About Brighton Women's Centre

BWC has extensive experience of delivering support to women with multiple and complex needs and has effectively supported hundreds of women to turn their lives around through accessing bespoke case work support through the Inspire project – an award winning project for women at all stages of involvement in the Criminal Justice System. BWC is part of a network of women’s centres and gender responsive providers who continue to contribute to research identifying underlying factors for women presenting with multiple complex needs and whose trajectory outcomes include involvement in the Criminal Justice System, Homelessness and Sex working.   

Job Description

BWC is looking for an outstanding Chief Operating Officer (COO) to support the Director and lead on trauma informed development and operational issues, ensuring that organisational goals are achieved through effective management practices and that staff are motivated and supported to build strategic, long-term and sustainable services. 

If you want to play a key role in a leading women-centered support service that advocates for systems change, then we want to hear from you! 

As COO you will play a key role in the high quality leadership and management of the organisation, supporting BWC’s Director on our operational and strategic objectives, all of which aim to improve trauma informed policy and practice in relation to women with multiple and complex needs. We are looking for a dynamic, forward-thinking individual to work with us as we consolidate and build on BWC’s successes and look towards a post-Covid social, economic and funding future.

Duties and Key Responsibilities

Leadership and Oversight

• Provide strategic and operational oversight of all BWC’s services to ensure they are fit for purpose, responsive to need and bring about meaningful change
• Embed BWC’s values and trauma-informed methodologies across the whole organisation
• Lead the development and management of effective service governance, quality assurance and auditing systems, policies and processes, including on equality, diversion and inclusion
• Ensure that Safeguarding policies and procedures are implemented, overseeing appropriate staff training and support
• Establish and maintain effective external partnerships, supporting BWC to meet strategic and operational goals

Fundraising and Business Planning

• Build and maintain strong relationships with commissioners and funders
• Lead on effective business planning for regional and local services
• Identify relevant fundraising opportunities and prepare funding applications in collaboration with the Director to support the long term sustainability of existing and new services
• Monitor delegated budget responsibility, ensuring services operate within budgets and any variations are identified and reviewed

Monitoring and Evaluation

• Lead on the development, implementation and management of BWC’s monitoring and evaluation systems and processes to evidence need, reach and impact
• Oversee performance management of services, ensuring they meet stakeholder requirements and quality standards, including implementing quality marks
• Oversee systems and processes for obtaining regular feedback from stakeholders, including beneficiaries, in order to inform and improve service delivery
• Prepare and present accurate and timely reports to the Director and the Board, as required

Senior Management of Services

• Provide Senior Management support to all services including planning, implementation, management and evaluation
• To ensure safe working environment by identification and reduction of risks
• Understand implications of health and safety legislation and ensure appropriate strategies/policies are in place to deal with these
• Be able to conduct formal risk assessments and identify ways of managing and mitigating these risks
• Adhere to safe systems of working both within services and externally in line with partners’ policies and agreed protocols
• Where required undertake reporting as appropriate in line with internal policies and legislation
• Oversee relationships with commissioners and funders, including identifying risks, and assessing and ensuring performance requirements are met
• Strategic and operational oversight of staff recruitment and management, ensuring compliance with BWC’s policies, procedures, quality standards and values
• Work with the Director and Service Leads to position BWC for successful re-tendering, continuation funding or exit arrangements, as appropriate.

Staff Management

• Demonstrate to staff that they are valued by BWC, foster good working relationships across the organisation and build a fair and open management culture that is focused on learning and development for the whole staff team
• Adopt a strategic approach to staff resourcing and management, planning for sufficient staff, with the skills and competencies, to provide high quality, trauma-informed services
• Effectively manage a dispersed team ensuring team cohesion and consistency in approach and practice and developing and overseeing a staff training and development plan
• Line manage direct reports and ensure that all staff receive regular support, supervision and performance review, case management, training and development in line with BWC policies and procedures

• Ensure regular communication between team members and that information flows effectively across the organisation. Specifically ensuring staff are consulted, kept informed and updated on strategic communications from the Director and BWC Board.   
• Hold responsibility for policies and procedures relating to service delivery in collaboration with the Director and Service Leads.
• Work with the Director and HR on employee relation issues as necessary

 Strategic and Operational Delivery of BWC’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy

• Lead on an organisational process of change management which embeds a consistent understanding and approach to BWCs organisational values and identity
• Develop, implement and manage BWC’s Equality, Diversity and Inclusion strategy and action plan in partnership with the Director, BAME Forum and Trustees, leading on mainstreaming equality, diversity, inclusion into all BWC’s business strands, strategies, policies and procedures
• Act as a source of specialist knowledge and provide guidance, leadership and training on diversity and inclusion, including equalities legislation and best practice

General Responsibilities  

• Represent and be an ambassador for BWC
• Support and embody the mission, ethos and values of BWC
• Deputise for the Director as required, both internally and externally
• Be flexible and carry out other associated duties as may arise, develop or be assigned in line with the broad remit of the position
• Maintain and improve competencies through continuous professional development
• Abide by all organisational policies, codes of conduct and practices
• Support and promote inclusion, diversity and equality of opportunity in the workplace
• Treat with confidentiality any personal, private or sensitive information about individual organisations and or clients or staff and project data

We actively encourage applications from women from a variety of backgrounds, and with a range of skills and experiences. We are particularly interested to hear from women who have personal experience of the criminal justice system.

For further information or an informal chat about the COO role please contact lisadando@womenscentre.org.uk  Tel; 07702879104.

To apply please visit www.womenscentre.org.uk to download an application pack by clicking on the Apply button below, or email admin@womenscentre.org.uk for more details.

Closing date: 9am 24^th May          

 Interview date: 3^rd and 4^th June              

*This post is restricted to women only as a genuine occupational requirement under Schedule 9 paragraph 1, Equality Act 2010.