Brighton Community Organiser at Acorn

Your daily work will involve

recruiting individual ACORN members through in person outreach, online interaction and other means (door-knocking, street stalls and other community outreach takes up around half of our organisers’ time)
evaluating whether ACORN can support someone (e.g. a person whose landlord is refusing to make repairs), and empower them to take action to confront injustice, including building a team of ACORN members to stand up for each other
building new and maintaining existing ACORN groups and teams, including through organising drives
identifying and taking action on issues that affect our members and their communities.
and much more!
For a full list of duties and responsibilities, see the Job Description & Selection Criteria.

Why work for ACORN?

ACORN is committed to investing in the continued professional development of our organising staff. All staff are provided with a full week of community organising training when they first start the job followed by close supervisory support during their probation period to ensure they have the confidence and skills necessary to develop as a community organiser. Regular training sessions are delivered beyond the probationary period in order to promote the continuous personal and professional development of the organising team. We are well known for having the best organising training of any community organisation and you will be well-equipped with all the resources and tools you need to succeed as an organiser.

Testimony from our organisers

“Working for ACORN as an organiser is an empowering and enriching experience. Every day we’re out organising in the community, we’re changing people’s lives, and we ourselves are changed in the process. This is no ordinary job, it’s an opportunity to make a difference in an incredibly nurturing and supportive environment.” – Emily, Field Organiser

“As a woman organiser, I’ve been able to play a hugely important role in uplifting women in the organisation. After noticing that the branch I organise had become dominated by men, I created a strategy to develop women members in the group. I organised a Women in Organising training for women members in the branch aimed at building up their confidence and organising skills, and I prioritised getting women to meetings and trainings. As a result, some incredible women members have stepped up and starting taking on leadership in the branch: standing for election, taking on leading roles at actions and planning strategy for our campaigns.”- Anna, Member Defence and Field Organiser

“One of my personal highlights of working for ACORN is being part of a member defence case for Sharon, one of our members in Bristol. Sharon had been fighting the council for five years just to get draughts and cold sorted in her house, and got nowhere. One day I knocked her door – she didn’t seem keen to chat at first, but once I mentioned housing issues she started explaining her problem to me and we built a rapport. I recruited her to ACORN and we held small meetings in her house with other women members, planning action on the council’s head of housing. We ended up winning our demands for better insulation and a professional survey, and it’s now noticeably warmer at her house. Just as rewarding for me was the way it built Sharon’s confidence, helped build a local ACORN group, and brought together women members. They all had a glass of wine after the win to celebrate!” Em, Field Organiser

ACORN is an equal opportunity employer and values diversity. We are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex*, gender, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.

*Except where a protected characteristic is a requirement for the role.

Qualifications
No formal qualifications are necessary! We’re primarily looking for candidates with a strong work ethic, good listening skills and the ability to motivate others.

For more specific information on the role and its requirements, please refer to the full Job Description & Selection Criteria

ACORN is committed to investing in the continued professional development of our organising staff. Please refer to the Job Description and Selection Criteria for information on the training and support you will receive as an ACORN staff member.

This role is a 12 months fixed-term contract, with the view to be extended depending on funding.