Communications, Engagement and Advocacy Manager
JOB TITLE: Communications, Engagement and Advocacy Manager
RESPONSIBLE TO: Director of Communications and Engagement
LOCATION: Homebased with a requirement for national travel
HOURS: 37.5 hpw
SALARY: £50,000 per annum
CLOSING DATE: 2nd November 2025
**Interviews scheduled for 19th November 2025
About The Road Safety Trust
The Road Safety Trust is one of the largest independent grant-giving charities in the UK dedicated to enhancing road safety. Established with the mission to achieve zero road deaths and zero serious injuries on UK roads.
The Trust focuses on funding research and practical interventions aimed at reducing accidents and improving safety for all road users.
The Road Safety Trust is the sole member of its wholly owned trading subsidiary company (UKROEd) which operates the National Driver Offender Retraining Scheme (NDORS). Surpluses from UKROEd are gifted to the Trust each year, enabling the continuous support of various road safety projects and research grants.
The Road Safety Trust values and respects each individual employee, client and customer and is committed to promoting equal opportunities throughout its workforce and board. As such, all relevant applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to age, race, sex, gender reassignment, marital status, disability, or pregnancy status.
Please click here to see how RST uses your personal data. https://www.roadsafetytrust.org.uk/privacy
Role Overview
To lead the day-to-day delivery of the Trust’s communications, advocacy and engagement work, ensuring our profile, influence and impact continue to grow. The role provides operational leadership across media, content, campaigns, events and stakeholder engagement, while supporting senior colleagues in positioning the Trust as a trusted voice in road safety.
This is a delivery-focused post. The Manager will ensure consistency, timeliness and quality across the Trust’s communications channels and advocacy activities, while the Director retains responsibility for strategy, sign-off, risk and high-level representation.
Primary Responsibilities
Strategic Communications
* Deliver high-quality communications across media, digital and print channels
* Manage day-to-day media relations, including reactive comment and proactive stories
* Draft press releases, holding lines, speeches and briefing materials
* Act as first point of contact for media enquiries, escalating high-risk issues to the Director
* Monitor coverage and reputation, liaising with external PR suppliers as needed
Advocacy and Influence
* Lead a programme of strategic advocacy to advance the Trust’s policy interests and funding priorities
* Monitor national policy, legislation and debate across road safety, policing, transport and public health, providing timely briefings
* Draft policy statements and submissions in partnership with the Grants & Impact team
* Maintain stakeholder records and support routine engagement
* Support the Director and CEO in positioning the Trust as an authoritative voice in public discourse
Sector Engagement
* Organise Trust representation at external events, forums and policy roundtables
* Coordinate staff and Trustee participation in webinars, podcasts and conference
* Support grantees and partners to promote outcomes from funded projects
Communications Delivery
* Lead content planning and scheduling across web, email, social, and print working with the Digital Content Producer
* Produce the Trust’s newsletters, website content, social media posts, and bulletins
* Ensure brand consistency, accessibility and quality assurance of output
* Manage logistics for events, launches and campaigns
* Collate KPIs and analytics for monthly reporting to the Director
Contract and Supplier Support
* Administer supplier contracts and KPIs (e.g. PR, dissemination partners)
* Liaise with agencies to ensure timely delivery of outputs
Team Collaboration
* Work closely with the Digital Content Producer and other colleagues to publish timely, engaging content
* Contribute to cross-team projects and represent the Communications and Engagement function internally
The Road Safety Trust
Person Specification
Communications, Engagement & Advocacy Manager
Experience/Job Related Knowledge
Essential
* Strong experience in communications, public affairs or advocacy roles within charity, public or policy settings
* Proven track record in media handling and stakeholder engagement
Desirable
* Knowledge of road safety, public health, transport or criminal justice policy
* Experience in a grant-giving, research-led or evidence-based organisation
* Familiarity with media monitoring tools (e.g. Onclusive), CRM and stakeholder engagement systems
* Understanding of digital publishing, social media engagement and basic design workflows
* Membership of CIPR or equivalent professional body
Skills and Aptitudes
Essential
* Excellent writing and editing skills, adaptable across formats (press releases, newsletters, web, policy papers etc.)
* Ability to manage multiple deadlines and balance delivery with quality
* Strong organisational and project management skills
* Collaborative, proactive, and confident in working independently