Join Comic Relief as a Public Relations Manager and play a pivotal role in our dynamic PR team while enjoying the flexibility of hybrid work
Overview
No salary declared 😔
Expires at anytime
Comic Relief is a high-profile charity with a mission to create a just world free from poverty. It harnesses the power of entertainment to drive positive change, with events like Red Nose Day and Sport Relief. As an organization, it offers a vibrant, inclusive culture with benefits like hybrid working and opportunities for professional growth.
- Develop and execute innovative PR strategies for national campaigns.
- Build and maintain relationships with media and key partners.
- Manage crisis communications and enhance brand reputation.
- Lead the Press Office and handle media inquiries.
- Line management responsibilities and occasional UK travel.
- Proven experience in national PR campaigns.
- Strong relationship-building and crisis management skills.
- Creativity in media coverage and storytelling.
- Leadership in team management and professional development.
To apply, you should have a solid track record in PR and communications, with the ability to develop creative ideas that resonate with the media. While line management experience and knowledge of the charity sector are desirable, Comic Relief values diversity and encourages candidates who are passionate about their mission to apply, even if they don't meet every single qualification. The application process is not specified, so interested candidates should follow the usual procedures for applying to Comic Relief roles.
This role is offered on a hybrid contract giving you the opportunity to also work from home three days a week.
PURPOSE OF JOB:
The Public Relations Manager will provide senior level support to the PR Lead and play an active role in managing the PR Team to plan and deliver strategic campaigns and communications throughout the year, including Red Nose Day, Sport Relief and other events and campaigns. These wide ranging, creative and exciting campaigns and initiatives will drive awareness, brand consideration and income.
You will report to the PR Lead and work with colleagues from across the organisation to ensure PR and communication plans are strategic, effective and in line with organisational objectives, playing a leading role in supporting on crisis communications, reputational risk, strategic communications and wider public engagement initiatives.
You will already have strong relationships across a wide spectrum of the UK media landscape and be able to build relationships quickly. You will have outstanding people skills and be able to influence effectively both internally – working with senior staff across the talent, fundraising, corporate partnership, social, funding, legal and production teams – and externally with important partners such as the BBC as well as other corporate partner and media stakeholders.
Running Comic Relief’s busy Press Office is a responsibility shared by all team members. You will be required to take a leading role in managing media enquiries in a timely and accurate manner, media monitoring and associated escalation and opportunity spotting, evaluating PR campaigns, reputational risk, and join the on-call rota for out-of-hours and weekend support.
This role will involve line management responsibilities – which could include managing fixed-term contract staff during busy campaign periods – as well as occasional UK wide travel to manage media opportunities.
Operating at the heart of Comic Relief's mission to create a just world, free from poverty this role offers an exciting opportunity to play a leading role in the reputation and brand perception of a high-profile charity brand. As the Public Relations Manager, you will be at the forefront of our efforts to engage the public, manage our reputation, and support the broader mission of our organisation.
Please note, this role will require working occasional out office hours and weekends during peak times.
Key Responsibilities:
Develop and deliver creative, national and regional PR and strategic communication strategies that are rooted in audience insight, are ambitious and effective, and reflect the charity’s strategic objectives to drive income and raise awareness of the positive impact of Comic Relief and the work of its funded partners in the UK and around the world
Monitor and evaluate the success of PR and communication activities, identifying learning and opportunities to help improve approaches and ROI of projects
Take a proactive approach to gaining media coverage outside of campaign periods using creativity to showcase Comic Relief’s impact story, working with talent team on project visits with celebrities and influencers as well as with funded partners; donors and supporters where appropriate
Establish, develop and maintain excellent relationships with key internal and external stakeholders. This could include partners, agencies, media and cross organisational working groups
Work with stakeholders from across the organisation to ensure that Comic Relief's corporate partners are given a consistent, gold standard experience by offering creative input to key partnership milestones and PR activities
Work with the PR Lead, and other Heads of Teams including senior stakeholders to manage and mitigate potential reputational risk working proactively on crisis and strategic communications to enhance Comic Relief’s profile, reputation and brand
Monitor the press to identify appropriate opportunities and potential threats to the promotion of the work of Comic Relief. Work to protect and enhance Comic Relief’s reputation collaborating with internal and external stakeholders if issues arise. Draft lines against enquiry and press statements, working with colleagues across the organisation to gather relevant info and ensure appropriate sign off
Ensure editorial excellence in all press releases, proofing and ensuring quality of output alongside developing and implementing strategic media outreach
Deputise for the PR Lead where appropriate
Contribute to the annual planning process, collaborating with colleagues to identify needs and opportunities to enhance Comic Relief’s profile and reputation with agreed target audiences and develop plans and initiatives in support of these
Play a key role in upskilling Senior PR Officers and PR Officers
Ensure the smooth and effective running of the Press Office – joining the on-call rota for after hours and weekend cover, and take an active role in managing in-bound media enquiries alongside the wider team
Keep abreast of sector and trade (PR / Communications) marketplace to identify opportunities to enhance Comic Relief’s profile, reputation and brand
Play an active role in the FR&PR Team, working collaboratively to enable inclusivity and diversity in order to drive high performance and an action-oriented culture.
People Management
Line management will fluctuate throughout the year and increase during campaign periods. This includes leading recruitment and induction of new starters
Provide balanced, constructive feedback, undertake effective performance management to embed accountability and proactively support the professional development and growth of staff.
Proactively undertake performance management, prioritising activities and setting clear and realistic objectives for individuals based on capacity, expertise, and aspirations.
Maintain regular two-way communication and dialogue with staff, ensuring information is cascaded and escalated as needed.
Person Specification.
Essential criteria:
Proven experience of planning, leading and evaluating national and regional PR and communication strategies and campaigns
Strong, collaborative, relationship building and stakeholder management skills
Crisis communications and reputational risk experience
An ability to develop and deliver fresh creative ideas that generate media coverage
Excellent writer and negotiator with strong influencing skills
Line management experience, including continuous professional development and performance management
Wide experience managing and prioritising multiple projects to strict deadlines even when faced with challenges
A commitment to Comic Relief and its core values and a strong team player
Desirable Criteria
In depth knowledge of the charity and fundraising sector and of relevant consumer facing PR campaigns
Experience operating cross functionally with a variety of stakeholders, In particular senior stakeholders for example at board and executive level
Experience of using a CRM system to maintain and manage relationships
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Comic Relief we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.
Why work at Comic Relief
There are lots of good reasons to join us at Comic Relief. You can read more about our employee benefits, such as our commitment to flexible and hybrid working. We ask staff to come to the office twice a week, normally on agreed team days, so that we can do all those things that are difficult to do online. Our office is based in Whitechapel, London, There are lots of opportunities to develop your skills and experience at Comic Relief, including opportunities to become a Mental Health First Aider or to participate in our Employee Network Groups that focus on making Comic Relief a more inclusive place to work
Disability Confident employer
As part of the Disability Confident scheme, we take positive action by providing first-round interviews to candidates who have a registered disability, provided they meet the minimum criteria for the role, as demonstrated on their CV or application scores. We ask that candidates that wish to be considered for this scheme email
[email removed - click apply for more details] to discuss further. Please do not email CV's/cover letters.