Senior Communications Officer

Contract : Full-time, permanent Location: Somerset House, London (some international travel required) Salary: £30-39,000 (dependant on experience) Reporting to: Senior Communications Manager Application process To apply, send a CV and supporting statement of no more than two pages to via the apply now button. Deadline for applications: 5.00pm Friday 27 March 2020. Ideally, this role will be filled as soon as possible, so applications will be reviewed (and interviews organised) on an ongoing basis. The organisation Worldwide mental health conditions are increasing and depression alone is on track to be the leading disease burden by 2030. The world is not yet equipped to handle this growing crisis, especially in low and middle income countries where the majority of conditions occur. United for Global Mental Health was established in 2018 as an organisation focused on increasing global advocacy, financing and campaigning to address through increasing political and financial commitment so that everyone, everywhere has someone to turn to when their mental health needs support. The opportunity In the last two years, the organisation has achieved extraordinary growth and been central to advancing the global mental health agenda. We are now searching for a Senior Communications Officer to work as a key member of a communications team that builds on this success. UnitedGMH is looking for a talented, ambitious and dynamic communications expert to play a leading role shaping communications for an organisation breaking new ground in paving the way for greater action on global mental health. From launching our campaign in the UN headquarters in New York, to establishing the first mental health accelerator in Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation's Goalkeepers programme - you would be supporting UnitedGMH and Speak Your Mind build its reputation internationally at high-profile moments. Ideally, you will have a strong track record of delivering high quality communications and content, be a self-starter but with excellent ability to work in a small, dynamic team, thrive in a fast paced, agency-style, environment and have experience in the global policy and advocacy sector and a passion for improving mental health. Overall role Media relations - responsibility for building and managing relationships with key target media (global mental health, policy, business and other relevant press). Content and materials development - produce high-quality, engaging materials, resources and content that is in line with agreed branding and messaging; and effectively support the organisation’s communications strategy and activities (including content for website, press and social media). Content calendar - oversee the development and management of a comprehensive communications and content calendar for the PAF (Policy, Advocacy, Finance) and Campaigns teams, as well as wider organisational communications activities (e.g. partnerships, fundraising). Events - plan, manage and deliver the communications activities around key events and global moments (for example World Mental Health Day). Monitoring, evaluation and reporting - ensure that communications activities are tracked against objectives and KPIs, putting in place systems for measurement, evaluation and reporting for the Communications and Senior Management teams; as well as the wider organisation Stakeholder and partner relationships - manage relevant internal and external relationships with key partners (e.g. Communications teams in partner organisations such as Wellcome, WHO, WEF). Responsibilities - Main responsibilities include (but not limited to): Manage day-to-day media outreach and act as press officer for the organisation Develop content and communications to support United for Global Mental Health’s work with global policymakers and funders Put in place and manage the communications interface (“funnel”) between relevant internal departments, using relevant criteria to determine content to be used in communications plans Develop and deliver content and communications to support the activity of the Speak Your Mind campaign Work with the Partnerships team to generate content and materials for the communications component of core global partnerships (current partners include HSBC, WeTransfer) Draft content and materials are of the highest quality and in line with United and Speak Your Mind’s branding and key messages Work with the Senior Management and Communications teams to input into messaging Oversee the development and management of a comprehensive content calendar in place to reflect all of the organisation’s core, ongoing activities Identify and prepare case studies and communications packages to showcase United for Global Mental Health’s policy and campaign activity Put in place and deliver and maintain a robust monitoring and reporting system by which to evaluate and improve communications activity Put in place and deliver communications plans and schedules for all of United for Global Mental Health’s events Candidate requirements Experienced communications professional with the natural eye for stories and excellent writing skills Ability to take in large quantities of information and synthesise into materials, key messages, takeaways and calls to action for internal and external audiences Demonstrate ability to communicate complicated and technical subjects, especially related health or scientific subjects to a knowledge audience of international campaigns, policy and advocacy experts Creative instincts about how best to tell stories through different marketing and communications channels Excellent proofreading, copywriting and editing skills; including for web and social media Strong understanding of global development media and relevant social media Strong interpersonal skills, experience in building relationships with a range of stakeholders Experienced in and thrive on working in a fast-paced, campaign environment, with the ability to respond quickly and effectively to changing agendas Ability to work closely and effectively with internal departments and colleagues to support communications plans and activities Strong organisational skills to plan, meet deadlines and successfully deliver events Ability to multitask and prioritise workload over short time frames Experience in using relevant digital systems, such as Squarespace (or similar), Hootsuite, Google Analytics Desirable attributes and experience Experience of working in global development, NGO field and understanding of associated, relevant organisations and systems Media relations experience and network in mental health sector A strong understanding of, and passion for improving, global mental health An entrepreneurial and enterprising approach to work Prior experience of managing communications agencies