Head of infrastructure jobs in Manchester

Cerebra is the national charity dedicated to improving the lives of children with neurological conditions and their families. We provide vital research, support, and practical solutions that empower families facing complex challenges.

With an annual income of £3 million and a headcount of 68 employees, we have ambitious plans to double our income between 2025 and 2027, ensuring we can extend our impact, reach more families, and drive real change. To achieve this, we are investing in fundraising innovation, income generating ventures, and strategic partnerships, alongside enhancing our brand to increase our national recognition.

Our work is underpinned by our values ensuring that everything we do aligns with our mission to create a better world for children with neurological conditions.

This is an incredibly exciting time to join Cerebra, as we are preparing to launch our new strategy and brand. The COO is a vital leadership role that will support the drive towards even greater impact for children and families across the UK.

Our Services

Sleep Advice Service

Cerebra understands that if you have a child that doesn’t sleep, the whole family suffers. Many children with neurological conditions suffer from disrupted sleep. Our sleep advice service provides bespoke advice and support so that everyone can get a good night’s sleep.

Legal Rights Service

Our Legal Rights Service provides help and support to families of children with neurological conditions when they are faced with barriers and difficulties in accessing statutory support services they are entitled to. The service provides information on their legal entitlements.

Book and Toy Library Service

Our specialist postal lending library contains a wide range of books for both adults and children, plus a selection of sensory toys specifically chosen for children with a neurological condition.

Innovation and Product Design Service

Our Innovation Service designs and builds bespoke products that cater to the specific needs of children with neurological conditions. The aim of the service is to make products that are desirable and exciting, therefore promoting social inclusion, peer acceptance and enabling children to participate in everyday activities that are so often close to them.

Information Products

Cerebra publishes different information products to help families with a child with a neurological condition. Our information products offer comprehensive, up-to-date support and research-driven strategies to assist families with a wide range of issues.

Buzgi and Toy Adaptation Service

Cerebra designs and builds bespoke assistive equipment for disabled children, this includes creating custom mobility aids, switch‑adapted toys, and other innovative solutions to help children access play, learning, and independence.

The Bugzi - a mini powered wheelchair for children offers many children their first experience of independent mobility. It uses either a joystick or switches and adaptable seating for complex needs, and helps develop spatial awareness, confidence, and early mobility skills. The Bugzi is available through a national loan scheme.

Additionally, we operate commercial services (including a web shop) to supplement our income to support children and their families.

Our services are provided to families free of charge.

Job Title:

Chief Operating Officer

Reports To:

Chief Executive Officer

Direct reports:

3 senior managers (Finance (headcount of 3), HR (headcount of 1), IT (headcount of 5))

Purpose of the Role:

The Chief Operating Officer will play a vital role in supporting the Chief Executive Officer, Board and Leadership Team to deliver Cerebra’s vision and ambitious strategic aims. The Chief Operating Officer will provide strategic leadership and operational management across key areas within Cerebra including:

• Operational Systems
• Governance
• Compliance
• Finance and Growth

This is a pivotal executive leadership role, responsible for driving organisational performance, sustainability and growth. The COO will translate Cerebra’s strategic ambitions into effective operational delivery, ensuring robust governance, financial stewardship and a high-performing, values-led culture.

As a trusted advisor to the CEO and Board, the COO will lead core operational services and commercial activity, enabling the charity to maximise impact and generate sustainable income in support of its charitable objectives.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic & Executive Leadership

• Partner with the CEO and Board to deliver strategic priorities, growth and long-term sustainability
• Collaboration with the Director’s Group to ensure strategic alignment across the charity. The Director’s Group consists of:

            Chief Executive Officer

            Chief Operating Officer

            Director of Fundraising, Marketing and Communications

            Director of Research and Support Services

• Provide expert advice on finance, operations, commercial performance and organisational risk
• Lead organisational planning, business continuity, and operational resilience
• Foster a culture of continuous improvement, accountability and inclusion

Finance, Commercial & Sustainability

• Lead financial strategy, planning and performance, ensuring long-term sustainability
• Oversee budgeting, forecasting, cashflow and financial controls
• Lead and develop Cerebra’s strategy for commercial income , ensuring alignment with charitable objectives
• Support funding growth through strong financial insight and business case development
• Ensure robust financial governance, audit and compliance

Operations & Infrastructure

• Lead and strengthen operational functions including HR, IT, governance and administration
• Ensure effective systems, processes and infrastructure that enable growth, efficiency and impact
• Oversee procurement, contracts, facilities, and organisational compliance
• Drive innovation and value for money across operations

People & Culture

• Champion a positive, inclusive and high-performing organisational culture
• Oversee HR strategy, workforce planning and leadership development
• Ensure compliance with employment law and best practice
• Promote wellbeing, engagement and organisational effectiveness

Digital & Technology

• Provide strategic oversight of IT, data and digital development
• Ensure systems are secure, resilient and aligned to organisational needs
• Leverage data and technology to improve insight, decision-making and organisational impact

Governance, Risk & Compliance

• Ensure effective governance frameworks, risk management and regulatory compliance
• Support the CEO and Board with high-quality reporting and strategic insight
• Lead safeguarding, data protection and organisational risk strategy
• Drive a strong culture of accountability and ethical practice

Leadership & Management

• Lead and develop a small senior team across finance, HR and IT
• Build capability, strengthen performance, and embed a collaborative culture
• Model Cerebra’s values and leadership behaviours

Key Attributes

• Strategic and commercially minded leader with strong operational delivery experience
• Strong financial leadership and business acumen
• Proven track record of driving income growth, sustainability and organisational performance
• Skilled in governance, risk and stakeholder engagement

Please see attached job description for the Person Specification.

Philanthropy Manager

·£45,000 plus benefits 

·Remote with occasional travel to regional offices in Burgess Hill or York offices

·Closing midnight Friday 17th July 2026

·Annual leave allowance / any other stand out benefits

Role 

Brainkind is the UK’s leading charity that supports people that have been affected by brain injury. The charity provides a range of services that includes innovative rehabilitation and ongoing support to ensure that there is life after brain injury. 

The organisation provides support to individuals at all stages of their rehabilitation. This includes

·Supported living

·Neurological Centres

·Residential homes

·Hospitals

The Philanthropy Manager is responsible for leading the leadership and development of Brainkinds philanthropy fundraising activities. This role will focus on the delivery of Brainkind’s capital fundraising initiatives, cultivation and stewardship of high-net-worth individuals and grow strategic corporate partnerships. This is a newly created role that will play an integral part of the Brainkind fundraising strategy.

The primary duties for the role will include

·Develop and deliver capital fundraising strategies to support major infrastructure and service development projects

• Identify and secure major gifts (£25k+) to support capital appeals.
• Develop and manage a portfolio of high-net-worth individuals and prospective major donors.
• Identify, research, and cultivate new prospects through networking, events, and relationship mapping.
• Develop and implement a corporate fundraising strategy aligned to Brainkind’s mission and values.
• Secure new corporate partnerships including strategic, multi-year, and employee engagement partnerships.

Experience and skills required for the role will include

·Previous experience of working in a philanthropy focused role with understanding of engaging with high-net-worth individuals, potential major donors and corporate partners.

·Strong organizational and planning skills

·Excellent relationship management and donor stewardship skills 

·Strong verbal and written communication skills 

·IT literate with the ability to use Microsoft Office and an in-house CRM system

Please download the Candidate Info Pack provided for further information about the role, timelines and next steps. 

Please note, we cannot shortlist candidates who have not had a screening call so please allow enough time to have a call before the closing date. 

Closing date for applications: Midnight Friday 17th July 2026 

Interviews are expected to be held on the week commencing Monday 27thJuly 2026via Teams. 

About the role

Are you ready to use your marketing expertise to back Indigenous people and protect the world’s rainforests? 

As our Digital Marketing Manager, you won’t just be managing channels; you’ll be the voice for Indigenous and local communities on the front lines of the climate crisis. 

We are looking for a creative powerhouse to lead our digital and press presence, turning complex climate issues into compelling stories that inspire action. This is your chance to shape how the world sees rainforest conservation and drive the engagement we need to meet our most ambitious goals yet.

About Cool Earth 

Cool Earth is a climate charity that protects the rainforest by supporting the people who live there. We have been working alongside local and Indigenous rainforest communities for over 15 years in the three largest and most important rainforests in the world, the Amazon, The Congo Rainforest and the Papua New Guinea Rainforest. Indigenous and local communities have been protecting the rainforest for thousands of years, but unfortunately are now facing a humanitarian crisis, lacking necessities like safe drinking water, infrastructure, healthcare, and stable incomes.

This makes rainforest communities vulnerable to exploitation by illegal loggers and extractive industries, who pressure them to sell their land. Once these industries take over, Indigenous peoples are displaced, losing their ancestral homes, culture, and traditional ways of life, and the rainforest is destroyed. Without these forests to regulate the earth’s temperature the climate crisis will only worsen. So what do we do to help?

By working in collaboration with these communities we help support their livelihoods, improve health, sanitation and education and provide tech to help monitor their rainforest. Our main programme involves giving direct unconditional cash to rainforest communities so that they can decide how best to use it in order to improve their quality of life. Rainforest communities can only defend their land from illegal loggers and greedy land grabbers when they themselves are resilient and strong. We help them get to that point.

What you’ll be doing

Strategic leadership and impact: we have the digital strategy, now we need someone exceptional to deliver it and keep us on our upwards trajectory.

You’ll lead the charge across our website, social media and email to skyrocket our visibility and engagement. By managing our talented Digital Officer, you’ll ensure every campaign isn't just seen, but drives action. Helping to deliver the KPIs that will define our success through 2026 and 2027. 

Social Media and storytelling: in collaboration with our in-country coordinators, you’ll turn raw, frontline stories from people who live in the rainforest, and experts across the team into compelling, high-quality content. You’ll also help us develop key individuals to become the face of Cool Earth’s social. You’ll oversee our organic and paid social strategies (awareness and lead gen), working with our agency partners to ensure every post and every ad isn't just noise, but a meaningful step toward increased engagement and donor conversion. 

Digital innovation and website excellence: you will champion our digital home, working with our web agency to deliver a seamless, high-performing website experience. From SEO housekeeping to major content overhauls for AEO and GEO visibility, you’ll ensure our site is more than just a resource, it’s an accessible, optimised journey that captures the imagination of every visitor and converts visitors into supporters and/or donors. 

PR and influence: You’ll amplify our press work to help break through the noise. By nurturing relationships with our ambassadors and seeking out global influencers, you will secure the kind of content that puts Cool Earth at the center of the climate conversation.

Movement building via email: you’ll lead our email marketing strategy, working with our fundraising team to email supporters weekly with impact, stories from the forest, quizzes and more. You’ll use DotDigital and Salesforce to build deep, automated journeys for new supporters. By working with our CRM lead, you’ll ensure our donors receive the right message at the right time, turning one-time supporters into lifelong advocates for the rainforest.

Data-Driven Growth: You’ll constantly monitor performance and review the data,  providing the Head of Marketing and Communications with the insights needed so we can keep pivoting and growing. 

You’ll be proactive, testing, optimising, and implementing agency recommendations to ensure our supporter base is constantly expanding and our conversion rates are always climbing.

Who you are

You’re a strategic storyteller: You have a proven track record of building high-impact PR and marketing strategies that don't just reach people, they move them.

A digital native: You live and breathe social trends and AI capabilities, knowing exactly how to optimise content for engagement and conversion across every platform.

A natural leader: You thrive on coaching and inspiring teams, whether they are Digital Officers in the UK or content coordinators across the globe.

Data-driven and creative: You can dive into Google Analytics or CRM data to find insights, then use your imagination to turn those numbers and our exceptional content into a winning campaign.

Relationship builder: You’re as comfortable negotiating with a national journalist as you are collaborating with our advocacy and programmes teams.

Mission-aligned: You have a genuine, deep-rooted commitment to environmental justice and the humanitarian principles that define Cool Earth.

Desirable skills & abilities 

• AEO/GEO understanding 

• Experience in the environmental or social justice sector 

• Experience in international fundraising and marketing 

• Fluent in written and spoken Spanish 

Equal Opportunities

At Cool Earth we are committed to equal opportunity and celebrate the unique backgrounds, identities, and experiences of all applicants and employees.

We don't discriminate based on factors like gender, race, age, physical abilities, religion, or sexual orientation. 

Our application process is designed to be accessible and inclusive, and we value your contributions regardless of these characteristics.

Frequently cited statistics show that women and underrepresented groups are more likely to only apply to jobs if they meet 100% of the listed qualifications. We encourage you to apply even if you feel that you do not meet all of the above requirements.

Safeguarding

Cool Earth is dedicated to strengthening the rights and resilience of Indigenous Peoples and Local Communities (IPLCs) living in rainforests. Cool Earth believes that a child, young person, or adult should never experience abuse of any kind. Protecting their safety and their freedom is integral to our work and our values.

Cool Earth is committed to keeping the IPLCs we work and engage with safe from any harm that could be caused by coming into contact with our organisation. This includes potential harm arising from the conduct and behaviour of staff, partners, or affiliates of Cool Earth, or the design and implementation of our programmes and activities.

We maintain a strict zero-tolerance approach towards any attitudes, behaviours or actions that put others at risk of harm.

Therefore, all offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks as per the Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. For more information see our Job Applicant Privacy Notice.

Location: Remote (based in England, Scotland and Wales with occasional travel).

Salary: £25,360 - £28,665 pro rata (£20,288 - £22,932 actual)

Hours of work: 28 hours a week (4 days)

Contract type: Permanent

Why work for Kids Matter?

• Generous annual leave – 25 days (plus bank holidays) per year pro rata, with time off between Christmas and New Year's additional to this allowance.
• Remote working contribution – receive £26/month pro rata towards the costs of working from home and/or using a co-working space.
• Access to coaching sessions, training opportunities and our Employee Assistance Programme (a confidential support service for staff).
• Flexible working across weekdays to suit your schedule.

About us

Kids Matter is one of the UK’s fastest growing children’s charities. Our vision is to see every child in need raised in a strong family. Our mission is to reduce the impact of poverty on children through community-based parenting programmes.

Research shows that group-based early intervention parenting groups are the most effective way to support children in need. We train peer facilitators in local churches - the largest voluntary body in the country - to run our affordable, accessible and highly effective parenting programmes, written by Clinical Psychologists. They come alongside parents and carers, building long-lasting community in addition to encouraging confidence and learning positive parenting skills.

We value difference and diversity, and we want our workplace to be built on shared values of equality and mutual trust, with team members representing the wide range of backgrounds and experiences that exist within the UK. We therefore actively encourage applications from people of diverse backgrounds and varied experiences, particularly those who are African, Afro-Caribbean, Asian or part of other minority ethnic communities, who have lived experience of the impact of low-income/low-support circumstances, and who are living with a disability or identify as being neurodivergent.

About the role

The Support & Training Coordinator role involves:

• Managing onboarding processes for new facilitators attending training, ensuring clear communication of expectations and timelines, including safeguarding checks
• Supporting the Support Coaches by coordinating essential ongoing facilitator engagement: including group calls, follow up sessions, communication touchpoints and additional resources
• Coordinating the logistics of monthly facilitator training sessions, including placing orders, liaising with suppliers, monitoring stock levels and order numbers, and overseeing communications and systems
• Developing and maintaining systems that monitor and support the full facilitator journey — from onboarding through to ongoing support

About you

Do you have strong organisational and administrative skills? Can you work confidently with systems, databases, and digital tools? Are you a Christian with an active faith in Jesus? Do you have a passion for Kids Matter’s vision of seeing every child in need raised in a strong family?

Then we would love to hear from you!

Please see the job pack for more details on the role and application process.

How to Apply

You can apply for the Support & Training Coordinator position by completing a copy of our online application form.

The deadline for applications is 13th July at 9am. All successful and unsuccessful applicants will be notified by email.

We also ask for all applicants to submit an Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form, which will be sent to you to complete following the submission of your application. This form will be used for anonymous analysis to ensure our overall recruitment procedures are fair and transparent. It will never be viewed or used as part of the selection process. It is optional to submit this form.

If you have any questions, please refer to our recruitment FAQs document. If you would like any application and interview support or you need any reasonable adjustments throughout the application process, please contact Katie Washington (HR & Systems Manager).