Senior Officer (Strategic Communications & Campaigns)

SENIOR OFFICER (STRATEGIC COMMUNICATIONS & CAMPAIGNS)

Salary: £37,000 - £40,000 per annum

Reports to: Senior Manager (Strategic Communications & Campaigns)

Department: Policy, Information and Communications

Contract: Permanent

Hours: 35 hours per week

Location: Stratford w/ high-flex (1-2 days per week in the office)

Closing date: Sunday 1 December 2024, 23:55

Please note: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship.

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer.

We are professionals with purpose, beating cancer every day. But we need to go much further and much faster. That's why we we're looking for someone talented, someone who shares our vision, someone like you.

We have an exciting opportunity for you to join us as a Senior Officer (Strategic Communications & Campaigns). We need you to help drive the implementation and delivery of high-impact, national communications, media, and public relations campaigns that align with the charity's broader organisational goals. This role is pivotal in working in a team that shapes the charity's external image through targeted national corporate and consumer PR campaigns.

What will I be doing?

• Supporting the planning and implementation of national media and PR strategies that advance the charity's mission, ensuring all communications activity is aligned with organisational goals and priorities
• Planning and delivering national corporate and consumer PR campaigns to support fundraising campaigns, partnerships and events, and key corporate communications activities
• Taking ownership of designated media, PR and communications projects, working with senior leaders to deliver impactful campaigns
• Cultivating and maintaining relationships with national media to secure coverage that enhances the charity's reputation and impact
• Crafting compelling, innovative and bold content, including press releases and pitches, that resonates across traditional and digital media platforms
• Leveraging data and audience insights to shape communications activity, ensuring that all campaigns are evidence-based and targeted for maximum impact
• Serving as a key point of contact for media enquiries and proactively identifying media opportunities, crafting engaging storylines, and managing media placements to ensure positive coverage
• Working collaboratively with other departments to source case studies and leverage celebrity supporters, enhancing the human stories behind the charity's work
• Providing support and guidance to the Officer role in the team and contributing to the development of the team by offering strategic input in team meetings and working closely with senior managers to ensure consistency in campaign rollouts.

What skills are you looking for?

• Communications expertise: proven experience in leading high-profile national PR campaigns, a strong understanding of media trends, audience insights, and communications best practices
• Problem solving: able to confidently identify and solve problems with minimal guidance and show resilience in the face of challenging situations
• Decision making: able to use your own initiative to prioritise day-to-day tasks, meet deadlines and make decisions within established guidelines and policies
• Communication skills: excellent communication and interpersonal skills, and a high level of self-awareness
• Influence: able to communicate clearly and influence colleagues to understand different points of view, with the ability to engage and influence senior stakeholders
• Strategic planning: demonstrates a clear understanding of how the role aligns with and contributes to the broader objectives of the directorate and charity
• Experience: you will have demonstrable national PR experience, either in-house or agency, with a proven track-record of delivering excellent results, managing national media relationships and securing high-profile national coverage.

What will I gain?

Each and every one of our employees contributes to our progress and is supporting our work to beat cancer. We think that's impressive.

In return, we make sure you are supported by a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools, policies and processes to enable you to do your job well.

Our benefits package includes a substantial retirement plan, a generous and flexible leave allowance, discounts on anything from travel to technology, gym membership, and much more.

We review pay annually and aim to recognise individual performance and achievements.

We don't forget people have lives outside of work too and so we actively encourage a flexible working culture.

Our work - from funding cutting-edge research to developing public policy - will change the world. It's exciting to be part of our team.

How do I apply?

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won't be able to view them until we invite you for an interview.

Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you quickly, fairly and objectively. Please note, you will also be asked to complete a short screening question.