Child Protection (CP) Specialist - National Staff

In coordination with the HQ Protection Desk, the CP Specialist will provide technical leadership and operational oversight for UPP’s child protection activities under the SPRING project, including CP context analysis, partner mapping, priority identification, and needs-based capacity building. The role is predominantly field-based across Zarqa, Amman, Irbid, and Mafraq. 

Technical Leadership 

• Ensure technical backstopping and CPMS standards of all CP-related curricula, SOPs, needs assessments and MEAL tools. 

• Contribute to UPP Protection strategy including service mapping, stakeholder engagement, and new areas of expansion including community-led and child-led initiatives. 

• Ensure alignment with Consortium partners and provide recommendations and follow-up on Child Protection-relevant programme elements. 

Capacity Building  

• Support the UPP Protection team to carry out up-to-date capacity assessments. 

• Co-design and facilitate CP-specific training modules across four governorates, covering CP in Emergencies, Protection of Children with Disabilities, Safe Identification and Referral, CFS Principles, and CP Service Monitoring. 

• Provide pre-deployment training on safeguarding, PSEAH, and CP mainstreaming to all relevant staff and partner organizations, followed by post-training mentoring, supervision, and knowledge assessments. 

• Design pre/post training knowledge assessments in coordination with the M&E Officer and contribute to training reports for MEAL purposes. 

• Maintain updated knowledge of Jordanian legal frameworks relevant to child protection, including the Juvenile Justice Law, personal status law provisions on early marriage, and child labour regulations, to inform programming and referral decisions. 

Case Management Oversight 

• Provide technical guidance and supervision to Case Management teams on CP Minimum Standards, child-centred approaches, BIC principles, and do-no-harm protocols, ensuring services are delivered in line with the integrated GBV/CP model and CP guiding principles (safety, confidentiality, respect, non-discrimination), including PSEAH/safeguarding at all access points. 

• Oversee CPIMS, referral pathways, hotline network, and inter-agency coordination and with ministerial stakeholders (MoSD, FPD, MoH) ensuring continuity of care, data protection standards, MHPSS linkages, and PFA capacity across all case management touchpoints. 

• Coordinate safe referrals for children at risk, including those in conflict with the law, ex-detainees, and children facing early marriage or child labour, in collaboration with the GBV Specialist, CM Supervisor, and external actors. 

• Provide CP technical inputs to the Cash for Education selection process managed by consortium partners ensuring integrated in CP case management plans. 

Child Friendly Spaces (CFS)  

• Support the design, launch, and technical supervision of Child Protection and Education activities in the CBO premises in Russeifeh and Dulail in line with CFS, CPiE and EiE standards. 

• Ensure all CFS activities are participatory, age-appropriate, inclusive, linked to referral pathways, and compliant with child safeguarding standards and CFS checklists. 

• Support age-, gender- and disability-inclusive needs assessments, FGDs and KIIs; technically review curricula and oversee delivery of group activities, including Sports for Protection for adolescents and parallel caregiver positive parenting sessions. 

• Ensure integration with GBV programming and coordinate synergies with the Women and Girls Conversation Club and CP/GBV case management services. 

• Implement and monitor PSEAH/safeguarding measures applicable to CP activities, ensuring complaint and feedback mechanisms are child-friendly, confidential, and accessible at CFS level and in outreach activities. 

Community Outreach and CP Sensitization  

• Support CP-focused community awareness sessions across project governorates, providing thematic content and quality assurance on child rights, abuse prevention, positive parenting, and safe referral. 

• Provide technical inputs for Radio and social media campaigns on CP-related topics. 

• Coordinate with Outreach teams to ensure outreach activities generate safe referrals, IEC materials on child rights and hotlines are distributed effectively. 

Coordination, Monitoring, and Reporting 

• Actively participate in the CP/GBV Sub-Working Group and other relevant coordination mechanisms at national and sub-national level, including the Protection Working Group (PWG), reporting platforms (RAIS, ActivityInfo), and bilateral coordination meetings with MoSD, MoJ, and UNICEF. 

• Contribute to CP-specific child-friendly MEAL tools, data quality checks, and preparation of timely technical inputs for monthly monitoring reports, quarterly progress reports to AICS, mid-term review, and final evaluation, in line with the UPP reporting calendar. 

• Participate in UPP–Oxfam joint steering committee meetings and monthly technical working group meetings with all field teams. 

Project development 

• Contribute to the elaboration of new project proposals and concept notes, including stakeholder engagement, needs assessments, and partnership mapping. 

• Support the Country Representative and Project Officer in expanding UPP collaborations and identifying new proposal development opportunities. 

Other 

Carry out any other activities related to programs of interest to the organization, as requested by HQ. 

ESSENTIAL REQUIREMENTS:  

• University degree (Bachelor’s or Master’s) in Social Work, Child Development, Psychology, Education, International Development, or a closely related field. 

• A least 5 years of professional experience in child protection programming in humanitarian or development settings, including field-level experience in at least two of: CP case management, CFS management, PSS for children, or community-based CP. 

• Experience implementing or supervising Child Friendly Spaces (CFS), Early Childhood Development (ECD) programmes, or child-focused psychosocial support in emergencies. 

• Experience working with Syrian refugee populations and Jordanian host communities. 

• Demonstrated experience in training and capacity building of national staff, CBOs, and community volunteers on CP, safeguarding, and CFS standards. 

• Experience in community outreach and community-based protection (CBP) approaches. 

• Strong knowledge of CP Minimum Standards, child-centred approaches, BIC principle, CFS operational standards, structured PSS methodologies, PSEAH/safeguarding frameworks, and CP information management systems (CPIMS+). 

• Good knowledge of the Jordanian legal and institutional framework for child protection, juvenile justice, and early marriage prevention. 

• Strong facilitation, coaching, and mentoring skills; ability to transfer knowledge effectively to community-level actors. 

• Ability to build trusted relationships with children, families, community leaders, and institutional actors, in culturally sensitive ways. 

• High degree of integrity, discretion, and professionalism in handling sensitive CP cases. 

• Resilience in complex humanitarian settings and commitment to gender equality and the protection of vulnerable groups. 

• Arabic language proficiency at least at CEFR level C1; English language proficiency at least at CEFR level B2. 

• Excellent knowledge of computer software (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook) 

DESIRABLE REQUIREMENTS:  

• A Master’s degree or postgraduate specialisation in child protection is an asset. 

• Familiarity with disability-inclusive CP programming and working with children with disabilities is an asset. 

• Ability to solve problems and proactivity. 

• Excellent reactivity and flexibility in all circumstances. 

• Regional and cultural knowledge and sensitivity. 

UPP requires criminal background check certificate (released max 3 months before the date of job offer) and a health clearance certificate to confirm a job offer. We are aware that in some countries the release of criminal background certificate by the competent authorities might require several weeks. However, UPP runs selections to deploy staff in emergency programs and time-lapse between job offer and field deployment is often very short. Thus, we kindly ask all candidates to get prepared on time and be able to submit their certificate promptly in case of success in the selection.  

OTHER REQUIREMENTS: Un Ponte Per ETS is an International NGO committed to diversity and inclusion within its teams, in line with the principle of non-discrimination. UPP encourages all candidates irrespective of gender, religion, and ethnicity, including persons with disabilities to apply and become part of the organization.  

Ethical Conduct  

UPP upholds all the minimum standards in terms of Ethical Conduct and strives to increase its standards over the minimum. Zero tolerance is reserved for Sexual Abuse and Exploitation and Child Abuse, Violence, Harm, Injury and Negligence. UPP participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme, therefore, any candidate assures that s/he has never breached any standard in terms of SEA and Child Safeguarding and that s/he will not in the future. UPP will conduct extensive reference check and vetting on shortlisted candidates that might compromise candidates’ privacy. Shortlisted candidates shall promptly provide an up-to-date criminal background check. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms his/her understanding of these recruitment procedures. 

HOW TO APPLY:  Interested candidates are invited to apply by submitting a detailed CV (PDF format)with the authorization to use and process data on the base of the EU Regulation 2016/679 - GDPR and a brief cover letter (PDF format) that includes the contact information for three Professional References (relevant and recent) 

Be informed that UPP screens prospective colleagues through anti-terrorism/anti-money-laundering/anti-corruption/anti-fraud sanctions lists before job offer. Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted