Help to scale up a leading edge, community-led, not-for-profit organisation that tackles both fuel poverty and climate change

Role: Project Support Officer, Part Time
Location: Bristol
Hours: 16-18 per week, includes occasional evenings and weekends
Pay: £14.29 ph (£27,865.50 pro rata)
Job type: Contract, 20 months, commencing Sept. 2025

Working pattern: Hybrid, some in-person attendance required

We are thrilled to be able to offer this role as part of a grant-funded project, with a specific number of funded hours over 20 months. Where there is some seasonal element to our work (mostly active from September to April), we would happily consider compressing hours so that more are worked in these months, and fewer or none are worked in summer, depending on preference.

Role:

The CHEESE Project (Cold Homes Energy Efficiency Survey Experts) is a non-profit offering thermal imaging surveying and airtightness testing services to help people better understand where their homes are losing heat. The UK has the oldest and coldest housing stock in Europe, and the pressures of climate change and cost of living mean that we are all concerned about reducing energy use at home. With over 1,200 surveys delivered, and nearly 100 5* reviews, we are delighted to be in receipt of grant funding that will help us to expand our services, and offer even more free support to those in need.

We are seeking a part time Project Support Officer to work with the Business Manager, Development Coordinator, Surveyors, and voluntary board, to promote and deliver thermal imaging and air tightness testing home surveys, through administrative support, engagement and marketing, reporting, events and more. Responsibilities may include:

• Operational and admin support
• Customer service via email, phone and social media
• Marketing support eg. blogs, social posts, newsletter, website
• Assist with survey scheduling, booking, rescheduling, refunds
• Inbox and calendar coordination
• Support surveyors with logistics and follow-up
• Event attendance for community and industry engagement
• Researching and contributing to grant and development opportunities
• Reporting and record keeping to given formats

Person specification:

This role would suit someone enthusiastic about sustainability, highly organised, digitally confident, and comfortable engaging with a wide range of people.

Essential:

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Strong organisational skills with attention to detail
• Comfortable working independently and remotely with limited supervision
• Friendly, professional, and adaptable attitude
• Confident using digital tools (Office, WordPress, Mailchimp, social media)
• Commitment to climate action and social justice
• Willingness to work flexibly, including occasional evenings/weekends

Desirable:

• Experience in community engagement, marketing, or event coordination
• Knowledge of domestic energy, sustainability or thermal imaging
• Previous work with non-profits, community interest companies

Closing date:

08/08/2025

Please send a CV and short covering letter to willow.merewood@cheeseproject.co.uk outlining your experience and interest in the role.

Job Description

Hours – Part-time, approximately 20 hrs per week, including some weekends and evenings
Contract – Self-employed
Salary/Hourly rate approx. £18.50 per hour (after training) – payments per survey, paid monthly.
More than 1 position available

We are The CHEESE Project CIC – Cold Homes Energy Efficiency Survey Experts based in Bristol. We have big ambitions, and our mission is to help our customers stay warm at home, save money, improve energy efficiency, and help save the planet.

This is a unique self-employment opportunity, working part-time, and helping Bristol, South Glos and BaNES area householders potentially reduce their heating bills and carbon footprint by understanding how their house operates thermally during cold weather. You, as one of our surveyors, will carry out the thermal imaging survey and capture the cold, drafty areas and other thermal inefficiencies in each room of the house. The thermal survey is recorded with the householder present, so they can see everything in real-time, on a tablet, during your visit. You will leave them a copy on a USB for future review. You may also offer information to householders to prevent or lessen drafts by offering suggestions for remedial work they can do themselves or, for larger jobs, signpost to other organisations.

All equipment and training is provided free.
Training is delivered directly by The CHEESE Project CIC. If you know about building or construction, that’s great. If you don’t, it will be explained during the training. Our training comprehensively shows you how to use the thermal cameras and understand the thermal images you see, including probable causes for any cold areas and draughts identified during the survey, and be able to explain this in simple terms to your customer.

Surveyors choose their own availability, however, there is an expectation that some surveys are offered during early evenings and weekends. We offer high availability of surveys to customers, so it is desirable for you to commit to an average of at least 5 surveys, working approximately 20 hrs per week.

Once trained and signed off as competent, pay equates to approx. £18.50/hour. Depending on the size of the house, surveys take from 2.5 to 4 hours. Work is offered on a freelance contract basis with payment made against your invoice. In addition, mileage is paid at 45p per mile. If the journey to customers is more than 5 miles away from your home, we also cover travel time. Put in a different way, we are looking for surveyors able to make available sufficient time to carry out around 100 surveys across 20 to 26 weeks, depending on weather conditions.

More than anything, we are looking for talented, passionate people to join our growing team. In return, we are looking for people who are self-motivated project surveyors who share our values. You’ll need to be flexible to deal with ever-changing demands, approachable, with the ability to think on your feet.

Training Schedule

Training commences with our free CPD-accredited training in our unique method of thermal surveying, starting with an online course available from Monday 4^th August at the earliest. You will have a minimum of 4 weeks to complete this part of the training. The second part of the training is in-person and will be late September 2025 in Bristol (date to be confirmed).

Key Responsibilities

• Work as instructed and to a schedule set by you and agreed with the business manager.
• Contact and liaise with customers, providing excellent customer service.
• Conduct thermal surveys of the interior of homes with diligence, tact, and sensitivity; recording vision, sound, and photos.
• Be open to flexible working patterns, that fit around our customers and your schedule.
• Be available for an average of 25hrs per week, with seasonal variation to suit your schedule.
• Commit to the training schedule.
• Report on energy loss revealed and provide suggestions to the customer about how to remedy it and where to obtain advice.
• Log results of surveys of homes on the database and supply a copy to the customer.
• Take responsibility for the care and maintenance of survey equipment (supplied for free).
• Assist in training sessions for other Heatview® surveyors.
• Help to maintain relationships with energy-related NGOs e.g., Bristol Energy Network, Centre for Sustainable Energy, Citizens Advice, etc.
• Assist with publicity and events to obtain customers.
• Seek further customers through personal contacts etc.
• Be fit and able to carry equipment and move around in private homes that may not be easily accessible. Transport of some kind is preferable as kit is bulky. Our kit can be carried in a cargo bike.

Skills and Experience

Essential:

• Driving license and access to a vehicle.
• First-class English language, written and spoken.
• Well organised, attention to detail.
• Competent IT skills (Word, Excel, Google Docs, Internet).
• Outgoing, friendly personality, combining tact and persistence with a ‘can do’ attitude.
• Able to work some evenings and weekends.
• Commitment to timescale for training.

Desirable:

• Proven interest in sustainability and energy use.
• Experience in the not-for-profit sector.

You are required to hold an up-to-date and portable Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Applications

To apply, please send your CV and your covering letter to info@cheeseproject.co.uk. You should detail your skills and abilities with reference to the job description above.

For further information about this role, please email info@cheeseproject.co.uk or call on 07393 941 960.

Legal right to work: Before applying for this post, you must have a legal right to work in the UK, your own transport, and a full, clean driving licence.

PLEASE NOTE: Please do not send in CVs on their own. We will not accept applications from agencies.