We’re Student Roost. An owner and operator of purpose-built student accommodation across the UK. We’re unrecognisable from the small brand that launched in 2017, having already created a portfolio of over 19,000 beds and ambition to increase that in the near future.

We’re made up of really good people and we’re a business who endeavours always to do the right thing, in the right way – truly putting students’ experience, welfare and safety at the top of our agenda.

We’ve all heard ‘if you build it…they will come’; we believe if you build it right, they will stay. That goes for both our residents and our people. We want to be a stable, welcoming and safe backdrop to our residents’ entire time at University, giving them one less thing to worry about. And for our people, we all spend more time at work than we do with our loved ones, we think it’s only right that you do that in an organisation, environment and a team that you love being a part of.

We’re currently building our in-house external communications function. We’re on the lookout for a passionate, driven and all-round brilliant communicator, to complete the picture for our People & Organisational Effectiveness department.

The Communications Officer will help us to tell great stories about our business – the people who make it, and the residents who live in our properties – and build relationships with external stakeholders. We’ll also be looking to you to help us enhance our presence in the employment market and to further our goal to be an employer of choice in our sector.

You’ll be a brilliant writer and editor, and confident speaking to people, whether they’re journalists, team members or residents.

This is a new role for our business, which reports into our Head of External Communications & PR as part of the wider People team. There will be plenty of opportunities for training and development.

This is an exciting role, and we’re looking for someone who’s able to develop innovative content and think of the best ways of getting it out to the right people. We look after a diverse, youth-audience, so we’re always keen to keep up-to-date with new ways of working, new technologies and creative solutions.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES:

SAFETY, WELFARE & COMPLIANCE

• Top of your agenda at all times; practising an unrelenting approach to safety and welfare by adherence to any and all safety policies and processes in our organisation
• Developing an understanding within your respective area for all statutory and legal accountabilities we hold; furthermore, ensure that your colleagues understand why we perform such duties and encourage an environment where safety and welfare is never overlooked
• Creating an environment whereby all team members feel confident and comfortable in raising any concerns about our properties or our practices

MEDIA RELATIONS

• Proactive media: writing press releases and pitches for journalists to secure national, trade and local coverage
• Reactive media: responding to media enquiries and logging these on databases
• Media monitoring and analysis, including producing regular reports for the Executive Board and senior leadership
• Supporting with wider PR and Marketing campaigns
• Occasional out-of-hours media support to ensure Student Roost is represented appropriately
• Helping to plan and deliver the corporate launch of new developments, including press and media reach

STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS

• Public affairs: supporting communications with stakeholders like MPs, councillors, local authorities or universities
• Representing the company externally at industry groups and events
• Working with the Art Worker in the People team and the Marketing team to produce information for residents

SOCIAL MEDIA

• Answering queries from residents and the public on social media
• Providing guidance and contributing to the content and traction of external-facing social channels, such as LinkedIn and Instagram; including recommending the introduction of additional platforms

CORPORATE COMMUNICATIONS

• Producing content for, and editing, the corporate website pages (currently in development)
• Creating and proofreading compelling corporate content, including videos, blogs and articles or awards entries

CRISIS COMMUNICATIONS

• Helping to prepare for and provide communication responses in crisis situations, such as major incidents

INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS

• Providing occasional support for the Head of Internal Communications and L&D, as required
• Ensuring that team members are kept informed about media issues involving Student Roost
• Writing and proofreading articles and some basic editing of the Bird Box intranet site

PERSON SPECIFICATION

COMMIT TO GROW

• You’ll act as a Subject Matter Expert on communications across the business
• You’ll mentor colleagues on communication styles, offering your personal experience where helpful and relevant
• You’ll take a keen interest in the latest practice in both Communications/PR and the PBSA sector; ensuring our approach to external communication and PR is current, relevant and having the impact we desire

WHAT YOU’VE DONE BEFORE

• You’ve got experience of working in communications, including media relations, social media management and/or PR/Marketing campaigns
• You might have a degree or diploma in PR, Communications or Media
• You’ve worked in a customer-focused business before, with diverse teams and diverse, youth customer populations
• You’ll have a good understanding of the media, and possibly politics too.
• You’ll have good IT skills (e.g. Microsoft Office) and might have additional skills like video or photo editing
• You’ve got experience of working in change-heavy environments

WHAT YOU’RE GOOD AT/KNOWN FOR

• You have excellent written communication skills. Your writing is your brand and it jumps off the page
• You have a strong attention to detail
• You can turn complex subjects into compelling and engaging stories with experience of delivering content across a range of channels
• You can build and sustain high-quality relationships with your customers (our residents), colleagues and external stakeholders
• You’re inclusive of others, non-judgmental, and fair
• You have the presence and credibility to work with a wide range of groups and individuals
• You’re highly organised, on time, and well-presented

WHAT WILL IT TAKE?

Physical Effort

• You’ll mostly be desk-based at our HQ office in Birmingham, working in front of a screen for much of that time. In line with the DSE assessment, we encourage time away from your workstation, fresh air throughout the day and a good balance between systems and human beings!

(NB: at the time of writing in May 2020 our HQ is currently closed – until it reopens, team members in HQ are working remotely. We would make sure you had everything you need to do this effectively, and everything that we’re saying about screen breaks and wellbeing applies now more than ever!)

• The best feedback comes from those doing the job, so there will be some travel involved throughout the UK to see our properties and meet our teams in person.

Mental Effort

• This is a role of competing priorities and as a seasonal operation, there are times of year when workloads may spike or unplanned incidents will take over. The role requires someone highly organised, but someone who is calm and pragmatic in their response to changes.
• Despite solid planning, short-notice work may be required of you.
• Unpredictable pattern of activity, no two days are the same and this role would be more suited to someone who can operate effectively in a highly-varied environment.

Emotional Effort

• Frequent exposure to difficult circumstances involving residents and/or people. There is a known increase in mental health challenges for the student population and whilst we will provide all the tools, training and support necessary, we recognise everyone is different and there may be a more profound or lasting effect on some of our people.
• As we build our business, working on the development of organisational processes, systems and change, can bring uncertainty. We would seek to minimise or remove any concerns for people through clear, consistent communication.