Work with us: Marketing and Communications Assistant

Posted 8 months ago

We’re looking for a Marketing and Communications Assistant to join our growing Young Sounds team. This new role presents an opportunity to develop a career in marketing and communications. You’ll primarily support the Marketing and Communications Manager with content creation, administrative tasks and assist the delivery and tracking of marketing strategies, campaigns and events.

Job description can be found below or in PDF format here.

  • Reports to: Marketing and Communications Manager
  • Contract: Initially 12 months, to be extended by mutual agreement. There will be a three-month probation period.
  • Hours: Part time – 80% full time equivalent (28 hours per week), pattern to be agreed within core organisational hours of 09:00 to 17:00 Monday to Friday.Ideally including Monday morning for team meetings. Some occasional weekend and evening work will be required.
  • Annual Leave: 20 days per year (based on full time equivalent of 26 days per year), plus bank holidays.
  • Salary: £18,345 per year (based on full time equivalent of £22,932 per year), plus statutory pension contributions as applicable.
  • Location: Home working with some travel for meetings and events. Any travel and accommodation costs will be reimbursed.

About Young Sounds UK 

Young Sounds exists because musical talent is everywhere but opportunity isn’t: family finances and other obstacles too often get in the way. We’re here to change this in two key ways: 

  • We support young musicians from low-income families with funding and other help; 
  • We support music education through training, advocacy and research.  

We became an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation in April 2023 and also joined an expanded cohort of National Youth Music Organisations (NYMOs). We currently support over 1,000 individual young people across the UK every year and demand for our support is increasing. It’s an exciting time to join a pioneering organisation at the forefront of British music education. 

Our small and fully remote team work across the UK, comprising a mix of full time and part time employees supported by specialist part time and term time freelancers. 

Young Sounds UK is the working name for registered charity Awards for Young Musicians. 

Role Overview 

This new role at Young Sounds UK presents an opportunity to develop a career in marketing and communications. You’ll primarily support the Marketing and Communications Manager with content creation, administrative tasks and assist the delivery and tracking of marketing strategies, campaigns and events. 

Working relationships and expectations  

You’ll report to and work closely with the Marketing and Communications Manager. You’ll also have regular contact with other Young Sounds colleagues to ensure communications support across all strands of our work. This includes: 

  • assisting the development team with fundraising to ensure smooth, effective campaigns. 
  • working with the programme teams to identify comms opportunities to drive promotion, donations and brand awareness. 

This is a homeworking position with some flexibility required to travel for occasional meetings and events. As our partners and projects are UK wide, so is this travel. Office equipment will be supplied as required. Any travel and accommodation costs will be reimbursed. 

Key tasks 

Content Creation 

  • Monitoring our social media channels by responding to enquiries, engaging with partner profiles and delivering reciprocal comms.  
  • Crafting content across digital and offline platforms to support our programme areas.  
  • Tailoring this content to multiple platforms and stakeholders: copywriting, graphic design, video editing, social media posts, newsletters.  
  • Scheduling and publishing content in a regular and timely fashion to coincide with specific milestones in the year. This includes updating website content to ensure consistency and reflect changes. 

Data Analysis 

  • Reviewing feedback from our beneficiaries alongside our Development Administrator to identify case studies and communication opportunities. Cataloguing these appropriately and in accordance with GDPR. 
  • Compiling and distributing information such as website and social media analytics, to assist with the tracking of campaign performance, identifying optimisations and providing reports and insight.  
  • Tracking relevant external activity within the sector to identify further comms opportunities and contribute to a shared understanding of Young Sounds’ relationship to the wider music education community. 

Further support 

  • Attending events such as fundraisers and musical opportunities to document our work and provide support.  
  • Liaising with external advertising and PR agencies and print, assisting with copy writing, responding to enquiries and monitoring activity.  
  • Taking minutes during committee meetings, typing up documents, populating spreadsheets and inputting data. 

Other tasks 

  • Attending weekly team call on Mondays 10.00 to 10.30 where possible, and an in-person meeting every two months. 
  • Being responsible for meeting minutes from time to time: this is shared across the whole team. 
  • Contributing to the organisation’s ongoing development, by engaging in discussions as appropriate and undertaking training as requested or in pursuit of personal development. 
  • Contributing to the organisation’s strategic priorities, including to equity, diversity and inclusion, ensuring that this informs all activities. 
  • Working in a flexible manner in line with the organisation’s objectives and being willing to occasionally undertake other duties as reasonably requested. 

Person Specification 

Please note this list is not exhaustive and the role will provide opportunities to develop these skills further.  

Key Skills 

  • Strong organisational and time management skills, able to handle many diverse projects and tasks. 
  • Strong verbal, written, communication and presentation skills. 
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite, especially with Word, Excel and PowerPoint. 
  • Familiarity with content management systems (CMS) and customer relationship management (CRM) tools. 
  • Digital literacy and technical proficiency: familiarity with Canva, Adobe Creative Suite and similar applications. 
  • Firm grasp of various marketing platforms, channels, and best practices, including social, digital, and email marketing. 
  • Understanding of basic design principles such as visual hierarchy and accessibility. 
  • Capable of following brand guidelines and tone of voice documents. 

Personal Qualities 

  • Proactive, with the ability to work remotely from home and to manage own workload efficiently without direct supervision. 
  • Emotionally intelligent, able to communicate effectively and empathetically. 
  • Highly motivated with a commitment to and understanding of the organisation’s vision. 
  • Ability to prioritise and work flexibly, under time pressure with competing deadlines. 
  • Curious, with the ability to identify new trends, technologies and opportunities. 
  • The energy, enthusiasm and passion for supporting young people with musical potential. 

Experience  

  • Experience of producing online and offline marketing materials. 
  • 6 to 12 months working in a professional capacity. 
  • Experience working with a team, collaborating with multiple stakeholders. 
  • Experience of updating and maintaining websites or social media accounts.  
  • Experience of writing engaging content for a range of formats and audiences e.g. newsletters, blogs. 

The following would also be desirable  

  • Photography and videography skills with editing experience. 
  • Interest in the latest trends and techniques in the marketing sector. 
  • Knowledge of current social and political issues, particularly in relation to music education and the music industry.  
  • Experience of working with sensitive data together with an understanding of current data legislation GDPR. 
  • Enthusiasm and passion for music in all forms! 
  • Understanding of creative storytelling techniques. 

How to apply 

  • Please submit your application using this form: click here
  • You will be asked to attach a supporting statement of no more than two sides of A4, addressing how you are a strong candidate for the position, details of relevant experience etc. You are advised to address the selection criteria for the role as detailed in the Person Specification.   
  • Please note the applications will be shortlisted on an anonymous basis, so any identifying information should not be included in the supporting statement and will be removed prior to sharing with the panel.  

Key dates 

  • The deadline for applications is 9.00 am on Monday 17 March 2025. 
  • Applicants invited to interview will hear from us by Monday 24 March.  
  • Interviews are expected to be held via video call w/c Monday 31 March.  
  • Those successfully shortlisted will be given a small task ahead of the interview to demonstrate some of the skills mentioned in this job description.  Details will be sent with confirmation of your interview a week prior.

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