About Befriend

Befriend launched into the world as a grassroots community initiative over ten years ago, born from a desire to see a more inclusive, connected society in which all people could contribute and belong. Since then, Befriend has flourished into a thriving network of change agents, community builders, local residents, and collaborative partners, who together, have sparked opportunities for over 10,000 West Australians to connect.

We work in partnership with citizens, community organisations, researchers and local government to change the conversation around loneliness and social isolation by empowering people to embrace the possibilities and activate community life.

About the Team

We are a small but mighty team, working in a fairly flat organisational structure, trusting and supporting each other to work autonomously and make informed, impactful decisions. We are avid learners, experimenters, collaborators, listeners and do-ers who work interdependently. We see the work environment as a small, meaningful microcosm of community life that values the contributions of all, and acts with intention to create spaces for self-direction and discovery, connection, growth and fun!

The purpose of the role

The COVID-19 pandemic has shone a light on the value and importance of informal social networks in local neighbourhoods and communities for maintaining community wellbeing. Following on from the groundswell of citizen-led action catalysed by WA’s own lockdown period last year, the East Perth community identified a growing need for more localised community initiatives and meaningful social activities to increase the connectedness of community members.

These insights created an opportunity for well-established community platforms to consider how they can extend their positive impact further into the community and create more opportunities for social participation and connectedness. Perth City Farm, an already well-established and valued community initiative, recognised that they are well-placed to contribute to these needs, by building upon their platform as a local events and education hub to create more pathways for community engagement.

The purpose of this position is to work alongside Perth City Farm as they extend their community capacity-building activities further into East Perth, supporting local people to engage in community life, develop enriching social relationships, and contribute to their community.

The key responsibilities for this role:

Local engagement and capacity building - Supporting residents of the East Perth community to develop their confidence and capabilities to contribute to community life, run grassroots social/community groups, activities and neighbourhood enrichment projects.

Facilitating points of connection - Learning from residents and community organisations in East Perth to better understand the diverse experiences, resources and events they’re seeking to engage with, and connecting these insights back into Perth City Farm to further develop their community engagement pathways.

We expect this will involve:

• Engaging developmentally with local residents in discovery conversations that lead them to imagine the possibilities for their contributions, gifts and strengths
• Providing support to residents to develop their confidence & capabilities to take local action to connect people in their local area
• Collaborating with both Perth City Farm and residents of East Perth to help bring community enrichment ideas to life
• Nurturing the development of new partnerships between Perth City Farm and other local community organisations
• Providing strategic support to the project for it to flourish, including on-site support for Perth City Farm’s community groups and activities, communications, story-gathering, and collaborative sessions

The East Perth Community is looking for:

• Someone who loves to support other people’s thinking in how they can bring their creative community ideas to life
• A curious listener
• Someone who takes great joy in seeing people grow in their sense of agency
• A passionate includer
• Someone who believes in the inherent potential of all people to shape community life
• A naturally creative facilitator for thoughtful 1:1 conversations and group sessions
• A big-picture thinker who always sees the possibilities and opportunities emerging
• Someone who puts relationships at the heart of their work and life

We’re looking to hear from applicants who see this role as a natural extension of who they are as a person. So, if many of these statements resonate with who you are, and who you might hope to develop yourself to be, we want to hear from you.

Position details:

• Part-time position (0.45 FTE), fixed-term contract to June 2022 with the possibility of extension.
• Salary $61,800 pro rata plus superannuation
• Generous salary packaging benefits
• Bonus Christmas leave period on top of your annual leave entitlements
• A team of 17 change-makers, thinkers, do-ers and builders to support you in your development. Read more about our team and work culture here.
• Work where you want, when you want, how you want. You do you.

We know that strength comes with diversity, and welcome all unique applicants from all backgrounds. For questions about this role, contact the Community Building Team on (08) 9520 8574 or 0404 831 201, or email at [email protected] using the subject line: East Perth Community Builder enquiry via EthicalJobs.