Coordinator - Programme Implementation (Urban Project Lead)

Job DESCRIPTION

Job Title

City Lead – Urban Flagship Programme / Assistant Manager

Grade

H

Department

Programme Operations (Urban Flagship Programme)

Reporting to

Manager/Head

Location

Chennai, Tamil Nadu

Contract duration

Till 31 March 2026

About Bal Raksha Bharat

Bal Raksha Bharat (also known as Save the Children) is one of India’s leading independent child rights organisations and a member of the global Save the Children movement. We work to inspire breakthroughs in the way the world treats children and achieve immediate and lasting change in their lives.

By 2030, the Save the Children movement is working towards three breakthroughs:

No child dies from preventable causes before their fifth birthday.

All children learn from a quality basic education.

Violence against children is no longer tolerated.

In India, Bal Raksha Bharat works across diverse geographies, including remote rural areas and urban settings, through programmes focused on Health & Nutrition, Education, Child Protection, Livelihoods & Economic Wellbeing and Humanitarian Response. Our programmes aim to ensure that children survive, learn, are protected and have opportunities to fulfil their potential.

Programme Brief :

The Urban Flagship Programme aims to establish safe, inclusive and enabling Urban Flagship Centres and extend integrated services into surrounding catchment communities. The programme will connect children, adolescents, youth and families with a range of opportunities and services, including education, health and nutrition, child protection, skilling and livelihoods, government schemes and services, and community-led solutions. The programme seeks to create a sustainable urban model that brings together children, families, communities, government, institutions, civil society and private-sector partners to address the multidimensional vulnerabilities faced by children and young people in urban settings.

ROLE PURPOSE

The City Lead will be the key person responsible for the planning, implementation, coordination, monitoring and quality assurance of the Urban Flagship Programme at the city level.

The role holder will ensure effective delivery of the approved Detailed Implementation Plan (DIP), targets, budget, programme standards and safeguarding requirements, while strengthening government convergence, institutional partnerships, community ownership, volunteer engagement and sustainability.

The City Lead will work closely with the State/PIU and thematic and functional teams to ensure that the Urban Flagship Centre and its catchment communities function as an integrated programme ecosystem.

SCOPE OF ROLE

Scope: The person will be responsible for the management of center and the academic classes of the children

Reports to: Manager/Head

Staff reporting to this post: Fulltime staff/Part-time Teachers/Volunteers/Consultants

Budget Responsibilities: As per the assigned by the line manager

Role Dimensions : Development and Humanitarian context

KEY ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

City-Level Programme Planning and Implementation

Lead preparation, implementation and periodic review of the city-level DIP, annual work plans, targets, activity plans and budgets.

Translate the Urban Flagship Programme framework into effective city-level implementation.

Lead day-to-day programme coordination and ensure timely achievement of planned milestones.

Ensure effective integration between the Urban Flagship Centre and catchment/community-based interventions.

Identify implementation bottlenecks and take timely corrective action in coordination with the State/PIU Lead.

Urban Flagship Centre Management

Oversee the day-to-day functioning, quality and effective utilisation of the Urban Flagship Centre.

Ensure that mandatory centre-based services and activities are delivered in accordance with programme standards.

Ensure that the centre is safe, inclusive, child-friendly, accessible and responsive to community needs.

Promote meaningful participation of children, adolescents, youth, parents and community members in centre activities.

Community Outreach and Integrated Services

Lead community outreach and mobilisation across identified catchment areas.

Ensure vulnerable and marginalised children and families are identified and connected with appropriate services.

Coordinate integrated interventions across education, health & nutrition, child protection, skilling, livelihoods and government services.

Strengthen referral mechanisms between the centre, community and external service providers.

Team and Volunteer Coordination

Provide day-to-day guidance and coordination to Academic Support, Health & Nutrition, Skilling & Livelihoods Facilitators and Community Volunteers.

Ensure staff and volunteers receive appropriate induction, coaching, mentoring and performance support.

Promote teamwork, accountability, learning and continuous improvement.

Build and sustain a strong volunteer pathway for community-led action.

Government Convergence and Stakeholder Engagement

Lead city-level stakeholder mapping and engagement.

Establish and maintain effective relationships with Urban Local Bodies (ULBs), government departments, schools, Anganwadi Centres, health facilities, academic institutions, CSOs, corporates, CSR partners and community structures.

Facilitate convergence with relevant government schemes, services and platforms.

Support required government permissions, approvals and coordination.

Represent the Urban Flagship Programme at relevant city-level forums and platforms.

Programme Quality, Monitoring and Learning

Monitor programme implementation against the approved DIP, targets, LFA indicators and quality standards.

Ensure timely and accurate MIS, programme reporting, beneficiary reach, referral tracking and service-quality monitoring.

Work closely with MEAL and thematic teams to analyse data and use evidence for programme improvement.

Identify implementation gaps and lead timely course correction.

Document learning, innovations, case studies, success stories and evidence of change, ensuring appropriate consent and safeguarding standards.

Risk Management, Safeguarding and Accountability

Maintain and regularly update the city-level risk register.

Identify programme, operational, safeguarding, financial and reputational risks and lead mitigation measures.

Ensure compliance with BRB safeguarding, child protection, inclusion, safety and accountability standards.

Ensure functional feedback, complaints and response mechanisms at centre and community levels.

Promote meaningful and safe participation of children and communities in programme design, implementation and review.

Financial and Operational Management

Monitor programme expenditure against the approved city budget and DIP.

Ensure timely financial follow-up and coordination with Finance and Operations teams.

Support procurement, logistics, administration and infrastructure requirements for effective programme delivery.

Identify budget utilisation gaps and escalate significant deviations in a timely manner.

Partnerships and Resource Mobilisation

Identify opportunities for strategic partnerships at city level in coordination with the State/PIU and Resource Mobilisation teams.

Support development and nurturing of relationships with CSR partners, corporates, institutions, local philanthropists and other potential partners.

Provide programme insights, evidence and field information to support proposal development and donor engagement.

Contribute to building a sustainable funding pathway for the Urban Flagship Programme.

Sustainability and Transition

Embed sustainability considerations into programme planning and implementation from the beginning.

Develop and implement strategies for community ownership, government convergence, institutional partnerships and local resource mobilisation .

Ensure transition and exit considerations are incorporated into city-level planning.

Identify opportunities to institutionalise successful models and practices.

Coordination with State/PIU and Functional Teams

Coordinate regularly with State/PIU leadership and thematic and functional teams for technical support and programme quality.

Work closely with Programme, MEAL, Finance, HR, Admin & Procurement, Resource Mobilisation, Communications and other relevant teams.

Participate in review meetings, learning forums and programme planning processes.

Escalate strategic, operational and risk-related issues requiring State/PIU-level intervention.

MEASURES OF PERFORMANCE

Performance will be assessed against:

Achievement of approved city-level targets, outcomes and DIP milestones.

Quality, timeliness and effectiveness of centre-based and community-based service delivery.

Effective integration of Urban Flagship Centre and catchment interventions.

Strength and effectiveness of government convergence, partnerships and referral systems.

Accuracy and timeliness of MIS, reporting and financial follow-up.

Compliance with safeguarding, inclusion, safety and accountability standards.

Quality of community, child and volunteer participation.

Staff and volunteer performance and engagement.

Evidence of learning, adaptation, innovation and programme improvement.

Progress towards sustainability, community ownership and transition/exit planning.

Contribution to resource mobilisation and strategic partnerships.

BEHAVIOURS (Values in Practice )

Accountability S/he should be accountable towards evaluating his/her performance or behavior related to work/community/children/society for which s/he is responsible. The term is related to responsibility but is regarded more from the perspective of oversight

Ambition S/he should be desire to achieve a particular goal as well aspiration in respect of project

Collaboration S/he should work in collaborative method with respective stakeholders (direct or indirect) and will make something together. To collaborate is to commit to the possibility of producing an outcome greater than one that would be developed in a silo.

Creativity: She should have the urge in solving problems and communicating with others,

Integrity is the quality of being honest and having strong moral principles. S/he must be truthful and honest with him/herself and others, should align own personal behavior and his/her action will be aligned with own values, principles and ethics. S/he would have self-awareness and have really explore value system.

• Graduate/Postgraduate in Social Sciences, Social Work, Education, Development Studies or any other relevant discipline from a recognized university.
• Preference may be given to candidates with B.Ed., DIET, NTT or equivalent qualifications and relevant teaching/education experience, particularly for roles involving significant academic support components.
• Additional qualifications or training in community development, programme management, child rights, education, livelihoods or urban development will be an advantage.

EXPERIENCE AND SKILLS

• Minimum 5 years of relevant experience working with NGOs, schools, communities, children, adolescents and/or other community stakeholders.
• Experience in managing or coordinating community-based programmes and teams.
• Experience of working with government departments, schools, community institutions or other external stakeholders will be an advantage.
• Experience in urban programmes, centre-based programmes, education, health, child protection, skilling/livelihoods or integrated programming will be preferred.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple activities, stakeholders and priorities simultaneously.

KEY COMPETENCIES

Technical Competencies

Programme planning, implementation and monitoring.

Teaching and learning facilitation skills.

Community mobilisation and engagement.

Child and adolescent participation.

Stakeholder networking and influencing.

Government convergence and partnership management.

Team coordination and facilitation.

MIS, documentation and reporting.

Budget monitoring and financial follow-up.

Risk identification and mitigation.

Problem-solving and decision-making.

Strong communication and presentation skills.

Organisational skills and effective time management.

Ability to deliver programme activities with quality and within timelines.

Ability to work effectively in a complex and multi-stakeholder urban environment.

Generic Competencies

• Being the Voice of Children : Utilizes being part of a global movement to promote change in the policy and public sphere on child related issues
• Advancing Equality & Inclusion : Drives an enabling environment for gender equality and inclusion, and prioritizing the most deprived and marginalized children
• Builds & Strengthens Partnerships : Inspires others to embrace the values and principles that underpin partnerships and the localization agenda
• Child Rights: Promotes the rights of children in own work and in work with colleagues and peers

Additional job responsibilities

The duties and responsibilities as set out above are not exhaustive and the role holder may be required to carry out additional duties within reasonableness of their level of skills and experience.

CHILD SAFEGUARDING (Strike out whichever is not applicable)

Level 1: The role holder will not have contact with children and/or young people, or access to personal data about children or young people, as part of their work; therefore a police check will not be mandatory unless the content or location of the role changes, in which case the Child Safeguarding level will be reviewed.

Level 2: Either the role holder will have access to personal data about children and/or young people as part of their work; or they will be working in a ‘regulated’ position (Finance, Monitoring & Evaluation, Legal etc.); therefore a police check will be required .

Level 3: The role holder will have contact with children and/or young people either frequently (e.g. once a week or more) or intensively (e.g. four days in one month or more or overnight) because they work in programs; or are visiting programs; therefore a police check will be required .

Child Safeguarding

We need to keep children safe so our selection process, which includes rigorous background checks, reflects our commitment to the protection of children from abuse.

Safeguarding our Staff

The post holder is required to carry out the duties in accordance with the BRB’s anti-harassment policy.

Equal Opportunities

Bal Raksha Bharat aims to be an equal opportunity employer. We welcome all applications irrespective of age, race, colour, gender, disability, sexual orientation, religion, belief or creed. Women candidates are encouraged to apply.

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