. 
  
  

Understanding of inclusive working and knowledge of the operating conditions of a small user-led organisation would be an advantage.

As a small organisation, all our staff are sometimes required to work in other areas of our business (with appropriate support). We have an excellent reputation as a successful user-led organisation and are a supportive and friendly team.

The post holder will be home-based and may on rare occasions be asked to work on different days, in the evenings or at the weekend. The role may require some travel to attend meetings and events.

General responsibilities

• You must be committed to working in an inclusive way and have an understanding of equality, diversity, and inclusion.
• You must follow our internal policies and procedures.
• To participate in regular supervision and undergo training if required.
• To attend and participate in remote and in-person meetings including internal meetings.
• To be able to work as part of a team and co-operate with other staff, the Management Board, and the National User Group.
• To be self-administrating and able to work independently.
• To show willingness to be involved in the wider work of Shaping Our Lives.
• To treat confidentially any information about user-led groups, members, service users, and staff that could be deemed as personal, private or sensitive.
• In addition, the post-holder may be required (with support) to undertake any other activities appropriate to their level of responsibility and accountability.
  
  

Main responsibilities

1. Shape and deliver Shaping Our Lives' communications strategy

• With other staff and management board members, devise short- and longer-term communications and marketing campaign themes that support the business objectives of Shaping Our Lives.
• Devise appropriate campaign delivery methods through the website, social media and local and national media, and execute all necessary activities.
• Support project-specific recruitment processes through targeted and accessible communications, including the promotion, recruitment, and dissemination related to user-led forums, in line with the NLCF-funded project.
• Provide responsive and timely communications in response to news, policy changes or other relevant announcements.
• Create a database of other communication channels (e.g., sector ebulletins) where Shaping Our Lives can promote our work and target with relevant items.
• Administration of email and hosting services including managing the Mailchimp programme for electronic communications.
• Keep abreast of sector developments, other user-led initiatives and relevant policy developments.
  
  

2. Manage and maintain our website

• Maintain Shaping Our Lives website, ensuring the site remains up to date in a timely way.
• Add new work and campaigns to the website.
• With help from website provider, manage updates and requirements for new plug-ins etc., to keep the website up to date (training provided).
• Annually check our databases of user-led organisations and update as required
•  Ensure compliance with GDPR for all data held.
  
  

3. Manage our social media accounts and monitor engagement trends

• Monitor social media trends and ensure Shaping Our Lives has a presence on the relevant platforms.
• Make social media strategy recommendations to staff and the management board.
• Make regular accessible social media postings to raise our profile and grow the followers/subscribers.
  
  

4. Write engaging and accurate communications for a range of audiences including ebulletins, newsletters, press releases and website content

• Ensure all content created is accessible and in appropriate formats.
• Produce regular ebulletins for our network members.
• Create special announcement ebulletin and social media posts to support new projects and announcements.
• Write press releases (with support from other staff and the management board) for sector and other media publications and develop impact-centred stories to demonstrate the outcomes of our work.
• Collect quotes and case studies to support communications.
• Work with the Head of Projects to translate project and forum outputs into accessible reports, summaries, and digital content (in relation to our NLCF project).
  
  

5. Event support

• Support events with internal and external communications.
• On occasions, the post holder may be asked to help out at events.
  
  

6. Monitoring and reporting

• Monitor and evaluate impact of all communications and prepare timely accessible internal reports.
  
  

Person specification

Essential criteria

Knowledge and understanding:

• Educational qualifications and/or work experience to be able to deliver the requirements of the post.
• Excellent knowledge of the main social media platforms, tools, and approaches.
• An understanding of the discrimination and exclusion experienced by marginalised or oppressed communities.
  
  

Experience:

• At least one year of work experience in a communications role (paid or voluntary).
• Experience of making communications accessible to Deaf and Disabled people with a range of communication access needs.
• Evidence of successfully using both media and social media to support and raise the profile of activities and campaigns.
• Experience of drafting communications for websites, blog posts, social media, email newsletters, and press releases.
• Experience of communicating complex and / or policy-related topics to a broad audience.
• Managing and maintaining websites.
  
  

Qualities and skills

• Excellent standard of written English and ability to develop clear, compelling, and accessible communications for a range of audiences.
• Good interpersonal skills and ability to develop relationships with the media and others which further your aims.
• Ability to work on own initiative, plan and prioritise own workload, and meet tight deadlines.
• Ability to produce accessible communications (plain English, inclusive language, alternative text and image descriptions).
• Comfortable with home working in a mainly desk-based role.
• Be able to work flexibly as part of a small team.
• Ability to keep good records.
• Sound Information and Communications Technology (ICT) competence.
• A commitment to helping people from all communities to have a strong voice.
  
  

Desirable criteria

• Lived experience or a good understanding of the lived experience of being a Disabled person and/or a member of a marginalised or oppressed community.
• Experience of working in the user-led sector and /or within user-led organisations.
• Experience of using WordPress.
• Graphic design and film editing skills.   
   

How to apply

Click the 'Apply now' button on the Patchwork Hub job advert to be taken to Shaping Our Lives' own web page for the vacancy, where you'll be able to find out more about the roles and the organisation, and access the application forms (available in a range of formats).

If you wish to apply for this role, please send us the completed Applicant Details Form and Supporting Information Form by 23:59 (midnight) on 13th July 2026 (accessed via clicking 'Apply now' on the Patchwork Hub advert and navigating to download links for your preferred format).

Please send your application via email to: [email protected] with ‘Recruitment – Head of Operations’ in the subject line.

If you are successful in proceeding to interview, the Remote interview date will be the week starting Monday 3rd August - although we can accomodate if necessary.

We would also like to ask you to complete the Recruitment Diversity Monitoring Form, although this is optional. If the online form is not accessible to you, please get in touch at [email protected] so that we can provide it in an alternative format.  

Alternative formats: You can submit your Supporting Information Form in the following formats:

• In writing
• By making a video [in English or in British Sign Language (BSL)]
• By making an audio recording only
  
  

All information will be treated confidentially, and applications will be anonymised by our Recruitment and Access Coordinator. 

We will not be considering formal CVs for this role.

Before applying, read the job description, the person specification, and information provided about Shaping Our Lives carefully. 

We wanted to further emphasise the following in relation to the ‘Personal Statement’ section in the ‘Supporting Information Form’:

• Relate your skills, knowledge and experience to each of the person specification criteria as fully as possible.
• It is advised that you address each criterion point by point by providing examples of work, experience, skills and knowledge where possible.
• Consider any paid or unpaid work you have done.
• Do not forget to include any voluntary experience or any skills and knowledge acquired through your lived experience or hobbies.
  
  

Due to access requirements of staff and the skill requirements for this job, we are not accepting applications by post.

We aim to respond to all applications, whether successful or not. If you do not hear from us until the interview window, however, please assume your application has been unsuccessful on this occasion.

You must have the legal right to work in the UK to apply for this role. We cannot provide visa sponsorship.

Shaping Our Lives is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. We encourage and welcome applications from people from marginalised and often excluded communities.

Note: Appointment is subject to satisfactory refences, proof of right to work in the UK, and an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Accessibility

If you need support to apply, please contact our Recruitment and Access Coordinator via email at [email protected] or by telephone at 02080 885628.

Some examples of what you can ask for include:

• Help to write or format your application
• Support to understand the information in the Job Pack and accompanying job details
• Request the Job Pack in an alternative format.
  
  

Please let us know if you need support as soon as possible.

Visit our Recruitment Process page, You can find further information about the steps we are taking to make our recruitment process inclusive and accessible on our Recruitment Process page.

The use of Artification Intelligence (AI)

A core pillar of our approach to recruitment is human-led decision-making. We endeavour to honour the time and effort you invest when applying for a role at Shaping Our Lives. We will not use Artificial Intelligence (AI) to filter, rank, or reject applications. 

We understand that you may choose to use AI-powered assistive technology or generative AI when filling out your application. However, we want to discourage overreliance on AI as, in many cases, applications can end up being generic and fail to showcase candidates’ unique voices and experiences. 

We ask that you think about how you may use AI tools as responsibly as possible and what value they will add. You can find further advice on AI use in the recruitment process and examples of what we consider to be acceptable and unacceptable uses in our statement on the use of AI.

Questions about the role

If you have any questions about the organisation, what the job entails, or anything else along these lines, please get in touch with our Head of Projects via email at [email protected] or by telephone at 07904 532939.