Location
London Borough of Barnet

Hours
Full Time

Salary
£46,968 per annum

About the Role
As our Community Cohesion Engagement Officer, you will work at the heart of Barnet's communities, building and maintaining strong relationships with residents, community leaders, voluntary organisations and faith groups. You will lead innovative engagement activities that bring people together, encourage meaningful dialogue, and create opportunities for communities to shape local decisions.

This is a proactive and preventative role, focused on identifying emerging issues, reducing tensions, and strengthening community resilience before challenges escalate. You will work collaboratively across the Council and with external partners to support Barnet's commitment to tackling hate crime, promoting inclusion, safeguarding vulnerable communities, and fostering positive relationships between people from different backgrounds, cultures and faiths.

Working closely with a wide range of stakeholders, you will use community insight and local intelligence to inform policy, shape engagement strategies, and support early intervention approaches that strengthen cohesion across the borough.

Key Responsibilities
- Build and maintain trusted relationships with diverse communities, community leaders, faith groups, partner organisations and council colleagues.
- Design and deliver innovative and inclusive engagement programmes that encourage participation and amplify community voices.
- Foster dialogue and collaboration between different communities to strengthen social cohesion and mutual understanding.
- Identify emerging issues and community concerns, helping to prevent tensions and support constructive local responses.
- Develop initiatives that celebrate diversity, promote inclusion and empower residents to play an active role in their communities.
- Use community insight, lived experience and local intelligence to influence policy development and strategic decision-making.
- Work closely with Community Safety council services to ensure coordinated responses to cohesion-related challenges.
- Support communications and awareness campaigns relating to hate crime, extremism prevention, safeguarding and community resilience.
- Monitor community trends and risks, evaluate impact, and share learning and good practice.
- Build strong relationships with local, regional and national networks to promote innovation and continuous improvement in community cohesion work.

Experience
- Experience of community engagement, participation, community development or cohesion-related work within diverse communities.
- Experience of working effectively with diverse communities, faith groups and voluntary sector organisations to build trust and encourage participation.

About you
You are a passionate and skilled engagement professional who thrives on building relationships, bringing people together, and making a positive difference in diverse communities. You understand the value of community participation and have the ability to engage successfully with people from different backgrounds, cultures and faiths.

Educated to degree level or with equivalent professional experience, you will have a proven track record of delivering community engagement, participation or cohesion-related work and building trusted relationships with a wide range of stakeholders. You will be an excellent communicator and facilitator, able to work confidently with community representatives, residents, partners and senior colleagues alike.

You will bring a strong understanding of the challenges and opportunities facing diverse communities, alongside a genuine commitment to inclusion, equality and community empowerment.

Additional desirable attributes include:
- Knowledge of community cohesion, equalities, community safety, hate crime or counter-extremism policy.
- Understanding of local government and public sector partnership working.
- Experience of supporting hate crime, prevent or safeguarding initiatives.
- Experience of analysing data and producing high-quality reports, briefings and recommendations.

Qualifications
Educated to degree level or equivalent professional experience.