Widening Access Officer

FTE: 1.0 (Working 37 hours per week)

Duration of Contract: Fixed term until 31^st July 2026. Extension of contract subject to external funding decision.

Annual Leave: 28 days plus standard public holidays and an additional 4 days including the closure of our office between Christmas and New Year.

Location: College Lane Campus, Hatfield.

Main duties and responsibilities

You will play a pivotal role in the delivery of targeted outreach programmes that support underrepresented groups to access higher education. You will build strong relationships with schools, colleges and other key stakeholders to enable equality of opportunity. You will coordinate events such as campus visits and workshops in schools and provide advice and guidance to the young people we work with. A key part of this work is monitoring engagement and evaluating the impact of initiatives to facilitate best practice. Flexibility to travel and access to a vehicle are key to the role’s success.

Skills and experience required

We are seeking a motivated individual with a commitment to improving outcomes through tailored and inclusive student support. You must have proven experience of supporting young people in education or similar environments, as well as a strong track record of developing, planning and delivering projects and events. You will be capable of both independent work and effective team collaboration.

The ability to engage primary and secondary aged students is essential, and you must demonstrate strong communication and presentation skills. You will be confident in delivering to large audiences in-person and online and have strong IT skills relating to organisational processes and creating engaging presentations. An understanding of the UK Higher Education application system, and experience of supporting students with this process is also desirable.

Qualifications required

Educated with a minimum of a relevant undergraduate qualification or equivalent, or proven work experience

DISCLOSURE AND BARRING SERVICE

The University requires that the successful applicant who is offered employment may require a DBS at a later date due to the nature of the work involved.

Overseas applicants and UK applicants who have lived abroad

Successful applicants from overseas will be required to produce a criminal records check, or 'Certificate of Good Character', from any country in which they have been resident, consecutively or cumulatively, in the previous 10 years.

Please view the job description and person specification for a full list of the duties and essential criteria. Click the 'Apply' button above. Please attach a personal statement showing clearly how your skills and experience match the Person Specification.

Internal applicants – please ensure you apply via your employee self-service portal.

We regret that we are unable to offer UKVI sponsorship for this post; applicants will either hold UK Right to Work or demonstrate access to UK Right to Work before an offer is made.

Contact Details/Informal Enquiries: Laide Bissessar, Associate Director of Widening Access and Student Success, l.bissessar@herts.ac.uk

Closing Date: 17 November 2025

Interview Date: 26 November 2025

We are committed to ensuring out team is diverse and inclusive. We particularly encourage applications from candidates who are male and/or from ethnically diverse backgrounds to tackle staff under-representation where it exists and better reflect our diverse student cohort.

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