Assistant Letters Editor

Join our team at the Guardian and be a part of a diverse and inclusive global organisation that delivers fearless, investigative journalism, and holds power to account. Our team of award-winning journalists, cutting-edge commercial professionals, and industry-leading digital experts are committed to making a difference and represent a wide range of backgrounds and perspectives. We offer a challenging and exciting environment for career development, with a focus on training, growth and fostering an inclusive culture.

We are looking for an assistant letters editor to join the Letters desk. Letters is a vibrant, dynamic daily section bringing together a diverse range of commentary, observations and experience-sharing from Guardian readers globally.

You will assist in the selection and editing of letters and contribute to all the tasks required on a small desk, including selection of letters, subbing for online and print, laying out pages, and liaising with readers and journalists. Sometimes the assistant letters editor will edit the whole section, to cover absences of the letters editor and deputy letters editor, and will often oversee production work on editorials.

This position is a 9-month fixed-term contract or internal staff secondment, offered on a part-time basis, working a seven day fortnight.

About the role:

• Assist in selecting, from a high volume of email submissions, letters that are true to the Guardian's tradition of encouraging a lively, authoritative and diverse spread of opinion, making informed decisions based on content, topicality, quality and provenance
• Edit and cut letters accurately and sensitively to tight deadlines, for online and print, using the Guardian's web tools and InCopy
• Conduct checks on reader identity where necessary
• Deal confidently with readers' messages that arrive at the letters desk but are not letters for publication, making informed decisions on when it is appropriate/necessary to pass them on to another person or department
• Lay out letters and leaders pages using InDesign to a high standard
• Liaise with other departments where necessary, such as news and opinion
• Carry out subbing and production work on the leader column, country diary and corrections column as well as letters
• Recognise any potential legal problems and liaise with the legal department when necessary
• Make final checks, launch content to web and send print pages to press

About you:

• Demonstrable experience of working as a journalist, online and in print, on a major news website, newspaper or magazine
• Wide knowledge of and interest in current affairs, domestically and internationally
• Clear vision of the purpose and aims of the leaders and letters pages
• Familiarity with the issues that prompt debate within our readership
• Demonstrable ability to work under pressure and within tight deadlines
• Interest in and understanding of reader engagement
• You'll have a demonstrable ability to bring a diverse perspective to this role

We actively encourage applications from groups traditionally underrepresented in the UK media.

We operate in a hybrid environment working at least three days a week from our offices in King's Cross in London.

The salary for this NUJ position starts from £47,731 full-time equivalent (i.e. £37,125 for the seven day fortnight), with a package commensurate with the skills, level of experience and responsibilities of the position.

How to apply:

To apply, please upload your latest CV and a cover letter which outlines why you'd love to take on this role, and why you're a great match for what we're looking for.

We appreciate the time taken to prepare each application we receive. We do not use AI-assisted technology to review applications; every application is reviewed by a member of our recruitment team. Thank you for bearing with us during the screening process.

All roles at the Guardian are open for everybody to apply. It is important to us that you feel supported and comfortable throughout your recruitment process, in order to perform your best. Please let us know if there are any changes we could make to help your application, this includes providing documents in accessible formats or personalising the process to better support your needs.

Benefits at the Guardian:

You'll have six weeks of annual leave per year (plus bank holidays) with the option to purchase an additional 5 days. Our pension scheme is generous; if you contribute 5% then we will contribute 8-12% (depending on your age). We believe in giving back, which is why employees are given 2 volunteering days annually and the option of payroll giving. Season ticket loans are also available.

You are entitled to life cover, income protection, and eye tests. You can also opt in to dental insurance.

We have enhanced maternity, paternity, adoption and shared parental leave policies in place. We also support our employees by offering an IVF, menopause, baby loss, and trans equality policy.

Culture and wellbeing:

We want everyone to feel like they belong at the Guardian and we champion diversity of thought. Our various employee forums provide a platform to use their voice to foster an inclusive workplace. We became the first major media organisation to achieve B Corp status.

We offer tools to help you prioritise your wellbeing including access to our employee benefits platform which provides tailored support for health and wellbeing. In addition, we also offer free yoga and pilates classes. These run alongside our corporate gym membership and cycle to work scheme.

Our canteen has views overlooking the Regents Canal and caters for breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Learning and development:

We encourage personal and professional growth. Employees have access to a broad range of tools and solutions, and we are happy to support the pursuit of professional qualifications through vocational courses and apprenticeships.