Programme Officer (Maternity Cover)

What we’re building

Every child should have the opportunity to learn to swim. But for too many disabled children, finding swimming lessons that meet their needs is still far too difficult. At Level Water, we’re changing that.

We work with swimming pools, teachers and families across the UK to make swimming more accessible for disabled children. We fund high-quality, adapted lessons, support teachers to develop their skills and work with the swimming sector to create more inclusive opportunities.

We’ve built a programme that works. Families trust us, pools want to work with us, and more children are discovering the confidence, independence and joy that swimming can bring. But we know there’s more to do.

Thousands of children are waiting for our support. We want to make better use of the opportunities we already have, strengthen how we work with our partners and make the experience of being part of Level Water as positive and straightforward as possible.

That’s where you come in.

The opportunity

This isn’t just an administrative role. It’s an opportunity to help make a national programme work better for the children and families who need it.

As our Programme Officer, you’ll play a central role in the day-to-day delivery of Level Water’s swimming programme. You’ll work closely with families, swimming pools and our small Programmes team to ensure children can access the right lessons and receive the support they need.

You’ll help keep our programme organised, our relationships strong and our systems running smoothly.

But we also want someone who can help us do things differently.

We’re looking at how we can make better use of our data and technology, improve the way we communicate with families and make our processes more efficient. You’ll have a genuine opportunity to contribute ideas, solve problems and help build better ways of working.

Some days you’ll be working with families to find suitable lessons. Others you’ll be reviewing data, helping improve our CRM, preparing reports for swimming partners or supporting a new project.

It’s a varied role in a small, ambitious team, where the work you do has a direct impact on the opportunities available to disabled children.

What you’ll actually do

Keep our swimming programme running brilliantly

• Manage referrals, match children with suitable swimming lessons and support families throughout their swimming journey.
• Build strong relationships with our swimming partners, ensuring lesson spaces are used effectively, partnership commitments are met and new sites are supported when needed.
• Coordinate monthly invoicing, maintain accurate programme records and prepare reports and updates for our national partners.

Build better systems and processes

• Manage our CRM, Zoho, ensuring swimmer, referral and partner information is accurate, accessible and up to date.
• Help improve and develop Zoho, identifying opportunities to automate tasks, streamline processes and make better use of our data.
• Work with the team to improve how we collect, manage and report information, making our programme more efficient and easier to deliver.

Improve the experience for families

• Be a key point of contact for families, providing clear, timely and supportive communication, and helping resolve questions or concerns.
• Help develop better ways to communicate and engage with parents, particularly families waiting to access swimming lessons.
• Gather feedback, stories and case studies that help us understand and demonstrate the difference swimming makes.

Help us learn, improve and grow

• Support projects that improve our programme, including small group lessons, parent engagement and new approaches to delivery.
• Help collect and interpret programme data, contributing to impact reports, funding applications and decisions about what we do next.
• Work with colleagues and swimming partners to coordinate training, share learning and identify opportunities to improve the quality and reach of our programmes.

Who we’re looking for

We care far more about how you work than where you’ve worked. You don’t need a background in swimming. You don’t need charity experience. And you certainly don’t need to know everything about our systems on day one.

What matters is that you care about people, take pride in doing things well and want to make a difference.

People who thrive here are:

• Brilliantly organised. You can manage competing priorities, keep track of the details and make sure important things don’t slip through the cracks.
• Natural relationship builders. You’re warm, approachable and confident communicating with different people, whether that’s a parent, a swimming teacher or a national partner.
• Confident with systems and technology. You enjoy finding better ways of working, learn new platforms quickly and can see the potential for technology to solve everyday problems.
• Proactive problem solvers. When something isn’t working, you don’t just flag the issue. You think about why it’s happening, explore the options and help find a solution.
• Comfortable taking ownership. You’re happy working independently, making decisions within your responsibilities and knowing when to involve others.
• Thoughtful and detail focused. You understand that accurate information, clear communication and reliable processes make a real difference to people’s experiences.
• Curious and open to change. You’re interested in learning, testing new ideas and helping us improve, rather than doing something a certain way simply because it’s how it’s always been done.

Bonus points if:

• You’ve worked with CRM systems such as Zoho, Salesforce or similar platforms, particularly improving workflows, reporting or automation.
• You have experience supporting families, customers or service users in a busy, people focused environment.
• You’ve supported projects involving process improvement, digital development or customer communication.
• You’ve worked in a charity, community programme, leisure organisation or another partnership based service.

If you recognise yourself in the way we’ve described the role, then we’d love to hear from you.

Why Level Water?

We’re a small, ambitious team with a big mission.

Our values are Bold, Driven, Personal, and Joyful, and they’re more than words on a page. They shape how we work, how we support each other and how we make a difference.

Bold.
We challenge the idea that disabled children should have fewer opportunities. We look for better ways of doing things and aren’t afraid to try something new. Your ideas will be welcome here.

Driven.
We’re determined to make our programmes as effective as they can be. You’ll have the freedom to take ownership, solve problems and see the impact of your work.

Personal.
Behind every referral, waiting list entry and swimming lesson is a child and a family. We never lose sight of that. We care about the relationships we build, with each other, our partners, and the people we support.

Joyful.
Swimming should be fun. It should build confidence, friendships and freedom. We want working at Level Water to feel positive and rewarding, too.

Practical details:

• Contract: 12 months
• Salary: £28.5 – £33.5
• Flexible working: Hybrid, ideally with 1-2 days a week at our office in Tunbridge Wells.
• Some travel required to pools, partners, and our Level Water weekend events throughout the year.
• Reporting to: Head of Programmes

How to apply

We want to hear from you in whatever way best shows us who you are and how you think.

Get creative. We really want to get a feel for your personality and style. A traditional CV and cover letter? Great. A video introduction? Awesome. Whatever format helps you shine and show us who you are.

Here’s what we’d love to know:

1. Tell us about a time you spotted a process or system that wasn’t working as well as it could. What did you do to improve it, and what difference did that make?
2. What interests you about working with Level Water, and what would you bring to supporting our families and swimming pool partners?

We’re interested in your approach, your ideas and what matters to you.

Before you apply:

If you’ve got questions about the role, the team, or whether this might be right for you, please reach out. I’m Matt Hughes-Short, Head of Programmes at Level Water, and I’d genuinely love to chat.

Email me at matthew@levelwater.org

Book a call with me: https://calendar.app.google/nHJYM3bWbMzTamJu6

Ready to apply?

Send your application to matthew@levelwater.org with the subject line: “Programmes Officer at Level Water – [Your Name]”

Deadline:

We have a hard deadline for this role on Monday 2nd November.

However, we’re reviewing applications on a rolling basis and will close this advert once we’ve found the right person. So if this excites you, don’t wait, but do take the time to show us who you really are.

We’d rather see your best work than a rushed application. If you need a bit of time to put that together, talk to us.

We’re excited to meet you. Let’s build something brilliant together.