The Community Development Worker role is being jointly advertised by Atlantis Leisure and Adventure Oban - it's an exciting opportunity to develop and deliver a wide range of community led activities for the Oban community, improving peoples lives through movement, adventure and community. This is a joint role, working between two charities.
Background to the role
Thank you for your interest in the Community Development Worker role being jointly advertised by Atlantis Leisureand Adventure Oban. This is an exciting opportunity to continue the Out and About Project, now entering its second year. The project develops and delivers a wide range of community led activities for the Oban community, improving people’s lives through movement, adventure and community. This is a joint role, with the successful candidate working between two established local charities. Currently, this is a single role but we are open to the possibility of job share. You will be formally employed by Atlantis Leisure and work alongside a small steering group made up of trustees from both charities. The role has been funded by the National Lottery’s Community Led Activity fund and is funded until late 2026. The job is based in Oban with a presence required in the premises of both charities.
Atlantis Leisure & Adventure Oban - who are we?
Atlantis Leisure
Atlantis Leisure is a charity operating as a social enterprise delivering health and wellness provision to the community of Oban and North Argyll through a community-run leisure centre. Atlantis Leisure is a thriving hub which offers swimming pools, sports halls, dance studios, squash centre, tennis courts, gym, café, meeting rooms, a health and wellness hub, climbing facilities and soft play. Beyond the actual facilities on offer, Atlantis is a social container, providing an important community link to host families, schools, other charities and informal groups all week. For over 30 years Atlantis has grown into a community anchor organisation that provides a vital lifeline of social and physical wellbeing to many. We’re a key local employer and encourage a focus on furthering young people into the world of work with generations of school leavers having spent time at Atlantis, growing and developing their skills to take into further opportunities.
Adventure Oban
Adventure Oban is a community-led charity brought together by a shared love of the outdoors and the beautiful environment which we live in. We want everyone to enjoy equal access to Oban’s natural playground. We believe spending time in the water, out on the hills and generally outside is one of the best ways to keep our minds, body and community healthy - even more so when we do it together. Adventure Oban is a charity running as a not-for-profit company and we’re led by a volunteer board of Trustees.
Adventure Oban is five years old. During that time we’ve honed our activity to focus on how best we can serve existing clubs, schools, organisations and informal groups who are actively engaging with the outdoors. We see our role as providing the kind of support that allows these groups to concentrate on getting stuck into what they’re good at and what they enjoy – safe in the knowledge that our contribution will help to build their future. On the ground, this looks like a variety of different things. We help clubs with governance, funding advice and simple systems to improve efficiency. We also run events and initiatives like One Million Miles, the Big Bike Weekend and Nature Club to encourage the community to have a go at new activities and then be guided towards the relevant group or local club should they wish to pursue it further. Our ‘Come and Try It’ days are an initiative designed on this premise – we host a day’s trial of a given activity, invite an expert along to facilitate and give people the opportunity to try something they wouldn’t have otherwise. Similarly, we built the Adventure Library to provide access to gear and equipment for those that struggle to secure their own. We lead the local delivery of North Argyll’s Active Travel engagement. Led by our Active Travel coordinator, this work sees us partner with local schools, local bike businesses and community groups to explore and develop how we all wheel, walk and cycle.
About the role – What needs to be done?
We’ve called the shared activity between Atlantis Leisure and Adventure Oban the ‘Out and About Project’. Your role and remit will run as follows:
- Act as a community ambassador for both charities and lead the Out and About Project’s community outreach programme to drive community engagement, build partnership and create opportunities for collaboration.
- Lead on public communications and PR delivery including regular newsletters, socials etc.
- Oversee the development and management of project related budgets.
- Generate regular progress reports on collaborative projects for use in grant and Board reporting
- Work with existing networks and projects (Connecting Communities Collective, Lorn & Oban Healthy Options etc) to enhance impact and reach of outcomes.
- Work alongside funding group to develop comprehensive plans and strategies for future including research and identification of potential funders and donors.
- Evaluate the effectiveness of development strategies and recommend improvements.
- Lead delivery of current projects (e.g. ReWild Walks, Nature Club, One Million Miles etc) to engage develop and maintain local relationships - particularly with local primary and secondary schools, partner organisations and other local groups.
- Build and manage a robust and enthusiastic volunteer network.
- Event and project manage elements such as Big Bike Weekend, Nature Club etc.
- Work with partners such as RNLI and Mountain Rescue to continue delivery of elements such as Water Safety and Hill Skills.
- Continue delivery of the Adventure Library project, reviewing processes and procedures and improving access to the equipment available.
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This is a 2 year post with the possibility to extend depending on availability of funding. The post is part time, 30 hours a week. There will be a pro-rata salaried remuneration of £26-28k per annum dependent on experience inclusive of 28 days holiday entitlement.
You will be expected to be flexible in your approach to working hours and to self-manage your own time. There will be some requirement for evening and weekend working as well as an understanding that annual leave be taken in consideration with organisational activity.
Applying
Please submit your application by way of an enclosed CV outlining relevant experience and qualifications as well as an accompanying covering letter that outlines why you’re interested in this role.
Applications or further queries should be made in writing and emailed to hello@adventureoban.org by the closing date which has been set as midnight on the 2nd of March 2025. Applicants should be available for interview on Wednesday the 12th March.
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Should you have any queries about the role please feel free to contact hello@adventureoban.org or telephone Nick Wesley on 07747696660.
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Adventure Oban and Atlantis Leisure are equal opportunity employers. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees.