Consultant jobs in cardiff
Project Development Manager - Southern England
Reference: SEP20250002
Location: Home based in the South of England with frequent travel required to RSPB reserves and other sites for meetings
Contract: Permanent
Hours: Full Time, 37.5 hours per week
Salary: £43,095.00 - £46,264.00 Per Annum
Benefits: Pension Scheme, Life Assurance Scheme, 26 days' Annual Leave
Do you have the passion, skills, and experience to help develop and deliver complex nature conservation and infrastructure projects in the South of England? We’re looking for someone who is well-organised, solutions-focused, and can adapt their skills to the development and delivery of a diverse range of projects.
We have an exciting opportunity for a dynamic, skilled and passionate Project Development Manager to join our England Project Management team, working primarily in the South of England.
The England Project Management Team manage all sorts of projects, from species recovery at a landscape scale to infrastructure repairs and commercial developments. Each day as a Project Development Manager is different. You might find yourself chairing a project team meeting one day, visiting a construction site the next, and negotiating with contractors the day after that.
As a Project Development Manager, you will directly manage some of the most ambitious and complex projects within the RSPB. At the same time, you will work closely with the Operations Director and Area Managers in the Southern region to develop a pipeline of projects across the South, and make sure they’re being well-managed.
Our project teams include colleagues from a range of disciplines as well as external consultants and suppliers. You’ll need to be able to build relationships across internal and external stakeholders and motivate others to get things done to keep projects progressing smoothly.
Key activities will include:
- Develop and manage one or more complex projects at any one time. To include budget management, stakeholder management, risk management, contractor procurement and other tasks as required.
- Lead and motivate project teams to achieve project success by focusing on a common goal.
- Develop and oversee a pipeline of projects that contribute to delivery against strategic priorities, working with regional/country management teams.
- Provide support & advice to the regional /country management team to enable them to use the PMF effectively to deliver strategic priorities and successful projects (including ensuring project assurance is in place).
- Line management of more junior project management team members.
- Provide advice and support to colleagues on project management best practice, helping to build overall project management capability across England.
- Be an advocate for Cora, the RSPB’s on-line project management system.
- Undertake project reviews as commissioned by the management team/other stakeholders including other regions & countries to ensure lessons are learned, best practice shared, and capability increased.
Essential skills, knowledge and experience:
- Proven project management skills relating to planning and managing complex projects, managing risks/costs/time and leading multidisciplinary project teams.
- Ability to influence others, communicate effectively, build collaborative relationships and represent the organisation.
- Knowledge of project management methodologies and approaches, with the ability to support more junior colleagues in this area.
- Ability to work under pressure and adapt to changing circumstances.
- Demonstrable experience of developing and working in partnership to achieve shared outcomes.
- Ability to solve issues quickly, efficiently and creatively.
- Cost and budget management.
- Impressive time management and organisational skills.
- A tangible passion for the planet.
Desirable skills, knowledge and experience:
- Project or Programme Management Qualification (APMPMQ, Prince 2, MSP).
- Experience of relevant projects such as habitat creation/restoration, building renovations (particularly visitor facilities), multi-partner projects, community engagement.
- Line management experience.
Closing date: 23:59, Sun, 5th Oct 2025
We are looking to conduct interviews for this position from October 2025.
Interested?
If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our recruitment partner's website to complete your application for this position.
We are committed to developing an inclusive and diverse RSPB, in which everyone feels supported, valued, and able to be their full selves. To achieve our vision of creating a world richer in nature, we need more people, and more diverse people, on nature’s side. People of colour and disabled people are currently underrepresented across the environment, climate, sustainability, and conservation sector. If you identify as a person of colour and/or disabled, we are particularly interested in receiving your application.
The RSPB is an equal opportunities employer. This role is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.
This role is not eligible for UK Visa Sponsorship - the successful applicant will need to have a pre-existing Right to Work in the UK in order to be offered an employment contract.
As part of this application process you will be asked to provide a copy of your CV and complete an application form including evidence on how you meet the skills, knowledge, and experience listed above. Contact us to discuss any additional support you may need to complete your application.
No agencies please.
The RSPB brings people together – people like you – to protect the things that matter to us all.



Banana Link is a UK based NGO established in 1996. We have been advocating for a fair and sustainable banana industry for thirty years, based on environmental, social and economic sustainability. Our approach is underpinned by a firm commitment to defending workers’ rights, at the core of these rights is the right to a fair and decent income that affords a dignified life for men and women banana plantation workers. We work at a strategic level and through research, advocacy and dialogue with all actors along the chain to bring about change.
This role will support the management and delivery our current work stream on Living Wages in the African Banana Export Industry. Initial activities will be delivered in Ghana and Cameroon, in collaboration with our local and international trade union partners, local producing companies, and European retailers. Key project activities include:
- Facilitation of capacity building activities on Living Wages and Decent Work in Cameroon and Ghana, with company staff and trade union representatives.
- Communication and dialogue between all project partners and other industry stakeholders towards fair remuneration and decent work in the banana industry.
- Monitoring, evaluation, and reporting on all project activities to funders Ghana, with company staff and trade union representatives.
- Communication and dialogue between all project partners and other industry stakeholders towards fair remuneration and decent work in the banana industry
- Monitoring, evaluation, and reporting on all project activities to funders
The role will provide an important opportunity to work alongside Banana Link’s International Coordinator, and in collaboration with other key staff and partner organisations, on the important issues of Living Wages, Decent Work, Social Dialogue and Sustainability.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Having adopted a new and ambitious strategy, and embarked on a period of transformational change, Two Saints are now looking to ensure they are in the strongest position to deliver their vision in what are difficult times. This vision is ‘to be a safety net for people in tough times and the springboard to a brighter future.’ The organisation delivers a full range of services to clients across Hampshire, Dorset, Berkshire and the Isle of Wight, and the role of the Two Saints Board is to guide, direct and challenge the plans and strategic decisions relating to these services.
So we’re looking for people who can help Two Saints deliver their vision, with a background and experience in either:
- Asset management, perhaps with experience of the net-zero agenda
- Supported housing services or social care
We’re interested in hearing from talented people who may be looking for their first governance role, and you may have had lived experience.
If you’re interested in what Two Saints do and feel you can make a contribution, we’d like to hear from you so take a look at the candidate pack here https://bit.ly/45U1yDX.
Actively Interviewing
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!
We are looking for an awesome conference producer to grow our in person events offering for our community of Pupil Premium Leads across the 1,700 secondary schools in our network
Your role will be to produce face to face conferences that provide them honest, open and trusting spaces to share how they really achieve their results in practice.
Why?
So Pupil Premium Leads and Champions can learn what’s working (and what isn’t), so they can deliver the best education possible to all of their students, regardless of their background
What's the role?
Your job will be to produce in person conferences, with a difference, for Pupil Premium Leads in
Events where practitioners don’t just share what’s worked but also what hasn’t. Openly and transparently.
The aim is to curate powerful and practical warts and all stories, which attendees can ask questions about and dig deep into each other's work.
- What we avoid
- Glossy key notes delivered by non serving leaders telling serving leaders what to do
- Only sharing their successes
- Surface level panels that don’t say anything of substance about how leaders do what they do
- Lots of passive sitting and listening in big audiences
- Not developing deep and lasting relationships between attendees
- Where the events are geared entirely towards promoting products and services more than the amazing PPM leaders and their practice
- What we deliver
- Dedicated to giving serving Pupil Premium Leaders - from diverse backgrounds - to the platform to share their work
- Sharing openly, honestly and transparently the challenges as well as the wins
- Small group discussions about very specific topics where attendees can go deep
- Workshop formats allowing speakers and attendees to learn from each other via intimate conversations
- Where we do everything we can to help attendees get to know each other, stay in touch and work together long term.
On the speaker/content side, you’ll:
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research what’s important to Pupil Premium Leaders
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find serving Pupil Premium Leaders who have expertise in those areas
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Invite and book them to be speakers and
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support them to be their best on the day.
On the attendee/learning/ side, you’ll:
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communicate the offering
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design sign up and onboarding processes
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promote the event across our social media and email channels and
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ensure delegates have everything they need to get the best out of the event.
On both sides you’ll:
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lead the follow up and evaluation of the events.
On the partnerships side you’ll:
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generate leads from potential partners and sponsor
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contact them with information about sponsorship packages
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manage the relationships with partners
- Events where sponsors provide thought leadership not sales pitches
�� How you’ll be driving our mission forward
Researching topics that matter to Pupil Premium Leaders right now
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Emailing/messaging them to ask what they’ve had success with and need help with
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Creating a database of strengths and needs across the community
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Reading education press, policy and practitioner led blogs.
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Engaging with conversations on social media
Finding, inviting and booking speakers
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Using national datasets to find schools and Pupil Premium Leaders who are succeeding against the odds
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Digging into PPM practice and Pupil Premium Leaders’ blogs/posts to build a list of possible speakers
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Crafting emails that invite Pupil Premium Leaders you may have never met to speak at the conference
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Following up and leading Pupil Premium Leaders through the speaker onboarding journey
Supporting speakers to be their best
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Designing editorial guidelines and communicating them with speakers
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Supporting them to find a focus for their sessions and feeding back on the content
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Gathering pre-event information such as speaker details, access need, session titles/objectives and resources etc
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Automating workflows and emails using Zapier and Airtable
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Sharing all pre-event information they need in good time
Designing attendee sign up and welcoming processes
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Designing and building pre-event registration processes and forms
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Gathering pre-event information from attendees eg attendee details, access/dietary needs and
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Automating workflows and emails using Zapier and Airtable
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Sharing all pre-event information so they can get the most out of the conferences
Promoting the event across our channels
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Working with a designer to commission graphics
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Writing social media posts on LinkedIn and Twitter
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Working with the Pupil Premium Leaders who are speaking to write sharable, top of funnel social media posts that inspire, entertain and inform Pupil Premium Leaders
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Designing, writing building email workflows and drip campaigns in our CRM (Hubspot)
Ensuring delegates have everything they need to get the most out of the conferences
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Tracking and auditing that all delegates have shared required pre-event information
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Writing succinct emails which delivered at the right time in a way that respects their workload and capacity
Evaluating the success of the conferences.
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Designing and building post event evaluation forms
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Seek, gather and analyse customer feedback and user data to ensure member success.
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Tracking and auditing evaluation completion
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Following up with both speakers and delegates to maximise
Who are you?
- A values driven educationalist
- Technophilic project manager who has a spreadsheet for everything
- Curious and empathic relationship builder
- Entrepreneurial, innovative and flexible
- Analytical but also a content-minded story finder and teller
- Feedback embracing learner in the pursuit of mastery of your craft
What experience and track record do you have?
It’s not essential you tick every box. But the more boxes you can tick the better. It goes without saying, we can help you gain and learn from the experiences you haven’t had yet.
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Education and/or teaching: Knowing how the MAT and schools system works is a must. Knowing who does what PPM role in schools will help bring the right people in the right conversations and the right time. Knowing and understanding the kinds of problems and types of conversations school leaders and teachers is also essential for this role
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Conference production: researching topics, inviting and booking speakers, crafting promotional materials, shouting loudly and proudly about the events and filling up spaces.
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Project management: Planning, tracking and delivering on project objectives across several workflows on time, every time. Managing multiple audiences who are likely to be at different stages of their engagement cycle.
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Customer Relationship Management: designing, building and automating CRMs including sales pipeline design and management eg Hubspot and Airtable
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Copywriting (and digital marketing and email workflow design): designing and writing posts and emails that convert - whether than be speaker invitations, promotional posts or conference onboarding emails.
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Digital marketing integration and automation: integrating and automating digital marketing platforms like eg MailChmip, Hubspot, Airtable and Zapier. Automating drip campaigns and email workflows.
What are the benefits?
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Exposure to the most inspirational and impactful PPM Leaders in the country
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Opportunity to work within an early-stage, mission-driven organisation and shape its direction
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Flexible working culture/flexible working hours
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Pro rata £28,000-£33,000 dependent on experience
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Project-based and/or part-time contract based on performance milestones for the right candidate available - this role is approximately 3 days a week for 16 weeks a year: October-February. Possibility to expand conference work to new audiences if successful.
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Free annual membership to all of our premium spaces across the community worth up to £1,197+VAT.
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Dramatically grow your network of school leaders
Timeline:
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Applications open: 27th August 2025
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Deadline for applications: midnight Sunday 14th September
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First interviews: Starting week of 22nd September,
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Second interview: Starting week beginning 29th September,
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Notification of decision: by 3rd October,
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Start date: week beginning 6th October
We expect this to be a popular role. We will be inviting people to interview on a rolling basis. We advise submitting an application early.
How do you apply?
To apply for the role please send complete this application form no later than Sunday 7th September at midnight:
For the application form you’ll need:
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CV - max 2 sides
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Covering letter - outlining
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why you want to apply
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how your values, knowledge, skills and experience make you the best person for the role.
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a PS section at the bottom with confirmation of where you saw the job role; confirmation of your current salary and notice period; whether you have the right to work in the UK and a valid criminal check with the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS); any links to any portfolios/bodies of work you have completed in the past to demonstrate what you are capable of (this could be reports, writing, performance figures, social media campaigns, articles, videos); and indication of whether your availability will be limited during the recruitment period.
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Contact details of references
For an informal and confidential discussion about the role prior to application, please download the attached job ad pdf.
We exist to help school leaders and teachers share and learn how they get the best outcomes for their students