Independent living service volunteer jobs in Milton keynes

Are you an organised, compassionate leader who thrives on making a difference in your community? Hornsey Foodbank is seeking a proactive Foodbank Coordinator Manager to oversee our daily operations, support volunteers and ensure the smooth running of the food bank,and strengthen our partnerships across the local area. The job is home-based but must be able to attend Hornsey Foodbank, Middle Lane Methodist Church, N8 as required.

About the Role

This is a new and vital role for Hornsey Foodbank, leading the smooth running of our operations and supporting our volunteer team. You’ll manage stock and ordering, coordinate volunteers and, ensure safe and compliant practices and help build positive relationships with our partners, donors, and community.

What You’ll Do

• Manage and support our dedicated volunteers.
• Oversee stock control, ordering, and relationships with suppliers.
• Ensure our processes (including volunteer management, day-to-day finance, and safeguarding) run smoothly.
• Act as the first point of contact for partner agencies and the public.
• Maintain strong operational standards, including food hygiene and data protection.
• Support Trustees with reporting, compliance, and communication.

What We’re Looking For

• Experience of managing or coordinating volunteers.
• Excellent organisational and administrative skills.
• Confidence managing stock, ordering, or logistics.
• Strong communication and people skills.
• Understanding of safeguarding, GDPR, and inclusive practice.
• A proactive, practical, and collaborative approach.
• Confidence using Microsoft Office or similar tools.

Desirable:

• Experience in foodbank, charity, or community work.
• Knowledge of food safety or health & safety.
• Experience with digital rota systems.

What We Offer

• A supportive and inclusive team environment.
• Flexible working arrangements.
• The opportunity to shape a new role and make a tangible impact locally.
• Ongoing training and development.

Please apply by sending a CV and a cover letter (no more than two pages) explaining how your experience and skills (including those gained through non-paid work) relate to the job description.

Job Title: Regional Coordinator – North West (Inspiring the Future)

Reports to: Senior Project Manager - Primary Futures

Location: Home based with regular travel across the North West region with a primary focus on Chester, Cheshire West and a secondary focus on Northwest Lancashire. Very occasional travel to London where the charity itself is based. Travel costs will be remunerated via expenses.

Purpose: This is a fantastic opportunity to take on a newly created post in the role of Regional Coordinator – North West for Education and Employers Charity; supporting the delivery of our internationally recognised flagship career-related learning programme in schools. The programme is called Inspiring the Future and is known as Primary Futures in primary schools.

Through our programmes, we bring inspiring volunteers from the world of work into schools, helping children learn in a fun way about a wide range of future jobs and career pathways, broadening their horizons and raising their aspirations and attainment. School activity sits at the heart of our charity’s mission which is to: ‘ensure that every young person in our country, wherever they live, whatever their parents or carers’ circumstances, has the opportunity to meet a diverse range of volunteers to hear first-hand about jobs and the world of work’.

This important role will be part of a friendly and supportive ‘Schools Team’, and the post has responsibility for supporting the local northwest delivery of a key primary school focussed project for the charity, funded by the Westminster Foundation. Responsibilities include initiating, developing, and managing relationships with primary schools in Chester, Cheshire West and Northwest Lancashire.

The role will include working closely day to day with local teachers/ schools to organise and deliver an exciting range of virtual and face-to-face events and activities in their schools. The role will also require the postholder to initiate and build positive partnerships with local employers and organisations to recruit and engage more inspiring volunteers to support these activities in schools.

Remuneration: £26-28k per annum depending on experience

Additional Terms: We offer an excellent overall package with 30 days paid holiday, exclusive of Statutory Bank Holidays, plus a competitive pension scheme and a volunteering allowance of up to 5 days per annum – pro rata in accordance with the length of contract. Additional family friendly benefits, including enhancements to Statutory Payments.

Appointment Terms: Permanent and full time

Job Purpose:

The postholder will report to the experienced Senior Project Manager - Primary Futures and work closely with a friendly, supportive and experienced set of colleagues across the wider Inspiring the Future team. The successful appointee will be responsible for working closely with volunteers from the world of work and primary school staff – supporting the effective delivery of interactive career related learning activities aimed at primary school children. It is a fantastic opportunity to make a difference to children and young people, particularly in less advantaged areas, by helping to broaden their horizons and raise their aspirations.

This is a newly created role to support delivery of an exciting multi-year project, kindly funded by the Westminster Foundation as part of our Primary Futures programme. The postholder will draw upon our revolutionary online platform that helps connect schools with a huge range of diverse, inspirational volunteers that have registered with our charity and who come from a wide range of exciting sectors of the economy. You will have the chance to engage directly with primary school children by facilitating interactive virtual and in-person activities with volunteers. While experience of working in or with schools may be an advantage, it is not essential.

The role will be home based with regular travel to nominated primary schools within the allocated region and very occasional meetings at the charity’s office in central London. Working with schools, the successful candidate will be responsible for targets within their region, managing the relationship with schools and volunteers/ employers.

The role, will by its nature, involve extensive travel across the region with a primary focus on Chester and Cheshire West and a secondary focus on North West Lancashire. Therefore, access to a car/public transport is essential. Regular virtual meetings with the wider team and occasional face-to-face team meetings either in London or another convenient location will be a requirement. The Regional Coordinator will make effective daily use of our Customer Relationship Management system (based on Salesforce technology) to manage data and delivery. 

What we are looking for in a candidate:

We are seeking a driven, highly capable, and enthusiastic Regional Coordinator who can deliver engaging presentations to employers, children, and teachers; confidently manage relationships at varying levels; and work efficiently to support the achievement of key targets.  You will bring excellent communication, organisational, and administrative skills, along with experience in relationship management. If you are motivated, enjoy connecting with people, and want to make a real difference in schools, this role could be the perfect fit for you!

Education and Employers is a small charity of supportive and fun colleagues, working at a rapid pace to bring about change. This is a dynamic role for someone passionate about motivating and inspiring children and who relishes working with a range of stakeholders to create impactful activities.

The exact brief to be finalised with the successful candidate and the funder but the role will be expected to undertake the following key accountabilities:

Key Accountabilities:

We will look to finalise these with the successful candidate but the postholder will have a range of responsibilities, including but not limited to the following:

Relationship building – The job holder will need to build positive relationships

• Re-engage with primary schools who have previously worked with us under a forerunner project that was undertaken last year
• Identify and initiate relationships with new target schools across the identified regions of Chester, Cheshire West and Northwest Lancashire in relation to the Westminster Foundation project
• Develop and manage these school relationships over the lifetime of the project, coordinating their day-to-day engagement in our career related learning (CRL) sessions and deepening their connection to the charity’s work
• Organise virtual and face-to-face activities including school liaison, securing volunteers via the Inspiring the Future system and host on tech platforms (Zoom, MS Teams etc)
• Work with the Primary Futures Manager to build relationships and to capture and exchange good practice between schools and teaching professionals, from all areas involved in the project
• Build relationships with the charity’s partnerships team to ensure that contacts and volunteers from the wider work of the charity are harnessed to support the Westminster Foundation funded project where possible

Delivery – the job holder will need to present/facilitate sessions to local schools and stakeholders

• Plan and arrange all logistics for the events that the postholder will deliver directly with schools. These will be both virtual and in person delivered in school settings
• Facilitate interactive virtual and face-to-face activities to connect pupils with volunteers through themed sessions, Q&A or job guessing-game format.
• Support and host teacher training sessions, staff meetings and info webinars to promote Inspiring the Future and encourage engagement and independent usage of the platform.
• Identify and connect with local employers, engaging the support of their organisation and staff, to secure and encourage local volunteers to help deliver CRL activities within funded projects.

Resource development, technology, data and reporting – the jobholder will need to use our technology, gather impact data on our behalf, develop resources, and make improvement suggestions

• Track and report back to the Primary Futures Manager, delivery against agreed targets and impact. This could include gathering baseline and impact data like pupil/ teacher surveys, feedback quotes, and photos of our activities (permissions to be obtained from the schools).
• Use Salesforce CRM to support with data management, assisting with maintaining up to date records and supporting data cleansing as needed
• Support the development of educational resources for teachers and pupils that provide insight into the world of work and different sectors
• Other ad hoc administrative tasks to support successful delivery of the project whilst always having a positive focus on improvements and ‘how can we do things better’.
• Promote Education and Employers wider offer and programmes as appropriate across the wider North West region. This would include our pilot project with the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) to inspire young people to consider future careers in local media

Person specification:

We are looking for someone with the following Skills/ Knowledge/ Expertise

Essential

• Minimum two years’ experience in a relationship management, school engagement, or school-based role. Other relevant experience will be considered if it demonstrates the candidate can undertake the accountabilities above
• Experience in successful relationship management – ability to engage confidently and sensitively with schools/colleges and employers and at a range of levels of seniority up to and including headteacher level
• Outstanding customer service and telephone manner, including handling large volumes of email enquiries and dealing with difficult situations politely and assertively
• Strong organisational and administrative skills including close attention to detail and effective time management
• Persuasive and confident communicator who is influential, and effective in presenting a concept both in person and on the phone.
• Good level of education, demonstrating capability in producing written content to a high standard.
• Demonstrable experience of managing a diverse workload; being able to prioritise work and working under pressure.
• Good working knowledge and practical application of Microsoft Office tools
• Willingness to travel either by car or public transport (‘Clean’ full driving license if preferred method of transport is driving)

Desirable

• Passion for supporting young people in realising their potential through harnessing skilled volunteers to engage in education
• Experience in virtual and in-person facilitation with children and young people
• Experience of project management and delivery
• Experience of client relationships management (CRM) databases, in particular Salesforce
• Experience of marketing to schools
• Experience of working in a small team
• Experience of working with volunteers
• Understanding of safeguarding, risk management and data protection
• Comfort and confidence in working with data to inform actions

Personal Attributes

• Commitment to uphold our charity’s five values - Inspiring, Inclusive, Innovative, Impactful, Integrity
• Flexible – responsive to changing operational context and new opportunities
• Team Player: working collaboratively and flexibly to achieve outcomes and is keen to add value to the organisation’s culture and ethos
• Able to undertake some occasional work in the evenings and at weekends, although this is not a regular or likely day-to-day requirement of the role

Application process

The Education and Employers Charity values having a diverse workforce.  We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from individuals from all backgrounds. We offer a range of inclusive employment and family friendly policies as well as flexible working arrangements in order to support staff from different backgrounds. 

The closing date for applications is 9am on Wednesday 4th February and interviews will take place at our London office on Wednesday 11th February. Please send a covering letter of no more than 2-3 sides of A4 setting out your interest in and suitability for the role against the job description and person specification, together with an up to date CV. Please include your name and the role applied for in the subject line of your e-mail. Thank you

*Please note, in your cover letter we have a strong preference for human-written content. We want to hear about you, your genuine interest in the role, and why from your experience, skills, and personality you feel you are a great fit for the role

We will only consider applications with both a CV and covering letter and applications will only be accepted from those with the right to work in the UK with a valid passport/visa. 

Thank you for taking the time to consider this role. We very much look forward to receiving your application!

The Charity is fully committed to safeguarding those in our care. We plan our recruitment processes to ensure effective timelines for any required vetting processes such as enhanced DBS, qualification, reference and identity checks. The Charity also ensures that each staff member is appropriately trained for their duties with a comprehensive induction process on commencement and regular CPD in areas like safeguarding. 

About the Education and Employers Charity

Education and Employers is an independent UK based charity launched in 2009 with the original vision of “providing children and young people with the inspiration, motivation, knowledge, skills and opportunities they need to help them achieve their potential”. Our current strategic plan and mission is available to read here. It aims to achieve this by working with schools, employers, the national bodies that represent them and a wide range of other partners including the government and third sector organisations. The charity also works with partners internationally – more details here.

The charity runs Inspiring the Future, a free service which uses innovative match-making technology to connect volunteers with state schools and colleges, quickly, simply and at scale. Schools can very easily search a massive database of willing volunteers, filter against a wide range of criteria – e.g. subject, sector, career route and send them a message. It enables young people, wherever they live, whichever school they attend, the opportunity to meet people from a wide range of backgrounds doing jobs from across the whole world of work.

Over 90,000 people have already volunteered in the UK - people from all levels: apprentices to CEOs and all sectors: apps designers to zoologists and over 85% of English secondary schools and 42% of primary schools have registered with us. People can volunteer from an hour a year in a local primary or secondary school to chat informally about their job and career route, take part in career speed networking session, give careers insights, provide mock interviews or feedback on CVs through to serving as a governor or trustee.  There is also the opportunity to link up with schools for workplace visits, job shadowing and mentoring.

Inspiring the Future operates on a technology platform kindly developed in partnership with Deloitte, Salesforce and Ordnance Survey. It allows the charity to run national campaigns and others focused on specific geographic areas or economic sectors such as engineering, science, health and arts and culture. The campaigns have secured high profile support across government, business and teacher associations and ongoing corporate partnerships including our lead corporate partner Bank of America.

In partnership with the National Association of Head Teachers the charity has developed a version for primary schools called Primary Futures and over 6,500 primaries have already signed up. To see a short clip on how it works please click here.  All campaigns run through Inspiring the Future share a common objective: to broaden young people’s horizons, raise their aspirations and show them the range of opportunities and careers routes e.g. apprenticeships and university open to them. Over 5 million interactions between young people and volunteers from the world of work have already taken place.

Since the Charity’s launch it has sought to understand what difference employer engagement in education makes to young people and the economy. It works with academics and researchers from around the world and its own research is regularly cited by government and international organisations like the OECD. The research, which has informed and influenced a range of government policies, shows that employer engagement helps improve social mobility, reduces the likelihood of young people becoming NEET (not in education, employment of training), increases the amount they earn in adult life, helps them make better informed career choices and leads to improvements in educational attainment.

Community Project Lead 

• Two-year fixed term, full-time (35 hours per week) or part-time (minimum 21 hours per week considered), £28,000 – £32,000 per annum depending on experience (pro rata if part-time)  
• Remote or office-based. Occasional visits to IPSEA’s office in Takeley or a London venue required. This role will also include frequent travel to meet with community partners. 

Do you have experience working with under-served communities and leading impactful outreach projects? Are you passionate about improving access to support for families of children and young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)?

IPSEA is the leading charity in the field of SEND law in England, and we provide free and independent legal advice and support to families of children and young people with SEND. We also provide training on the SEND legal framework, and we influence policy at both a local and national level.

We are looking for an experienced and motivated Community Project Lead to join our team and lead the development of our advice services for under-served communities. This two-year, fixed-term role is a key part of our strategy to reach groups who may not traditionally engage with IPSEA’s support - including children and families with English as an additional language, cared-for children (children in care), migrant children, detained children, and Gypsy, Roma and Traveller communities.

The project builds on a detailed scoping exercise we’ve recently completed, which involved working closely with a wide range of charities and organisations that support these communities. The resulting report outlines the barriers they face, and will form the foundation for this project and directly inform the work you will lead.

What you’ll do 

• Design and develop pilot advice services that are tailored to the needs of under-served communities, using findings from IPSEA’s research 

• Build and maintain strong relationships with community groups, charities and service providers to co-produce accessible services 

• Collaborate with IPSEA’s advice, legal and policy teams to address the barriers these communities face in accessing SEND legal advice 

• Contribute to and share outreach materials, training resources and toolkits to support families of under-served communities and empower local advocates 

• Plan and lead workshops, focus groups and community events to raise awareness, gather feedback and enhance service delivery 

• Monitor and report on project outcomes and impact, providing regular updates to IPSEA staff and stakeholders 

You can work remotely or from IPSEA’s office in Takeley, with frequent travel required for essential meetings and community engagement.

If you share our commitment to protecting, promoting, and upholding the rights of children and young people with SEND, and would like to use your skills to improve access to vital advice and support, we would love to hear from you.

To apply

Please visit our website to download the recruitment pack and application form, and apply

Closing date for applications: 9am on Monday 9 February 2026 

First-round interviews: Wednesday 18 February 2026 (London) 

Veterans Community Occupational Therapist (Maternity Cover)

Location: Remote working covering Northern Ireland
Hours: Full time, 35 hours per week
Contract: 12-months FTC  

About Us

At Help for Heroes, we help the Armed Forces community live well after service.

Life can be tough when a military career comes to an end, especially if it has been cut short by illness or injury. Overnight, people lose not only their job, but also a support network that is like family. There are many ways we help veterans, their relatives, serving personnel, and people who worked alongside the UK military. We help people with their physical and mental health needs, and a range of welfare issues. Our support gives people the skills, confidence and knowledge to make a success of life after service.

We have an exciting opportunity for a Veterans Community Occupational Therapist to join the Services team at Help for Heroes and play a key role in supporting veterans and their families to access the right clinical and functional support, helping them live well after service.

Please see below for more information on what just might be your future role.

About You

Are you a committed, Registered Occupational Therapist, with more than two years’ experience, looking to expand your skills and have the opportunity to work with the Armed Forces Community? If you have an understanding of and empathy with the requirements of veterans and their families, you could contribute your skills and experience to improve the quality of life for our beneficiaries.

About the Role

As a Veterans Community Occupational Therapist, you will:

• Provide community-based occupational therapy input to veterans, supporting their physical health, independence and day-to-day functioning.
• Work with veterans and, where appropriate, their families and support networks to assess needs and identify practical, person-centred solutions.
• Support veterans to navigate healthcare and support pathways, promoting independence and wellbeing.
• Work collaboratively as part of a multidisciplinary team alongside Community Nurses and other professionals.
• Contribute to education, outreach and engagement activity to support the Armed Forces Community.

Please see the job description below for more details about the role.

About the Team

You will be joining the clinical team at Help for Heroes, providing community-based support to the Armed Forces Community across Northern Ireland. The team works collaboratively as a multidisciplinary group of Occupational Therapists and Community Nurses, finding resourceful ways to deliver care that is right, fair and tailored to each individual.

Our aim is to champion the Armed Forces Community as they transition to civilian life, working together as one team to support long-term health, independence and wellbeing.

In return we can offer you: 

• Belonging to a team who make a difference to our community and value equality, diversity and inclusion. 

• 29 days’ annual leave plus 8 bank holidays, regardless of service -plus your birthday off to celebrate! 

• Opportunity to buy and sell up to 5 days annual leave per year. 

• Added to our free health scheme from day one, including discounts on dental, opticians, massages, and more - with the option to upgrade. 

• 3 volunteer days per year to support the Help for Heroes community.

• A generous salary sacrifice pension scheme with an 8% employer contribution and a minimum 3% employee contribution, plus life insurance up to 4× salary as an active member. 

• Discounts on our branded clothing, including a free Help for Heroes hoody when you complete your induction. 

Closing date: 8th Feb 2026

Interview Process: There will be a 2 part interview process. Stage 1 will be online via Microsoft Teams. Stage 2 will be in person in Belfast.

Please note: We may close this vacancy early should we receive a high volume of strong applications.

Are you ready to help shape learning that truly supports people to thrive?

Strong learning underpins how we support our community, and at the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association the Learning and Development Manager will help shape the skills and confidence that move us forward.

As our Learning and Development Manager you will strengthen how we grow skills, build confidence and support all our people including staff and volunteers. A key part of this role is a genuine passion for delivering hands-on, engaging training that brings learning to life and supports people in a practical, meaningful way. You will guide the development of an inclusive learning culture that helps our teams work well together and prepares us for the future. You will join a supportive environment where we think big and focus on what matters most.

Hybrid Working and Flexibility: This role offers hybrid working, with the expectation to attend the office 2 days per week.

Key Responsibilities

• Create a clear, phased L&D roadmap that takes us from solid foundations to more modern and digital learning approaches
• Develop and deliver programmes that strengthen skills across all levels, with a strong focus on supporting managers and leaders
• Support and develop L&D team members
• Design and deliver regular learning opportunities including workshops, e-learning and practical sessions that support change and everyday effectiveness
• Use learning insights and data to understand successes, needs and inform planning
• Support a joined-up L&D partnering approach to offer tailored guidance to teams
• Lead and coordinate L&D projects and change initiatives in collaboration with leaders and experts
• Ensure all learning is inclusive and accessible for everyone
• Manage the L&D budget carefully and maximise value from the Apprenticeship Levy

About You

• Proven experience building or developing an L&D function from the ground up, ideally in a charity or purpose-led setting
• Strong background in blended learning across in-person, virtual and digital formats
• Solid project management experience, including LMS oversight
• Confident using data and insights to understand impact and inform decisions
• Good understanding of learning theories, best practice and emerging digital tools
• Professional study or equivalent experience in Education or Learning & Development

About Us:

Our vision is a world free from MND. Our mission is to improve care and support for people with MND, their families and carers. We fund and promote research that leads to new understanding and treatments and brings us closer to a cure for MND. The Association also campaigns and raises awareness so the needs of people with MND, and everyone who cares for them, are recognised, and addressed by wider society.

What We Offer:

• 28 days holiday, increasing to 33 days after 5 years, plus Bank Holidays.
• Access to UK Healthcare, including dental, eyecare, health screenings, and therapies.
• 24/7 GP access via phone and video.
• Life assurance and confidential counselling helplines.
• Salary sacrifice schemes (Cycle to Work, Buy/Sell Annual Leave).
• Access to Benefit Hub for discounts on everyday shopping.
• Enhanced pension scheme.
• Opportunities for training and personal development.
• Hybrid working.

The full job description and further information about working for the MND Association is available in the candidate pack.

Interviews are due to take place on Tuesday 24th February, face-to-face in London.

We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusivity. We work to remove barriers for everyone affected by MND, employees, volunteers, and stakeholders.

As part of the Disability Confident Scheme, we guarantee interviews for disabled applicants who meet the role's requirements.

If you enjoy building strong relationships, finding practical solutions and working collaboratively, we’d love to hear from you. Join us as our Learning and Development Manager and help shape a confident, future-ready workforce.

As our Digital Products Manager, you will play a key role in shaping digital experiences that truly matter. Join our Digital Team at the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association for a 12-month Fixed Term Contract, where you will drive accessibility and improve digital experiences for our audiences across our digital products.

This Digital Products Manager role offers the chance to improve and develop our digital portfolio, using insight and collaboration to create accessible and effective services. With a joined up approach, the Digital Products Manager will play a key part in delivering work that is always focused on impact. As our Digital Products Manager, you will help us think big while ensuring our digital products remain secure, informed by data and shaped by users.

Hybrid Working and Flexibility: This role offers hybrid working, with the expectation to attend the office 1 day per week.

Key Responsibilities:

• Manage the digital product portfolio, including website, microsites and third party platforms
• Oversee our continuous improvement programmes in partnership with our digital agency and in collaboration with colleagues in the Digital Products and User Experience Team
• Scope new products, map user journeys and develop optimised digital experiences
• Advise on procurement of third-party digital platforms and technology
• Translate business and user needs into clear technical requirements and user stories
• Ensure accessibility, security and SEO best practice across all digital products
• Use data, insight and testing to improve user journeys and refine decisions
• Provide training and support to colleagues to strengthen digital capability
• Responsible for GA4 (Google Analytics) and GTM (Google Tag Manager) and produce key insights on the impact of digital products

About You:

• Skilled in Drupal CMS and Microsoft Dynamics 365
• Experienced across the full product lifecycle and familiar with key delivery practices
• Experience in line management and supporting team development
• Knowledgeable in user centred design, complex journey mapping- and user testing
• Strong understanding of accessibility tools and principles for people with disabilities
• Able to use analytics and insight to guide improvements
• Effective at managing multiple priorities while meeting deadlines

About Us:

Our vision is a world free from MND. Our mission is to improve care and support for people with MND, their families and carers. We fund and promote research that leads to new understanding and treatments and brings us closer to a cure for MND. The Association also campaigns and raises awareness so the needs of people with MND, and everyone who cares for them, are recognised, and addressed by wider society.

What We Offer:

• 28 days holiday, increasing to 33 days after 5 years, plus Bank Holidays.
• Access to UK Healthcare, including dental, eyecare, health screenings, and therapies.
• 24/7 GP access via phone and video.
• Life assurance and confidential counselling helplines.
• Salary sacrifice schemes (Cycle to Work, Buy/Sell Annual Leave).
• Access to Benefit Hub for discounts on everyday shopping.
• Enhanced pension scheme.
• Opportunities for training and personal development.
• Hybrid working.

The full job description and further information about working for the MND Association is available in the candidate pack.

We are committed to equality, diversity, and inclusivity. We work to remove barriers for everyone affected by MND, employees, volunteers, and stakeholders.

As part of the Disability Confident Scheme, we guarantee interviews for disabled applicants who meet the role's requirements.

You will be part of a small energetic and committed team supporting the delivery of Northamptonshire Community Foundation’s philanthropy and income generation ambitions. Working collaboratively with colleagues, you will help grow and steward support from individuals, corporate, charitable and statutory donors, with a lead responsibility for a defined portfolio of relationships and initiatives.

Fundraising and relationship building happen across the charity, and you will manage your own portfolio of donors and partners and work with the Chief Executive and wider team to co-ordinate activity, share insight and maximise opportunities for place based philanthropy in Northamptonshire.

You will need confidence, excellent communication skills and the ability to plan and deliver projects as part of a highly collaborative team. You will be comfortable cultivating, stewarding and sometimes soliciting charitable donations yourself, as well as creating opportunities for the Chief Executive to engage with donors and prospective supporters.

Assistant Director of Operations
Salary: £72,000 per annum
Work Pattern: This is a permanent contract, working full time, Monday to Friday, 37.5 hours a week.
Location: Your base can be at any of the 6 mainland UK Discovery Sites: Arundel BN18, Llanelli SA14, London SW13, Martin Mere L40, Slimbridge GL2 or Washington NE38. The 7th site is Castle Espie.
For this role we can offer the opportunity for hybrid working. It is expected the role will need you to be present at each of your sites on a regular basis, at least once per month.

About The Role

WWT is the charity for wetlands.

This is a critical role in the recently restructured Operations Directorate at WWT. As Assistant Director, you will be directly responsible for the performance of our 7 Wetland Discovery sites. You will provide inspiring and professional leadership to your teams, whilst proactively collaborating cross organisation and externally.

Your focus will be on driving meaningful improvements at sites across our three ambitions of Restore, Inspire and Thrive, with emphasis on financial performance driven by visitor experiences. Reporting to the Director of Operations, you will directly manage two Heads of Operations, a Head of Retail and Head of Catering. You will indirectly lead more than 400 staff and volunteers across Living Collections, Reserve Management, Visitor Experience, Trading, Marketing, Facilities and Grounds.

You will work closely with Health & Safety and Sustainability leads to ensure good governance and compliance at sites and across the Operations Directorate.

You will have a background working in visitor attractions or a very similar sector, coupled with a passion for purpose-led organisations and a keen interest in the environment. You will be an inspiring leader with high levels of emotional intelligence and values & behaviours that align with WWT.

About You

To join as our Assistant Director of Operations, you will need to evidence:

• Experience in a senior position(s) held in the visitor attraction/events management sectors, directly accountable for site operations and visitor experience throughout the visitor journey.
• Strong skills in leading business planning, financial analysis, budget development and management, and delivery of significant capital projects across £multi-million business unit(s).
• Demonstrable ability to recruit, performance manage and motivate large (>100) diverse multi-disciplinary teams.
• The ability to develop, communicate and implement strategic change, turning organisational vision into improvements at scale.
• An inspirational and empathetic leadership style, able to role model an organisation’s values and behaviours, and to evidence strong emotional intelligence. Able to prioritise effectively, to collaborate, network and influence internally and externally at a senior level.
• A highly creative and inquisitive mindset, able to spot and exploit potential opportunities, keen to explore, test and learn as a means of driving continual improvement and excellence in the visitor experience.
• Experience of working collaboratively with insight, marketing and communications teams to deliver strong brand and marketing campaigns which drive footfall.

About Us

We’re WWT, and we’re on a mission to restore the super-powered ecosystems we call wetlands. There’s never been a more important moment for our work, and we’ve got some phenomenal people on the case.

Whether they’re taking a new visitor under their wing, or conducting ground-breaking research further afield, our team are second to none. And there’s nothing we love more than watching them soar.

Whatever you do here, you’ll be helping to restore wetlands and unlock their power. So, the only question left is, what role will you play?

Why you’ll love working at WWT

• Wake up every day knowing your work is helping to restore wetlands, and our world
• Be surrounded and inspired by our team of passionate, dedicated people
• 33 days annual leave (which goes up to 38 days after 5 years of service) – this includes bank holidays and you have flexibility to take those days whenever you want
• Free entry to all our wetland centres, including your family
• Free car parking and secure bike storage areas
• Colleague discount on shopping and memberships
• Cycle to work scheme
• Contributory pension scheme
• Life Assurance of three times your salary, for peace of mind for your loved ones
• Independent personal, workplace and financial advice from our Employee Assistance Programme

Closing Date: 23rd February 2026

N.B. We reserve the right to close the advert early if we receive a sufficient number of applications from candidates who meet the required skills and experience. We therefore encourage early applications.

Interested?

If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application for this position.

WWT is an equal opportunities employer and all applications will be considered solely on merit.

No agencies please.