​The Trussell Trust is an amazing place to work – but they wish it didn’t have to exist, because they don’t believe that a charity like theirs should be needed at all. Unfortunately, the charity has seen need double over the past five years, as a result of both the pandemic and subsequent economic circumstances. Despite best efforts, food bank needs are soaring as more and more people are unable to afford the essentials and are facing impossible decisions between heating their home and feeding their family. Alongside this, the increased visibility and awareness of the issue mean that public goodwill, support and their profile are all considerably higher than they have been in the past.

Based within the Strategic Communications directorate, the Audience Insight & Journeys team leads Trussell’s audience research. It draws together insight from their many and varied organisational audiences, and works to understand and optimise each audience’s encounter with them across various touchpoints and channels. Understanding how each audience interacts enables the charity to serve them better: they can identify opportunities to improve experience, increase engagement and optimise fundraising, communications and advance their goal of winning hearts and minds.

As the leader of this small, expert team, you’ll bring a very high level of professional skill in audience research and insight, with a comprehensive methodological grounding and extensive experience in a comparable role. You’ll support the whole organisation to apply sophisticated insights, and help other teams across Trussell to use your findings to help them become even more effective.

We expect that you will have experience in designing and implementing a robust audience strategy, and you’ll have a highly credible background in data and research. But you must also show you understand and can communicate complex data in simple, practical terms, so that we can develop powerful moments of engagement with all our audiences. Organised and diligent, with a strong track record, you’ll have a good understanding of how communications, digital and audience teams (particularly IG teams) work well together. Most importantly, you will share our unshakeable belief in the power of attitudinal change and its potential to influence the public discourse and creating lasting change around hunger and poverty in the UK.

Trussell actively encourage applications from underrepresented groups such as returning parents or carers who are re-entering work after a career break, people who are LGBTQIA+, from racially minoritised communities such as Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, who have a faith other than Christianity or none, those with a disability, impairment, learning difference or long-term condition, with caring responsibilities, from different nations and regions and those with a lived experience of poverty as well as any other underrepresented group in their workforce. They are committed to ensuring the safety and protection of their employees from all forms of harm.

Please visit www.join-trusselltrust.co.uk to find out more. For a confidential, informal conversation, please contact Cadence Partners by email at trusselltrust-audience@cadencepartners.co.uk.

Closing date: midnight, 21 January 2024.