Head of development and alumni relations jobs
WORKING WITH US
The founder and sponsor of the Harris Federation, Lord Harris of Peckham, opened our first school in 1990. We have, over the past thirty years, implemented ideas and initiatives that have transformed the opportunities of pupils from working class and disadvantaged backgrounds. Harris academies are widely recognised as a force for social mobility. We are immensely proud of the role that our alumni are now beginning to play in the world and of what we believe our current generation of pupils will go on to achieve.
We now have over 50 schools educating more than 40,000 young people across London and Essex, and employ over 5,000 staff across our academies and head office. With the majority of our academies located in areas of high socioeconomic disadvantage, a high-quality education is key to the futures of the pupils we serve.
As a provider of employment and education, we value the diversity of our staff and students, and all our staff are equally valued and respected. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment for our students and staff.
Our work will impact many generations to come, and our staff come from all backgrounds and walks of life, coming together to inspire young minds. We promote an inclusive culture that embraces the valuable and enriching contribution that all of our community make. We continue to be proactive in uplifting and supporting all voices at Harris.
To discover more about our culture, ethos and what it is like to work here, visit the page.
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ABOUT THIS OPPORTUNITY
We are seeking a proactive and knowledgeable HR Advisor to join our central HR team. You’ll support a group of academies, providing expert guidance on HR policies, employee relations, and workforce initiatives, while contributing to projects that shape the future of education.
This is a dynamic generalist role requiring strong communication, analytical skills, and a collaborative mindset. You’ll be part of a pioneering multi-academy trust known for transforming schools and empowering communities. With access to outstanding CPD, a supportive team, and a culture of excellence, this is a fantastic opportunity to grow your HR career in a purpose-driven environment.
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MAIN AREAS OF RESPONSIBILITY
Your responsibilities will include:
- Delivery of a generalist HR advisory service to the Federation and our Academies, providing up to date and informed HR guidance and support on HR policies, processes and systems
- Providing professional advice and support to Federation and Academy leaders in all areas of HR practice and employee relations such as grievance, disciplinary, performance management and sickness absence management, escalating complex cases as appropriate to the Head of HR and HR Business Partners
- Supporting the HR Business Partner with organisation change programmes including redundancy, restructuring and TUPE transfers; preparing documents, supporting planning, due diligence completion etc.
- Participating in the development and delivery of HR policy skills workshops for line managers and academy HR
- Assisting with end-to-end employee lifecycle and payroll processes
- Preparing HR documents and create and maintain templates
- Producing management information reports
- Evaluating job descriptions and providing advice and guidance on salary bandings to ensure a consistent and fair approach
- Assisting with the development and implementation of HR policies and procedures
For a full job description, please download the Job Pack.
WHAT WE ARE LOOKING FOR
You should be able to demonstrate:
- Experience providing generalist HR advice on terms & conditions, application of policies and first line employee relations
- Up-to-date knowledge of employment law & current HR practice
- Qualifications to degree level, or equivalent experience
- At least part qualification to CIPD Level 5 or equivalent by experience with a willingness to study
- Excellent spoken and written communication skills
- Confidence and ability to develop and maintain professional relationships at all levels
- Discretion and diplomacy, with the ability to adhere to confidentiality requirements
For a full job specification, please download the Job Pack.
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APPLYING FOR THIS POSITION
If you would like to discuss the opportunity further, or if you have any questions, please contact us via email to arrange a conversation.
Before applying please ensure you download the job pack from our careers website, this will help with completing your application. Please note that we only accept applications submitted online before the closing date.
When applying, you will have the option to import your CV or use a LinkedIn profile which will auto populate the online application.
A reminder to check your junk mail for our email communications and add us to your safe senders list to ensure all future email communication is received.
OUR VISION & VALUES
Our vision, from the start, has been to provide the structure and services needed for our schools to amount to more than the sum of their parts, and to free-up our teachers and leaders to focus on one thing and one thing only: the outstanding education of all their pupils. Our young people and communities are at the heart of everything we do. Our core mission has always been to close the educational gap between young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and their peers. Our ambition is one where every child in London, no matter their background, has equal access to high quality education, giving them the same opportunities and potential to succeed.
We know there are many challenges facing our young people and the communities we serve, and that’s why we need determined people like you to help us tackle those inequalities. Whilst each of our academies has their own unique cultures and values; as a whole Federation, we have four core values which are central to successfully achieving our vision: Excellence, Collaboration, Support, and Innovation. We are proud of our values because they guide us in how we work allowing us to achieve the best possible outcomes for our young people, communities, and colleagues.
IMPORTANT INFORMATION
Safeguarding Notice
The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, references, an online search, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed.
Equal Opportunities
The Harris Federation is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all suitably qualified candidates. We value the diversity of our staff and students, and everyone at the Harris Federation is equally valued and respected. We aim to be an inclusive employer that reflects the communities we serve. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment.
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WHAT WE CAN OFFER YOU
Harris has a strong culture of collaboration and best practice, with professional development and career planning at its centre. We invest in our staff with support, coaching, mentoring, and a wide range of top-quality training programmes delivered at every level.
You will also have access to a variety of benefits, support programmes and initiatives including:
- Excellent opportunities for continuous professional development and career progression
- Annual performance and loyalty bonus
- Pension scheme (Teachers' Pension Scheme or Local Government Pension Scheme) with generous employer contribution
- 26 days' annual leave (inclusive of our Christmas Eve closure day) plus bank holidays, rising to 27 days after 2 years' service, or equivalent for staff on term time contracts
- Harris Wellbeing Cash Plan including cover for routine and specialist healthcare
- Employee Assistance Programme for free and confidential advice
- Cycle to work salary sacrifice scheme
- Wide range of shopping, leisure, and travel discounts
- 20% off at Tapi Carpets, exclusive to Harris employees
- Interest-free ICT and season ticket loans
For most non-teaching staff based at our Head Office in East Croydon, we also offer lifestyle friendly working arrangements including flexible start and end times, and hybrid working with two days from home and three days on site.
Head of Alumni Engagement, Saïd Business School, University of Oxford
38 days’ holiday | USS pension scheme | Hybrid working
Saïd Business School blends the best of new and old. Founded in 1996, the School is a young, vibrant and innovative business school that is deeply embedded in a 900-year-old world-class university. With a focus on tackling complex world-scale challenges, the School prepares business leaders for the task of making the world a better and more equitable place.
The Leadership Team has recently developed an ambitious five-year plan for the School and Oxford Saïd is now entering an exciting new phase in its evolution. Securing increased levels of philanthropic income and deep levels of alumni engagement will be a critical element in the successful delivery of the new strategy. The School has therefore been investing in growing their Development & Alumni Relations team, including the creation of this senior role of Head of Alumni Engagement.
The Head of Alumni Engagement will support the Associate Director of Alumni and Supporter Engagement in fostering lifelong relationships with the School's extensive alumni network. This includes overseeing alumni volunteering, events, communications and initiatives to increase alumni participation and giving.
Success in this role will be underpinned by your professional experience in alumni relations or managing membership communities. You will bring exceptional communication, organisational and interpersonal skills, and a demonstrable ability to engage senior stakeholders, manage volunteers and oversee complex budgets. A strong track record in delivering high-profile events, evaluating engagement strategies and working collaboratively across teams is essential, along with some experience of managing others and regular giving.
This is an exceptional opportunity to make a strong impact within a global community and at an exciting moment in this institution’s trajectory. It will take a creative and strategic engagement professional to understand and galvanise the School’s community, and win their support. In return, you will get to work within an ambitious and growing team, and an excellent benefits package will be available to the successful candidate, including enhanced access to executive education and professional development.
At Saïd Business School we believe in fostering a diverse and inclusive work environment where everyone can thrive. We welcome applicants from all backgrounds and communities to bring their unique perspectives and experiences to our team. Join us to build a brighter, more equitable future, where we celebrate diversity, advance equity, and nurture inclusion across everything we do.
For a confidential conversation about this exceptional opportunity, please contact our recruitment partners at Richmond Associates.
Please tell us if there are any reasonable adjustments we can make to help you in your application or with our recruitment process.
Closing date for applications is 09:00 on Thursday 18th September 2025
Oxford is excited to invite applications for a newly created role that will lead fundraising for its School of Geography and the Environment (SoGE). The Head of Development will be a key member of the Social Sciences Development team within Development and Alumni Engagement (DAE), who will work closely with SoGE and DAE leadership to establish a small Geography team, and to develop a fundraising strategy that serves the School’s goals and grows its philanthropic support.
SoGE is one of the foremost geography and environment university departments in the world, internationally recognised for the quality of its research and teaching. Geography at the University of Oxford is a large, vibrant and intellectually diverse community comprising the core academic department of the School of Geography and the Environment, its three research centres: the Environmental Change Institute (ECI), the Transport Studies Unit (TSU) and the Smith School of Enterprise and Environment (SSEE) and several geographers based elsewhere in the wider university.
This is a special opportunity to work collaboratively with academic colleagues who craft robust, imaginative and forward-looking answers to pressing questions about the environment, technology, geopolitics and socio-economic change.
This is a fantastic opportunity for an experienced major gifts fundraiser who is looking to grow their career in Higher Education through a senior role combining significant fundraising with management of a small team. You will be a collaborative fundraiser with expertise in major gifts and a strong track record of securing complex philanthropic support. Thriving in a fast-paced environment, you will be a strategic thinker and a skilled operator—communicative, adaptable, and adept at building strong, lasting relationships. Your ability to establish credibility and foster trust across a wide range of internal and external stakeholders will be key to your success, as will be a knowledge of and passion for issues relating to the School’s work, and that of the Social Sciences more broadly. Experience in Higher Education or the charitable sector, as well as of managing staff, is desirable. Above all, you will share Oxford’s mission and be driven to create meaningful impact through strategic philanthropic partnerships.
What We Offer
Working at the University of Oxford offers several exclusive benefits, such as:
· 38 days of annual leave (inclusive of public holidays) to support your wellbeing, with the option to purchase up to 10 extra days and additional leave after long service.
· One of the most generous family leave schemes in UK higher education, offering up to 26 weeks of full-pay maternity and adoption leave, plus 12 weeks of full-pay paternity/partner leave.
· A commitment to hybrid and flexible working to suit your lifestyle.
· An excellent contributory pension scheme.
· Affordable and sustainable commuting options, including a cycle loan scheme, discounted bus travel, and season ticket loans.
· Access to a vibrant community through our social, cultural, and sports clubs.
Sponsorship and Right To Work
This role may meet the criteria for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker visa. The University will meet the cost of the Skilled Worker visa and NHS surcharge for applicants that require a visa.
Please let us know in your application if you require sponsorship.
Application Process
To apply, please upload:
· A covering letter/supporting statement
· Your CV
· The details of two referees
The closing date for applications is 12 noon on Friday 26 September 2025
Interviews will take place on Wednesday 8 October 2025 and will be held in person in central Oxford.
The University of Oxford Development and Alumni Engagement Office is committed to having a team that is made up of diverse skills and experiences, and reflects the community that we serve. We encourage applicants from all sectors of the community and are especially keen to encourage candidates from under-represented groups to apply.
We raise funds in support of the University’s academic priorities, securing donations for all aspects of academic and student endeavour.





The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
We are looking for an outstanding individual to join our Development and Alumni Relations team to help guide and deliver ourregular giving and stewardship programmes. The ideal candidate will have experience of running successful major fundraising appeals to large audiences. They will have the ability to draft persuasive and accurate copy to support both fundraising and stewardship literature. They will be highly motivated and creative, driving new initiatives to boost participation, increase overall giving, while also increasing retention of donors through an outstanding, tailored stewardship programme. They will be a team-player who can work autonomously when required, but can work collaboratively, and will support other team members with aspects of their work.
The Development and Alumni Relations Office leads the process of generating long-term and consistent voluntary income for Merchant Taylors’ School, and forrunning a comprehensive alumni and parental relations programme.
The Development Manager (Fundraising and Stewardship) will be responsible for planning, managing and having an input to the strategy for a regular giving programme at Merchant Taylors’ School, with a focus on increasing the participation (giving rates) of both our alumni and parental constituencies, as well as donor retention through planning and executing a stewardship programme for benefactors of all levels. Some face-to-face fundraising may also be required, particularly relating to legacy fundraising and the post-holder will build a portfolio of mid-level donors they will manage.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Stonyhurst – Director of Fundraising
Location: Remote working with travel as needed and appropriate time at Stonyhurst, Clitheroe, Lancashire to deliver the requirements of the role.
Salary: £100,000 per annum.
Contract: Permanent, full-time.
Stonyhurst College, the UK’s leading Catholic co-educational boarding and day school for pupils aged 3-18, is seeking a high value fundraising expert to design and deliver a high-performing philanthropic programme to ensure long-term sustainability.
Stonyhurst is the oldest continuously existing Jesuit school in the world – founded in 1593 in France, the College moved to its present site in Lancashire’s Ribble Valley near the market town of Clitheroe in 1794. As well as encouraging pupils to achieve their academic potential, the school works to develop well-rounded, competent future adults who can help change the world for others.
Working across the site and the wider community, the Director of Fundraising will lead on the development and delivery of a multi-year fundraising strategy aligned with the College’s long-term vision and priorities, to help secure transformational giving for Stonyhurst. The role will be responsible for increasing income growth across capital, bursary, endowment and unrestricted giving, with a strong focus on major gifts and sustainable donor relationships, as well as personally managing a portfolio of high-value donors and prospects, and cultivating and stewarding six, seven and eight-figure gifts.
The role will involve some travel nationally and internationally to engage supporters and prospects, and the post-holder will be expected to act as ambassador for Stonyhurst, championing their mission and values.
This is a particularly exciting time to be joining Stonyhurst, with a new strategic plan committed to the highest quality of Jesuit formation and the continuous development of the school’s historic estate over the coming years.
The ideal candidate will be a strategic thinker, with a track record in building relationships with alumni, partners, stakeholders and donors, and in shaping and implementing effective fundraising strategies to drive income growth. With a strong background in high-value fundraising, they will have personally led the cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of high-value donors. Excellent research and analytical skills will be a must, combined with honed interpersonal skills and the proven ability to establish and maintain good relationships with a diverse range of people. Finally, candidates will have an affinity with private education and with the mission and purpose of Stonyhurst.
This role offers a rare opportunity to work in a beautiful setting, based in 1,000 acres of stunning countryside and to join a rich educational tradition that is five centuries old, spanning the globe.
Please download our Candidate Pack for further information [PDF], which includes details on how to apply.
Closing date: Monday 13th October, 9.00 am.
Communications and Impact Lead
Full time (part time will be considered)
Hybrid (with a minimum of 2 days in our office on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus)
Permanent contract
£43,000- £46,000 per annum (depending on skills and experience)
Do you want to make a difference to healthcare globally? Do you have skills and experience in Communications, Marketing and Monitoring, Evaluation & Learning? Come and join a brilliant team working from the Cambridge Biomedical Campus and with partners across the world.
For nearly twenty years, Cambridge Global Health Partnerships (CGHP) has been strengthening health systems across the world through education, reciprocal learning, and relationship building. CGHP uses a health partnership model - working with hospitals, governments and health organisations in Cambridgeshire and East of England region and in low- and middle- income countries (LMIC) to provide specialist expertise, support shared learning and encourage sustainable change. This is a two-way process involving NHS staff, trainees and students working with LMIC partners using a hybrid working model combining online working and exchange visits. CGHP is a charitable programme based on the Cambridge Biomedical Campus and is a linked charity to Addenbrooke’s Charitable Trust.
We are recruiting for a Communications and Impact Lead who will lead these functions within CGHP and will be a member of the CGHP Senior Leadership Team. You will work at a tactical and strategic level with responsibility for increasing understanding of our impact and raising our profile to enable CGHP to achieve our strategic ambition. The role will ensure effective impact measurement, communication, promotion, marketing and engagement to support our goals. The role requires excellence measuring impact and communicating with people and groups on all issues and at all levels and. Creativity in communication to effectively tell our story will be key, as will confidence and understanding of monitoring, evaluation and learning.
We are looking for someone imaginative, creative, and dynamic with excellent organisational skills who can ensure that our impact is measured and recognised, and our story is heard. The position is the ideal role for someone who has a combination of skills and experience of communications, impact analysis and project management.
To see a full job description and person specification please visit our website
The closing date for applications is 28th September 2025, however we reserve the right to close this vacancy once a sufficient number of applications have been received or a successful candidate is found.
Application Process: Please send your CV and a covering letter explaining why you are a good fit for the role by email
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.