Surrey Hills Society

Surrey Hills Care Farm Coordinator

Surrey Hills Care Farm Coordinator – East Surrey Pilot

Reporting to (post) Chair, Surrey Hills Society

Hours of work: 3 days a week (22.5 hours), flexible working by agreement. Some evening/weekend working required.

Located at: Mainly home working with easy access to sites across East Surrey.

Salary Actual £18,000 (£30k pro rata)

About the Surrey Hills Society:

The Surrey Hills Society is an independent charity promoting the positive enjoyment and conservation of the Surrey Hills National Landscape for those who live, work in, or visit the area. The Society encourages people to explore and learn about the special qualities and  distinctiveness of the area through walks, talks, events, practical conservation, and volunteering.

The Role:

An 18-month employment contract with the Surrey Hills Society (reviewed after a probationary period of 3 months) to oversee the coordination of the Care Farm pilot project in East Surrey.

About the project:

Care farming refers to the therapeutic use of farming practices. There are many different models for how a care farm may operate and these are as diverse as the people that they support. One thing all care farms have is common is providing a supervised, structured programme of farm-related activity for people with a defined need. Care is bespoke, person-centred and focused on the individual. Care farming activity has a real purpose behind it where people are able to make a meaningful contribution to the running of a farm.

The Surrey Hills Society, in partnership with the Surrey Hills team and Growing Health Together have been awarded a grant to initiate a pilot of nature-based health interventions on farms in East Surrey. These can support the mental health of people from all ages and backgrounds with Surrey Heartlands' priority communities as the focus. The approach will be tailored to the local beneficiaries and hosts, while adapting the model in response to real time learning. Our plan is deliberately open and will evolve according to local needs and circumstances, initially using a small number of farms. Once a successful model has been established the ambition is to develop this into a wider programme to support health outcomes and help diversify farm incomes across Surrey.

We are also looking to develop a particular arts component to this initiative, recognising the significant additional benefits to mental wellbeing of engagement in the creative arts, particularly for groups who have historically been underserved by traditional services. 

The proposed care farm initiative responds to unmet need that cannot be met through traditional services and would engage those who are currently struggling to access holistic support for their mental wellbeing. The provision would be novel for the NHS, social care, and social prescribing in Surrey and will, additionally, offer educational opportunities.

The role will involve developing, managing, and promoting a varied programme of group activities and events on working, commercial tenant farms to support farm incomes and people who are socially isolated and are experiencing mental health issues in East Surrey.

Being part of a small charity, you will need to be a self-starter and work closely with the Growing Health Together and the Surrey Hills National Landscape Teams. You will work to coordinate referral programmes and help evaluate the impact of the project.

Key responsibilities include:

1) Activity programme development and planning

• Research and develop activity programmes that promote mental health, social inclusion and wellbeing delivered on partner farms.
• Ensure that programmes are tailored to the needs and preferences of our diverse target audiences, which will likely include those with autism or similar conditions. This includes working with target families/individuals to co-design appropriate activities and interventions, which may require patience and an understanding of different needs and requirements.
• Cultivate existing delivery relationships and build new partnerships to support our activity programmes.
• Schedule delivery of our activity programmes to agreed targets.

   
2) Programme coordination

• Manage all the operational logistics of programme delivery.
• Respond to participant enquiries, registering participants onto activities and circulating attendance reminders prior to the session start.
• Ensure that new participants complete registration and evaluation processes.
• Respond to participant requests for support and refer on as appropriate.
• Conduct Health & Safety risk assessments of venues and activities to ensure legal compliance and safe running.
• Maintain accurate and up-to-date participant and activity records.
• Develop and review activity-related policies and procedures to ensure alignment tocurrent good practice.

   
3) Budget management

• Ensure that programmes and activities are delivered within agreed budgets.
• Review invoices and volunteer expenses claims for accuracy and approve for payments.

   
4) Marketing and communications

• Develop marketing and communications strategies with partners.

   
5) Recruitment and coordination

• Recruit, interview, conduct due diligence checks and coordinate providers and volunteers to assist with programme activities.

   
6) Monitoring and evaluation

• Manage data collection processes to monitor and evaluate programme outcomes and impact.
• Prepare and present reports to the project steering group consisting of representatives from the partner organisations.
• Analyse programme data and participant feedback for continuous learning and improvement of programme quality.
• Ensure that activity records are accurate and up-to-date for monitoring and evaluation purposes and reports are provided on time for deadlines.

   
Person Specification:

Essential:

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• The ability to build effective relationships and trust.
• Understanding of the value of diversity and integration.
• Open mindedness, patience and a recognition of the barriers that certain members of the community face.
• An interest in, and some understanding of, current farming and agricultural issues as well as a broad interest in the environment.
• Confidence in leading groups of people.
• Good organisational skills and the ability to think on your feet/be resourceful.
• The ability to work as part of a team and in partnership with others, including with those who work within other organisations.
• The ability to confidently use spreadsheets and track payments.
• Enthusiasm and commitment to the role.
• The ability to self-motivate.
• Clean UK driving licence and access to a car.
• Subject to DBS check.

   
Desirable:

• Reasonable knowledge of primary health care, including understanding of mental health or social care services.
• Relevant experience in relation to working with target groups and/or in a farming environment.
• Knowledge of the Surrey Hills and local communities.
• First Aid trained.

   
Job Outcomes/Opportunities:

• Flexible and hybrid working
• Experience of working within a charitable organisation and as part of a National Landscape.
• Experience working with a wide range of people, including those with different requirements and abilities.
• Opportunity for networking with a range of Surrey based organisations.
• Development of time management, organisational and interpersonal skills.
• Extensive experience of event planning, including the coordination of activities.
• Excellent opportunity to make a marked difference on mental health in the East Surrey Area.

   
Job Information:

The contract will be for a duration of 18 months. Standard working hours will be 3 days per week from 9am-5:30pm. Working arrangements will allow for some degree of flexibility and can be flexible for the right candidate but will require working ‘out of hours’ on a regular basis, including some evenings and weekends when the project requires it (activity sessions may frequently be at weekends). The appointed candidate is expected to fully participate in all activities offered to them, but any additional working will be accounted for through time off in lieu (TOIL).

The successful candidate will be based mainly from home; however, you will also be expected to travel to a wide variety of sites across the East Surrey area as well as occasional working from the Surrey Hills Estate Office, which is located at Warren Farm Barns, Headley Lane, Mickleham Dorking, RH5 6DG.

You will be entitled to 15 days holiday plus bank holidays. Travel expenses will be agreed and paid for. You will also be entitled to a contributory occupational pension scheme once the probationary period has passed.

You must have a full UK driving licence and have access to a car or other vehicle to reach different sites.

Salary: Actual £18,000 (£30k pro rata).

Application Process:

Please submit your CV as well as the completed application form to show why you are interested in this particular role and how your experience shows you are suitable for this post. Please submit this via email to info@surreyhillssociety.org.

If you would like to discuss the role informally and in further detail please contact Sarah Thiele, Surrey Hills Programme Manager, by emailing sarah.thiele@surreycc.gov.uk. Further information about the role and the link to the application form can be found here.

Following applications, you may be invited to an interview to understand further why you would like the role and why you think you would be suitable. Interviews are expected to take place during the week commencing 8th January with a second round of interviews taking place the following week (week commencing 15th January).

Closing date for applications: Friday 15th December

Equal Opportunities

We are committed to having an inclusive and diverse organisation and encourage applications from those with backgrounds, which may be underrepresented in our sector, including people from minority ethnic backgrounds and people with disabilities.

Closing Date: 15/12/2023  Location: East Surrey