Scope of the job You will play a key role in helping Mind achieve its strategic goals in Wales.

Transcription

1 Job description Job title Department Responsible to Responsible for Salary Hours Based at Length of contract Senior Media Officer (Wales) Media Team, External Relations Department Media Relations Manager in London n/a Grade D of Mind s salary scales 35 hours per week Cardiff, Wales Permanent Purpose of the job We re Mind, the mental health charity. We won t give up until everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets support and respect. We provide advice and support to empower anybody experiencing a mental health problem and we campaign to improve services, raise awareness and promote understanding. To contribute to the delivery of Mind s media strategy by co-ordinating Mind Cymru s response to media enquiries, developing media strategies for major campaigns and securing target levels of media coverage, building contacts with journalists across national, local and trade media with the aim of raising Mind Cymru s profile, promoting Mind Cymru s work and improving media portrayals of mental health issues. Scope of the job You will play a key role in helping Mind achieve its strategic goals in Wales. You will report to the Media Relations Manager based in Mind s London office and be part of the wider media team. You will need to work collaboratively with them, accessing a range of skills and resources to make sure media activity and objectives are built in at the planning stages of all Mind Cymru s major projects. This will include attending regular planning meetings, supervisions and briefings with colleagues in London, approximately one day a month. You will also be a key member of the Mind Cymru team working closely with the Director to identify opportunities to promote Mind s work in Wales through the media. To do this, you will work closely with the 20 local Minds across Wales, Mind Retail and partner organisations, colleagues working on our Time to Change campaign and key external stakeholders. The Media team sits within Mind s External Relations department bringing together all Mind s campaigning, policy, communications, digital, information and legal work. You will work with the Senior Communications Officer and Senior Policy and Campaigns Officer in Mind Cymru to develop and deliver a joined-up External Relations functions for Wales across all of our key audiences. You will be joining Mind at the beginning of our new five year strategy. There is also a new senior management team in Wales and lots of opportunities to inform, inspire, involve and influence our May 2014 Senior Media Officer Job Description Page 1 of 5

2 internal, external and stakeholder audiences. You will need to be able to deliver targets in line with organisational strategy, and continue to raise Mind s profile. You will devise and implement media strategies for Mind Cymru s organisational campaigning, policy and profile-raising priorities. You will also handle reactive enquires, work closely with and support local Minds in Wales with media work (with support from the rest of the media team) and help organise media training and practice for Mind spokespeople. Mind aims to ensure that the needs and interests of people with mental health problems are reflected in all activities. You will, along with your wider teams, be responsible for involving people with mental health problems in Mind s communications work in Wales. This will mean working with people with mental health problems, as well as with our established volunteers. We regularly do targeted work to ensure that the experiences of people from minority/marginalised groups who are at risk of dual discrimination informs our strategy and practice. Mind has a Welsh Language Scheme, which needs to be taken into account in all our work. The job will involve some out of hours work and there will also be occasional travel across England and Wales. Mind aims to ensure that the needs and interests of mental health service users, women and black and minority ethnic communities, disabled people and lesbians, gay men, bisexuals, transgender and people of all ages are reflected in all its activities. You will be expected to contribute to this aim. Key responsibilities 1. To develop and deliver an overarching media strategy that build Mind s reputation in Wales, increases access to Mind Cymru s services and support and positions Mind Cymru as the authoritative third sector voice on mental health in Wales. 2. To provide a professional service to journalists by co-ordinating Mind Cymru s response to media enquiries and assisting and advising other media team staff when handling media enquiries. 3. To cultivate new and nurture existing media contacts, building Mind Cymru s credibility and establishing effective working relationships with journalists across the media in both languages. 4. To devise and implement media strategies to support Mind Cymru s major campaigns working in an integrated way with programme leads across the charity in order to plan effectively and identify key media opportunities. 5. To devise and implement media strategies to support Mind Cymru s programmes, projects and corporate reputation, working in an integrated way with programme leads across the charity in order to plan effectively and identify key media opportunities. 6. To work alongside Mind Cymru s Senior Policy and Campaigns Officer and Senior Communications Officer to develop media responses to major Welsh Government announcements and high profile policy issues, producing press releases and quotes and briefing/advising the Director and relevant Mind staff. May 2014 Senior Media Officer Job Description Page 2 of 5

3 7. To research, write and distribute press releases to national, regional, local and trade media, and organise press launches and photo-calls (liaising with outside suppliers and agencies when necessary). 8. To provide a crisis PR support service to manage any adverse publicity that could have a significant negative impact on the reputation of Mind Cymru. Devise PR strategies to respond to potentially damaging stories, provide advice to senior staff and prepare press statements. 9. To ensure that the media team involves people with direct experience of mental health problems from a full range of diverse backgrounds and that appropriate advice and support is given to people involved with Mind Cymru s media work. 10. To work with the Media Relations Manager to arrange formal media training for key Mind Cymru staff and organise media interviews as required with Mind Cymru s Directors, other Mind Cymru spokespeople and service users, providing them with full pre and postinterview briefings. 11. To undertake media interviews as a Mind Cymru spokesperson. 12. To provide advice to Mind Cymru staff, local Minds, shops and other relevant individuals and organisations on how to maximise media opportunities 13. To represent Mind Cymru s media function at external events and meetings 14. To work in partnership with other organisations to develop joint media responses on Mind Cymru s coalition work. Expectations: To attend and contribute to the supervision and appraisal process and to team meetings. To ensure that all responsibilities and activities within this post are consistent with the terms and spirit of Mind s Equal Opportunities policy. To attend and contribute to Mind staff training and any other training identified as appropriate for the role. To occasionally travel to meetings in England and Wales, this may require the need for overnight stay. To occasionally work unsociable hours, e.g. attending evening or weekend meetings and events or travel outside London. The nature of the post will require flexibility in undertaking the role. To contribute towards making Mind a greener workplace May 2014 Senior Media Officer Job Description Page 3 of 5

4 Mind (National Association for Mental Health) Person specification: Senior Media Officer Essential criteria 1. Significant experience working as a media officer, or a senior PR executive actively promoting stories to the media and dealing with enquiries from journalists. 2. A sound understanding of, and experience of working with, traditional and digital Welsh media outlets. 3. Proven success at devising, implementing and evaluating media strategies for pro-active campaigns that involves delegating work to other team members and securing target levels of coverage in national and regional media. 4. Experience of taking the lead in responding to the media about high profile issues and some experience of handling and responding effectively to crisis media stories. 5. A proven high standard of written English and the ability to prepare accurate material for journalists, agents and internal documents. 6. Highly developed oral communication skills and the ability to interact with a diverse range of people. In this post this would include national, regional and trade journalists, service users and providers, celebrities, Mind staff and volunteers at the national office and local Minds. 7. Strong news sense and a good knowledge of the needs of national and regional media. 8. Experience of preparing and briefing spokespeople (e.g. Chief Executive, Directors and local groups) and service users (i.e. someone with personal experience) for media interviews. 9. Experience of planning and managing filming opportunities. 10. Proven ability to take responsibility for tasks, and use own initiative when their manager is unavailable. 11. Well developed prioritising skills, and the ability to work to tight media and internal deadlines. 12. Exceptional judgement and analytical skills and experience of applying these in a fastmoving environment. 13. Experience of word processing packages and organising targeted press mail-outs using a media database system. 14. Willingness and ability to travel in England and Wales and to provide out-of-hours cover for media enquiries. 15. Empathy with Mind s aims and values, including an understanding of and commitment to Mind s equal opportunity policy. May 2014 Senior Media Officer Job Description Page 4 of 5

5 Desirable criteria 1. Fluency in Welsh. 2. Knowledge of mental health issues. 3. Knowledge of current mental health issues, and government policy. 4. Established contacts with key national health and social affairs journalists. 5. Direct or indirect experience of mental health problems. May 2014 Senior Media Officer Job Description Page 5 of 5