Job Title: Refugee Advocacy Lead
Location: Office-based; open to flexible working arrangements from anywhere in England, with a preference for Manchester, London, Birmingham or Leeds, with some travel including to partner meetings. This is a position which may include some evening and weekend work for meetings and events.
Hours: Full time (37.5 hours/ week Monday to Friday 9:00am – 5:00pm with some travel )
Salary: £25,000 per annum (subject to annual cost of living review)
Leave: 28 days annual leave including Bank Holidays
Contract: 1 year fixed term contract with possibility of extension depending on funding availability
Reporting to: Chief Executive Officer
Closing date: 23:59hrs, Friday 24 February 2023
Interview date: Week commencing 6 March 2023.
African Rainbow Family is looking for a dynamic Refugee Advocacy Lead passionately committed to upholding the rights of LGBTIQ refugees and people seeking asylum at a critical time for the future of the asylum system and the rights of refugees.
We are a small but friendly and specialist team that campaigns for the rights of LGBTIQ refugees and people seeking asylum from African heritage and wider BAME. We work with an extensive network of frontline partners to advocate for progressive change in the asylum and immigration system. We are based in Manchester, Birmingham, Leeds, London and Cardiff.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Advocacy
- Lead and manage the advocacy service and manage cases of LGBTIQ people seeking asylum especially those of a complex nature.
- Ensure service users have access to quality, pro bono or legal aid legal representation
- Work with the CEO, Move-On and Integration Officer, Campaign and Communication Officer and Advocacy Assistants and consult with service users to develop African Rainbow Family’s advocacy support services in line with the changing needs and demands of LGBTIQ refugees and people seeking asylum.
- Oversee empowerment events and support delivery of other teams’ events, ensuring all events achieve a professional standard and high quality.
- Conduct vulnerability assessments and prioritise people to receive ARF’s services.
- Work with legal partners, other ARF’s centres’ staff and volunteers to organise monthly asylum meetings.
- Provide one-to-one advocacy, emotional or practical support in person or over the phone
People management and supervision
- Recruit, train and manage a team of volunteer advocates to assist with delivery of social events and other services and respond to queries to the office.
- Oversee and organise training for staff and volunteers within the advocacy team
- Manage a team of part time Advocacy Assistants across our other centres– Advocacy Assistants, working one day a week in each centre.
- Provide supervision to volunteers and Advocacy Assistants.
Benefits include:
| 28 days annual leave including Bank Holidays | Generous pension scheme |
| Equipment to support remote working. | Flexible working policy. |
| Development and growth opportunities | Paid 2 duvet days a year |
| Paid staff day off on their birthday. | Salary review |
| Free parking at our office. | Employee reward scheme |
| Employee wellbeing support | Paid Sick leave after 6 months. |
| We are an accredited Living Wage Employer | Cost of living crisis support. |
Attachments
- Job description and person specifications
- Application and equal opportunity forms
- Policy on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders
HOW TO APPLY: Please read the job description and person specification carefully. Email your completed application form and optional monitoring form to recruitment@africanrainbowfamily.org. For more information on this role or for an informal discussion please contact Aderonke Apata, Founder and CEO: 07711285567. If you know of someone who might be interested in this vacancy, please ask them to get in touch.
We welcome applications from people of all abilities/disabilities and backgrounds as we believe that each person brings their own valuable experiences to what we do. We encourage people with lived experience of the UK asylum system to apply. The successful candidate must have the right to work in the UK, will be required to undergo an enhanced DBS check and to disclose all non-protected criminal records at the point of conditional job offer.
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AFRICAN RAINBOW FAMILY 