Community Liaison Officer - High Lights Festival

Location: Advance: Remote - On Site: Barking Park
Contract: Part-time
Festival: High Lights

About High Lights

High Lights is a music festival produced and promoted by Percolate which takes place in Barking Park, bringing together an exciting programme of live music, DJs, culture, food and entertainment.

Our mission is to make High Lights a positive addition to Barking and the surrounding area. Building strong relationships with local residents, businesses, community organisations and other stakeholders is an important part of delivering our vision responsibly and successfully.

We are looking for a friendly, organised, experienced and proactive Community Liaison Officer to lead this work in the run-up to the festival, during the event and immediately afterwards.

The Role

The Community Liaison Officer will be the key point of contact between High Lights and the local community.

You will help ensure local residents and stakeholders are informed about the festival, understand what to expect and know how to contact the festival team with questions or concerns.

The role will involve proactive engagement ahead of the event, hosting community meetings, responding to enquiries, supporting communications around issues such as noise, traffic, road access and event timings, and maintaining a constructive relationship with the community throughout the festival period.

On site you will be the festivals front of house contact for all community enquiries. This will involve face to face, phone, and online communications, linking in with the event operation team to make sure the community has a voice inside the event control.

This is a hands-on role suited to someone who is confident speaking with a wide range of people and can represent the festival professionally, warmly and calmly.

Key Responsibilities

• Act as a key point of contact between High Lights and local residents, businesses, community groups and other local stakeholders.

• Develop and maintain positive relationships with people and organisations in the areas surrounding Barking Park.

• Identify relevant community groups, residents' associations, businesses, schools, faith organisations and other stakeholders who should be informed or consulted about the event.

• Support the festival team in developing and delivering a community engagement plan in the lead-up to the festival.

• Carry out proactive local outreach, hosting community meetings, visiting local businesses and organisations and speaking directly with residents.

• Coordinate the distribution of resident communications, including information about festival dates and timings, sound checks, traffic and transport arrangements, access restrictions and other potential impacts.

• Manage and respond to community enquiries through the festival's designated email address and telephone line.

• Maintain a clear log of enquiries, concerns, complaints and responses.

• Escalate significant or sensitive issues to the appropriate member of the festival management team.

• Work closely with the festival's Event Management, Production, Security, Traffic Management and Communications teams to ensure accurate information is provided to residents.

• Liaise closely with relevant representatives from the London Borough of Barking & Dagenham.

• Be available during key build, event and break periods to support communication with residents and respond quickly to issues.

• Support the festival's complaints and incident-response process during the event, particularly in relation to noise, access, traffic and anti-social behaviour.

• Gather community feedback following the festival and contribute to a short post-event report highlighting key issues, outcomes and recommendations for future events.

About You

We are looking for someone who is approachable, diplomatic and comfortable building relationships with people from a wide range of backgrounds.

You should have:

• Experience working with communities, residents, local authorities, events or other public-facing organisations is an absolute must.

• Strong communication and interpersonal skills.

• The confidence to have difficult or sensitive conversations in a calm and constructive way.

• Excellent organisational skills and the ability to keep accurate records.

• Good written communication skills.

• The ability to work independently while remaining closely connected to the wider festival team.

• Good judgement and an understanding of when an issue needs to be escalated.

• Availability around the festival dates, including some evenings and weekends where required.

• A willingness to work on-site in and around Barking Park.

Knowledge of Barking & Dagenham and existing relationships within the local community would be a significant advantage.

Experience working on festivals, outdoor events, licensing, community engagement or local-authority events would also be beneficial.

What Success Looks Like

The Community Liaison Officer will help High Lights establish a positive and respectful relationship with its neighbours.

Success in the role means residents and local stakeholders receive clear and timely information, have an accessible route for raising questions or concerns, and feel that the festival team listens and responds professionally.

It also means the festival team has a clear understanding of community concerns before and during the event, allowing potential issues to be addressed early wherever possible.

Working Pattern

This is a part-time, fixed-term role, with hours increasing as the festival approaches.

You will host 4 residents meetings, 3 in advance of the event and one directly post the event. On site dates for 2027 are as follows:

• Thursday 27th May

• Friday 28th May

• Saturday 29th May

• Sunday 30th May

• Friday 4th June

• Saturday 5th June

• Sunday 6th June 

• Monday 7th June 

The exact working pattern can be agreed with the successful candidate.

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