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Are you passionate about bringing art to everyone? Do you believe in the power of digital to engage people with the arts? We’re looking for an enthusiastic Philanthropy Manager to join our friendly and dedicated team.

We welcome and encourage applications from candidates who are under-represented in the creative industries, particularly individuals who experience physical, mental or social barriers to accessing the arts.

About Art UK 

Art UK is an art education charity and the online home for every public collection of art in the United Kingdom. It is making the UK’s national collection of art accessible to everyone online – for enjoyment, learning and research. Art UK brings together art from almost 3,500 British institutions in one of the UK's largest ever arts partnerships and showcases this art to a global audience of 5.5m users per annum. Approaching 60% of this audience is overseas.

Art UK provides significant support to museums and galleries in the UK, by providing them with a shared digital platform to showcase their art collections, reach new audiences, and generate income. Most of these collections would not be able to show their art online without Art UK. The Art UK platform is rich in story content, learning resources for teachers and students, and public engagement opportunities. A shared e-commerce infrastructure helps collections generate much needed commercial income. 

About You

As the Philanthropy Manager, you will be a confident and persuasive communicator, comfortable engaging with supporters and stakeholders at all levels. You will have a solid knowledge of philanthropic giving and a deep appreciation of the value of high-quality donor stewardship. Highly organised and detail-focused, you will enjoy working with data and be skilled at producing compelling content both on and offline. You will bring initiative, creativity and the ability to work independently, while also being a collaborative team player.

You will lead on managing and growing Art UK’s philanthropic giving programme, which includes the Patrons and supporter events programme and our major donor activity. You will be part of a small, committed Development team that raises funds across a broad range of income streams: trusts and foundations, public funding, corporates, high-net-worth individuals, online giving, and patron schemes. You will report to the Head of Development, work closely with the CEO and Chair of the Philanthropy Board, and collaborate with colleagues across the organisation. 

You will actively promote equality, diversity and inclusion in all aspects of your work, reflecting your commitment to our organisational values and contributing to a positive workplace culture.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage and develop a pipeline of new philanthropic giving opportunities by researching, identifying and cultivating philanthropic supporters (£1k+) with the potential to give major gifts and multi-year support
• Create and implement donor development plans, working with the Head of Development and colleagues to guide our approach to new philanthropic support
• Develop bespoke cultivation and solicitation strategies, producing creative and compelling proposals to secure substantial philanthropic gifts
• Work closely with the Marketing team and other colleagues to showcase Art UK’s work and enhance donor engagement
• Create bespoke and compelling written proposals and support senior leadership and board members in the preparation and delivery of high-quality donor pitches to secure new philanthropic partnerships
• Provide exceptional stewardship for new and existing supporters, ensuring they feel valued and can clearly see the impact of their contribution
• Plan and deliver the fundraising and stewardship events programme (with support from the wider team), including attending events where appropriate
• Monitor progress against targets and maintain accurate reporting, including updates to Art UK’s Board of Trustees and the Philanthropy Board
• Ensure pledges and donations are processed efficiently and that donors are thanked promptly and personally
• Work closely with all members of the Development team to ensure prospecting and cultivation activity is aligned and complementary
• Ensure all philanthropic fundraising activity is conducted in line with legal, regulatory and ethical best practice e.g. GDPR and the Chartered Institute of Fundraising Code of Practice

Necessary Skills

• Essential: Experience managing a pipeline of philanthropic supporter prospects, including researching and devising bespoke cultivation plans
• Essential: Track record of personally producing impactful and persuasive written proposals which resonate with donors and lead to donations £5k or more
• Essential: Proven experience creating, implementing and evaluating philanthropic fundraising strategies
• Essential: Strong strategic thinking skills, with the ability to identify and shape innovative partnership opportunities
• Essential: Outstanding relationship-building and networking skills, including digital engagement
• Essential: In-depth understanding of the philanthropic fundraising environment
• Essential: First-class written and verbal communication skills, with the confidence to engage with a wide range of stakeholders
• Essential: Experience analysing and using supporter data to inform campaigns
• Essential: Strong copywriting, proofing and editing skills
• Essential: Experience using CRM databases with a high level of accuracy
• Essential: Thorough knowledge of fundraising best practice and legislation
• Essential: Self-motivated, reliable and exceptionally organised
• Desirable: Experience planning and managing fundraising events
• Desirable: Active interest in the visual arts and awareness of UK art collections
• Desirable: Experience working with a diverse range of audiences
• Desirable: Experience working on projects with a broad range of partners

Contract terms

• 3 days a week, 0.6 FTE
• Permanent contract
• Salary £38,000 per annum (pro rata)
• Three-month probationary period
• One-month termination clause
• Work from home, anywhere in the South of England, with regular travel to London for events and meetings

Benefits

• 25 days annual leave plus regional Bank Holidays (pro rata)
• Paid Christmas closure period (Christmas Day to New Year’s Day)
• Flexible working hours
• Workplace pension scheme
• Training and development opportunities
• Mental health and wellbeing support
• Above statutory paid sick leave
• Enhanced paid parental leave
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Monthly wellbeing hour
• Trained Mental Health First Aider’s
• Regular staff socials, both virtual and in-person
• Eye tests paid for up to £35, glasses subsidised up to £30

Application 

Please visit our website to download the application form. To apply, please submit your completed application form to us by email by 9am on Thursday 16th October 2025. If you are experiencing issues downloading the document or require support in completing your form, please contact us directly. Forms must be sent in MS Word or a format compatible to MS Word. Please do not send PDFs. Applications sent as a PDF will not be accepted.

Interviews will be held via video call on Tuesday 4th November 2025. If you have not heard from us within three weeks of the closing date, please consider your application unsuccessful.

As part of our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion please note that we redact some details from applications ahead of the shortlisting stage to ensure the removal of unconscious bias. Details that we redact include (but are not limited to) references to protected characteristics, names of educational institutions and indications of political affiliations.