Head of Climate Change

  • Remote
  • TBD USD / Year

Save the Children UK

The job of a Save the Children’s UK Head of Climate Change is strategic and rewarding

  • Do you have Significant experience of strategically driving evidence-based climate adaptation and programming in an international development organisation?
  • Do you have extensive experience and in-depth understanding of the development of climate change adaptation programmes as well as the design and delivery of strategy and policy in an international context?
  • Are you motivated by our vision of creating a world where every child doesn’t just survive, but thrives, and can go on to change the world?

If the answers to these questions are yes, we would love to hear from you!

About Us

Save the Children UK believes every child deserves a future. In the UK and around the world, we work every day to give children a healthy start in life, the opportunity to learn and protection from harm. When crisis strikes, and children are most vulnerable, we are always among the first to respond and the last to leave. We ensure children’s unique needs are met and their voices are heard. We deliver lasting results for millions of children, including those hardest to reach.

We stand side by side with children in the toughest places to be a child. We do whatever it takes to make sure they survive, get protection when they’re in danger, and have the chance to learn.

We work with Save the Children International colleagues and local partners, combining and optimising resources for maximum impact. Through our resilient partnerships model and technical expertise we design appropriate, high quality humanitarian and development programmes that drive sector level change and provide immediate and lasting impact for children around the world. We take pride in developing processes and tools that underpin our data driven decision making, ensuring we work in the most inclusive, effective and efficient way possible.

The Programme Quality and Impact (PQI) department works to deliver high-quality, evidence-based programmes and develop technical approaches to achieve positive sector-wide change for children. We work with partners and across the Save the Children movement to provide technical support to programme design and implementation, partnership development and in developing quality standards, technical approaches, and tools.

The climate change team is a new team established to raise our ambition and commitment in this area and to lead a growing and critically important, high impact and exciting portfolio of work, focussing largely on supporting community adaptation, with a strong focus on quality evidence generation. The team supports the design of a large pipeline of programmes, country-facing climate advocacy, the development of strategic partnerships, as well internal strategic alignment. The climate crisis is a child right’s crisis that threatens the fulfilment of all of children’s rights. It is therefore of central importance to Save the Children’s mission and a critical driver in our 2022-24 strategy.

Job Purpose

As a member of the PQI Senior Leadership Team and a Team Leader, you will hold responsibility for providing global leadership in the area of climate change (primarily adaptation) and driving work on specific parts of the Save the Children UK’s strategy. You will represent the organisation regularly with external partners and networks and will lead on relevant strategy and technical engagement with partners. You will be a recognised expert in your field, providing leadership in Save the Children and the wider sector to build technical expertise and capacity. You will lead and inspire a new and growing high performing team, and drive a culture of quality and impact

Key Accountabilities:

The Head of Climate Change’s key duties will include:

  • Provide global leadership (e.g. in the global Save the Children Climate Change Taskforce) within the Save the Children movement and the wider sector.
  • Lead the development and delivery areas of Save the Children UK’s strategy and establish and articulate a compelling vision to inspire others to achieve our ambition for children’s rights.
  • Provide strategic direction and support to the Save the Children UK climate hub, aimed at coordinating and aligning our work across programmes, policy, advocacy and campaigns, fundraising and partnerships, and lead the technical expertise and evidence workstream of the hub.
  • Set standards for, oversee, and directly support the design and delivery of high-quality, inclusive, and impactful programmes, working collaboratively with other stakeholders
  • Identify and proactively establish and build strategic partnerships and networks, leading on technical engagement with partners to amplify impact.
  • Represent Save the Children with key high-level external stakeholders and networks and build strong relationships with them for strategy and technical exchange and policy and practice influence.
  • Support the Director of PQI and deputise as required.
  • Establish research, evaluation, and innovation priorities and partners, contributing to expanding the knowledge base and identifying new / enhanced approaches to amplifying impact.
  • Champion, role model and drive quality, inclusion, and impact across the work of Save the Children and the wider sector.
  • Role model and promote Save the Children’s workplace behaviours and to building an inclusive and equitable workplace. Play a leadership role in improving diversity and inclusion.
  • Champion and embed approaches to shift power and decision-making closer to the children and communities we are working with and for.
  • Build strong relationships and networks with colleagues across the Save the Children global movement, including in country offices.
  • Lead and manage a team in line with SCUK’s people management expectations including holding yourself and team accountable for delivery and meeting organisational standards, behaviours and values
  • Establish team culture and norms to promote formal and informal support and capacity building to other technical and programme staff, for example through mentoring, coaching, training, or guidance
  • Work closely with the Director and other members of the SLT to ensure highly effective leadership of the Department and drive a culture of impact. This will include deputising for the Director and other SLT members as required

Person Profile

Experience/Knowledge

  • Extensive experience and in-depth understanding of the development of climate change adaptation programmes as well as the design and delivery of strategy and policy in an international context
  • Significant experience of strategically driving evidence-based climate adaptation and programming in an international development organisation
  • Experience of driving and monitoring the quality and impact of programmes and policy
  • A track record of building, maintaining, and developing relationships and networks with a wide range of stakeholders
  • Strong interpersonal and communication skills, with an excellent ability to communicate with impact and adapt style for a wide range of audiences with diverse backgrounds and at all levels
  • An academic qualification, or equivalent experience, in climate adaptation in an international development context.

Abilities

  • Proven ability to develop, manage and monitor budgets and support efforts to generate funds
  • Outstanding influencing skills, with a proven ability to influence peers and senior colleagues through the building of cross-organisational relationships and mobilisation of support for key issues
  • Excellent leadership skills with a proven ability to lead and work with colleagues to set a strategic vision, inspire others and securing cross-team engagement for delivery
  • Proven people management skills, with an ability to identify, attract, develop and retain high-quality staff and successfully support them
  • Ability and willingness to travel at least three weeks a year
  • Ability to operate within a predominantly self-servicing administrative environment

Aptitude

  • A demonstrable commitment to the principles of diversity and inclusion and their practical application and integration in the work environment
  • A commitment to Save the Children UK’s aims and core values of accountability, ambition, collaboration, creativity, and integrity

Ways of Working:

Remote First – The majority of our roles can be performed remotely, however you may work from the office as often as you wish. Whilst you will be predominantly working from home, we may require you to come to your contracted office up to 2-4 days per month or 6-8 days per quarter (Note: This will be agreed with your Line Manager and team) This is intended to be time spent on collaborating with colleagues and relationship building.

On-site – There are certain roles that cannot be performed remotely and so your role will be based in an office location and you may occasionally be able to work from home.

Flexible Working – We are happy to discuss flexible working options at interview**.**

Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion:

Save the Children UK believes in a world that is fair, inclusive and equitable where all children have the opportunity to change their world. We apply this to our workforce and we are committed to developing and supporting a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organisation where all employees have a sense of belonging and feel that they can be “Free to Be Me”. We are mot looking for just one type of person – we want to recruit people who can add fresh perspectives, innovative ideas or challenge that disrupts the risk of group think.

How to apply

https://jobs.savethechildren.org.uk/vacancy/head-of-climate-change-6004-any-location-/6030/description/


*Closing date: 20-Nov-22