Community, Advice & Guidance
Community, Advice and Guidance Work
About
Find out about careers in community, advice and guidance sectors, including the range of jobs available, professional bodies, industry news and careers advice.
Careers advice
The following external websites provide careers advice about working in the sector:
- Prospects: Social care
- TARGETjobs: Public Service, charity and social work
- National Youth Agency: Careers in youth work
- Chartered Institute of Housing - careers resources
- Career Development Institute - training as a practitioner
Read a series of profiles of professionals who are working across the social care sector in the Guardian's Social Care Network: A day in the life of.
Industry news
The following websites provide information about news in the industry:
Community and welfare
- The Guardian: Social Care Network
- Children and Young People Now
- DiversityLink.co.uk - news and resources for Equality and Diversity managers
- Civil Society
Educational and careers guidance
Find news for the wider learning and skills sector at Excellence Gateway.
Housing
Inside Housing lists housing news.
Substance misuse
For professionals in the substance misuse sector and wider health, social care and criminal justice settings, see Drink and Drugs News and DrugWise.
Professional bodies
Professional bodies represent and promote the interests of people working in the sector, providing services such as training and networking opportunities. They often provide careers support for students and graduates and development for people already working in the sector.
Follow professional associations on LinkedIn, or visit their websites for useful sources of news, contacts, work experience and vacancies.
The main professional associations for this sector include:
Government bodies
Find professional bodies outside the UK on GoinGlobal by selecting ‘Professional and Personal Networking’ on each of the individual country guides.
Making contacts
Making contacts is essential for success in this sector. Many jobs in this field are gained through networking and speculative applications. You could start with:
- social media resources, particularly LinkedIn and Twitter, can be useful for making contacts, following employers and finding opportunities
- find out what alumni did after graduation and contact them for advice and inspiration through Newcastle alumni on LinkedIn
Conferences and charity and volunteering events
Events
Recruitment fairs, open days, talks and events give insights and opportunities to make contacts. Regular events organised by the Careers Service include Employer & Sector Insights and Recruitment Events.
Related sectors
You may also be interested in:
- Charities and Voluntary Organisations
- Counselling and Psychotherapy
- Government, Politics and Policy
- Healthcare
- Development
- Psychology
- Probation and Social Work
For more options, see Explore Occupations.
Roles & Skills
Roles in this sector range from careers advisers, community and youth workers and housing policy officers to counsellors and substance misuse outreach workers.
We've included links to external websites that provide descriptions of typical duties, entry requirements and case studies for the range of careers in this sector:
Community and welfare
Advice worker
Communication professional
- National Careers Service – British Sign Language Interpreter
- National Careers Service – Communication Support Worker
- Association of Sign Language Interpreters - advice on training and qualifications
Community arts worker
For further information relating to professional communication roles see the Creative Arts, Design and Fashion sector.
Community development worker
Community education officer
Drug and alcohol worker
Equalities and diversity officer
For further information relating to this role see the HR, recruitment and training sector.
Family mediator/support worker
Housing officer/adviser
Housing policy officer
Mediator
Money adviser/debt counsellor
Playworker
Substance misuse outreach worker
Welfare rights officer/Welfare benefits adviser
Youth offending team officer
Youth and Community worker
Educational and careers advice and guidance
Adult guidance worker
Careers adviser
Higher education advice worker
Higher education careers adviser
Skills employers look for
Skills required vary according to the specific role but the skills most employers in this sector look for include:
- excellent interpersonal and communication skills and the ability to relate to people from diverse backgrounds
- empathy, diplomacy, sensitivity and a non-judgmental manner as well as a respect for confidentiality
- flexibility, with the ability to work on your own initiative as well as part of a team
- resourcefulness, problem-solving skills and attention to detail
- the capacity to cope with pressure
- the ability to liaise with other professionals and organisations
Gaining Experience
This is a competitive field, so work experience in a related role is highly recommended.
Some paid work experience opportunities are available, but voluntary work is a common route into the sector. By volunteering you can acquire new skills, learn more about the sector and pursue opportunities within your chosen organisation.
Check the Volunteering section of the Careers Service website for resources to find volunteering opportunities. These include Newcastle University Students' Union's (NUSU) Volunteering. You can also find opportunities by searching under 'voluntary' in the vacancies section of MyCareer
You can gain related experience through part-time jobs, eg advice work or in careers services. A background in these fields can offer an alternative entry point into this sector.
Search for vacancies on MyCareer and in Part-time Jobs.
Joining student societies is another way you can gain relevant work experience. NUSU has several societies that campaign and work with community and advice organisations.
Finding organisations
Not all work experience is advertised. You could also approach organisations directly or find work experience through networking and making contacts in the industry.
Find organisations that interest you and get in touch, always with a named contact.
Be specific about why you are writing to them and what you’re looking for, showing your enthusiasm for the sector and highlighting any relevant skills.
Don’t be disheartened if you don’t get a reply – follow up with a phone call or email to show that you’re keen.
Depending on the role, work experience or volunteering in relevant settings could give you valuable experience for the community, advice and guidance sector. Organisations include:
- Citizen's Advice Bureau
- children's homes
- Ofsted registered nurseries
- probation services
- family refuge centres eg those run by groups like Refuge and Women's Aid
If you're interested in community work, gaining work experience in community centres can help. Community centres can normally be found on your local council website. For example, Newcastle City Council lists community centre contacts.
If you're interested in youth work gaining experience in adventure playground groups, school or holiday play schemes, or youth projects can be valuable. Check your local council website for details of these. For example Newcastle Families Information Services also has details of youth clubs in Newcastle.
For mental health services check ReThink for links to organisations.
You can also find organisations on MyCareer - click on ‘search organisations’ under the Vacancies tab
See Researching Employers for more ways to source and research companies.
You can find more organisations in this sector in the Finding Jobs section.
Finding Jobs
The small number of graduate schemes on offer are highly competitive. You may have to begin working at a lower level and progress towards your ideal career, or start within the organisation as a volunteer.
Graduate schemes and entry level jobs
Search for vacancies on MyCareer. The following organisations also offer graduate schemes and entry level jobs:
CharityWorks
CharityWorks offer a one-year, full-time graduate programme in a non-profit organisation. Positions include operations, business development, fundraising, campaigns, research, or a combination of these.
IntoUniversity
IntoUniversity recruits graduate trainee education workers.
Vacancy sites
We've compiled lists of external vacancy websites:
Finding organisations
Not all jobs are advertised. You could also approach organisations directly or find work through networking and making contacts in the industry.
Find organisations that interest you and get in touch, always with a named contact.
Be specific about why you are writing to them and what you’re looking for, showing your enthusiasm for the sector and highlighting any relevant skills.
Don’t be disheartened if you don’t get a reply – follow up with a phone call or email to show that you’re keen.
Depending on the role, work experience or volunteering in relevant settings could give you valuable experience for the community, advice and guidance sector. Organisations include:
- Citizen's Advice Bureau
- children's homes
- Ofsted registered nurseries
- probation services
- family refuge centres eg those run by groups like Refuge and Women's Aid
If you're interested in community work, gaining experience in community centres can help. Community centres can normally be found on your local council website. For example, Newcastle City Council lists community centres.
If you're interested in youth work gaining experience in adventure playground groups, school or holiday play schemes, or youth projects can be valuable. Check your local council website for details of these. For example Newcastle's Family Information Service also has details of youth clubs in Newcastle.
For mental health services check ReThink for links to organisations.
You can also find organisations on MyCareer - click on ‘search organisations’ under the Vacancies tab
Students completing work experience in this sector may be eligible for our Careers Insight Bursary.
See Researching Employers for more ways to source and research companies.
Find jobs and additional vacancy source websites outside the UK on GoinGlobal.
Self employment
Self-employment in this sector is uncommon, and usually more appropriate for those with substantial experience. However, it is possible to work on a self-employed basis for some roles, for example as a sign language interpreter.
The Work for Yourself section of the Careers Service website provides information on the range of activities and support available to eligible Newcastle students and graduates interested in starting their own business or working for themselves.
You can also read factsheets and reports on starting up and running a business by visiting our COBRA website.