Assistant Head of Fundraising (Public Fundraising)
Salary £57,574.79 per annum
LocationLondon/Hybrid
Weekly Hours35
The Vacancy
Job Title: Assistant Head of Fundraising (Public Fundraising)
Location: London/Hybrid
Salary: £57,574.79 per annum
Weekly Hours: 35
Reference: YMC1212513
An exciting moment to join us
YMCA England & Wales is entering one of the most exciting chapters in its fundraising history, launching our ambition to create 10,000 new homes for young people. Working alongside local YMCAs, we will support the development of new accommodation across the federation, helping young people move towards independence.
This role sits at the heart of that ambition.
You will lead the fundraising behind two critical components of the 10,000 Homes programme:
• Securing income from the public to build and sustain a central Centre of Expertise (mobilisation team), supporting local YMCAs to develop and deliver housing projects.
• Raising capital from individual supporters, mid-level donors and major donors to grow a replenishing national fund that provides upfront investment to unlock housing developments across the federation.
At the centre of this is the 10,000 Homes Fund: a bold, housing-focused proposition that offers the public a clear and tangible way to support young people into safe, stable accommodation. You will be responsible for growing this proposition, ensuring it resonates strongly with supporters and inspires giving at all levels.
You will lead an integrated public fundraising approach, bringing together individual giving, mid-level and major donors into one compelling, housing-led narrative. A key part of the role will be translating a complex, federated model into a simple, emotional and compelling case for support that connects with people’s motivations to give.
We’ve established strong early foundations and are now ready to scale. This role offers the opportunity to take a high-potential public fundraising proposition to the next level -expanding its reach, deepening supporter engagement, and unlocking significant new income.
We are looking for someone who is creative, data-driven and passionate about engaging the public to drive meaningful change for young people. We’re looking for someone comfortable working in a federated environment, with the ability to simplify complex ideas into compelling messages for the public.
The role
As Assistant Head of Fundraising (Public Fundraising), you will lead and inspire a team of talented fundraisers, deputising for the Head of Fundraising and taking ownership of our most ambitious programmes:
The 10,000 Homes Fund driving forward our flagship proposition across individual giving, cash appeals and mid-level audiences.
Major Donors shaping the strategy for high-net-worth relationships, new giving circles and development boards.
RoomSponsor, YMCA’s flagship regular giving product, now in its third year of an ambitious growth strategy. You will oversee a unique partnership model across 45 local YMCAs, support the income distribution process, and see first-hand the impact of your work through a programme that directly supports young people with safe accommodation.
Legacies working with the Senior Fundraising Manager and Head of Fundraising to define and grow what is set to become a landmark legacy programme.
This is a hands-on leadership role: you will set direction, manage budgets, develop your team, while also being prepared to step into delivery when it matters most. You will balance strategic oversight with practical execution, ensuring programmes are both ambitious and deliverable.
About you
You are an experienced public fundraising professional with a strong track record in individual giving or direct marketing, alongside a well-developed understanding of major donor fundraising. You know how to bring different disciplines together behind a single proposition and deliver results.
You are an effective and confident leader, able to build, motivate and develop high-performing teams. You create clarity, set high standards, and support others to do their best work, stepping in when needed and leading from the front.
You are at your best when driving a clear proposition forward. You are excited by the opportunity to take a compelling idea and translate it into something that engages the public, inspires generosity and delivers sustainable income.
You are energised by a challenge, comfortable with complexity and working in a federated environment, where success depends on strong relationships and shared ownership. You are skilled at working with partners, whether agencies, internal stakeholders or local YMCAs, and know how to align people around a common goal.
You combine strategic thinking with operational delivery. You are data-driven, using insight and performance to shape your decisions, and confident working with (and occasionally building) financial models to plan, test and scale activity. You bring both creativity and discipline, generating new ideas while ensuring they are grounded, deliverable and effective.
Above all, you are a strong communicator and influencer. You can simplify complex ideas into clear, compelling messages, build confidence with colleagues and stakeholders, and position fundraising as a critical enabler of impact.
Why join us now
YMCA is the oldest and largest youth charity in the world, serving communities across England and Wales every day. The fundraising team is geared up for success, the strategy is set, the proposition is proven, and the results are already coming in. What we need now is a leader ready to take this momentum to the next level.
YMCA England & Wales is committed to equality and valuing diversity. We welcome applications from all backgrounds.
Our recruitment process is anonymised and candidates' names are hidden. Safer recruitment is important to us and the successful applicant will be asked to provide two references. They will also be required to complete a safeguarding self-declaration, safeguarding training and undertake a DBS check.
YMCA is the world's oldest and largest youth charity. Collectively, we support 402,501 young people across 708 communities in England and Wales.


Role Purpose
This role is at the heart of Child Bereavement UK’s identity, leading the strategy and delivery of our brand across the organisation to ensure we are recognised as the UK’s leading bereavement charity for children, young people and parents. You will champion our brand, supporting teams across all departments to apply it consistently, creatively and confidently, strengthening trust, recognition, and impact.
As the guardian of our brand, you will develop, protect, and embed our identity, ensuring all organisational output is clear, inclusive, and aligned with our values. You will also identify high-impact brand collaboration opportunities to enhance our reputation and drive recognition, building strong relationships both internally and externally to maximise our brand influence.
In this role, you will combine strategic vision with hands-on guidance, enabling teams to live our brand with confidence while positioning Child Bereavement UK as a bold, trusted, and inspiring voice in the sector.
Main Responsibilities
Brand strategy and positioning
· Lead the development and ongoing evolution of the Child Bereavement UK brand strategy, ensuring it is audience driven and reflects our purpose, values and strategic priorities.
· Collaborate with audiences to ensure brand components and their application are stakeholder evidenced and driven.
· Define and maintain clear brand positioning, messaging and tone of voice for key audiences.
· Conduct regular brand research and use insight and research to ensure the brand remains relevant, credible and distinctive.
Brand governance and quality
· Own, maintain and embed brand guidelines, ensuring consistent application across campaigns, communications, fundraising and digital activity.
· Organise, manage and proactively update the Child Bereavement UK brand asset and photo libraries by sourcing and organising new commissions.
· Provide advice, guidance and sign-off on high-profile or high-risk brand outputs.
· Support teams to use the brand well, balancing consistency with flexibility and creativity.
· Work closely with marketing, communications and fundraising colleagues to help shape campaign narratives, key messages and offer creative direction that align with brand principles.
· Ensure messaging and visual identity are aligned and coherent across channels.
· Contribute to creative briefs and support the development of compelling, audience-focused storytelling.
· Support the content and marketing teams with the development of branded content as required including but not limited to graphic design, filming, editing and copywriting.
Brand collaboration
· Identify, develop and nurture brand collaborations that strengthen awareness, credibility and reach, and align with the organisation’s purpose and values.
· Act as a brand advisor in discussions, ensuring opportunities are strategically aligned and reputationally sound.
· Work with colleagues to ensure brand collaborations are coherent, well-governed and mutually beneficial, with clear messaging and visual alignment.
· Support the development of collaboration narratives, co-branded materials and storytelling that reflect shared values and objectives.
Internal brand leadership
· Act as an internal champion for the brand, helping staff and volunteers understand and apply it in their day-to-day work.
· Deliver brand training, resources and guidance as needed.
· Create and deliver communications to ensure the brand is reflected consistently in how the organisation presents itself internally.
Design
· Own the creation and evolution of core evergreen brand assets, ensuring the Child Bereavement purpose, values, and visual identity are consistently and clearly expressed.
· Be the senior authority for design standards and frameworks.
· Support marketing colleagues to confidently create short-form, campaign, and project materials providing guidance, tools and access to approved freelance designers where needed.
· Focus brand design resource on high-value, long-term assets, avoiding unnecessary centralisation of short-term or one-off materials in order to reduce bottlenecks and keep work moving at pace.
· Manage and maintain relationships with approved design freelancers and agencies.
Insight, performance and reputation
· Monitor brand health, awareness and perception, using insight to inform decisions and improvements.
· Work closely with marketing and communications colleagues on reputation management and sensitive issues.
· Stay informed about sector trends, public expectations and best practice in brand management.
Collaboration & Stakeholder Engagement
· Work closely with the Directors of Marketing & Communications, Services & Service Transformation, and Income Generation to deliver strategic brand strategies.
· Foster strong cross-charity relationships to ensure coherent and consistent branded output and shared learning.
Person Specification
Essential
Experience & Knowledge
· A proven track record of success in leading and/or managing an organisation’s brand activity and maintaining a high-quality brand portfolio.
· Experience of communicating and implementing a brand across an organisation.
· Proven experience and confidence of brand guardianship and developing and implementing brand guidelines.
· The ability to lead, enthuse and inspire colleagues at all levels to be brand guardians and support brand and marketing activities.
· Strong understanding of how brand shows up across the full customer journey.
· Strong understanding of audience insight, segmentation and customer needs.
· The ability to provide clear, professional and well-reasoned brand feedback on a wide range of creative and content.
· Experience of collaborating with audiences to develop brand plans and assets.
· Experience of using insight, analytics, testing and research to develop and inform decision-making.
Skills
· Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
· Strong graphic design and video editing skills (e.g. Canva, Adobe, CapCut).
· Meticulous attention to detail.
· Ability to translate business goals into clear brand positioning and direction.
· Strong analytical thinking, using insight and data to inform decisions.
· Excellent creative judgement across visual identity, tone of voice and storytelling.
· Ability to brief, evaluate and elevate creative work.
· Strong project management skills and the ability to prioritise workload.
· Ability to manage multiple initiatives simultaneously.
· Ability to balance long-term brand building with short term performance needs.
· Ability to work collaboratively and bring colleagues on board a brand journey.
· Ability to demonstrate initiative and to work proactively and independently.
· Ability to work well under pressure.
Attributes & Values
· Compassion, emotional intelligence and ability to work respectfully with bereaved children, young people and families.
· Collaborative, approachable, and able to build trust across teams.
· Creative, innovative and proactive, with a solutions-focused, self-starter mindset.
· Customer-centric mindset, grounded in audience insight.
· Highly organised, resilient and able to work independently in a remote environment.
· Strong commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion and ethical storytelling, including amplifying lived experience safely and respectfully.
· Willingness to undertake relevant training and development opportunities.
· Willingness to work flexibly to meet organisational need.
· Ability to undertake periodic UK travel and represent the charity at meetings and events.
Desirable
· Previous experience in a Brand Lead or similar role.
· Experience working within the charity/third sector, particularly in bereavement, mental health or social care.
· Understanding of bereavement and the needs of bereaved children, young people and parents.
· Experience contributing to or leading the development of brand strategy including positioning, purpose and key messaging frameworks
· Experience leading a rebrand or major brand evolution including repositioning, visual identity refreshes or large-scale brand rollouts.
· Exposing adapted brand strategy across multi audiences.
· Knowledge of brand tracking, perception research and audience insight tools.
· Strong understanding of digital-first branding including expressing brands across digital products, platforms and social channels.
· Familiarity with CRM systems such as Salesforce.
Benefits
· 28 days’ holiday plus bank holidays (pro rata if applicable) with increase for long service.
· TOIL for our hours work.
· Contributory pension scheme.
· Company sick pay.
· Employee Assistance Programme.
· Life assurance.
· Training loans.
· Enhanced family friendly policies.
Recruitment Timetable
Application deadline: 6th July 2026 at midnight
We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive a high number of applications for the role before the closing date.
Interviews
If you are progressed to an interview, you will be invited to attend a 1-hour competency-based interview on MS Teams with the Hiring Managers for the role. You may also be asked to complete an interview task, which will also be shared with you in advance.
Proposed interview dates: 20th and 21st July 2026.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
