Head of Communications and External Relations (ALC1672)

Admissions, Recruitment and Marketing
Communications and External Relations team

Head of Communications and External Relations
Ref: ALC1672 

Salary on appointment will be £48,822 per annum, with an annual increment up to £56,535 per annum.

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a Head of Communications and External Relations to join the University of East Anglia's Communications and External Relations Team.

This wide-ranging role is responsible for proactive and reactive media relations, social media, student communications, crisis communications and issues management. You will lead a team to deliver proactive and reactive news, alerts, comments and thought leadership through media relations, social media and website content. You will identify opportunities and risks for the University, leading on crisis communications planning, issues management. You will act as out-of-hours on call support and deputise for the Associate Director Communications and External Relations on the institution’s Gold Command for emergencies.

You will demonstrate professional credibility, strong management skills and have the ability to command respect from peer networks both within and beyond the University. This role will provide professional leadership and advice on building UEA’s reputation across the globe and work closely with senior University leaders.

You will have proven communications experience across media, digital and social media channels and experience leading a busy team in a fast-moving organisation. You will showcase your creative storytelling skills to bring UEA's stories to life across channels and demonstrate experience of delivering communications during a crisis or major incident. 

UEA offers a variety of flexible working options and although this role is advertised on a full-time basis, we encourage applications from individuals who would prefer a flexible working pattern including annualised hours, compressed working hours, part time, job share, term-time only and/or hybrid working. Details of preferred hours should be stated in the personal statement and will be discussed further at interview.

Benefits include:

• 44 days annual leave inclusive of Bank Holidays and University Customary days.
• Family and Work-life balance policies including hybrid working and considerable maternity, paternity, shared parental leave and adoption leave.
• Generous pension scheme with life cover for dependants, plus incapacity cover.
• Health and Wellbeing: discounted access to Sportspark facilities, relaxation rooms, 320 acres of rolling parkland, wellbeing walks, Wellbeing Ambassador network, on-campus medical centre including NHS Dentist, Occupational Health and a 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme.
• Campus Facilities: Sportspark, library, nursery, supermarket, post office, bars and catering outlets.
• Exclusive shopping discounts to help cut the cost of household bills, childcare salary sacrifice scheme, Cycle to Work scheme and public transport discounts.
• Personal Development: unlimited access to LinkedIn Learning courses, specialist advice and training from our Organisational Development and Professional Learning Team.

Closing date: 27 November 2026

The University holds an Athena Swan Silver Institutional Award in recognition of our advancement towards gender equality.

For further information, including the Job Description and Person Specification, please see the attached Candidate Brochure.

For an informal discussion about the post please contact Hayley Mace, Associate Director of Communications and External Relations, by emailing [email protected]