Manager, Lived Experience Capability

• Opportunity to work at the National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse (National Centre), a national purpose-driven organisation which is a symbol of hope and an essential vehicle for action for many victims and survivors of child sexual abuse.
• We partner with victims and survivors of child sexual abuse and trauma in all that we do. We will be centering these relationships through the building of our Lived Experience team, and in light of this, people with Lived Experience will be prioritised for this role. It is essential that we engage safely and in a trauma informed way; this approach will be a critical focus of our recruitment process.
• Join at an exciting period of growth, as the National Centre expands its team.
• Full time (1.0) fixed-term position until October 2026 - with flexible working arrangements available (eg. part-time).
• A national remote role, available in every major Australian city (with no preference for any location).
• The successful candidate will undertake domestic travel occasionally as part of this role.
• $110,000 - $130,000 (FTE) per annum excluding superannuation.

Note: this advertisement refers to child sexual abuse and may bring up strong feelings. Please take care of yourself and seek support if you need. Support services can be found on our website.

Role summary

The Manager, Lived Experience Capability leads the development and implementation of initiatives that build, strengthen, and sustain the Lived Experience workforce within the National Centre and beyond.

Through capability building, leadership development, and the co-creation of tools and resources, this role supports survivor-led influence, ensuring Lived and Living Experience is embedded, respected, and elevated across all areas of the organisation’s work.

By leading capability development, co-designing leadership pathways, and embedding Lived Experience practice across the organisation, this role directly contributes to the National Centre’s mission to prevent child sexual abuse and strengthen systems of support, accountability, and recovery.

At the National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse, we are committed to elevating the wisdom and expertise of victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. Values of safety, inclusion and trauma-responsiveness guide our interactions, including in our recruitment process. The National Centre team commit to authentic and meaningful engagement with people with Lived Experience - ensuring their voices are heard, valued, and embedded in our work.

Requirements

Who you are (selection criteria)

• Tertiary qualifications in health, education, community development or social sciences, or the equivalent experience will be viewed favourably.
• You have a demonstrated commitment to championing Lived and Living Experience as a privileged and essential source of knowledge, leadership and expertise.
• You bring demonstrable experience designing, leading and embedding engagement with people with Lived Experience, grounded in safe, ethical, trauma-responsive and culturally-responsive practice.
• You have a strong understanding of contemporary Lived Experience approaches, including co-design, co-production and workforce capability building.
• You are a skilled collaborator, capable of building trusting partnerships and working with a diverse range of stakeholders; including survivor-led organisations, priority communities and sector leaders.
• You bring strong strategic thinking, excellent communication skills and the ability to lead with humility, purpose and care in sensitive and evolving contexts.
• You are aligned with the National Centre’s mission to disrupt child sexual abuse and bring about systemic change.
• You demonstrate a trauma-responsive, ethical and survivor engaged approach in your work, and understand the critical importance of working in partnership with people with Lived Experience; ensuring their voices are heard, respected and meaningfully embedded in all that you do.

Research indicates that while men apply to jobs when they meet an average of 60% of the criteria, women and other marginalised individuals often wait until they fulfil every requirement. If you believe you have the attributes to do the job but don't match every point on the job ad, we welcome and encourage your application.

Key responsibilities

• Lead and champion internal initiatives to support the development of the Lived Experience workforce within the National Centre. 
• Lead the development and delivery of a Lived Experience capability strategy that builds knowledge and confidence across the National Centre’s workforce to engage meaningfully and ethically with victim-survivors.
• Work in partnership with National Centre staff to develop project implementation plans to ensure Lived Experience is embedded in their teams and portfolios. 
• Advise on best practice approaches for engaging and embedding Lived Experience across the National Centre, ensuring inclusive, culturally safe, and trauma-responsive engagement practices.   
• Build and maintain partnerships with people with Lived Experience, survivor-led organisations, and representatives of diverse communities to build understanding, mobilise action and amplify impact. 

Please see the Manager, Lived Experience Capability position description for more.

Who we are

The National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse (National Centre) The National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse was established in November 2021 as a key recommendation of the Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse. It is a symbol of hope and an essential vehicle for action for many victims and survivors of child sexual abuse. Its formation recognises the decades of advocacy by victims and survivors to be listened to, believed, validated, protected and ultimately supported to heal from the trauma they carry with them. Its focus extends beyond institutional child sexual abuse to abuse that occurs in the family, community and online.

The National Centre has woven the voices and experiences of victims and survivors into its very fabric. It acknowledges the strength and expertise that derives from their Lived and Living Experience of child sexual abuse. The National Centre recognises and honours the diversity of victims and survivors' experiences, identities and cultural backgrounds and their contributions to the common purpose of addressing child sexual abuse.

At the National Centre, we believe for victims and survivors to have the best opportunity to heal, they must feel safe to disclose and receive the necessary support that is non-stigmatising, appropriate to their needs and effective. Our purpose is to disrupt the dynamics that have failed to stop child sexual abuse from occurring, and prevented victims and survivors from being validated and supported.

Additional adjustments

We are committed to providing an inclusive experience to all candidates. If you have a disability, condition, illness or access requirements, please let us know how we can best support you throughout your recruitment experience. 

We recognise that each individual’s needs are different. Some examples of adjustments we can provide include (but are not limited to):

• Alternative formats or ways to submit your application (verbal or video)
• Flexible communication methods
• Additional time to complete tasks, assessments or pre-interview work
• Support from a support person or advocate during interviews
• Modifications to the interview structure, environment or timing

If you require additional adjustments, or would like to discuss any access needs as a part of the application and recruitment process, please contact us via email recruitment@shehrconsulting.com 

Our candidate experience

We aim to be transparent and kind to all of our candidates. We value your time, and as such want to share how we do things so you know what to expect with no nasty surprises. For more information on our end-to-end candidate experience, please visit the SHE HR Consulting website.

Benefits

How to apply

To express your interest, submit an online application through our application portal and include a professional resume. All applicants must also provide brief responses to the application questions that are included as part of the online application. 

Note: we do not accept cover letters as part of our application process.

Applications will be reviewed upon receipt and we may close our job advertisement without notice, so don’t delay your application.

The National Centre for Action on Child Sexual Abuse is an equal opportunity employer and strives to maintain a workplace environment that is fair and free of discrimination, is safe and accessible for all employees, and provides working arrangements that accommodate the diverse needs of our staff. We strongly encourage applications from Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people, women, people from culturally- and linguistically-diverse backgrounds, LGBTQIA+ people and people of every ethnicity, faith, ability, culture, language, gender identity, age, and sex.

Employment in this position is conditional upon reception and maintenance of reference checks as part of pre-employment screening, and a Working With Children Check (or state equivalent).

As part of our employment screening process, we do run police checks. But don’t worry—having a criminal record doesn’t automatically disqualify you.