Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer
Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer
Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer
- Annually:£38,040 - £44,903 per annum
- Region:Northern Ireland
- Location:Belfast - Lanyon Building
- Department:Policy & Influencing
- Vacancy Type:Permanent
- Working hours per week:35
- Closing Date:9 December 2026
We are seeking a Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer on a permanent basis to play a central role in the NSPCC Northern Ireland Policy and Public Affairs (PAPA) Team, and to ensure legislative and policy frameworks in Northern Ireland are fit for purpose in preventing child abuse and neglect. The Northern Ireland PAPA team is part of the wider NSPCC UK PAPA team, which sits within the Policy and Social Change Directorate at the NSPCC.
You will join the team at a crucial moment for children in Northern Ireland and help us make the case for strong and purposeful policy and legislation to ensure all babies, children and young people are safe.
The Senior Policy and Public Affairs Officer will:
- Steer the development of new policy positions and delivery of public affairs strategies to achieve change which tackles abuse and harm to children in Northern Ireland.
- This will involve evidence-based policy development, being responsible for thematic policy areas, and playing a key role in forming and delivering public affairs and influencing strategies.
You'll be able to demonstrate that you can hit the ground running and deliver high impact policy outputs and public affairs initiatives to ensure the NSPCC delivers real change in the best interests of children and continues to be seen as a credible and authoritative voice on child abuse and neglect:
- As an effective communicator, you'll have excellent written and oral advocacy skills, with a proven record of building in-depth knowledge of complex subject matter and developing a wide range of relationships to successfully influence policy decision making.
- Most of all, you will be passionate about preventing abuse and have a good understanding of child protection and safeguarding issues in Northen Ireland, as well as wider issues facing children and families.
Join us and you'll become part of a team that cares about the work they do and the people they work with. You'll discover opportunities to grow, along with challenges and a shared purpose that'll bring the best out in you. And you'll get to find your own way to make a difference that means more, and that impacts millions of young lives.
In keeping with our values and our policies, if any individuals who are regrettably at risk of redundancy apply for a role and meet the minimum essential criteria they will be given priority consideration. We hope that you understand our position on this and that this will not discourage from applying. We cannot predict who, internally, will apply for a role, or whether they will meet the minimum essential criteria. Where no at-risk candidates meet the minimum essential criteria, all applications will be considered as normal.
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Safer Recruitment
As an organisation, we are committed to creating and fostering a culture that promotes safeguarding and the welfare of all children and adults at risk. Our safer recruitment practices support this by ensuring that there is a consistent and thorough process of obtaining, collating, analysing and evaluating information from and about candidates to ensure that all persons appointed are suitable to work with our children and adults.
Trauma Informed
At the NSPCC we are on a journey to becoming a trauma-informed organisation for the children, young people and families that we work with, as well as our staff and volunteers. To be trauma-informed is one of the guiding principles that shape and guide our 2021-2031 Strategy. This means understanding the nature of adversity, trauma, and resilience so that we can work towards reducing and preventing further harm and promoting recovery and healing. Coming to work at the NSPCC will provide the opportunity for you to join us in our commitment to becoming a trauma-informed organisation.
