Public Affairs Officer

This appointment is for a permanent, full-time, London-based position with a starting salary of between £40,000-£45,000 dependent on skills and experience. A higher salary may be available for exceptional and highly experienced candidates.

Our offices are based in the heart of Westminster, with proximity to key stakeholders and easy access to public transport links. To maximise effective team-based working, we offer flexibility for staff to work from home up to two days a week, subject to work priorities.
 
As well as a competitive salary, our employment package includes generous additional benefits, including:

• Membership of the USS pension scheme – a defined benefit scheme with an employer contribution of 14.5% (https://www.uss.co.uk/)
• 25 days of Annual Leave at start, increasing by 1 day annually to a maximum of 30 days
• Discretionary closure days at Easter and Christmas holidays (in addition to Public Holidays)
• Private healthcare insurance
• Generous approach to learning, training and development, including monthly ‘lunch and learn’ sessions with external speakers
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme
• Interest-free travelcard loans
• Cycle scheme

About the role

Reporting to the Head of Public Affairs, the Public Affairs Officer will provide direct support on all aspects of the Russell Group's public affairs activity.

They will work closely with colleagues across the organisation and public affairs professionals at Russell Group members on engagement activities that deliver impact for our advocacy and policy positions.

They will have a firm grasp of government, parliament and working with political parties in a changing political environment, as well as recognising the importance of the Russell Group's wider community, which encompasses a broad variety of stakeholders, including business.

They will also be expected to draft external briefings on a range of topics and ensure they are clear, accessible and tailored to the respective audience.

The Public Affairs Officer will:

• Develop a good understanding of the Russell Group's policy priorities and higher education policy in general so they are able to communicate confidently to a variety of audiences on a range of topics or contribute to projects when required.
• Support the Head of Public Affairs in maintaining and building on the Russell Group's existing network of political and stakeholder relationships, strengthening our ability to engage and influence and ensuring the Russell Group is seen as a trusted organisation. This includes coordinating meetings and supporting with briefings and de-briefs before and after meetings or events.
• Develop new networks that can help deliver Russell Group objectives.
• Provide support in preparing the Russell Group's response to new parliamentary legislation or bills that impact our universities, lobbying MPs and Peers across all political parties, civil servants, political advisers and influential third parties as appropriate.
• Prepare draft briefings for meetings with external stakeholders and supporting policy colleagues to ensure consistent use of key messages in their outward facing roles.
• Support the Russell Group's parliamentary activity, including tracking parliamentary debates, select committee inquiries and government consultations, drafting parliamentary questions and supporting the mapping of key parliamentary stakeholders.
• Support the Head of Public Affairs in developing advocacy positions that show how Russell Group universities can help to deliver on political stakeholders' priorities while making the case for the positive impact of high-quality higher education and research.
• Develop relationships with public affairs teams in member institutions and other organisations, providing support to our members and engaging in collaborations where appropriate.
• Demonstrate sound project management skills, including planning and prioritisation.
• Be required to attend relevant events to develop networks and/or represent the organisation.
• Participate fully in an integrated External Relations team which covers public affairs, media, partnerships and engagement, and includes social media.
• Undertake core tasks which apply to all members of the External Relations team, including being part of an out-of-hours on-call rota, and occasionally carry out other assignments in response to workload and capacity requirements within the organisation.
• Finally, they will be responsible for delivering any additional tasks, at the request of the Head of Public Affairs and/or Director of External Relations, in accordance with their experience and the broad purpose of this role.

All Russell Group staff have a personal responsibility to manage data in accordance with the organisation's data protection policies.

The post-holder will be a motivated, confident and politically astute individual with previous experience in a political, parliamentary or public affairs environment. They will be able to grasp complex policy issues quickly and translate them into clear, persuasive messages for political and stakeholder audiences.

They will have a good understanding of UK politics, policymaking and the workings of Parliament, including how to communicate and engage effectively with parliamentarians and stakeholders across the full political spectrum.

They will have excellent written and oral communication skills, including the ability to produce clear, concise briefing material, correspondence and advocacy content tailored to different audiences.

They will have experience of supporting public affairs activity, stakeholder engagement or advocacy campaigns, and be confident working with colleagues across an organisation to coordinate activity and deliver to deadlines.

They will show excellent political nous, sound judgement and an awareness of the nuances of complex policy positions, including how to develop and implement advocacy positions and represent the organisation credibly and responsibly in a fast-moving political environment.

They will need to demonstrate that they can manage and prioritise a challenging and varied portfolio of work, meet tight deadlines as well as managing longer-term work, and work co-operatively as part of a small team.

Knowledge of the higher education sector would be an advantage but is not essential.