Job Title: Education and Outreach Coordinator, Amber CIC
Reports To: Primary Source Programme Manager
Duration: Fixed term 12 months (Full Time)
Salary: £28K p.a.
Job Overview:
The Primary Source Programme, funded by the Paul Hamlyn Foundation, has been created to deliver arts-based education developed from Amber’s expertise in documentary photography and filmmaking, utilising historic works from the AmberSide Collection produced by the Collective over the past 50 years. The programme is based in North Tyneside and invites primary school pupils to use the same art forms to explore, examine and document their local area. High-quality skills training and equipment, including DSLR and HD Video cameras, are provided by Amber to assist with this, delivering innovative projects that have been widely praised for their impact across education and pupil development.
The programme features a year-long residency with two primary schools in North Tyneside. These schools are committed to working with Amber to trial the use of documentary film and photography through project delivery and the co-creation of teaching resources and lesson plans inspired by the AmberSide Collection.
The AmberSide Collection is a unique, UNESCO-accredited archive of film and photography that includes all works produced by Amber over the past 50 years. The Collection is revered for its documentation of the socio-economic and cultural changes to the region during this time and its connection to ‘lived history’. This provides a direct link to the recent past, allowing children and young people to enquire and discover more about their local area through enquiry with parents, carers, relatives and older people in the community. The work in the Collection has a deep resonance with communities in the North East, also preserving a critical record of the region’s recent industrial past.
An example of a previous Amber Education project, exploring the AmberSide Collection and Wallsend’s rich Shipbuilding heritage, can be accessed from the following link: https://vimeo.com/392037829?share=copy
Running concurrently is the National Lottery Heritage Fund programme ‘Transforming Amber’, which is a crucial development phase in Amber and Side Gallery’s future and will involve working on additional outreach and engagement activities, including setting up and managing a series of ‘Heritage Production Labs’ to engage communities with the AmberSide Collection through events at Side Gallery and community venues in North Tyneside. You will work closely with the Primary Source Programme Manager and the Managing Director to coordinate and link school and community engagement for both programmes.
Work will be divided primarily between the North Tyneside residencies and Amber’s quayside base (Side gallery, Cinema and Archive). You will be required on occasion to travel between schools and the Amber offices on the same day, so a full driving licence is advantageous.
This post is offered on a 12-month fixed-term basis with the option to extend based on the securing of additional funding. It is funded for 3 days pw through the Paul Hamlyn Foundation-funded ‘Primary Source Programme’ and 2 days pw during the NLHF Transforming Amber Project.
Key Responsibilities:
Outreach and Engagement: Paul Hamlyn Foundation
- Resident in participating schools with direct contact with teaching staff (2-3 days pw as agreed)
- Responsible for a comprehensive curriculum review and resource production plan in consultation with teaching staff and subject leads across Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.
- Develop and manage projects with the Program Lead, supporting classroom delivery and co-ordinating the activities of freelance photographers and filmmakers.
- Support the delivery and wider promotion of our new CPD training in photography.
- Manage equipment, allocating and maintaining DSLR cameras, across projects and participating schools.
- Manage the secure storage of digital data (film and photography) generated during project delivery following Amber and participating schools’ Data Protection and Safeguarding policies.
- Manage the recruitment of additional schools to the programme.
- Maintain established stakeholder relationships.
- Recruit, manage and support community volunteers and their participation in project delivery.
- As required, report directly to the Programme Lead and Managing Director and contribute to the ongoing evaluation and fundraising efforts in support of the programme.
Outreach and Engagement: Transforming Amber
- Participate in the development and delivery of Heritage Production Lab activities, both on-site and community-based
- Co-ordinate trial activities of Heritage Production Lab
- Recruit and manage volunteers for community expert projects
- Establish community partnerships to support the Community Exhibition and Heritage Lab activity programme
- Develop new partnerships and stakeholder relationships in North Tyneside, Newcastle and East Durham.
- Responsible for administration of the above, including monitoring and reporting on Health and Safety and Safeguarding requirements.
Key Relationships:
Internal: Primary Source Programme Manager, Managing Director, Project Archivist, Freelance Artists, Curatorial Assistant
External: Participating in schools’ headteachers and staff, community volunteers, Paul Hamlyn Foundation, Learning Arc, North Shields Cultural Quarter Stakeholder Group (NSCQSG), and community voluntary and cultural organisations.
Key Results/Objectives:
Objective #1: Programme Success and Delivery: Assist the Programme Manager in delivering the Paul Hamlyn Foundation-funded Primary Source Programme, including responsibility for Education Resource and Lesson Plan production, ensuring the achievement of the programme’s overall aims and objectives within set timelines.
Objective #2: School Residencies: Maintaining positive professional working relationships with all staff to maintain Amber’s high standing and excellent reputation with schools and their communities in North Tyneside.
Objective #3: Heritage Production Lab: Deliver a successful series of events to pilot the Heritage Production Lab successfully.
Measures of Success:
- 1. Support the on-time and successful implementation of all aspects of the Primary Source Programme, meeting all project milestones and deliverables.
- 2. Maintain and evidence positive feedback and engagement from the teaching staff, pupils, volunteers and the wider community.
- 3. Develop a clear understanding of the value of the Primary Source programme, showing the ability to advocate and build new partnerships and stakeholder relationships to support the continuation of this work.
- 4. Increase community engagement with the AmberSide Collection through the Heritage Production Lab, evidencing impact and integration between the Primary Source and Transforming Amber Programmes
Experience, Qualifications and Skills:
- Previous work in an education setting, including preparing curriculum-linked teaching resources and lesson plans.
- Strategic planning, project management and delivery.
- Recruitment and management of freelance practitioners and volunteers
- Experience working in the cultural sector with a variety of artists or art forms
- Commitment to working with schools and communities in our region that suffer high economic and social deprivation levels.
- Degree or equivalent qualification in a related discipline or equivalent proven experience in the education sector
- Adaptable, flexible and able to communicate clearly, effectively and supportively across multiple levels within school and community settings.
- Excellent oral and written communication and ICT skills, including the use of Mac computers and relevant associate software (e.g. Indesign, Photoshop and PowerPoint)
- Confident and articulate and able to maintain expected standards of punctuality and presentation working in schools.
- A team player with the ability to cultivate and maintain strong, professional working relationships
- Strong organisational ability for effective management of workload and delivery deadlines.
- Passion or keen interest in documentary photography and film and the work of the Amber Collective
Performance Review:
Performance will be assessed annually through a formal performance review process. Regular check-ins and feedback sessions will also be conducted to ensure ongoing professional development.
Career Development Opportunities:
Opportunities for career growth within the organisation include potential advancement to higher leadership roles or specialised positions within education and community engagement.
Application Process:
Interested candidates should submit their CV and a cover letter of (no more than two pages of A4) addressing their suitability for the position to side.gallery@amber-online.com with the clear subject heading: Education and Outreach Coordinator Post.
Application Deadline: 5.00 pm 23/9/24
Interviews: Interviews will take place towards the end of wk commencing 30/9/24
Equal Opportunity Employer:
Amber Film and Photography Collective CIC is an equal-opportunity employer committed to diversity and inclusion.
