Policy & Communications Executive NIFHA

Responsible to: Policy & Practice Manager

Remuneration:

Salary scale £25,656 – £27,771

Contributory pension scheme

Private medical insurance

Location: Hybrid working utilising city centre office in central Belfast

Hours: 37.5 hours per week

About us

The Northern Ireland Federation of Housing Associations (NIFHA) is the representative body for 20 housing associations providing new social and affordable housing in Northern Ireland.

Our job is to represent our members for a better policy and funding environment that enables our members to deliver great homes and thriving communities. We also provide an increasing range of services to support good practice and business improvement across the sector.

About the team

NIFHA currently has a team of five people focused on policy and lobbying work, research, communications and providing high quality services for our members. We also organise a number of conferences, events and member briefings. You will report to the Policy & Practice Manager but work closely with colleagues across the team.

Housing associations have the opportunity to make a transformational contribution to Northern Ireland over the next few years. Our sector provides high-quality homes and services to over 57,000 households, including older people, those on limited incomes and first-time buyers. As Northern Ireland’s largest residential developers and as dynamic social businesses, NIFHA’s member housing associations are broadening our housing offer and providing a range of community investment.

The Role

We are looking for a highly motivated individual to assist across two separate but related areas of our organisation

Policy & Research Support

• Support in the development of policy and good practice across a number of important policy areas such as welfare reform, provision of supported housing and general housing management.
• Support in the communication & development of new policy and practice to NIFHA members, seeking their views and input
• Support in the development and promotion of new resources and working with members to establish new partnerships that support the delivery of key objectives for housing associations and government.
• Support in the production and analysis of data, statistics and other research material related to the local social and affordable housing sector, including production of relevant data reports to NIFHA members, NIFHA SMT and external stakeholders
• Support in the administration and data input and analysis for NIFHA members on tenant and financial data

Communications Support

• Support in the provision and development of engagement and networking services for our members, their range of current and potential supply partners and other stakeholders
• Support in the planning and coordination of events, webinars and other networking opportunities which will offer high quality information exchange and networking between our members and a wide range of supply organisations across several sectors- e.g. construction, legal, financial, house building materials and systems
• Support in the planning and delivery of NIFHA activities which support commercial partners and NIFHA associates
• Support in the development and maintenance of efficient and effective data collection and CRM systems for the benefit of NIFHA and its range of members, partners and stakeholders

Person Specification

• Ideally a third level qualification although equivalent experience will be considered
• You will be an effective communicator and will be adept at creating marketing material on print and social media platforms
• You will have a good knowledge of local political landscape
• You will have the ability to establish good working relationships with colleagues in housing associations and other stakeholders to understand their needs and develop responsive solutions
• You will be able to assist in producing high-quality written reports, briefings, practice resources, member communications and web content
• You will be able to work across teams to deliver shared outcomes
• You will be familiar with and confident in using a range of IT packages such as Word, Excel, PowerPoint and WordPress
• You will have a valid driving licence or have access to transportation

Main Responsibilities

• To build and maintain relationships with NIFHA members and other stakeholders to inform the development and promotion of policy, good practice and events.
• To work with colleagues, where appropriate, on the development of policy and good practice and on the production of accurate and timely research information on behalf of NIFHA
• To monitor policy development and implementation for impacts on the housing association sector
• To collate, analyse and share data relevant to housing for use in publications, communications, and policy papers.
• To produce good practice materials, briefings, toolkits and reports
• To contribute to the development of communications plans and public affairs activities, such as drafting articles on policy issues for both NIFHA and external publications as required
• To collate, analyse and share data relevant to housing for use in publications, communications, and policy papers.
• Assist in the design, promotion and delivery of NIFHA conference and training events and services to members and commercial partners
• To develop and deliver efficient and intuitive marketing and social media strategies
• To conduct market research and analysis to identify market trends and opportunities for commercial revenue growth.

General other responsibilities

• To represent NIFHA on a range of working groups and forums
• To support the work programmes of NIFHA by providing administrative support, undertaking research and preparing briefing papers and other materials, as required
• To support the work of the Chief Executive and Deputy Chief Executive as required

Interested applicants please submit your CV and covering note to info@nifha.org

Closing date for the submission of applications: 4pm on Friday 28th April, 2023.

We are an equal opportunities employer committed to equality, diversity and inclusion in our recruitment process and employment practices, and welcome applications from all candidates who meet the requirements of the roles.