Community education officers work with community groups to improve the knowledge, skills and confidence of local people. They also help local people to organise and get resources for their communities.

The Work

You could be:

• telling people about learning opportunities in their community
• setting up and running community learning activities
• working with young people (as individuals or in groups at for instance, a youth club), parent and child groups, tenants’ associations and adult learning groups
• asking individuals and groups about their learning needs, listening to their replies and helping to organise suitable courses or meetings
• working with disadvantaged groups to improve their opportunities
• running projects in adult education (including literacy and number work), outdoor education, community arts, health education, drugs awareness, assertiveness training
• raising funds and applying for grants for community projects
• networking and building links with other organisations
• managing budgets and other admin duties.

Pay

The figures below are only a guide. Actual pay rates may vary, depending on:

• where you work
• the size of organisation you work for
• the demand for the job.

Salaries for community education officers in Scotland tend to be in the range of £20,000 to £30,000 a year. Senior community education officers earn up to £40,000 a year or more. Salaries can be higher in project and management work.

Conditions

• You would usually be based in a community centre or perhaps a school.
• You would do outreach work to meet disadvantaged groups in the community.
• Hours are flexible and may include evening and weekend work.
• You might be able to work part time.
• A lot of posts are linked to fixed-term projects, varying from a few months to several years, depending on the funding available.

Getting In

You can enter by several routes.

• Entry to community education courses is competitive.
• You can take a BA Hons degree in Community Education at the University of Edinburgh and University of the West of Scotland, or a degree in Community Learning and Development at the University of Dundee. For entry to these courses, you need between 3 and 5 Highers, usually including English. It is also possible to enter with a Higher National Certificate (HNC) in Working with Communities and suitable experience.
• You can take a relevant postgraduate course at the universities of Aberdeen, Dundee, Glasgow and West of Scotland. You may be able to study part time for this course while you are working.
• It is helpful to have some relevant experience – this can be paid or voluntary.
• A driving licence is useful and sometimes essential.
• You will require a satisfactory criminal record check from Disclosure Scotland to show that you are suitable for this type of work. Contact Disclosure Scotland for details on the type you would need.

You would probably specialise in one area of work, such as youth work, adult learning or more general community work. Often you work in disadvantaged areas.

Job Outlook Scotland

Job Outlook Scotland and UK

  Scotland

2019

7867

0.6 %

RISE

2024

7916

  United Kingdom

2019

76926

1.3 %

RISE

2024

77901

LMI data powered by EMSI UK

What Does it Take?

You should have:

• good communication skills, and be able to talk to people of all ages from a wide range of backgrounds
• a confident and assertive nature
• the ability to lead and work in groups
• good networking skills, to build relationships with individuals and groups
• a cheerful nature, with a sense of humour.

You should be:

• open-minded and non-judgemental
• self-motivated and enthusiastic
• good at assessing the learning needs of community groups
• able to use your initiative and take responsibility
• well organised, to keep track of different projects
• able to work under pressure
• committed to equal opportunities.

Training

• Training is on the job with short courses to keep you up to date.
• The University of Glasgow also offers a part time work based BA degree in Community Development. For entry to this course you need 3-4 Highers at AAB or ABBB, and must be working at least 10 hours a week paid or unpaid in the field of community development.
• YouthLink Scotland has information on short professional development courses in working with young people.

Getting On

• You could work for a local authority or a voluntary organisation.
• With experience, you may be able to become a team leader or a project leader.
• If you work in a local authority, you may be able to become a manager, responsible for planning and organising community learning services.
• You may move into senior management.

More Information

Community Learning and Development Managers (CLDMS) represents the managers of a variety of services in Scotland's local authorities. Although their website has no 'careers' section it does have a lot of useful information on policy and developments in community learning in Scotland.

Contacts

The following organisations may be able to provide further information.