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 experienced Finance Director to join our team of nearly 100 staff, ideally before the end of 2025.
This is a full-time, home-based, permanent position. You can be based anywhere in mainland UK or Ireland, with some travel and occasional overnight stays to meeting and conferences mainly in England and Wales.
We offer flexibility around working hours, including the option of a 9 day fortnight - time off in lieu is also available. We offer 25 days holiday pro rata (rising to 28 days) plus statutory public holidays. We are happy to make adjustments for people with disabilities and/or caring responsibilities, and we welcome applications from all communities.
The role is a grade 7 position with a starting salary circa £75,000 plus benefits including 9% employer pension contribution.
The Finance Director (“FD”) works alongside the Chief Executive and Operations Director to manage the finances and governance of The Rivers Trust, a leading conservation charity with three associated trading subsidiaries operating across the UK and Ireland, with a collective annual income approaching £10m.
Given the prospective retirement of the current postholder at the end of 2025, we are seeking a well-qualified and experienced individual to take on this senior leadership role as soon as possible to enable handover to occur.
The role is very varied and wide-ranging, including presenting financial information to the Trustees and senior management on a quarterly basis, reviewing monthly management accounts, leading on annual budgeting, appraising internal project concepts and contracts, statutory compliance administration and liaising with auditors.
The postholder will lead a team of eight in the Finance department and join a very welcoming team of 95 highly engaged and passionate staff at The Rivers Trust.
Main duties and responsibilities:
Working alongside the CEO, the Finance Director will provide commercial, financial and governance management and leadership for The Rivers Trust ("the Charity") and its associated subsidiaries (“The Companies”). The FD will not only be an exceptional accountant, with executive oversight of the finance function, but will be commercially astute and have the confidence to represent robustly the best interests of The Companies. The FD will also be an experienced manager of people.
Key Accountabilities:
- Act as a business partner to support and constructively challenge the CEO in the general management of the Charity and the Companies, reporting to the board.
- Lead all aspects of the finance function (including maintaining and developing the financial control environment; robust financial accounting; cashflow management; incisive management information; clear and concise reporting to Board) to ensure that the Charity and the Companies’ assets are secured, risks are managed, and the Board of Trustees, subsidiary boards and committees can make well-informed decisions.
- Manage relationships with auditors, funders, IT specialists, banks, investment platforms and other external organisations.
- Provide support to project bids and the development of other commercial opportunities to ensure that bids/opportunities are optimised for the Charity and the Companies as a whole.
- Provide input to project and programme delivery from time to time, to ensure that performance is maximised for the Charity and the Companies.
- Attend Board meetings and Business Audit and Risk Committee meetings to guide the Board and the Senior Management Team on financial, commercial and governance issues.
- Ensure compliance with the requirements of the Charity Commission and Companies House and, from time to time, provide guidance to members of the Rivers Trust movement on good governance practice.
- Maintain the finance department operational manual for business continuity.
- Serve as the Company Secretary for the Charity and Companies.
Staff Management:
- Lead, manage and develop the finance team (who work remotely) and ensure the team understands their respective and collective contribution to achieving the Charity's and the Companies’ objectives.
- Support the team in their professional development.
- Ensure the team delivers a high-quality service focused on internal and external customers and funders.
Knowledge, skills, experience, and personal qualities:
Essential
- Significant experience in financial management and senior leadership roles, ideally gained in a range of organisations.
- A strategic thinker, able to see the big-picture, shape long-term direction and balance this with attention to detail.
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills combined with creativity and openness to innovate.
- Strong IT and digital skills, with experience of using technology to improve efficiency and automate processes.
- Proven people leadership experience, with a track record of managing, developing, and inspiring teams and creating a supportive, inclusive, and collaborative culture.
- Excellent relationship builder, with the interpersonal skills to influence, collaborate, and provide constructive challenge while maintaining positive relationships across the organisation, including with trustees and senior stakeholders.
- Experience reporting to boards of trustees and/or directors, with the confidence to contribute to board-level discussions as a trusted adviser.
- Strong written and verbal communications skills, able to distil complexity into pertinent, concise and understandable messages tailored to diverse audiences.
- The courage to make and communicate tough decisions and be open about risks and setbacks.
- Resilient and calm under pressure, with the ability to maintain focus and steady leadership in challenging circumstances.
- Impeccable standards of integrity and personal ethics, acting as a role model for the organisation values.
- Knowledge of Sage financial software packages.
- Work to a good standard in Microsoft 365, especially Excel, Word, Outlook and Teams.
Desirable
- Experience of working in the charitable sector.
- Experience of being a Company Secretary.
- Understanding of the environmental sector or a passion for making a positive impact.
- Familiarity in using Sharepoint, Sage and Slack.
- Knowledge of Partial Exemption VAT rules.
- A basic understanding of Irish tax law, Irish and UK payroll taxes and corporate governance.
Qualifications/ Education
- Qualified Accountant, preferably ICAEW or ACCA.
Additional information
Everyone who works for us is expected to contribute to a respectful and inclusive working culture and follow our policies and procedures including Health & Safety, EDI, Cybersecurity and GDPR.
Please note we can only accept applications made through this site, and not sent by email or other methods.
We are committed to ensuring our recruitment process is inclusive and accessible. We warmly welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, experiences and perspectives. If you would benefit from any adjustments to support you through the process, please let us know and we will do our best to accommodate your needs.
To apply please send your CV and a covering letter.
Closing date: Wednesday 24th September 2025
We may close this vacancy early if we receive a strong pool of applications, so we encourage early submission
Registered Charity
51 - 100
A leading environmental charity, and umbrella body for the Rivers Trust Movement, our vision is for wild, healthy, natural rivers, valued by all.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
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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!
Job Title: Policy and Impact Officer
Location: Home working with some travel
Contract Type: Permanent
Hours: 35 hours per week
Salary: £24,000pa
DBS/PVG: Not required
Job Family: 3
Line Manager: Head of Policy and Impact
Closing Date: 30th September 2025 We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications
Start Date: asap
Interview Dates: 23 October 2025
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications
Who we are
At Volunteering Matters, we believe people have the power to create change. Whether through volunteering by helping others and giving time, or through social action such as speaking up, campaigning, or leading change, everyone can make a difference. We bring people together to build stronger communities across England, Scotland and Wales, making sure everyone has the chance to get involved and create real change.
What we do
We help people of all ages and backgrounds get involved in volunteering and social action. We focus on making sure that everyone, no matter their situation, has the chance to take part.
How we do this
We support people to share their time and skills to help others and tackle big challenges in their communities.
• We remove barriers to volunteering and social action, making it easier for people who don’t always get the chance to take part.
• We listen to and amplify voices that aren’t always heard, helping volunteers and communities influence change.
• We help volunteers beyond their first experience, offering training, support, and pathways to new opportunities.
• We connect businesses with communities, creating meaningful employee volunteering projects.
• We show the impact of volunteering and social action, proving how it changes lives for the better.
Our promise to volunteers
We are always looking for new ways for volunteers to make a difference. We bring people together across generations and backgrounds to learn from each other and create change. At the same time, we make sure that all our volunteers are trained, supported, and valued, so they feel confident in what they do.
Role Purpose
The Policy and Impact Team sits at the heart of Volunteering Matters. We play a vital role in demonstrating the impact of our work connecting data, qualitative insight, and lived experience to the policy agendas shaping communities across the UK. Through storytelling, analysis, and evidence, we make sure volunteering is recognised as a driving force for social change.
We are a small, hands-on team. You will be involved in every aspect of our work from desk-based research and writing briefings to organising external meetings and working directly in communities alongside our volunteers. This variety allows you to connect national policy with local realities and help volunteers share their voices where it matters most.
You will help bring our five-year strategy to life by linking project outcomes to broader societal developments and showcasing the impact of volunteers and communities.
Key Duties Responsibilities
· Support the Head of Policy and Impact to coordinate Volunteering Matters’ policy and public affairs work.
· Support people involved with our volunteering projects to engage with local politicians, e.g. by organising visits to projects or meetings with volunteers.
· Monitor and respond to opportunities (e.g. relevant government consultations, All-Party Parliamentary Group inquiries or Select Committee inquiries) that are relevant to Volunteering Matters’ priorities.
· Support mapping and research exercises to inform our policy positioning. Writing summary reports as needed.
· Collaborate with the National Volunteer Engagement Manager to support the inclusion of volunteer and community voices in our policy and public affairs work.
· Assist with collecting impact and activity data from across the charity and work with the Data Analyst to undertake analysis.
· Support with routine collection of quarterly data from projects - ensuring responses are timely and accurate, providing guidance to project managers as needed.
· Work with project staff to help create impactful and engaging reports.
· Represent Volunteering Matters at charity and volunteering policy-related groups.
Essential Skills
· Understanding of UK political systems and policy-making processes across national, devolved, and local levels.
· Understanding of policy, public affairs, or influencing, ideally within the voluntary or community sector.
· Confident communicator, able to engage with policymakers, sector partners, and community representatives.
· Familiarity with both qualitative and quantitative data analysis to inform narrative reporting and strategic insight.
· Excellent writing skills, with the ability to craft clear, persuasive documents based on data and lived experience.
· Alignment with Volunteering Matters’ values and a commitment to amplifying community voice.
· Must adhere to the organisation’s Code of Conduct and uphold its values at all times.
· Proficient in Microsoft 365, particularly Outlook, Teams, Word, and Excel, with the ability to manage email communications and collaborate digitally.
· Able to work effectively both independently and as part of a team, managing time and priorities in a busy environment.
· For remote roles, candidates must be self-starters who can work with minimal supervision, stay organised, and remain motivated to meet deadlines and deliver quality outcomes.
· Attention to detail and a proactive approach to problem-solving and information sharing.
Experience Required
No specific experience is required.
Qualifications
Relevant skills and values alignment is more important for this role than specific qualifications.
Our Values & Way of Working
In all that we do we are guided by our values: Empowering, Inclusive, Compassionate, Positive & Straightforward.
Disability Confident & Reasonable Adjustments
We guarantee to interview anyone with a disability whose application meets the essential criteria for the role. Please provide evidence in your application, which demonstrates that you meet the level of competence required in the Job Description under skill and experience. To be considered for a guaranteed interview or to discuss any reasonable adjustments during the process, please state this in your cover letter.
GDPR Statement
If you apply for a role with us, we will retain your contact details including your name, address, email address and phone number to help us manage your application for up to six months. We will not use your personal data for any other purpose or share it with any third party. You can contact us at any point to update your personal information or ask us to delete it from our records.
Policy on AI-Generated Applications
Applications are accepted on trust, and we expect all submissions to reflect the applicant’s own words, experiences, and motivations. While tools such as Artificial Intelligence (AI) may support the application process, applications should not be generated wholly by AI.
To Apply
Please send an updated, complete CV and cover letter via the Charity Job Apply button above. In your application clearly state which role you are applying for. In the cover letter please demonstrate how you would fulfil the role requirements, what previous relevant achievements you have (both in life and at work), what skills & experience you can offer, and what you believe you can contribute to Volunteering Matters.
Please note that all applicants must have the right to work in the UK. Unfortunately, we’re unable to progress applications that don’t meet this requirement.
If you have any questions about current vacancies, the recruitment process, or need support, our team is here to help. Whether you're a candidate looking for more information or with an HR query, please don’t hesitate to get in touch.
Registered Charity
101 - 500
We turn local knowledge into action by working with volunteers and partners across the UK to build stronger communities for all.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.