Could you provide the partnership management expertise to enable the Voluntary, Community and Social Enterprise sector in the Thames Valley to play a full role as an equal partner in the health and care system?
Community Impact Bucks are hosting the role of VCSE Health Partnership and Engagement Manager:
- Part time: 28 hours per week
- Fixed-term: 16 months
- Across Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West with a base at Community Impact Bucks Office in Monks Risborough (our team is currently working mainly from home).
About us
VCSE sector development agencies in our region are working in partnership with Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire and Berkshire West (BOB) Integrated Care System (ICS) help improve ways of working together, as part of NHS England/NHS Improvement’s VCSE Leadership Programme. The project will:
- Embed partnership working, with VCSE organisations within both Integrated Care Systems (ICS) and Integrated Care Partnership (ICP) structures.
- Develop and support active, two-way communication and feedback mechanisms between the ICS and VCSE sector
- Create and strengthen VCSE leadership groups or alliances at system, place and neighbourhood levels to enable better co-ordination and communication within the VCSE sector.
The project is governed by a Project Board made up of BOB ICS representatives and an alliance of VCSE infrastructure and support organisations, namely:
- Community Impact Bucks
- OCVA (Oxfordshire Community and Voluntary Action)
- RVA (Reading Voluntary Action)
- Involve Community Services (Bracknell Forest & Wokingham)
- Volunteer Centre West Berkshire
The role is hosted by Community Impact Bucks. Our office in Monks Risborough has free parking and good bus and rail links. Our team is currently working mainly from home, but with access to the office when needed.
About you
You will be an experienced partnership manager with strong all-round project management capabilities that can be evidenced through experience. You will enjoy building partnerships, networks and alliances across sectors, working strategically with a clear understanding of practical and cultural barriers to successful collaborations. You will have a clear understanding of the role and potential of the VCSE sector within the health and social care system, and an awareness of the local, regional and national health and care agenda from a VCSE perspective.
Key responsibilities
- Lead the design, delivery and evaluation of the project, ensuring it meets contractual obligations, operates within budget and achieves the desired impact.
- Develop excellent relationships with project stakeholders from VCSE and public sector ICS/ICP colleagues, including Healthwatch.
- Develop robust partnerships between key stakeholders at all levels to ensure effective networks are created and maintained.
- Advocate for the VCSE sector, encouraging ICS partners to consider new and innovative approaches to working closely with the sector to support the health and wellbeing needs of local communities.
- Alongside local VCSE development bodies, organise and facilitate networks and engagement events with the VCSE sector, including sessions with ICS/ICP colleagues from outside the sector.
- Design protocols and processes sharing insight and information between VCSE networks at system, place and neighbourhood levels.
- Alongside local VCSE development bodies, develop the wider capacity of the VCSE sector to play a full role in the ICS/ICP, including work with partners and national bodies to identify additional opportunities and resources, and drafting bids if required.
Key requirements
- A natural collaborator, with the ability to establish credibility and maintain relationships with colleagues from front line staff to very senior stakeholders.
- Experienced at working effectively at a senior level with partnership initiatives.
- Ability to work across and understand the geographically, economically and culturally diverse communities across the partnership.
- An understanding of the workings of the NHS and the wider health and social care landscape, the challenges and the reform agenda
- Experienced in successfully leading projects from inception to close-down, including setting realistic delivery timeframes, meeting project objectives, and monitoring and reporting outcomes.
Diversity and inclusion
Community Impact Bucks is committed to challenging inequality and values the diversity of our communities in Buckinghamshire. We recognise that reflecting that diversity will only ever make our organisation better. We work to ensure an inclusive culture where colleagues feel welcomed and supported to succeed and thrive. We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, particularly those from under-represented communities.
- For more information please visit the Community Impact Bucks website to download the job description.
- To apply, please send a CV with a cover letter explaining how your skills, experience and interests meet the job description and person specification by 9am on 28 January.
- View advert on Charity Job.
- Interviews will take place via video call – Teams or Zoom.