Policy and Practice Officer

We are looking for an experienced and passionate Policy and Practice Officer to work as part of our Policy and Influencing Team.

Imagine being part of an organisation whose common purpose is to help those who are severely impacted by mental illness. We believe that everyone should be treated with respect and dignity – and that’s why equity is one of our core values. We draw on the expertise, unique perspectives and lived experience of our people – regardless of who they are or their background – to help us become inclusive and anti-racist employer, campaigning organisation and service provider that reflect the diverse communities we support as a mental health charity.

Rethink Mental Illness is the charity for people severely affected by mental illness. No matter who a person is or how bad their situation has got, we are here to help them get the information and support they need to live a better life. We work tirelessly to ensure people living with mental illness and their carers are listened to, treated fairly and have easy access to services that meet their mental health needs and wider physical health, financial, housing, work and volunteering needs. We do this by providing our own services, campaigning on a local and national level, and working with a wide range of other organisations to create communities that care.

The Policy and Practice Officer role is based within the ‘Policy and Practice’ department which has the overall function of elevating the voice of lived experience and diverse communities to influence systemic change and ensuring it is delivered on the ground.

How you will make a difference

You will be instrumental in supporting a range of activity across ‘Policy and Practice’ including the following teams: Policy and Influencing (where this role primarily sits) and the Lived Experience Insights team. The role also has a dotted line into the Racial Justice and Equity team and may also work with other teams, such as Campaigns and Communications and Evidence and Impact. The post is ideal for you if you are keen to gain a range of experience and develop your skills in an engaging and supportive team environment.

Diversity, Equity, Inclusion

Diversity is important to us and we appreciate difference through difference, inclusiveness and belonging. It gives us a deeper understanding of the world, our society and the diverse communities we’re working with. By including everyone, we are able to draw on the unique experiences and expertise of our people to help shape and enrich our workplace and improve our services. One way we are doing is through our valued staff networks which play a critical and highly valued role in keeping us focused on creating a diverse, inclusive and engaged employer.  We recognise and support staff networks and support groups for our ethnically diverse and LGBTQIA+ colleagues. We are also proud to have been awarded Disability Confident Employer status and are a signatory to the Business in the Community Race at Work Charter.

We aim for our workforce to reflect the diversity of the communities we serve; for those who work for us to feel heard, valued and feel they belong; and for our work to help tackle wider mental health inequalities. We therefore actively encourage and welcome applications from everyone, including applicants with lived experience of mental illness, those who are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer or Questioning, Intersex, Asexual and any other gender identity not expressed here (LGBTQIA+); people who are neurodiverse, have a health condition, or a disability or hidden disability and people from an ethnically diverse background - regardless of your age, religious or spiritual belief, sexual orientation, marital status, veteran status, pregnancy, political view or socio-economic status.

Becoming a truly anti-racist organisation

We have an ambition of become a truly anti-racist employer, campaigning organisation and service provider - and in our efforts to influence policy and wider societal factors impacting on mental health set out in our anti-racist statement . We have designed a multi-year anti-racist programme of work contained in our Race Equality Action Plan which demonstrates our intention to hold ourselves accountable and be judged on our progress on becoming a truly anti-racist organisation. You can read more about our progress here.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact - recruitment@rethink.org