Together We Change Lives

RSPCA Qld presents an opportunity for a Community Liaison Officer to join the team to engage the community and provide education on good animal welfare principles to enable socially conscious animal communities.

This is a newly created role, with a focus on preventative measures to improve animal welfare in the Moreton Bay community. The Community Liaison Officer will provide on the ground support to the local community and stakeholders, to improve animal welfare practices and reduce the rates of animal cruelty and neglect. As the ‘face’ of the program, you will also be responsible for engaging with the Moreton Bay community to increase motivation and opportunities to improve animal welfare, as well as the skills and knowledge of the Moreton Bay community to reduce the number of unwanted litters, rate of disease, number of surrenders and animal cruelty reports in Moreton Bay.

In this role, you will: 

• Provide on the ground support to the local community and stakeholders to improve animal welfare practices and reduce the rates of animal cruelty and neglect reported within the Moreton Bay Region.
• Engage and educate the local community and key stakeholders on good animal welfare practices, including speaking at local events to inspire interest and awareness through discussion about animal welfare and participating in school and community education programs. 
• Represent RSPCA Queensland and raise awareness of RSPCA Queensland services, and participate and run community events. 
• Develop and implement strategies for effective links between the community and RSPCA Queensland to encourage greater interest and participation in educational activities and services.  
• Effectively communicate and engage with internal and external stakeholders in order to connect pet owners with relevant services or products to ensure better animal welfare practices and outcomes in the community.
• Establish and maintain partnership relationships with local veterinary clinics and human welfare organisations in the development and implementation of referral systems for pet owners to remove the financial barriers involved with providing veterinary care for their pets. 
• Facilitate pet transportation and coordination of animals and their owners to local welfare related services or in the facilitation of crisis or emergency accommodation. This may include travelling to other RPSCA locations from time to time. 
• Partner with local government, community groups, animal rescue groups, human welfare services and vet clinics to identify opportunities to improve animal welfare facilities, services and practices within the Moreton Bay region. 
• Perform administrative tasks including, maintaining detailed records, performing data entry in a timely manner and scheduling veterinary or other appointments for clients when required. 
• Maintain supply of vouchers, parasite products, emergency food relief for direct and/or indirect distribution of products (e.g. pet food banks, care packs, vet clinics etc.)
• Assist with complex animal management and/or welfare cases (crisis requests, hoarding, breeding etc.) when requested by an Inspector or by the Animal Management Team at Moreton Bay Regional Council. 

To be successful in this role, you will have:

• Experience in the development and delivery of community based programs in partnership with key stakeholders
• Previous experience in Human or Animal Welfare Services
• Demonstrated ability to build and maintain collaborative working relationships internally and externally to the organisation
• Ability to work autonomously, but also collaboratively, with the rest of the team
• Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills to liaise effectively with a diverse range of people and stakeholders  
• High level literacy, numeracy and problem-solving skills, including intermediate computer skills (including use of Microsoft Office Excel and Power Point)
• Ability to work in a fast paced and challenging work environment 
• Genuine interest in animal welfare and the objectives of RSPCA
• Alignment and adherence to the RSPCA Qld vision and values
• Ability to perform physical duties including manual handling, and an ability to handle a minimum weight of 10 kilos
• Understanding of and experience of engaging with local government processes would be beneficial
• Animal Handling experience would be beneficial
• Position requires a valid Queensland Drivers Licence
• Working with Children Check (current blue card or ability to obtain)
• Current tetanus vaccination

This is a full-time position based at our Dakabin Animal Care Centre, working 40 hours per week.