Lewisham Community Partnerships Officer

Job description

Job responsibilities

To support the Trust by helping to coordinate and drive the delivery of community partnership projects within a defined portfolio.

To support in liaising, developing and maintaining strong relationships with both healthcare and non-healthcare organisations including third sector voluntary and community organisations, faith groups, social care, housing, education, Citizens Advice Bureau, Job Centre, House of Parliament, advocacy groups, and community leaders across the boroughs with a view of enhancing service delivery through partnership working.

To support in reaching, developing and managing partnerships from all sectors of the community.

To work with service users, carers, staff and community members, coordinating projects and promoting co-production service improvements and developments.

To support in mapping out community assets, working with the Trust, local authorities, and third sector umbrella organisations to scope the existing community assets in the local landscape, creating a Community Asset Database.

To research and identify groups, organisations and populations within the local community with whom the division should develop relationships.

To help realise identified community partnerships opportunities with a clear focus on the delivery of Long-Term Plan commitments for mental health.

To utilise project management principles, supporting the Delivery Manager and other project leads, including wider clinical/operational staff, and partners, including local authorities, service users and carers, and third sector organisations. Main Responsibilities

1. Project Management

Coordinate and deliver projects within the Trust to achieve beneficial change in line with SLaM's strategic objectives.

Plan, track, and support the implementation of project activities, working closely with senior leads and senior clinicians.

Develop and maintain clear project documentation covering the fundamental components of projects (scope, budgets, risks, opportunities, issues and quality requirements).

Coordinate community asset mapping. Develop, maintain and manage a clear database of community assets based on findings from the scoping exercise.

Deliver timely, accurate, and comprehensive progress reports to ensure project visibility.

Support each identified project stage, ensuring all relevant milestones are attained and, where necessary, escalating deviations through project governance to ensure projects remain on schedule, in budget or to quality specification.

Administration of project/programme meetings (e.g. preparation of agendas, circulation of papers, capture of actions and other outputs such as process maps) and fulfil role as overall governance and reporting lead for relevant projects/programmes.

Participate in and organise project reviews to support project evaluation, including identifying and implementing lessons learned.

Coordinate and support the delivery of partnership workshops, organising logistical arrangements, papers, communications, and venues. AfC Approved on 11 June 2025, SAJE 0435, Community Partnerships Officer, Band 6

2. Governance and Reporting

Support the Lewisham Directorate, well Unit and CMHT office to coordinate, compile and deliver professional slide decks and papers that satisfy Trust governance and reporting requirements.

Receive complex information and produce reports and briefings to senior colleagues in relation to projects.

Coordinate work with clinicians, managers and other staff across the Trust to enable comprehensive and effective reporting to senior internal and external stakeholders, including community partners.

Ensure that reports are thoroughly reviewed and validated before they are issued, and provide high-quality analysis of the information presented, so that stakeholders receive a comprehensive and considered picture of activity, service levels, and any relevant issues.

2. Stakeholder Engagement

Proactively support third sector engagement across the Trust, using an Asset-Based Community Development approach that builds on the assets that are found in the community and mobilises individuals, associations, and institutions to come together to realise and develop their strengths.

Coordinate and oversee projects in collaboration with stakeholders, liaising with VCSE organisations and clinical staff regularly.

Plan and run high-level stakeholder events to support service development and increase SLaM's visibility within the community and be responsible for supporting other team members in coordinating any partnership or engagement events across the Trust.

To support the Care Transformation Programme in building awareness of and forming links between all local community connector-type roles (community navigators, social prescribers, community connectors) across the Trust.

Contribute to and participate in the delivery of partnership workshops, training events and engagement opportunities to various groups of people, including internal and external stakeholders.

Coordinate stakeholders, taking account of their levels of influence and particular interests, in a range of situations, working autonomously and as part of a team.

3. Financial Planning and Management

Track and report on project budgets.

Support as required on projects to enable best value, ensuring that robust and detailed plans are in place to deliver the required level of efficiency savings.

Support in procurement processes, including working with senior managers on specification development, liaising closely with procurement, contracting and finance teams, monitoring progress, raising POs and tracking invoices providing an end-to-end service support.

4. Personal Development

Proactively participate in management supervision, annual objective setting and appraisal processes.

Proactively identify continued professional development opportunities.

Person Specification

Experience

Essential

• Experience of working with communities and VCSEs, or comparable organisations
• Experience of developing excellent working relationships with professionals and other stakeholders at all levels of an organisation

Desirable

• Project delivery experience within a healthcare setting, preferably in mental health
• Experience of working with groups of staff and patients across health communities, including working with senior clinicians and healthcare leaders
• Experience working within the NHS
• Experience in procurement processes, preferably within the NHS

Qualifications

Essential

• Degree or equivalent qualification
• Evidence of continuous professional development

Desirable

• Qualification in project management

Disclosure and Barring Service Check

This post is subject to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act (Exceptions Order) 1975 and as such it will be necessary for a submission for Disclosure to be made to the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly known as CRB) to check for any previous criminal convictions.

Certificate of Sponsorship

Applications from job seekers who require current Skilled worker sponsorship to work in the UK are welcome and will be considered alongside all other applications. For further information visit the UK Visas and Immigration website (Opens in a new tab).

From 6 April 2017, skilled worker applicants, applying for entry clearance into the UK, have had to present a criminal record certificate from each country they have resided continuously or cumulatively for 12 months or more in the past 10 years. Adult dependants (over 18 years old) are also subject to this requirement. Guidance can be found here Criminal records checks for overseas applicants (Opens in a new tab).

Employer details

Employer name

South London and Maudsley NHS Foundation Trust

Address

Ladywell Unit

University Hospital Lewisham, Lewisham High Street

Lewisham

SE13 6LW

Employer's website

https://www.slam.nhs.uk/ (Opens in a new tab)