Freelance midweight to senior designer
Contract & location: Part-time contract, flexible hours, UK-based (with some travel to London required for meetings)
Rate: Monthly retainer up to £2,000 per month gross, depending on experience
Application details: Email covering letter (two pages maximum) and CV/portfolio to contactus@bookerprizefoundation.org
Deadline for applications: 12 pm Monday, 22 July 2024
Reporting to: Director of Prize Management & Special Projects and Head of Editorial
Organisation description
The Booker Prizes have a unique place in the literary sphere, enjoying an enviable reputation as a cultural institution that is highly respected, much loved and hotly debated throughout the world. Over the past 50 years, more than 600 extraordinary books have been brought to the attention of the public, influencing reading tastes and transforming culture in Britain and beyond, along with the careers of hundreds of writers from around the globe.
The Booker Prize Foundation is a registered charity, established in 2002, which is responsible for awarding the Booker Prize and the International Booker Prize. It exists to inspire more people to read – and write – the world’s best fiction. In adding a year-round, far-reaching digital portfolio, the Booker Prizes are now the globally recognised home of great writing.
Other aspects of the Foundation’s work include the funding of Braille and audio editions of Booker Prizes books through the RNIB, Books Unlocked, a long-standing reading initiative in prisons, and the UEA Booker Prize Foundation Scholarship, awarded annually to a candidate for the Creative Writing MA at the University of East Anglia. Many past scholars have since met with acclaim as published authors.
We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are under-represented in the creative industries.
The role
We are looking for a multi-talented, highly creative and flexible freelance midweight to senior designer to join the Booker Prize Foundation team on a part-time contract. This is a new role and presents a rare opportunity for an experienced designer to take the lead on print and digital design for one of the UK’s best known cultural brands as it undergoes a period of rapid transformation and growth. The successful candidate would be tasked with creating a coherent suite of assets across brand and editorial that build on the Booker Prizes’ international reputation and help the organisation to reach new audiences.
Key responsibilities
Creating an overall look and feel for our forthcoming prizes and rolling this out across:
- Digital and print ceremony/event invitations
- Digital assets (static and animated) for large LED screens at ceremonies and other live events
- Printed banners and step-and-repeat boards for ceremonies and other events
- Other printed materials for events, including menus and programmes
- POS materials for retailers and libraries
- Templates for social media posts: e.g. longlist/shortlist/winner announcements, countdowns etc
- Assets for special projects related to forthcoming prizes, such as Reading Challenges and partnerships with other brands
- Updating our logos, brand guidelines and annual documentation
Creating, improving and developing designs for our broader digital portfolio, including:
- Templates for regular website content and one-off designs for special features
- Templates and one-off designs for social posts and newsletters
- Updated designs for newsletters and podcasts
- Picture research and commissioning freelance illustrators to support website content as required
Creating templates and one-off designs for marketing, communications and fundraising materials, pitches to potential partners, and regular reports to the board of trustees and funders.
Skills and experience
The successful candidate will have at least five years of experience working as a designer for both digital environments and high-profile branded events. They should be able to evidence their experience in devising and leading a broad range of effective creative projects.
It is not essential for applicants to have a publishing background, but they will take a keen interest in fiction and its place in the wider cultural scene. Experience of working within the cultural sector, and working across websites, social media, marketing and in-person events is highly desirable.
They will be proficient in using graphic design software such as Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign)
They will thrive on working to very tight deadlines when required, especially during the two annual prize seasons. They will have the ability and confidence to strategise about the organisation’s brand image and will understand its values, reputation and ambitions.
They will enjoy working as part of a small, friendly, collaborative and dynamic team and will be industrious, creative and detail-focused in their thinking and working. They will be organised and flexible in their approach to tackling a diverse range of tasks, including working on multiple projects simultaneously.
They will be a highly-motivated person, who is able to work independently and who inspires confidence and trust from those around them.
How to apply
- Please send a covering letter of no more than two pages outlining your suitability for the role and a CV/portfolio by Monday, 22 July 2024 to contactus@bookerprizefoundation.org
- In your covering letter, please explain why you are interested in the freelance midweight to senior designer job and how your experience and skills match what we are looking for.
Successful candidates will be invited to interview in the week commencing 5 August 2024.