Head of Media and PR

Today, 12 children and young people will be diagnosed with cancer. We’ll stop at nothing to make sure they get the right care and support at the right time.

When a child or young person is diagnosed with cancer, their whole world (and their family’s) can feel like it’s falling apart. Their anxieties are deep. Their education, mental health and social lives suffer. Their futures feel very uncertain. They need tailored psychosocial support and they need to know that their voices and unique needs are being heard and understood.

We’re there to make sure that happens.

We believe children and young people with cancer are more than their diagnosis. And we’ll stop at nothing to make sure they have the right support and the same opportunities as everyone else.

We know what a better future could look like for children and young people with cancer. And we know what we need to do to make that futurea reality. We know we need to push harder, reach further and work smarter. And we know we need the right people on our team to help us get there. People like you.

About the role

As Head of Media and PR, it will be your role to raise and strengthen Young Lives vs Cancer's profile. You'll lead the team that gets young cancer patients’ voices heard and their unique needs understood, so they get the right care and support at the right time.

As our Head of Media, you'll engage with more of our key audiences than ever before to increase income, amplify voices and inspire others to join us. We want everyone to get involved in our vision for a better future for children and young people with cancer.

You'll be responsible for leading the Media and PR team and for designing and implementing our new Media and PR strategy. You'll operate as a trusted advisor to the senior leadership team, and showcase our work via thought-leadership and events.

Storytelling is your thing. You can't wait to share compelling stories that galvanise supporters, new and existing. You're always on the lookout for opportunities to amplify our brand messaging. Innovative, impactful campaigns get you up in the morning. And you take media crisis management in your stride.

Our Media and PR team is a key part of the Policy, Communications and Voice Directorate, which synthesises our policy, research, campaigning, voice, Media and brand, digital and communication work. If you want to join us in working together to build a strong, effective system of support for young cancer patients and their families, we want to hear from you.

This role is part home, part office/ site based. You will have the opportunity to work remotely / from home within the parameters of our hybrid working arrangements, with 1 or 2 days a week in the London office.

We would love to hear from you if you have experience of:

• Leading high achieving Media and PR teams
• Experience in designing and deliver Media strategies
• Managing teams that tell stories to galvanise supporters to take action
• Media crisis management and reputation management on behalf of an organisation

First interviews are planned to take place on 9th April.

Diversity declaration

At Young Lives vs Cancer, we recognise that opportunities for too many people remain a condition of their race, class, gender identity, disability, sexual orientation – or a combination. This has never been acceptable to us as an organisation.

We are committed to taking anti-oppressive action and removing barriers in our recruitment practices. We particularly welcome applications from members of minoritised communities and creating equitable opportunities for all. We are passionately committed to taking actions and making changes to be a truly diverse, inclusive and equitable organisation, as well as reflective of the diverse children and young people we support. Click here to find out more about our Diversity, Inclusion, Equity and Belonging strategy.

Accessibility

We are committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we’ll always endeavour to be as accommodating as possible. Please get in touch with us if you would like to discuss any specific requirements.

What we offer

In return for your commitment, we offer a great reward package, which includes generous annual and family/ caring leave entitlements, enhanced pension and employee savings scheme. To find out more about our benefits package, have a look on our website:

https://www.younglivesvscancer.org.uk/careers/our-benefits/

If you join us, you will be part of a community that is committed make a difference to the lives of children and young people with cancer. Young Lives vs Cancer is committed to safeguarding and PRomoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share this commitment.