A message from the Chair of the Heart of Wales Line Development Company Ltd. Thank you for expressing an interest in our vacancy for the Community Rail Partnership Officer. The Heart of Wales Line Development Co Ltd is committed to strengthening the links between our much loved 120-mile rural railway and the communities and businesses that it serves. I hope that when you have reviewed the Job Description and looked in more detail at our website, our vision and activities we have been undertaking and plan, that you will be encouraged to apply to join us. We are a small but purposeful organisation with a passion to make the Community Rail Partnership a success and a vital component of this is our CRP Officer. Working alongside our Company Secretary, and guiding the work of the Communications and Admin Officer, you will work closely with our committed Board of volunteer Directors and our partners, particularly Transport for Wales, to deliver our vision for the line. We believe the job to be extremely diverse and interesting, offering tremendous scope for involvement in a wide range of activities. So, if you think that you are an outgoing, self-starter able to work on your own initiative and as part of a small team, and you match our job-role requirements, then we look forward to hearing from you. If in the meantime if you need further information please contact our Company Secretary Andrew Cook by e-mail [email protected] to arrange to have an informal chat David Edwards Chair Heart of Wales Line Development Company Ltd. 2021-2023: Making health and wellbeing a focus for all journeys, visits and adventures along the line Job Description: Community Rail Officer for the Heart of Wales Line Community Rail Partnership Basic Terms of Employment: Salary: £22,000 p.a. FTE pro rata 30 hours per week plus agreed expenses Location: Currently home-based, but requiring frequent access to sites along the Heart of Wales Line. Holidays & Sickness: Holidays 28 days p.a. including statutory Public Holidays. Hours of Work: 4 or 5 days (30 hours total excluding breaks) per week, requiring some flexible working and evening/weekend duties. Transport: Free business rail travel on the Heart of Wales Line (at the discretion of Transport for Wales). Use of own car at 45p per mile Reporting Relationships: The post holder will be line managed by the Chair of the CRP steering group. The post will manage the Admin and Communications post holder. Term: Permanent, subject to successful project compliance & funding. Probationary period: 6 months with a review after 3 months and annual performance appraisal. About Us: The Heart of Wales Community Rail Partnership (CRP) brings together local groups and partners along the Heart of Wales line to deliver a wide range of community engagement and promotional activities. They promote understanding of the importance of local railways, in terms of improving mobility and sustainable travel, community cohesion and wellbeing, and social and economic development. The CRP is hosted by the Heart of Wales Line Development Company Ltd. which is an established, not-for-profit organisation, funded largely, though not entirely by grant from Transport for Wales (Welsh Government). Our core business is to support and promote the railway between Swansea and Shrewsbury via Llandovery (known as the "Heart of Wales Line") for the benefit of communities, businesses and visitors. In order to support the recovery of the line (post Covid), build passenger numbers sustainably and prepare for the potential of scheduled improvements, the Heart of Wales Line Community Rail Partnership is proposing to focus its work on developing opportunities for ‘active-leisure’ along the line, with the ultimate aim of becoming known as THE line in Wales and Borders that provides for and actively welcomes walkers and cyclists of all abilities. We plan to work with a wide range of partners to 1 Promote the Heart of Wales service and its economic, social and environmental importance to the communities it serves 2 Positively influence ticketing, marketing and special offers which facilitate and promote active leisure use of the line 3 Encourage and make it easier for local people to walk and cycle to stations 4 Increase walking and cycling tourism in communities along the line by facilitating the provision of great information, signage, infrastructure and services for anyone wanting to use the line for these purposes 5 Deliver walking and cycling projects, events and services which develop the identity of the line as a source of active, inclusive leisure for all ages and abilities In 2018/9 we launched the 121mile Heart of Wales long-distance walking trail and have a Trail Steering Group to help oversee and develop this project We have a lease on the Llandovery Station premises where volunteers run a successful Café and our Commercial Services Committee helps generate ideas and revenue creating opportunities along the line We have a contract with Transport for Wales (TfW) and have signed a Service Level Commitment (SLC) for the CRP to deliver, in broad terms, against the agreed funding allocated as set out annually in our shared community rail activity plan About the Job: The main purpose of the job is to manage, monitor and deliver the shared annual Community Rail Activity Plan and support the Board in Delivering 21-23 Vision outcomes. As the Community Rail Officer, you will work closely with the CRP Steering group, TfW and other partners to help shape/plan/manage the priorities and activities of the Community Rail Partnership, ensuring that the overall aims and agreed outcomes are met. This will include initiating and delivering funded projects on budget and always looking for new opportunities, including local contracts, funding and aligned commercial work within the CRP remit. Detailed Job Description: Working to our Vision, Business Plan and annual Community Rail Activity Plan, the Community Rail Officer will: • Actively promote the Heart of Wales Line, and with the Admin and Comms officer, develop the brand identity, website, and social media presence • Actively promote the economy, culture and well-being of communities served by the railway and encourage community involvement with the railway by working in partnership with TfW, the Welsh Government, our four local authorities, train and bus operating companies and the voluntary sector, to develop, promote and implement projects to enhance active travel • Promote public transport as a sustainable travel alternative to the private car and as a means of connecting customers and communities with active leisure • Develop and implement projects that connect and promote destinations and businesses, whilst enabling communities to collaborate effectively in order to adopt their local stations, improve/promote their visitor offer and visitor experience • Work closely with the Chair of, and support, the Trail Steering Group in their development of the Trail and related activities • Liaise with the Partnership’s Chair and/or his/her nominee over the timely production of o the annual Community Rail Activity Plan, that should be aligned with the Wellbeing of Future Generations Act and the four pillars of the Community Rail Development Strategy whilst reflecting the requirements of the DfT Accreditation process, o Internal and external reports necessary for contract compliance/completion and good governance, ensuring all financial reports, budgets and obligations are complied with in a timely way, • Provide regular updates to the Board, TfW and, in the fourth quarter each year, provide case studies and projected project plans to inform TfW’s annual Community Rail Report, • Be an active member of Community Rail Network, attending conferences and relevant training courses and webinars to keep your knowledge up to date. About the Candidate: The Heart of Wales Line Development Company Limited is committed to equality of opportunity and welcomes applications from all qualified candidates. We will consider a range of candidates with varied experience, such as rural regeneration, arts, community development, education or business. The successful applicant will be: • An outgoing people-person with excellent communication, networking and partnership development and maintenance skills • Able to lead and manage varied projects, from initiation to delivery - which means taking ownership of outcomes, able to think on your feet and work flexibly, confident in your own ideas and able to motivate and inspire others • Used to juggling a busy workload and will have previously managed and delivered community projects; able to demonstrate that they can communicate effectively and engagingly across a variety of platforms including social media • Great with people, keen to get out and about meeting people, attending events, giving presentations and networking across the region • A good Team player, confident and competent working with, co-ordinating and managing staff, contractors and volunteers • Familiar with small enterprise, their advantages and limitations, • A self-starter, a creative thinker and problem solver, able to work on their own initiative with an eye to detail and accuracy in monitoring and reporting to ensure compliance with agreements, commitments and standards If this sounds like you, or mostly sounds like you, please submit your application including a cover letter outlining why you think you’re the right person for this role, when you would be available to start, and a brief CV detailing employment and/or life