Jobs for the Arts, Culture and Heritage sector in north west

The Trust is seeking a Fundraising Director to run the day-to-day operations of our small and successful charity, alongside our existing Director of Operations, starting 1 September 2025, or as soon as possible thereafter.

The annual salary is £33,000 and hours of work are 35 hours a week. The successful candidate must be able to work from home but be willing to travel to central London for regular meetings and occasional events. We are open to part-time or flexible working options.

22 days annual leave increasing one day per year up to 30 days, plus bank holidays.

Pension contribution: employer 3% and staff 5% at the People’s Pension.

Reports to: Chair of the Board of Trustees

Liaises with: Co-Director, project members, bursary holders, project facilitators, trustees, supporters & patrons

About

The National Youth Arts Trust (NYAT) is a small performing arts charity that exists to widen access to the performing arts for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds - through giving bursaries for music, dance, and drama lessons, running youth theatre projects, and taking children to the theatre, often for the first time.

We are looking for an enthusiastic and organised individual, who is a confident fundraiser to help scale up our work nationwide, support in the day-to-day management of the Trust, and assist in fulfilling the trustee’s strategic plans for 2025 and beyond. It is an essential role for this charity and offers a unique opportunity to be involved and have influence on a growing arts organisation with a strong board, a fantastic patron list and national ambitions.

The ideal candidate is an excellent communicator, who would like to build on their fundraising and management experience in the third sector and arts industry and is passionate about equal opportunity in the performing arts.

We are looking for a creative thinker, who takes initiative, is self-motivated and is looking for a varied role within a small but ambitious charity.

Purpose of the Job

· Supporting the day-to-day management of the Trust, with a particular focus on fundraising and event organisation for current and future projects.

· Working with the Board of Trustees to ensure the National Youth Arts Trust achieves its vision and charitable objectives, creating and implementing the strategy for NYAT and ensuring operating policies and procedures are fit for purpose and regularly reviewed.

Principal Tasks

Principal Tasks:
Lead fundraising strategy, write funding bids, and build donor relationships. Manage communications, stakeholder care, and project delivery. Support recruitment, planning, and marketing. Maintain donor databases and ensure strong supporter engagement. Drive new creative initiatives, track budgets and impact, and report regularly to the Board.

This job description is not exhaustive, please refer to the JD and the post holder may be required to undertake other such duties from time to time.

The role will require the successful candidate to complete an enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service check.

Please contact us if you need the job description in an alternative format or if you need any adjustments if invited to interview.

NYAT is an equal opportunities employer. We guarantee an interview for applicants with a disability providing they meet the minimum requirements for the post. Charity No: 1152367.

· Closing date for applications is 21st August 2025.

· Interviews will be held online and arranged with shortlisted candidates directly, on Mondays, Tuesdays or Wednesdays, with possible in person second interviews.

· Start date 1st September 2025 or as soon as possible thereafter.

About us 

We are an independent charity that supports, promotes and represents public libraries. Our work is driven and led by our membership, which includes almost every library service in England, Wales, Northern Ireland and the Crown Dependencies (Guernsey, Jersey and the Isle of Man).  

Across the areas we serve there are 176 individual library services with around 3,000 library branches serving over 61 million people. 

Our unique approach is to bring these services together to share experience, expertise and evidence – driving innovation and impact across the public library sector.

While senior library leaders sit on our board and committees, we work with library staff at all levels.

As well as providing practical support, training and advice to libraries, we represent them to government and raise their profile in the media. We also develop and lead national library projects with cultural, academic and corporate partners.  

We work to a strategic plan that runs until 2027, organised around four themes: drive, grow, connect and engage.  

We generate income from membership subscriptions, commissioned services, events and grants. As an Arts Council Investment Principle Support Organisation, part of our core funding in England comes from the Arts Council to help embed their Investment Principles across the library network.   

Our values 

• We are supportive. We respond to the varied, emerging needs of our members and their communities to enable libraries to learn from each other, and other sector leaders, so that they can safeguard and improve their services.  

• We are inclusive. We work with our members and partners to design and deliver our work and to determine our strategic priorities because we are committed to representing the diverse communities and libraries which we serve.  

• We are open. We are in constant communication with our members and partners on all levels to learn from their experiences, reflect on our practice and develop our services. We welcome challenge and new directions for our work.  

• We are ambitious. We believe that libraries are an essential part of the solution to a range of society’s needs. We promote innovation and collaboration to ensure that libraries are recognised locally and nationally.  

Working at Libraries Connected 

We are a friendly, collaborative team of around 20 staff based all around England and Wales. 

We value diversity and are committed to promoting an inclusive working environment. We strongly believe that inclusive and diverse organisations are not only better places to work, they are more innovative, make better decisions and are more successful. We value people who bring unique perspectives and knowledge to our team. 

We want to make our recruitment process as fair as possible. To reduce bias, we shortlist candidates based on their responses to up to six application questions. These are designed to tell us about your values, experience, attitudes to work, and transferable skills. We do not ask for a separate cover letter or supporting statement. 

We offer flexible working as standard, helping work fit around family and caring responsibilities. Many of our staff work their hours in different ways, including flexi time and compressed hours. We are open to discussing what would work for you and be possible for the role. 

All roles are remote and are open to applicants who live anywhere in the UK. We provide staff with a home office set-up including laptop, monitor and phone. There is the option to work from our central London office or use a co-working space if it is not possible to work from home. 

We welcome requests for adjustments to our standard recruitment processes for anyone who needs them. 

Our Commercial Team 

We have a small commercial team with big ambitions for the sector.

Currently, we hold a single commercial contract worth around £3m per year delivered through 12 libraries. Our aim is to reach a point where we have a menu of commercial contracts that all of our 176 member library services can choose to benefit from according to the skills and assets of their service, their focus and strategy and of course the needs of their communities.

In the current funding climate for local authorities and local government services, these contracts are not just about the income and the services they can provide but about demonstrating nationally the power of the library sector, and how national services can be delivered locally through library services and the communities they serve.

Our approach is to identify and secure contracts procured by national government – either directly or with partners to extend the libraries’ capabilities – with an eye to local delivery through the library services. This allows us to centrally hold and manage the risk of the national contract, leaving the library services to deliver themselves.

We see libraries as a solution to many of society’s challenges and this is one route we use to bring the libraries into that solution.  

This area is part of our long term strategy – we are seeking to build the commercial team with this role and while it is initially a 12-month contract, our hope is that with the role in place we can generate the income to sustain and build on it.

We're looking for a new Director who will steer LEVEL Centre to achieve its artistic, financial and strategic objectives, championing the organisation as a leading contemporary arts centre that delivers meaningful creative opportunities for disabled people.

LEVEL Centre is a charity that celebrates the art that ‘difference’ makes, helping unlock the unique talents of disabled creatives and showing the world how powerful ‘difference’ can be. We’re an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation and receive funding from a range of trusts and foundations. Our award-winning accessible building is located rurally on the edge of the beautiful Peak District National Park in Derbyshire.

We work with:

• Learning disabled and disabled people
• Autistic and/or neurodivergent people
• Artists, performers and interesting people
• Our rural Derbyshire Community, the county and surrounding areas
• Cultural and creative organisations
• National and International partners

Why Join Us?

• Be part of a dynamic and inclusive charity making a positive impact in the community through the arts and environmental initiatives
• Champion, collaborating with and making space for disabled creatives
• Contribute to the growth and success of a rurally based arts centre
• LEVEL Centre is a supportive and creative charity

About the role:

Working collaboratively with our fantastic team, board, key stakeholders and LEVEL Centre’s vibrant community, you will provide confident and inspiring leadership to develop and oversee a programme that reflects our vision, mission and values. You'll have a successful track record in fundraising, and work to promote and maintain the interests of LEVEL Centre in its relationships with Arts Council England and other funding bodies. 

The role requires experience at a senior level within the cultural industries, developing diverse and impactful arts engagement projects and programmes that transform lives. You will work to identify and remove barriers to inclusion, be passionate about creating meaningful creative opportunities for disabled and neurodivergent people, and support artists to develop their talent through our commissioning and residency programmes.

A team player working with empathy and compassion, you'll have a commitment to wellbeing, and be able to inspire, motivate and empower our team. LEVEL Centre is a special, a brave and safe space to be yourself - welcoming, creative, inclusive and supportive - and you'll be part of that.

Key Responsibilities:

• Work in close collaboration with the board, staff and key stakeholders in line with the business plan aims and objectives
• Develop the artistic vision of LEVEL Centre – building a programme that delivers our mission, in collaboration with staff, facilitators, external organisations and other collaborators. This includes the LEVEL participation programme, gallery and digital exhibition programme and artist residency programme
• Oversee the effective and responsible financial management of LEVEL Centre
• Oversee HR across the organisation following best practice principles
• Stakeholder management
• Able to achieve strategic objectives within a changing cultural landscape
• Represent and champion LEVEL Centre at local and national events
• Build a network of local and regional contacts across the arts sector
• Promote and maintain the strategic interests of the company
• Fundraising from trusts, foundations and other sources to increase income generation and maximise its assets
• Partnership building
• Develop robust strategies and seek advice and guidance for up to date knowledge on policies and procedures
• Prepare reports for board meetings
• Oversee marketing, branding and vision
• Oversee projects and programmes
• Be an advocate for accessible governance
• Champion disabled creatives
• Co-chair East Midlands Disability Arts Network alongside Attenborough Arts Centre

Salary: £45,000 per annum

Hours: 37.5 hours per week. Occasional evening, weekend and bank holiday working may be required. Flexible working arrangements to be discussed. Core business hours are Monday – Friday 9am – 5pm

Holiday: 25 days plus bank holidays

Pension: LEVEL Centre operates an auto enrolment pension scheme deferred for 3 months from joining the organisation with Nest.

Applications for this role close at  9 a.m. Friday 29 August.

Download our recruitment pack here: https://bit.ly/LEVELDirectorJobPack

Join Portraits of Recovery (PORe) as Operations and Finance Manager and Drive Social Change with Art

Portraits of Recovery (PORe) is a pioneering visual arts charity based in Manchester and is the UK’s only visual arts charity inspiring and supporting people affected by and in recovery from substance use. Dedicated to fostering inclusion and systemic change for individuals and communities in recovery from substance use.

Through the transformative power of contemporary visual art, we collaborate with leading artists and Recoverists to challenge stigma, open new conversations about addiction and recovery, and empower marginalised communities. As the UK’s only contemporary visual arts organisation working within this field, we are committed to ensuring that recovery is recognised as a health, social, and cultural issue, driving change through creativity and engagement.

As Operations and Finance Manager, you will play a critical leadership role in shaping PORe’s future, ensuring our long-term sustainability, and driving impactful organisational development. You will work closely with the Director & CEO to enhance our operations, administration, and financial management while leading a small team to support the delivery of our Business Plan. This position offers a unique opportunity to shape strategic business processes, support PORe’s artistic programming, and play an integral role in our fundraising efforts. If you’re passionate about activism and believe in the power of art to change lives, we invite you to be part of this transformative movement.

You’ll be looking after a small team, and the administrative, and financial aspects of the organisation. You’ll also be inputting into funding bids, helping with data collection, and coming up with creative income generating opportunities to help us grow. As a small company, this role would be perfect for someone ambitious, looking to help shape and grow our organisation even further.

Key Responsibilities:

• Support the Director & CEO in strategic, financial, and organisational development.
• Play a senior management role, overseeing operations, administration, financial processes, and governance.
• Manage and support a small team to effectively deliver PORe’s Business Plan.
• Ensure efficient business activities, including HR and data collection processes.
• Oversee financial management, including budget control, reporting, and compliance.
• Support delivery of public programming and contribute to project development.
• Collaborate on fundraising initiatives, including bid writing.
• Represent PORe in meetings with funders, stakeholders, and key partners.
• Manage organisational governance, including trustee meetings and board development.
• Lead risk management, policy updates, safeguarding, health & safety, and diversity initiatives.
• Oversee IT systems, digital security, and business continuity planning.
• Drive internal communication, staff recruitment, training, and performance reviews.
• Ensure compliance with charity and company law, funding agreements, and legal obligations.

At PORe, we value diversity and inclusivity. We actively encourage applications from individuals of all backgrounds, including those with lived experience of recovery. If you meet even half of the requirements, we strongly encourage you to apply. Your unique perspective and skills could contribute significantly to our mission.

We are committed to promoting equality, diversity, and inclusion in our recruitment process. We seek to build a team that reflects the communities we serve, ensuring a welcoming and supportive environment for all. Applications will be reviewed on an ongoing basis, and we encourage early submissions. Join us in shaping a future where art and recovery intersect to create lasting impact.

• Application deadline: Friday, 15 August
• Interview notification: Friday, 22 August
• Planned interview date: Monday, 1 September
• Planned start date (subject to satisfactory references): TBC 

The Estate Officer will ensure the delivery of the regional maintenance programme, comprising routine, periodic, planned and urgent works, and the delivery of time limited maintenance consultancy and estate management projects. Working alongside the Conservation Projects Manager, the post holder will ensure regional estate compliance with CCT policies.

The post holder will be the main contact for all maintenance related matters and will maintain the property management records for the estate, develop volunteer projects and training on maintenance reporting and conservation cleaning and will assist with fundraising.

If you would like to apply for this role, please visit our recruitment portal to begin your application. You will be asked to submit a CV and a short supporting statement (max 2 sides A4) outlining why you’d like to apply and how you fulfil the person specification for this post, so you’ll need to refer to the job description.

The closing date for receipt of applications is 8am on Monday 11th August 2025.

The interviews will take place in Birmingham on Tuesday 19th August 2025. Please note that the interview date and location have been specifically chosen according to the availability of the panel.

We are a Disability Confident Committed Employer. Candidates who declare that they have a disability and who meet the essential criteria for the job will be offered an interview.

If you have any queries about this role, or if you have a disability and wish to request a reasonable adjustment at any stage of the recruitment process, please contact us.

We are an inclusive employer and offer equal opportunities to all regardless of an individual’s age, disability, gender identity, marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

We are not a licensed sponsor at this time. Any offer of employment will be made subject to valid right to work in the UK being provided.

An exciting opportunity has come up to drive forward the vision and development of our burgeoning volunteer-led music and mental health charity. We are looking for a new Strategy and Fundraising Lead who has a track record of successful fundraising to open up new income streams by building exciting projects informed by our community members’ vision. Our new Strategy and Fundraising Lead will be engaging new VCFSE, health and social care partners for collaborative work, as we strive to create new projects which address local health inequalities and pull down the health, social and financial barriers to creativity and support local people face.

Role title: Strategy and Fundraising Lead
Application Deadline: Monday 18th August at 12pm (noon)
Hours of work: 3.5 days a week, with potential for increase in hours worked subject to funding
Flexible working: The role is flexible regarding time of delivery, taking into account that the core activities take place during standard 9-5 Mon-Fri schedules, and some engagement activities may require evening or weekend working where possible.
Salary: £29,500.00 pro rata (£20,650.00 per annum)
Contract length: 2 years, extension subject to funding
Place of work: Hybrid, Old Trafford Wellbeing Centre, Broomwood Community Wellbeing Centre and Work from Home, with some travel across Greater Manchester
Beginning: ASAP

Seed Studios

Seed Studios is a music and mental health charity based at Old Trafford Wellbeing Centre and Broomwood Community Wellbeing Centre working with adults aged 18+. From our centres, we support positive mental health and culture in Trafford through...

• our weekly volunteer-led Community Music Wellbeing Workshops, in which adults learn new instruments and disciplines in sessions proven to improve confidence, skills, connections and mental & emotional wellbeing
• our 1-to-1 music tuition and peer support which compliments support that individuals receive from our Trafford, Manchester and Salford health partners
• our inspiring and community-building events such as Open Mics and our annual Celebrate Seed Studios event
• our innovative partnership programmes, like our monthly workshop series with older adults charity String of Hearts

Our activities involve a diverse range of local people, including neurodivergent people, and individuals with varying levels of wellbeing and mental health. We help them identify and realise their goals for better social connections, wellbeing and creativity. We support them to attend our activity with others, share and connect through music. These people form and shape our Seed Studios community.
In 2025, we enable 88 hours of free volunteer-led sessions every month with a footfall of over 200 people as well as 24 hours of free, 1-to-1 music tuition support for referrals from our health partners every month.

Please click Apply to see all the information concerning the new role, including the Strategy and Fundraising Lead Job Pack, Application Form and Fair Recruitment Procedure Form or download the documents below.