Chief Executive Officer – The Abbey Centre
Location: The Abbey Centre, Westminster, London (site-based role, flexible working available)
Salary: £90,000 – £95,000 per annum
Contract: Permanent (Full-time, 37.5 hours/week; regular evening attendance for events as required)
Could you lead a much-loved community hub through its next chapter of stability, growth and civic impact?
About The Abbey Centre
Our charity has served the community of south Westminster since 1948 and has occupied The Abbey Centre building, a converted Victorian public bath house a stone’s throw from Westminster Abbey, since 1991. We are a site-based community hub and social enterprise, combining community services, training and outreach with venue hire, an on-site café and catering to generate income that supports our charitable work.
We work across employability, health and wellbeing, volunteering and practical support for vulnerable residents; the Centre welcomes people of all ages and backgrounds, and sees over 1,000 visits each week. Our strong partnerships with Westminster City Council, statutory bodies and corporate donors underpin commissioned activity and solidify our position as a trusted local delivery partner.
This is an opportunity for a visionary but hands-on leader to preserve the Centre’s warm, inclusive culture and outstanding reputation while further professionalising systems, developing our income, and shaping a multi-year strategy that secures the building and grows impact.
As our next Chief Executive Officer, you will:
• Strategy & Impact: lead a collaborative listening phase and then develop and deliver a 3–5 year strategy and rolling business plan that defines the Centre’s core offer and impact targets.
• Governance & Finance: own the annual budget and medium-term financial modelling, deliver full-cost recovery across activity lines and present timely, accurate management information to trustees.
• Operational Leadership: ensure continuity of community services, venue trading and café operations and strengthen operational systems including safeguarding, H&S and business continuity.
• Income Generation: drive commercial performance of venue hire, events and catering, professionalise fundraising (major donors, legacies, corporate partnerships) and lead bids for multi-year statutory contracts.
• Community & Partnerships: sustain and deepen strategic relationships with Westminster City Council, commissioners, local partners and corporate supporters to secure commissioned work and philanthropic income.
• Estate Stewardship: manage day-to-day stewardship of the Centre’s significant ageing building, overseeing maintenance, lease/compliance obligations and contractor relationships.
• People & Culture: build a cohesive senior team, embed clear role accountabilities, performance management and development, and protect the Centre’s welcoming culture while managing change.
• Brand & Profile: act as a visible ambassador locally and with funders to raise the Centre’s profile and champion its social value.
Who you are:
• A seasoned senior leader with proven experience in a small/medium charity, community organisation or social enterprise that combines front-line delivery with significant premises/estate responsibility.
• Demonstrable track record of leading strategic development and delivering organisational growth while balancing hands-on operational leadership.
• Strong commercial and earned-income expertise, with experience of running successful commercial – ideally site-based - operations.
• Confident in winning and managing statutory contracts and multi-year grant programmes; credible with local authorities, commissioners and corporate partners.
• Financially literate with direct budget and cash-flow accountability and experience of full-cost recovery modelling.
• A collaborative, visible and warm ambassador who builds trust quickly, communicates clearly and can present concise management information to trustees.
Why The Abbey Centre?
• A powerful mission: deliver practical services, companionship and opportunity for south Westminster residents in a civic, high-impact setting.
• A prominent, historic central Westminster location and a cherished community building offering scope for strategic estate planning and growth.
• A warm, loyal staff team and an engaged board navigating a positive leadership transition.
• A social enterprise model where successful trading directly funds frontline services and creates a platform for entrepreneurial leadership.
• The opportunity to shape a multi-year strategy that secures the long-term future of the charity and grows its impact in the community.
For full details of the role including how to apply, please download the full appointment brief. For an informal and confidential conversation about this position, please contact Jenny Hills at Harris Hill via the apply button with times to speak and (optional but appreciated) a CV or professional profile which will be treated with the strictest confidence.
Closing date for applications: 9am, Monday 12th January 2026
As leading charity recruitment specialists and a certified B Corp, Harris Hill is committed to high and ever-improving standards of equitable and inclusive recruitment. We actively welcome applications from all sections of the community regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexuality and other protected characteristics.
Recruitment Agency 
21 - 50
Thank you!
About Us
The Woodfield Project is a vibrant, community-focused charity responsible for The Woodfield Pavilion - a beautifully refurbished sports pavilion located near the north-eastern corner of Tooting Bec Common. Today, the Pavilion serves as a lively community hub, offering events and activities that: support social wellbeing; bring the local community together; and encourage appreciation and care for the surrounding natural environment.
Purpose and scope of role
We are looking to recruit an enthusiastic and energetic Pavilion Manager with the skills and experience to help drive forward our mission of ensuring that the Pavilion serves as a vital resource for local communities and groups and to actively encourage participation from members and volunteers who share our passion for making a difference. The Trustee Board provides governance and strategic leadership for the charity. The Pavilion Manager will oversee the day-to-day running of the building and plan and deliver an engaging programme of community events and activities, as well as seeking to develop new activities. The role includes operational management, future planning and ensuring a sustainable income and membership base.
Deadline for applications: 14 January 2025.
For fulll details of the role and how to apply, see the attached job application pack.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Thank you!
Location: MSSC NSC, 200B Lambeth Road, London, SE1 7JY (Hybrid Working)
Contract: Full time, permanent
Salary: £40,000 to £42,000 gross per annum, depending on experience
Closing Date: 8 February 2026
Assessment Day: 16 February 2026
Are you looking for a new opportunity supporting volunteers to give their best?
The Marine Society & Sea Cadets (MSSC) is a vibrant and growing charity delivering life changing nautical adventure for young people through the Sea Cadets to give them the best possible head start in life. We also provide personal and professional development opportunities for seafarers with the Marine Society. Working with our staff, cadets, and volunteers, we have built a vision and five-year strategy to take us forward and further improve the astounding contribution already made through our work to the lives of thousands of young people and seafarers, while fully supporting our volunteers who are vital to our success.
About the role
We are currently looking for a Volunteer Support Manager to join our innovative Young People, Volunteer and Business Support Directorate. You will manage the Volunteer Support Team and develop and maintain efficient volunteering systems used by our volunteers. This is a key role focussed on supporting the charity’s volunteering strategy and championing best practice in volunteering.
This is an exciting time to join the Sea Cadets with the opportunity to make a real difference to the way volunteers are supported and recognised. The Volunteer Support Manager will be responsible for the effective and efficient administration of the volunteer processes via Microsoft Forms and Power Automate, as well as reviewing existing and implementing new systems to make them as effective and as volunteer friendly as possible.
Responsibilities
- To maintain, review and update volunteering systems, processes and approaches ensuring that they are efficient, up-to-date and as volunteer friendly as possible
- To line manage and support the Volunteer Support Team based at the MSSC Support Centre to ensure the delivery of effective and timely support to the volunteers
- To functionally manage and support the Area Volunteer Support Team based across the 6 Area Offices to deliver effective and consistent support to the volunteers
- To work with the Head of Volunteering to review MSSC volunteering policies, monitoring their appropriateness and effectiveness, making recommendations for changes as necessary
- To work with Volunteer Support Officers to develop systems and processes for managing the volunteer support workload and monitoring delivery standards
- To develop guidance and associated resources for the support of volunteers
- To manage the Volunteer Support elements of the Training and Admin website ensuring that the information is relevant, accurate and up to date
Requirements
- Experience of managing and motivating a large team
- Experience of managing, reviewing and refining complex administrative processes
- Experience of running effective CRM systems including the use of Microsoft Forms and Power Automate or similar products
- Experience developing processes which are targeted at both internal and external audiences
- Experience of delivering a first-class service to clients or customers
- An understanding of the voluntary and community sector, ideally within the youth field
Desirable
- Experience of managing or supervising a team based remotely
- Experience of being a volunteer
- Experience of managing an onboarding process with the understanding of the importance of safer recruitment
- Experience of empowering a team to deliver a first class customer service
- Experience of leading projects manging change with various stakeholders
- Experience of working with volunteers and the knowledge of how to ensure they are supported
Benefits
- 25 days annual leave per annum, increasing with length of service
- Hybrid working for many roles
- Volunteering Leave
- Life assurance (4x salary)
- Private medical insurance
- Generous pension (employer contribution up to 10%)
- Cycle to work scheme
- Access to the Marine Society Digital Library
- Wellbeing portal and EAP with 121 counselling
- Employee development: We are investing in our employees' development and have an annual calendar of learning and development opportunities, designed to support employees to develop into their roles and stretch them to achieve their full potential.
Additional Information
MSSC positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates from all backgrounds. Equity, diversity, and inclusion really matters to us, so we can best serve our beneficiaries from every community. We work to ensure a fair and consistent recruitment process and aim to be a charity where diversity of experience, identity and skills are valued and welcomed. MSSC is an equal opportunities employer.
We recognise our responsibilities to safeguard and protect the young people and vulnerable adults with whom we work. We do all we can to promote their health, safety and wellbeing, and we expect our staff to share this commitment and work in line with safeguarding policy, the MSSC’s values and ethos of inclusivity. We adhere to safer recruitment practices and therefore employment is subject to detailed pre-employment checks for successful candidates, including references and criminal disclosure checks and the completion of a disclosure questionnaire.
All successful applicants are required to attend safeguarding training and undergo pre-employment checks including a criminal record check.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.