Chief Instructor

Description

Oakwood Youth Challenge is looking for a full-time Chief Instructor with excellent leadership skills to join our team. The Chief Instructor will be an active practitioner of the activities we offer. You will lead, motivate, and develop a team of high-quality instructors and trainees, ensuring best-practice and excellence in the delivery of activity sessions.

This dynamic and varied role would suit a well-qualified outdoor practitioner, with a clear understanding of what excellent outdoor learning looks like, and the attributes required to develop staff relationally and technically.

This role is subject to an Occupational Requirement (OR) that the successful applicant is a committed Christian, as this role plays a key part in developing / fulfilling Oakwood’s charitable aims.

The Role

The role will require you to plan and implement activity programs/holiday outdoor activity sessions, ensuring Oakwood's core objectives are intwined with the delivery of outdoor activities.

The Chief Instructor will be responsible for setting the example and maintaining standards for activity sessions. The Chief Instructor will lead the outdoor team from a technical perspective, overseeing the maintenance of the equipment and infrastructure. You will also help team members to develop their skills as outdoor practitioners.

Applicants will need to have the following qualifications/experience: 

• Single Pitch Award (SPA)/Rock Climbing Instructor (RCI)   (CWI considered)
• GNAS/ArcheryGB Archery Leader
• Holds a relevant and valid First Aid Certificate
• Instructing experience in running bush craft, orienteering, archery and low ropes 
• Experience in training and developing staff; and focusing a team of enthusiastic and experienced individuals

Ideally with:

• Mountain Leader (ML)
• ERCA High Ropes Instructor and Rescuer
• Mountain Bike Leader (MBL) (or equivalent, plus navigational proficiency)

Personal Attributes

• Highly motivated and energetic, with a positive attitude and excellent work ethic
• Able to lead a team in an inspirational and motivated way
• Supportive of Oakwood’s ethos and keeping this represented through the team.

Oakwood Youth Challenge is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All applicants are subject to thorough screening, and for applicable roles, successful candidates are subject to relevant criminal record checks with the UK’s Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)

How to Apply

Please send your CV along with a covering letter to mark@oakwoodyouth.co.uk.

Interviews will be conducted on an ongoing basis until the role is filled and any interested applicants are welcome to come to Oakwood for a tour once CV's have been received.

About Oakwood

Oakwood Youth Challenge is a Christian outdoor pursuits centre registered as a charity. The aim of our centre is to make a significant impact on local youth, challenging them holistically.

We offer a broad range of activities including a High Ropes course, Mountain Biking, Archery, Mountain Boarding, Climbing, Low Ropes, Team Building and more high elements such as the Flying Kiwi and Leap of Faith. Our activities are offered mostly on site, with the intention to bring back some off-site sessions including Mountain Biking which takes place in the popular Swinley Forest and watersports that we currently subcontract to support a few of our longer residentials.

We offer residential experiences ranging from 1-night to 4-night stays, as well as short activity sessions to a wide variety of returning customers.

Oakwood Youth Challenge is situated within 15 minutes’ drive of over 30 schools which regularly visit our centre. Activities are offered throughout the year with an average of 100,000 visits per annum for both the outdoor and indoor centres.

If you would like to find out more about Oakwood, please visit www.oakwoodyouth.co.uk for our outdoor centre, and www.oakwoodclimbingcentre.com for our climbing centre.