The purpose of the Fellowship is to develop the online profile of the BALH and its associated publication activities concerned with the study and teaching of local history across the British Isles, and offer support and mentorship to the appointed Fellow. Since the dramatic events of the Covid-19 pandemic the BALH has raised its ambitions to engage with its membership, the wider historical community and the general public through a range of online activities which have become a key part of our ongoing engagement programme. These activities will continue to run in collaboration with our usual publications and events, and are designed to help the Association to adapt to the changing needs of our current and future members.

The BALH Social Media Fellowship will be tasked with maintaining a social media presence, utilising our website, Twitter and Facebook. The Fellow will be expected to work in a pro-active manner in collaboration with the Chair of Trustees, the Chairs of the Outreach and Publication Committees and, report to the BALH’s Web Manager to:

• Identify opportunities for BALH to enhance our support of local history and network with other history organisations via social media;
• Curate a monthly blog, writing content and identifying suitable guest authors, and provide completed content for the Web Manager;
• Maintain activity on Twitter, including generating content and responding to activity;
• Ensuring that regular entries are added to the Facebook page;
• Curate information from the website for the bi-monthly e-newsletter;
• Liaise on a regular basis with the Chairs of the Committees, the Web Manager, the Events & Development Officer and the Editors of The Local Historian and Local History News to maximise efficiency and effectiveness when publicising news and events;
• Liaise with the organisers of events, such as webinars and the AGM, to live tweet or take responsibility for organising another member of the BALH team to do so;
• Consult with the Fellow’s appointed mentor on a regular basis, to be mutually agreed, with regard to the frequency, content and style of the posts, Tweets and Facebook entries;
• Attend BALH meetings when necessary to provide updates on engagement and activity.

Note: So long as the authorship of all posts, Tweets and Facebook entries is appropriately acknowledged, so as to avoid any contravention of copyright law, it will be permissible for the Fellow to simply co-ordinate the social media activity rather than write all of the content themselves.

The stipend for the year is £7,500.

We are looking for an individual with experience of using social media (Twitter and Facebook), with the ability to effectively manage their own time, work pro-actively and independently. An active interest and involvement in local history is an essential requirement.

Appropriate mentors will be selected after the successful Fellow is appointed.

To apply please send a CV and cover letter to the Chair of BALH, Dr Jessica Lutkin, at recruitment@balh.org.uk. Closing date for applications is 5pm on Monday 26th July 2021. Interviews will be held on Monday 9th August 2021.