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This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
Job Purpose:
To oversee the management and growth of Venue Hire for our historic spaces covering meetings, conferences, talks, weddings and community activities. This is our primary source of income and key to supporting our library and learning programme, alongside our theatre income and fundraising.
The role will also lead on identifying and developing new business opportunities for other commercial income streams, building relationships with clients and partners, and ensuring that commercial activity supports the Foundation’s charitable purpose and long-term sustainability.
Optimising the use of space to ensure that St Bride Foundation (SBF) operates profitably as well as meeting the needs of our communities is a key part of the role. The Business Development and Events Manager will oversee the Venue Hire activity and promote the venue’s room resources, as well as supporting the Library and Workshop in the organisation of in-house courses, seminars and events.
Key Responsibilities:
Events Management
- Manage the Events Team activity of promoting and selling the venue’s event spaces, ensuring SBF has good visibility on all relevant venue hire websites.
- Responding to and converting enquiries and monitoring conversion effectiveness.
- Managing clients’ needs for booked events.
- Negotiating contracts for both short and long-term use; and ensuring that all aspects of the venue are fit for purpose.
- Identify new networks and online promotions to promote the SBF offer
Be responsible, along with the Operations Manager and Foundation Manager, to the Board for:
- Setting and achieving yearly and monthly income budgets, including quarterly forecasting and planning.
- All aspects of pricing and contract negotiation for areas of responsibility including catering, furniture hire, keyholding and cleaning. Ensure service, pricing and contracts are regularly reviewed.
- Working “hands-on” within a small team, getting involved in all aspects of delivering a quality service, monitoring and reviewing customer experience and satisfaction.
- Assisting the Operations Manager with Health & Safety and compliance issues relating to your area of responsibility.
- Line management responsibility for Event Coordinators and Venue Assistant. Overseeing and supporting the Events Team with smooth running of SBF and external events. Ensure time management and priorities are managed for line reports.
- Support SBF marketing efforts working with the Events team on social media content and website updates.
- Act as an ambassador for St Bride Foundation, upholding its mission to preserve and promote print and design heritage. Actively contribute to SBF redevelopment plans in terms of future planning for events and building operations.
- Engage with stakeholders, including donors, volunteers, and beneficiaries, to strengthen community and fundraising efforts.
- Support and contribute to initiatives that enhance the Foundation’s impact, such as public engagement events, educational programmes, and collaborative partnerships.
- Complete ongoing staff training to include Health & Safety, compliance and other related topics as required by the organisation.
Business Development & Commercial Growth
- Develop and implement a proactive business development strategy for Venue Hire, identifying new clients, partners and commercial opportunities, as well as additional marketing/outreach activities to boost income during quieter periods.
- Build and maintain a pipeline of prospective clients and strategic partners, converting opportunities into new and repeat business.
- Develop relationships with event agencies, corporate organisations, professional bodies, cultural and educational organisations and other relevant networks.
- Identify opportunities to increase revenue through repeat bookings, new event formats, longer-term agreements, partnerships and additional services.
- Monitor market trends, competitor activity, customer feedback and venue performance to inform pricing, product development and sales activity.
- Establish and report on business development KPIs, including pipeline value, enquiry-to-booking conversion, repeat business, occupancy, average booking value and revenue growth.
- Work collaboratively with Marketing, Fundraising, Learning, Library and Workshop teams to develop opportunities that support both the Foundation's commercial and charitable objectives.
- Work with fundraising to develop incentives and cross promotions between sponsorship/membership and venue hire and identify other synergies between the physical SBF assets and the fundraising function
Essential Qualifications & Experience:
- Proven experience of business development, sales, partnership-building or income generation, ideally within a venue, cultural, charitable or heritage setting.
- Proven experience of planning and delivering events end-to-end, on time and within budget. Working with teams on a varied programme of activities for a diverse mix of audiences.
- Experience of working with volunteers running workshops and events, overseeing all aspects of delivery.
- Experience working with external partners, including community groups, local authorities and sponsors.
- Line management experience of an events team, including support with managing workload and personal development objectives.
- Experience of identifying new clients, generating leads, converting enquiries and developing repeat business or longer-term client relationships.
- Experience of using data, customer insight or market research to inform sales activity, pricing, service development or income targets.
- Experience in the charitable, cultural, or heritage sector preferred.
Key Skills & Competencies:
- Highly organised, able to manage multiple priorities and deadlines.
- Ability to troubleshoot issues arising during events including those relating to AV, catering and general experience of attendees to ensure seamless delivery.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills. Confidence in briefing and managing event speakers including volunteers and SBF Trustees to ensure smooth running of events.
- Confident relationship-builder, able to develop networks with corporate clients, event agencies, cultural partners, community organisations and other stakeholders.
- Able to set, monitor and report on business development activity and income-related KPIs, including enquiry conversion, occupancy, repeat business and revenue growth.
- Risk assessment and mitigation in event spaces and knowledge of licensing, insurance, accessibility and inclusion requirements.
- Financial management and budgeting, including forecasting and reporting of our events revenue.
- Strong IT skills, including CRM systems, ticketing platforms and newsletters.
- A passion for the arts, heritage, and education, with a strong commitment to the Foundation’s vision and values.
Organisational Values & Expectations:
- Promote and uphold St Bride Foundation’s commitment to cultural preservation, lifelong learning, and community engagement.
- Work collaboratively with colleagues, volunteers, and external partners to support the Foundation’s charitable objectives.
- Uphold ethical standards and best practices in charity governance and operations.
Health & Safety Responsibilities:
- Ensure compliance with all relevant Health & Safety policies and charitable sector guidelines.
- Promote a safe and inclusive environment for colleagues, volunteers, and visitors.
- Act as a Fire Marshal and Emergency First Aider.
Terms & Conditions:
- Working Hours: 8 hours per day (including one-hour unpaid lunchbreak), five days per week. You will work on rotation with other members of the Events Team, on one of the following core hour slots: 08:30–16.30, 10:00–18:00, 12:00–20:00 or 14:00–22:00 with one hour lunch. Due to the flexible nature of the work you may be required to work outside of these times. Shifts will be planned and agreed in advance with the other members of the Events team. Ad hoc weekend work will be required from time to time.
Registered Charity 
11 - 20
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
How to apply
To apply, please send your CV (no more than four pages, including two references who can be contacted if successful) and either:
· A covering letter of no more than two sides of A4 (Arial, size 12)
· Or a video of no more than four minutes.
Please explain why you want this role and how your experience meets the person specification.
Shortlisting: 07 September. Interviews week beginning 14 September.
NEYDL is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion. We welcome applications from all backgrounds and particularly encourage applications from people with lived experience relevant to the communities we serve.
The Role
This is a new post and a significant one. As Business Development Manager, you will be the first dedicated commercial function in NEYDL, the only person in the organisation with responsibility for sales and income generation from commissioned services and traded products. You will report directly to the CEO and sit on the senior management team.
Your core mission is to grow NEYDL's earned income across two distinct strands: securing commissioned services and contracts with local authorities and other organisations in the North East; and developing a national market for NEYDL's training products and DigiDAD platform, enabling professionals and organisations across the UK to improve the support available to young dads in their communities.
There is no pipeline to inherit. You will need to identify the right routes to market, build relationships from scratch with commissioners and buyers, and develop the BD function as you go. The CEO will provide strategic direction and support, but you will need to be confident operating with autonomy, exercising commercial judgement independently, and getting on with it.
What you will do
Identify and pursue opportunities for commissioned services and contracts in the North East with local authorities, NHS commissioners, family hubs, children’s services and other public and voluntary sector organisations
Develop a national market for NEYDL's training products and, in time, licensing offer, working across both statutory and voluntary sector audiences. This will include selling training directly to local authorities, NHS bodies and VCSE organisations; testing demand from VCSE organisations for a licensing model that enables them to deliver NEYDL's approach locally; and exploring whether local authorities would fund or commission a local VCSE partner to do so. A key part of this role in year one/two is testing assumptions about which funding and delivery models have most traction.
Promote DigiDAD as a free resource to professional audiences, growing registrations and building relationships with organisations that can champion it with young dads
Develop and manage a BD pipeline, setting targets and reporting progress to the CEO and board
Represent NEYDL at sector events, networks and conferences nationally to build profile and relationships
Develop proposals, tenders and partnership bids, working closely with the CEO and programme team
Work closely with the DigiDAD Engagement Officer to share leads and coordinate activity via an agreed tracker, and with the DigiDAD Programme Manager to ensure BD and digital growth strategies remain aligned
Contribute to marketing and communications activity that supports commercial growth, including supporting the launch of our new national brand
Play an active role as a member of the senior management team, contributing to strategy, planning and organisational leadership.
What we are looking for
We need someone with commercial experience in winning commissioned services, contracts or selling products and services to public and voluntary sector organisations. You will be relationship-focused, self-directed, and comfortable building a function without established infrastructure or a team behind you.
You will need to understand the professional landscape in which NEYDL operates: family support, early help, children’s services, family hubs. You don’t need to be an expert in young dads, but you will need to speak credibly to the people who commission and deliver family support, and to understand what drives their decisions.
What we offer
NEYDL is a close, inclusive and supportive team that actively invests in the development of its staff. We are a non-judgmental organisation built on mutual trust, respect and honesty. We listen to young dads and respond to what they actually need, working with them voluntarily to find long-term solutions rather than short-term fixes. If you join us, you will be part of a team that genuinely believes in what it does, and that belief comes through in everything we produce and every relationship we build.
In addition, we offer:
7.2 weeks’ annual leave per year, inclusive of statutory and public holidays
5% employer pension contribution
A flexible hybrid working arrangement
Funded professional development and training
Mileage paid at 55p per mile for business travel
The opportunity to shape a new function in a growing, mission-driven organisation at a pivotal moment in its development
A supportive and values-led senior team
Job purposeTo grow NEYDL's earned income across two distinct strands: securing commissioned services and contracts with local authorities and other organisations in the North East; and developing a national market for NEYDL's training products and DigiDAD platform, enabling professionals and organisations across the UK to improve the support available to young dads in their communities.Key responsibilities
Income generation and business development
Identify and develop opportunities to secure commissioned services and contracts with local authorities, NHS bodies, family hubs, children’s services, early help teams and voluntary sector organisations
Lead on the sale of NEYDL’s training products to professional audiences nationally, managing the full sales cycle from prospecting to close
Where relevant to other business development activity, make professionals aware of DigiDAD as a free resource and refer interested contacts to the DigiDAD Engagement Officer for onboarding and follow-up
Develop and maintain a BD pipeline, setting annual targets in conjunction with the CEO and reporting progress to the board
Identify new markets, audiences and partnership opportunities and make evidence-based recommendations to the CEO on where to focus BD effort.
Proposals, tenders and bids
Lead on the development of proposals, tenders and commissioned service bids, working closely with the CEO and programme team to develop compelling cases
Maintain awareness of relevant commissioning frameworks, procurement processes and funding opportunities that align with NEYDL’s offer
Ensure all proposals and tenders accurately reflect NEYDL’s costs and margins and are consistent with the organisation’s financial requirements
Relationships and profile
Build and manage relationships with commissioners, buyers, strategic partners and sector networks nationally
Represent NEYDL at sector events, conferences and networks, raising our profile with the professional audiences we want to reach
Work collaboratively with the DigiDAD Programme Manager to align BD activity with the growth of the DigiDAD platform
Support the launch and positioning of NEYDL’s new national brand, contributing to marketing and communications activity that supports commercial growth
Organisational leadership and management
Contribute to organisational strategy and annual planning as a member of the senior management team
Report on BD performance and progress against targets to the CEO and board
Work closely with the DigiDAD Engagement Officer (managed by the DigiDAD Programme Manager) to ensure a joined-up approach to professional audience engagement
Comply with all NEYDL policies and procedures including safeguarding, data protection and equality, diversity and inclusion
Key relationships
Chief Executive Officer: line manager and strategic lead
DigiDAD Programme Manager: close working relationship on professional audience growth and platform promotion
DigiDAD Engagement Officer: referral coordination on professional engagement and DigiDAD growth
Programme Managers and frontline team: to inform BD activity and support proposal development
External: commissioners, local authority leads, NHS contacts, training buyers, sector networks
Targets
Year 1 milestones
The following milestones have been agreed with our primary Year 1 funder and represent the BDM's near-term priorities:
By six months:
Approaches made to at least 25 contacts, including commissioners in all Family Hub areas in the North East and warm VCSE collaborators
By twelve months:
Marketing and outreach completed with at least 100 contacts (warm and cold)
Training delivered at least 10 times
Indicative conversion targets achieved: approximately 3% of cold contacts and 25% of warm contacts progressing to a training booking (these are assumptions to be tested and refined through year one)
Evaluation and review of year one learning completed; year two targets developed
Longer-term targets (to April 2029)
The following targets relate to the areas of work this role will contribute to, alongside the DigiDAD Programme Manager and wider team:
Professionals trained through NEYDL's training products: 50 by April 2027; 350 annually by April 2029
New professional DigiDAD registrations: 750 by April 2027; 1,400 annually by April 2029
New young dad DigiDAD registrations: 510 by April 2027; 1,000 annually by April 2029
The Business Development Manager will play a central role in building the relationships and income pipeline that drives the training targets. DigiDAD registration growth is led by the DigiDAD Engagement Officer and wider team, with the Business Development Manager contributing through referrals identified in the course of other work.
Alongside these targets, NEYDL currently holds commissioned service contracts with several local authorities: Durham, Middlesbrough, Sunderland, Gateshead. A key priority for the Business Development Manager will be to maintain and strengthen these relationships, ensuring contracts are renewed and the value of our work to each commissioner is clearly evidenced. Beyond existing contracts, we are keen to secure commissioned funding in areas of the North East where we currently have limited or no presence.
Thank you!
Business Development Manager
Part time - 3 days per week
£26,000 for 3 days per week (£43,333.33 fte)
Hybrid working - This role offers a hybrid working arrangement, combining home working with regular attendance at our office and key meetings.
Permanent
Prospex is a well-established youth charity celebrating its 25th anniversary this year. We are deeply embedded within the local community and are recognised for our expertise in supporting vulnerable children and young people across Islington. Our experienced and committed team delivers high-quality youth work that helps young people develop confidence, resilience and positive futures.
Over the past seven years, we have successfully strengthened and diversified our income base. Our funding comes from a broad range of sources, including charitable trusts and foundations, statutory grants and contracts, individual donors, community fundraising activities and, increasingly, corporate supporters. This diversified approach has helped us build financial stability and continue responding to local need.
This new role presents an exciting opportunity to build on these foundations and take our fundraising to the next level. The focus of our income generation will remain with successfully securing income from trusts and statutory sources however there is also potential to increase income across all funding streams. We see particular potential for growth in individual giving, major donors and corporate partnerships. The successful candidate will have the opportunity to shape and develop all these areas, making a lasting contribution to the charity's future sustainability and impact.
Prospex is a fantastic organisation to work for, with a strong sense of purpose and a genuine commitment to improving the lives of local young people. We have a supportive, collaborative culture where staff and trustees work closely together and recognise that fundraising is everyone's responsibility.
How to apply
Application is by way of CV with a Supporting Statement that should set out your motivations for applying and how your work experience to date meets the scope of the responsibilities. As a general guide, your Supporting Statement should be around two sides of A4.
Closing date: Sunday 20th September at Midnight
First interviews: 28th September
We are looking for the successful candidate to start around November 2026. This will allow for time to be spent with the current Business Development Manager.
