EMPOWER

Empower Youth Zones is the charity that oversees the creation, management and sustainability of Youth Zones in Manchester and Salford. These include HideOut Youth Zone located in Gorton (East Manchester) which opened in 2020, and Salford Youth Zone located in Pendleton, which opened to young people in June 2025. HideOut and Salford Youth Zone provide children and young people aged 8-19 and up to 25 for those with additional needs with somewhere safe to go, something positive to do and someone trusted to talk to. What is the Role? We are looking for an exceptional Director of Youth Work & Impact to lead our life changing work with young people. As Director of Youth Work & Impact, you will shape and drive the entire youth work offer across both Youth Zones. You'll lead programme development, ensure delivery is high quality and inclusive, and make sure our work has measurable impact on the lives of children and young people aged 8-19 (and up to 25 with additional needs) You will establish and oversee a robust Monitoring & Evaluation framework, to measure outcomes, track delivery against KPIs, and provide clear insights that inform strategic decisions by the CEO and Board. Alongside this, you will lead safeguarding as Empower's Designated Safeguarding Lead, manage programme budgets, and provide line management to senior operational staff. Through strong leadership, strategic planning and a commitment to high performance, you will ensure both Youth Zones deliver inspiring, impactful and safe experiences for every young person who walks through our doors, creating opportunities for them to have a voice and influence decisions that affect them You'll also be a visible leader across Greater Manchester - representing Empower Youth Zones at key events and meetings, strengthening partnerships and advocating for our work. This is a rare opportunity to be at the heart of a growing movement dedicated to giving every young person the chance to realise their full potential and thrive. What will I be doing? Lead strategic and operational planning, delivery, and continuous improvement of youth delivery programmes across HideOut and Salford Youth Zones, embedding the national youth work curriculum into all programme areas. Through effective leadership and line management of the Heads of Youth Work, ensure programme design and delivery aligns with organisational objectives and meets the needs of young people. Establish a Monitoring and Evaluation framework (linking Onside's Excellence Framework) across operational Youth Zone delivery to inform the CEO and Board (measure impact, monitor delivery plan and KPIs against strategy) ensuring a high level of quality assurance, accountability and continuous improvement. Build and maintain strong relationships with delivery partners, funders, national and regional youth sector infrastructure organisations and other key stakeholders. Act as the charity's lead representative at local events, conferences and meetings (Local, GM & City Wide Youth Partnerships, VCS boards, Local Authority Partnership and neighbourhood groups etc) to advocate for our work Provide strategic leadership and management of every aspect of the Youth Zone's services to young people, including our work with external partners ensure they meet performance and safeguarding standards Take responsibility as Empower's Designated Safeguarding Lead, ensuring safeguarding policies and procedures are upheld across all programme activities, supporting the wider team to manage any concerns or incidents appropriately, creating a safe and inclusive environment. Embed a pro-active planning culture throughout the organisation with effective planning taking place at all levels, to execute the Charity's strategic goals in the most efficient and effective way, that delivers our priorities and contributes to the core values of the charity Set and manage budgets effectively, ensuring financial accountability and value for money, and work with Finance to meet financial planning, reporting and management requirements. Support the CEO to develop the risk register for the charity so trustees can easily identify major issues and ensure effective mitigation procedures are in place and regularly reviewed Through effective Line Management of Empower's Head of Youth Work and Partnerships and Data and Insights Manager, ensure they have all the support and resources needed to enable the Charity to be fully compliant with all relevant reporting requirements and ensure necessary processes and procedures are in place across both youth zones. Work closely with the Director of People to develop, implement and regularly review a workforce development plan for all staff and volunteers working with children and young people, ensuring professional youth work values and principles are embedded throughout our practise Integrate equity, diversity and inclusion principles and practice across programme delivery using equity impact assessments and ensuring EDI is a core component of training and onboarding for all partners and stakeholders. To undertake any other reasonably required duties as instructed by someone acting on Chief Executive's behalf, in addition to the role-specific tasks and responsibilities detailed above. What else will I need to do? Be a role model for young people and present a positive "can do" attitude Take personal responsibility for own actions Provide strong leadership to the programmes team, setting clear direction and fostering a high -performance culture Represent Empower Youth Zones positively and effectively in all dealings with internal colleagues, and external partners Champion innovation and continuous improvement in programme delivery Comply with all policies and procedures, with particular reference to safeguarding, codes of conduct, health and safety and equality and diversity to ensure all activities are accessible Promote a collaborative and inclusive working environment, both within the organisation and with external partners Assist with any promotional activities and visits that take place at the Youth Zone Actively promote the Youth Zone and positively contribute towards increasing Youth Zone membership.