Job Title: Local Leader Cork City and CatalySE

Location: This a remote working position in Cork City and will require travel. Full clean driver’s licence and access to Wi-Fi required.

Start Date: Immediate

Salary: €34,735.54

Line Manager: Social Innovation Development Manager

Duration: 12 Month Fixed Term Contract

Hours: 35 hours per week.

About Young Social Innovators.

Young Social Innovators is a non-profit organisation that believes in the power of youth. Its vision is to empower, equip and inspire young people to change the world for good. Through its programmes, training and events, Young Social Innovators enables young people to grapple with difficult social issues, advocating reform and advancing change. Each year, circa 15,000 young people are supported to explore social and environmental issues that concern them and come up with a variety of responses to these. In this way, Young Social Innovators builds social capital and helps young people create a fairer and more caring Ireland connecting into a wider global movement for change.

Purpose of Role

We are seeking a dynamic and motivated Local Leader to drive two key projects in the region. The first, in partnership with Cork City Council, supports the delivery of social innovation and community engagement initiatives with local schools, youth groups, and educators in the Cork City area. This role will focus on developing key innovation and entrepreneurial skills, promoting participation, fostering inclusivity and wellbeing among young people, particularly in areas of socioeconomic disadvantage, through school and community based programmes and workshops. The second project, with the support of Bank of Ireland, will empower young people to drive and own innovations that will make a real difference tackling inequality and climate change through mentoring, concept funding and peer to peer eco-systems across the city and county.

The ideal candidate will have experience working with educational institutions, youth groups, and community leaders to implement impactful programmes. They will lead a range of initiatives aligned with the goals of Young Social Innovators (YSI), including engaging marginalised communities, supporting youth-led social innovation projects, as well as developing and facilitating educational workshops and events.

Duties of the Role

Cork City Local Leader Duties:

• Work with schools and Youthreach Centres in the CCC area to support the development of social innovation projects, with a focus on developing social innovation, enterprise and leadership skills.
• Collaborate with community leaders and youth workers from target areas to deliver YSIs’ Ignite Community programme, promoting social enterprise and innovation skills among marginalised youth.
• Facilitate workshops from YSI’ Sparks Portfolio and YSI’ Sprints, engaging students in activities that promote design thinking, prototyping, the circular economy and sustainability.
• Support youth-led projects by providing access to funding through YSI Den, ensuring financial support for innovative community solutions and with opportunities to progress their projects through Activate, Den, and Elevate initiatives.
• Support youth voice in the city and facilitate the engagement and participation of young people in CCC initiatives.
• Represent YSI at CCC events.
• Administer research into youth sentiments specific to Cork City Council, producing insights and actionable reports on youth needs, aspirations, and challenges.
• Facilitate engagement of teachers in the virtual Mighty Networks platform, supporting an online community of educators to share best practices and promote social innovation education

CatalySE Local Leader Duties:

• Develop social entrepreneurship capacity amongst marginalised young people through education workshops and activities.
• Build a network of new and established social entrepreneurs to provide advice and guidance to programme participants.
• Combine education, practical experience, and ongoing support, to enable youth led social enterprise development.
• Facilitate engagement of Ignite Community teams in Elevate+.
• Organise, plan and coordinate the delivery of virtual Den+ event, where Ignite Community teams are eligible to pitch to a panel of experts to access startup funds for their idea, hopefully turning these ideas into new social enterprises.

Person Specification

• A recognised qualification or level 8/9 equivalent (In accordance with the National Framework of Qualifications (NFQ)) in a relevant discipline is preferred.
• A minimum of three years with demonstrable experience engaging or motivating people.
• Experience of working in the youth/education sector with marginalised young people.
• Experience networking and/or working with educators, community groups and/or local enterprises.
• Experience of hosting online events with multiple rooms and participants.
• A self-starter with the ability to plan and use resources effectively to achieve specific objectives.
• Experience developing and implementing programmes relevant to the field of learning, youth, and education in Ireland.
• Ability to plan and manage multiple project workflows and deadlines as per project requirements.
• Strong IT Skills including G Suite, Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook.
• Understanding and appreciation of the not-for-profit sector context.
• Passionate about young people’s involvement in social innovation learning and entrepreneurship.
• Strong interpersonal skills including an ability to present information, communicate clearly and facilitate information/training sessions.
• Full clean driver’s licence and access to Wi-Fi required.

To apply:

Please send a CV and a supporting document describing how you meet the essential criteria for this role in no more than two pages to arunima.misra@youngsocialinnovators.ie 

The closing date for applications is the 11th September 2025 at noon, first Interviews will be held on the 22nd September 2025 on Zoom. Late applications will not be accepted.

Young Social Innovators is committed to equal opportunities and all recruitment decisions will be based on merit, suitability for the role and experience. All recruitment decisions will not be influenced by race, colour, nationality, religion, sex, marital status, family status, sexual orientation, disability, age, or membership of the Traveller Community. Young Social Innovators fully endorses a working environment free from discrimination and harassment.