Community Navigator

Objective

The Community Navigator serves as Project Lead for Wellbeing Support Hubs alongside weekly food support operations. As a central contact point, the role provides compassionate 1-to-1 assistance to reverse the burden on individuals—helping residents navigate complex health, financial, housing, and employment systems while building confidence and self-sufficiency.

About Old Boat Corner Community Hub

Old Boat Corner Community Hub is an open, safe, and inclusive space for everyone in our local community. We operate on a seven-day-a-week, open-door policy to serve a multi-generational community across Brighton and Hove, offering food support, social groups, youth clubs, dementia groups and advice services. We listen, solve problems, connect people and address the root causes of hardship rather than just the symptoms.

We are proud to be a Brighton Living Wage employer and are deeply committed to equity, diversity and community empowerment.

Purpose of the Role

The Community Navigator serves as Project Lead for Wellbeing Support Hubs alongside weekly food support operations. As a central contact point, the role provides compassionate 1-to-1 assistance to reverse the burden on individuals - helping residents navigate complex health, financial, housing and employment systems while building confidence and self-sufficiency.

Key Responsibilities

Direct Navigation & Person-Centered Support

• Provide person-centered, 1-to-1 assistance to residents during support hub sessions.
• Assist service users with reading, writing, completing paper and online forms, contacting helplines and discovering support options that may not be easily visible.
• Introduce and help maintain physical progress-tracking booklets for service users allowing them to record their personal goals, key contact numbers and notes to share across partner appointments.
• Support individuals experiencing language barriers by identifying translators and culturally accessible communication methods.
• Identify and reduce barriers to monthly Community Hub participation.

Partnership Working & Hub Delivery

• Work closely alongside co-located delivery partners-such as Stanford Medical PCN, Together Co, UOK, Citizens Advice, Bhesco and Wave Community Bank-to ensure seamless, non-clinical care.
• Act as an approachable bridge between community members and external statutory or voluntary services, fostering trust and psychological safety.
• Coordinate monthly hub operations by maintaining the partner database, confirming partner availability and leading public promotion to ensure maximum service engagement. At the end of every hub, communicate attendance and outcome data with partners.
• Strengthen referral pathways with local community networks.
• Develop new partnerships to enhance Hub visibility and impact by collecting information on what is needed by community members.

Community Integration & Progression

• Connect individuals accessing food support with internal social spaces, specialised support groups (e.g., International Women’s Group, older persons groups), and tailored volunteering programs.
• Guide service users as they transition from emergency/long-term food pantry support to the social supermarket model or mainstream services.
• Through learning, improve Hub reach and service accessibility.

Monitoring, Evaluation & Strategy

• Formally log data from 1-2-1 and support hub sessions with the specific types of support delivered (employment, financial, housing, mental health, benefit support, etc) as well as number of attendees, demographic data. Track individual progress, transition rates, and outcomes using qualitative and quantitative evaluation tools.
• Gather ongoing feedback and surveys to summarise hub activity, measure improvements in service user confidence and system navigation capabilities
• Maintain progress passports to support appointment continuity and analyse passport data to identify support trends.
• Coordinate monthly hub operations, including room set-up, accessible layout, volunteer direction, partner placement, and post-session resetting.
• Identify resource needs, explore funding opportunities and manage promotion (social media, posters, networks) to increase community awareness and engagement.

Person Specification

Lived Experience, Values & Inclusion

• Empathy & Dignified Support: Deep understanding that everyone’s circumstances are unique, with a non-judgmental commitment to offering respectful support.
• Lived Experience & Barrier Awareness: Appreciation of the challenges faced by communities (cost-of-living pressures, system fatigue, health challenges) alongside an active commitment to upholding equity, diversity, and our Code of Conduct.

Essential Skills & Abilities

• Communication: Excellent active listening and interpersonal skills; able to explain complex information simply and clearly.
• Digital Literacy & Administration: Proficient in IT tools to help individuals navigate online support systems, maintain records, and log monitoring data accurately.
• Problem-Solving & Patience: Ability to break down overwhelming problems into manageable action plans alongside the service user.
• Partnership & Relationship Management: Build and maintain strong relationships with diverse community organisations.
• Organisation & Coordination: Coordinate partners, logistics, communications, and data collection efficiently.
• Community Engagement: Engage diverse communities and encourage participation from different groups.
• Event & Session Coordination: Plan and deliver organised, accessible community events involving partners and volunteers.
• Data Collection & Reporting: Collect and analyse session data to support reporting and improvement.
• Strategic Thinking & Continuous Improvement: Identify service gaps and use feedback to enhance future provision.
• Flexibility & Initiative: Adapt responsively to shifting community needs and operational priorities.

Desirable Skills & Experience

• Multilingual Capabilities: Ability to communicate or assist service users across diverse language groups spoken in the local community.
• Fundraising & Strategic Input: Experience exploring community funding opportunities and identifying long-term service gaps.

Pay: £15.00 per hour

Expected hours: 15.0 per week

Benefits:

• Free parking
• On-site parking

Work Location: In person