Communications & Narrative Steward

This Living Place is looking for a Communications & Narrative Steward.

This is a strategic and practical role combining communications, storytelling and narrative practice. You'll work across multiple scales - local, regional and national - helping tell stories emerging from community-led, place-based change work while thinking strategically about the wider narratives that influence how people understand complex issues like rural economies, community energy, housing and social-ecological transition.

• Write articles, newsletters, Substack posts and clear, compelling copy for different audiences and platforms
• Manage and develop social media channels
• Interview practitioners, community members and partners; capture photography and video
• Develop and deliver communications strategies and plans
• Keep websites and digital platforms up to date; support PR and media opportunities
• Capture and share discoveries through the organisation's work; develop stories connecting local experience to wider systems
• Notice patterns emerging across projects, partnerships and places
• Help think about audiences, the stories currently shaping an issue and what might need to shift
• Make complex ideas accessible and relevant to people's everyday lives
• Support impact reporting, learning capture and documentation
• Support community engagement strategies and plans; build relationships with communities, practitioners and partner organisations
• Support events, learning journeys, gatherings and the Living Places Network
• Create high-quality visual communications using Canva or similar tools
• Develop zines, publications and creative resources
• Explore new approaches to regenerative communications and narrative practice

• At least two years' experience in communications, storytelling, engagement or a related field
• Strong foundation in communications or storytelling with ability to make and deliver high-quality work
• Thoughtful writer and communicator who cares about language and can make complex ideas clear and engaging
• Committed to making complex ideas accessible without hiding behind jargon
• Interested in stories and the power they hold; curious about how narratives shape what people believe is possible
• Highly self-directed and good at managing yourself; comfortable with emergence without becoming chaotic
• Proactive and willing to make things happen; a relationship-builder comfortable getting to know people and building trust
• Happy moving between big picture thinking and practical delivery
• Interested in being in the work, not just communicating from the sidelines
• Keen to keep developing your craft; curious, open to learning and excited by developing a distinctive practice
• Thoughtful about how you use AI; able to use tools with judgement
• Confident working digitally and comfortable learning new platforms
• Confident using Canva or similar design tools and able to produce high-quality visual communications
• Committed to building a life and practice in rural South West (North-Mid Dorset/South Somerset area)
• Own transport and comfortable travelling regularly; essential for this role
• Curious about systems and how change really happens
• Questioning about how this work is done; interested in moving away from top-down delivery models

To apply for this role, please fill out the application form on the link below.

First-stage conversations likely 4 August 2026; interviews likely 11 August 2026. If you have questions about whether you fit the role, you're welcome to email before the deadline.