Job Opportunities at IRRI

Resource for Life Retail Project Manager

Period: Part-time (3 days/week), 9-month contract, November 2013 start date

Salary Band: £15-17,000 (FTE: £25-28,000)

Reporting To: Managing Director

Introduction

IRRI is an environmental charity committed to resource use and fighting the cause of resource deprivation.  Its Resource for Life programme is an innovation in the teaching of life skills to people living in areas of deprivation to help them learn the life skills needed to access the resources required for their lives from their environment.  The Retail Programme in Castlebrae High School is a challenging intervention to help children in the toughest school environment in Edinburgh to gain the skills they require to move into employment in the area, which is dominated by a large retail park, Fort Kinnaird, using the springboard of a Retail Intermediate Skills for Work course taught by the school, and a portfolio of associated services provided by IRRI.

Job Description

The Resource for Life Retail Project Manager will be responsible for supporting delivery of the Retail Programme in Castlebrae High School, and also drawing on other schools in the area; and managing the delivery of the extra-curricular components of the programme in IRRI/Fort Kinnaird. The job will require a high level of invention, imagination and social confidence, as many of the activities are being created by IRRI for the first time, and many of them have not necessarily been attempted before. The post will engage with 15-16 year old children from some of the toughest realities in society, whose domestic backgrounds are frequently characterised by financial hardship and insecurity. The programme is attempting to help these children bridge the gap between school and employment, a leap they characteristically find difficult to make. The Manager will play a central role in delivering a programme designed to make a difference.

Tasks

The Manager will be responsible for the following activities:

• Recruitment of additional pupils into the course.
• Liaison with all the schools involved, particularly Castlebrae, but also the other schools participating in the programme.
• Retail Placements (2 per month per pupil – placements arranged by Fort Kinnaird).
• Retail Workshops (2 per month).
• Arranging transport and pupil care.
• Annual Event in Castlebrae.
• Mock Interviews.
• Work Experience.
• Mentoring Service.
• Monitoring and Evaluation against targets.
• Reporting.
• PR.

Required Skills

• Confidence to engage with teenagers
• Strong organisation and time management skills to keep on top of assessments etc. and retailers

Desired Skills

• Experience working with young people
• Experience of working in retail
• Experience of working to deadlines

Closing Date

• Closing date is 5pm on 22nd October 2013. To apply please email your CV and accompanying letter to nick.lyth@irri.org.uk.
• Interviews will be held at 75A Peffer Place, Edinburgh EH16 4BB on 25th October 2013.