National services director jobs

Prisoners Abroad is a small but powerful organisation supporting people through some of the most isolating and traumatic experiences imaginable. Whether it’s someone surviving a prison sentence overseas, returning to the UK with nothing, or a family facing the distress of having a family member imprisoned abroad, your work here will have a direct and lasting impact.

A fantastic opportunity has opened up to manage and grow a well-established major donor programme, developing relationships with high-net-worth individuals, craft compelling cases for support, and deliver thoughtful stewardship that makes donors feel truly valued and connected. You’ll also have the chance to shape how we grow our pipeline, with support from a team that values creativity, emotional intelligence and collaboration, so plenty of opportunities to get creative and make your mark.

With experience of securing 4–5 figure gifts and a flair for building meaningful relationships, you’ll be a confident communicator with strong writing skills, and you’ll enjoy using insight to create personal donor journeys that inspire generosity.

To apply for this position, please read the job pack which provides lots of information about the charity, the role and how to apply.

The deadline for applications is 10am Tuesday 5th May, however we will be reviewing applications as we receive them, so please apply when you are ready and you may be contacted about your application before the closing date. To ensure inclusivity, all applications received up to the closing date will be considered equally.

If you have any questions about the application or recruitment process, our contact details can be found in the job pack. 

Head of Direct Dialogue
Location: Flexible / Home-based (with regular travel to London and nationwide)
Salary: £65,000
Contract: Permanent

Shelter is leading the movement to defend the right to a safe home, and to win this fight, they are expanding their award-winning income generation team. Shelter is now looking for a strategic and ambitious Head of Direct Dialogue to lead its high-impact face-to-face fundraising programme.

As Head of Direct Dialogue, you will set the vision and strategy for one of Shelter’s most vital acquisition channels. This is a senior leadership role within the Individual Giving team, responsible for managing a £4m investment budget to deliver sustainable, long-term growth across cause-led and lottery products.

Leading a hybrid model of in-house teams and external agencies, you will oversee the end-to-end delivery of campaigns that inspire thousands of new supporters. You will be a highly visible leader, spending time in the field to support non-desk-based teams while ensuring the highest standards of compliance, risk management, and supporter experience. This is an opportunity to innovate, using data-driven insights to optimise supporter journeys and embed direct dialogue expertise within the wider mobilisation plans.

Shelter is looking for a commercial and entrepreneurial leader with extensive experience in large-scale direct dialogue campaigns. You will bring:

• Strategic Expertise: A proven track record of leading complex fundraising programmes across in-house and agency channels.
• Contract Management: Experience managing high-value partnerships (£1.5m+) with the ability to negotiate and drive high performance.
• Analytical Thinking: A data-led approach to budget modelling, forecasting and scenario planning in evolving environments.
• Regulatory Knowledge: In-depth understanding of the Code of Fundraising Practice and Gambling Commission regulations.
• Inclusive Leadership: A commitment to diversity and the ability to foster an equitable, high-performing team culture where people can be their authentic selves.

For further information on the role and how to apply, please download the Candidate Pack.
 

Closing date: Monday 4th May, 9am

The Living Wage Foundation is seeking an experienced and driven Senior Media and Communications Manager to join our team for a 12-month contract. This is an exciting opportunity for a highly organised and proactive communications professional with a strong background in media relations, public messaging, and team leadership. The ideal candidate will be experienced and confident in working to tight deadlines, responding to last-minute changes, and prioritising competing demands in a high-profile environment. They will be motivated to amplify the Living Wage Foundation’s mission of tackling low pay and insecure work.

The postholder will lead all media, messaging, and external affairs work, developing and implementing a proactive media strategy that supports our mission and key campaigns, such as Living Wage Week and the annual Rates announcement. As a skilled media professional, you will oversee all communications outputs, ensuring consistency and strategic alignment, while delivering media training and refining key messaging to maximise reach and impact. 

In this role, you will be instrumental in advancing our political engagement efforts, building cross-party support and working with political leaders, mayoral teams, and other key stakeholders to promote our initiatives. You’ll manage two direct reports (Events Manager and Media Manager) who each hold line management responsibilities, and you will play a critical role within our Senior Management Team, collaborating closely with the Head of Communications to shape the overall direction of our communications work. This role will work closely with Citizens UK colleagues, including the Citizens UK communications team on cross-organisational priorities.  You will report to the Head of Communications.

As a senior leader, you will be responsible for managing and allocating part of the communications team budget, expanding team capacity, and driving the team’s effectiveness. In collaboration with other senior managers, you will help foster a culture that values creativity, innovation, and strategic impact.

This is an exciting opportunity to join Mercy Ships UK at a time of growth and ambition. As Project Officer, you will play a pivotal role in delivering high-quality creative projects that support our mission to bring life-changing healthcare to some of the world’s poorest communities.

Working closely with the Creative Lead and wider Communications team, you will manage end-to-end creative workflows from briefing and planning through to delivery, ensuring projects are delivered on time, on brand, and to a high standard.

You’ll coordinate designers, copywriters and external suppliers, manage project timelines and resources, and act as a key link between internal stakeholders and the creative team. This is a fast-paced, collaborative role that requires strong organisation, attention to detail, and the ability to balance multiple priorities effectively.

Beyond project delivery, you’ll also support internal communications, help maintain key planning tools and systems, and contribute to improving processes across the team.

If you’re experienced in managing creative or marketing workflows, thrive in a collaborative environment, and are motivated by using your skills to make a meaningful difference, we’d love to hear from you.

Role: To engage Chatham’s diverse communities in the heritage of St John’s Chatham. This role will be
responsible for working with local community groups to develop and deliver activities and programmes
to involve young people aged 14 – 24 years old, low income families, older adults over 55 years old,
homeless and vulnerably housed people and local schools as part of the major community programme
at St John’s Chatham.

Principal accountabilities
● Through engagement with local community groups create a programme that results in St John’s becoming a multipurpose space for the local community.
● Develop, manage and deliver community engagement projects to interpret the history of St John’s, based on research gathered by the Research & Development Consultant.
● Work with the Volunteer & Training Co-ordinator to explore the potential for a community based café that is used as a centre for the local community to meet and learn new skills and make new friends
● Work with local community organisations to create programmes that support the development of skills, such as budgeting, cooking, gardening, English as a second language etc
● Create and maintain an arts and crafts area within the café of St John’s that inspires people to respond to the heritage around them
● In collaboration with the Research Development Consultant identify potential speakers and deliver a programme of talks about the heritage of St John’s, Waterloo churches and Chatham.
● Develop a programme of events to test if there is a market for evening events at St John’s, including but not exclusively, concerts, silent discos, film showing
● Develop and deliver, in collaboration with local community partners a regular programme of events for different audiences
● Facilitating positive and effective partnerships between community groups, public sector bodies and stakeholders to support the Activity Programme.
● Lead on the external communications for the programme via social media channels and local media where appropriate

3. Experience, knowledge and skills
The experience, skills and abilities, and general attributes sections below capture the desired
requirements of the ideal post holder. No specific qualifications are required for this role
however qualifications may be used as evidence of skills and experience as appropriate.

Experience
● Detailed knowledge of best practice in events management and community engagement is required.
● Developing relationships with diverse communities.
● Developing and delivering activities for and with diverse communities.
● Experience of working with Church Communities.*
● Relevant experience of working in heritage.*
● Have a good understanding of the social and economic issues affecting communities in Chatham.*

Skills and abilities
● Ability to work on own initiative and deliver to deadlines.
● Ability to develop and deliver engaging programmes with diverse communities.
● Budget management.
● Project management.
● Excellent communication skills with organisations and individuals.
● Ability to work as part of a team.
● Ability to deliver high quality and productive work.
● Ability to maintain accurate records.
● Working knowledge of standard software packages.
● Knowledge software for budgeting purposes.*

General attributes
● Willingness to undertake additional training as needed to support the delivery of the Activity Plan.
● The commitment to the protection of safeguarding of children, young people and vulnerable adults.
● All staff are required to uphold the employer’s policies and communicate with diverse members of the public.
● To undertake a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check as required.
● Previous experience in church operations.*

*desirable but not essential.

For more information, please see the Job Decription attached.

We are looking for a highly motivated and organised individual to maintain, develop and continuously improve our systems. The role will be an integral part of the Living Wage Operations Team, providing strategic technical support and ensure the integrity of our systems, often overseeing development projects with external partners.

The Operations and Data Manager will need to be highly numerate and have great analytical skills to support our monitoring and evaluation functions, working with the Head of Operations and Insight on financial and budgeting management, reconciliation and forecasting for the Living Wage Foundation. The suitable candidate will be detail-oriented, be able to demonstrate their ability to seek out improvements and problem solve creatively and have experience working with Salesforce or equivalent CRM systems.

Use your leadership abilities to strengthen and encourage the persecuted church around the world.

Today 388 million Christians experience high levels of violence and oppression for their faith. And the shocking thing is that most people in the UK don’t know about it. Open Doors UK and Ireland raises awareness about the growing levels of persecution and enables people to join a huge underground global network which is keeping the church alive in the most dangerous and difficult contexts - despite the determined efforts of extremists to eradicate Christianity.

As we identify with people suffering for their faith, through prayer, giving and taking action, we see our faith grow. We see the church here become the mature body that we are called, in Scripture, to be.

We are now seeking a Chief Executive Officer to lead this work through a season of missional growth, opportunity and ambition. The CEO will be pivotal in raising the profile of the persecuted church, deepening connections with the church in the UK and Ireland and influencing Government to protect Christians around the world.

To that end, the CEO will be a strategic leader, highly relational in approach, agile and nimble in mindset, delivery-oriented and passionate about strengthening the church.

If that sounds like you please see the job pack attached and prayerfully consider applying. You can expect to have your own faith, reading of Scripture and prayer-life, transformed!

Closing date for applications is 8th May 2026.

Here at the Royal British Legion, we are currently embarking on an exciting new phase within our Membership directorate. As part of our new ten year strategy, we are pleased to be seeking a Head of Youth in a newly created, leadership role.

As a key member of the Membership, Armed Forces and Community Engagement team, this role will contribute to the delivery of our new strategy leading a nationally-scaled, innovative youth approach, creating the conditions for our organisation to thrive for future generations.

Reporting into our new Director: Armed Forces Engagement, Partnerships and Youth, this exciting new role will see you identify and develop strategic, high-impact youth partnerships at a national level (including in the devolved nations) that help us reach more young people in new, exciting and innovative ways, advancing RBL’s vision of “Bringing Society Together to Recognise, Remember and Support the Armed Forces Community”.

You will lead the development, delivery and evolution of an RBL youth plan, highlighting the role of the RBL and positioning youth engagement as a long-term strategic enabler of our Armed Forces Community. This will include work across schools and youth organisations, with a particular emphasis on remembrance activities, and developing a Cadet Forces Engagement strategy.

Managing a small and newly created team, key responsibilities will include:

- Develop and implement a Cadet Forces engagement and partnership working strategy aimed at both cadets and CFAVs which seeks to raise awareness and understanding of the role of the armed forces community, promotes engagement in remembrance activities (including the wearing of the Poppy) and develops and understanding of the role of RBL
- lead the development and approval of the RBL Schools and Learning Strategy, fostering collaboration across departments to maximise engagement with school-age children
- Working with our current youth members, re-design and re-launch the youth membership, ensuring RBL has a relevant, engaging and attractive youth membership offer
- Demonstrate creativity, initiative and thought-leadership in planning, piloting and developing youth initiatives with partners
- Act as a champion for young people internally and externally to partners

Come and be part of the leading Armed Forces charity, making a difference to the lives of those who have served to keep us safe and protect our way of life.

You will be expected to travel regularly in the course of your work including regularly to London Haig House. You will be contracted to your home address, where you will be expected to work when not travelling.

This is a full time position, working 35 hours per week, Monday-Friday, with understanding that due to the nature of the role some evening and/or weekend work may be required at times.

The successful applicant will require a full UK driving licence and an Enhanced DBS check will be be undertaken as part of the pre employment checks process.

Employee benefits include –

- 28 day’s paid holiday (plus bank holidays) increasing with service, with optional annual leave purchase scheme of up to 5 working days
- Enhanced paid maternity, paternity and adoption leave
- Generous pension contributions, with Employer contributions ranging from 6% to 10%
- Range of flexible working options may be available, depending on your role
- Employee Assistance Programme providing confidential counselling, financial and legal advice
- Range of courses delivered by learning specialists to support your development goals and objectives
- Opportunities to volunteer
- Travel loans, Cycle to Work, and more!

For more detailed information about the role, please see the Vacancy Information Pack attached to our direct advert. Our teams take a personalised approach to shortlisting, which is carried out without the use of AI and is based on the evidence provided in your application against the essential and desirable criteria in the Person Specification.

RBL is committed to creating a diverse and inclusive organisation, reflecting the diversity of the armed forces community and of wider society. We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds and personal characteristics.

As part of our commitment to inclusion, we offer guaranteed interview schemes for candidates who declare an Armed Forces connection and/or a disability. However, candidates are only eligible for this scheme if their application clearly demonstrates that they meet all of the essential criteria listed in the Person Specification for the role.

We may close this vacancy early if we believe we have enough strong applications to be able to successfully fill the role. Interested candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible.

We are looking for someone to provide key administrative and practical support for a range of projects. The post holder will have excellent administration and interpersonal skills, helping to ensure our projects run smoothly by carrying out tasks effectively and on time, using their own initiative to problem solve and seeking clarity where needed. They will build good working relationships within Centre for Sustainable Energy (CSE) and with external stakeholders.

Pay and conditions

• The role is permanent, full-time (37.5 hours per week).

• The starting salary for the role will be £26,450 per year.

• You will be entitled to 25 days paid holiday (plus statutory holidays).

CSE offer a range of benefits including, subsidised bike purchase and Tech Scheme, Life Assurance, Health Cash plan, retail discounts and discounted breakdown cover and many more.

We will pay fees and expenses on relevant training courses.

Specific responsibilities

An applicant appointed to the role will be expected to:

• To provide administrative support for the timely delivery of project activities, accurate record keeping and robust reporting across a range of CSE projects and initiatives.

• To provide support for the planning, promotion and delivery of training sessions, external workshops and events (both online and in person).

• To play a key role in co-ordinating our support (including grant giving) for community-based organisations, including acting as a key point of contact, recording support, tracking payments, monitoring delivery, and maintaining records.

• To liaise with a range of stakeholders, potentially including community groups, local authorities, town and parish councils, and partners in our youth work initiatives.

• To represent CSE on a range of projects, in external in-person and online meetings and events.

• To support promotion of CSE projects, activities, reports and publications to ensure effective engagement with the target audience.

To see a more detailed list of responsibilities please see the supporting documents attached. These documents are also available to download from our website.

Essential attributes for this role include:

• 5 GCSEs (including English) at grade A-C (or 4 or above), or equivalent

• Use of MS office applications including Word, Excel and Outlook

• Experience with Teams and Zoom for online calls / meetings

• Providing administrative support in an organisation or for a specific activity

• Working on more than one project or set of tasks at once, and being accountable for your time

• Experience of liaising with colleagues and external customer/partners

• Highly organised and able to manage time and a busy workload

• Excellent written communication skills (e.g. emails, newsletters, reports)

• Excellent verbal communication skills (e.g. online calls, telephone calls, speaking in meetings)

• Able to build strong working relationships with people (e.g. within the organisation, and in community organisations we support)

• Excellent attention to detail – even when you’re working on repetitive administrative tasks or working under pressure

• Strong teamwork is essential for this role.

Please note, the above is an overview of the skills required for this role. To see the full list of essential and desirable skills please see the attached job description.

How to apply

Applications should be made on the application form, available at on our website. Your application should demonstrate how your knowledge, skills and experience relate to the person specification. CVs and supporting letters will not be considered as part of the application process. The front sheet of the application form containing personal information will be removed prior to the details of the form being read by the selection panel.

Applications should be sent by email or by post to: Reception, Centre for Sustainable Energy, St James Court, St James Parade, Bristol BS1 3LH.

The closing date for applications is 17:00 on Friday 1 May 2026.

Interviews will take place in-person at our offices in Bristol on Thursday 21 May 2026.

If invited to interview, we will ask you to provide evidence of eligibility to work in the UK.

The Interim CEO will provide immediate, focused, time-bound leadership to drive through an extended period of organisational change, ensuring that Ubele’s existing strategy and transformation plans are implemented effectively, consistently, and at pace.

As Ubele has just produced a new 5 year strategy (April 2026 - March 2030) this is not a role to redefine strategy, but to deliver against it - bringing structure, clarity, and momentum to implementation across the organisation. The Interim CEO will focus on:

• Embedding systems, processes, and consistent ways of working
• Strengthening leadership accountability, line management, and performance oversight
• Improving organisational coordination, decision-making, and operational effectiveness
• Providing visible, steady leadership to support confidence and cohesion across teams

Working closely with the Advisory Board and Executive Chair, and Senior Leadership Team, the Interim CEO will support Ubele to move from a prolonged period of transition into a more stable, aligned, and effectively operating organisation.

Lead the implementation of Ubele’s strategy, ensuring it is clearly prioritised, understood, and translated into deliverable plans across the organisation.

Organisational stability and change delivery

• Drive delivery of Ubele’s transformation programme, ensuring that plans are implemented with clarity, pace, and discipline.
• Bring structure and coordination to change initiatives, ensuring clear ownership, timelines, and measurable outcomes.
• Identify and address delays, barriers, or areas of ambiguity, ensuring momentum is maintained.
• Support the organisation to move from a prolonged period of transition to a more stable and consistent operating environment.
• Ensure change is embedded into day-to-day practice, not remaining at the planning or design stage.

Operational leadership & management

• Provide strong operational leadership across all areas of the organisation, including programmes, partnerships, consultancy, training, enterprise development, and community asset management.
• Ensure clarity of roles, responsibilities, and decision-making across the organisation.
• Line manage the Senior Leadership Team, holding them accountable for delivery, team management, and performance within their areas.
• Embed consistent performance management practices, including clear objectives, regular review, and timely intervention.
• Strengthen internal systems, processes, and ways of working to improve coordination, efficiency, and organisational effectiveness.
• Ensure policies and procedures are actively used, understood, and adhered to across teams.
• Oversee the development and use of high-quality data, reporting, and management information to support decision-making and track performance.

Governance & advisory board relations (CIC)

• Work closely with the Chair and Advisory Board to ensure strong and compliant CIC governance.
• Provide clear and timely reporting on organisational performance, finances, risk, and progress against strategic priorities.
• Support the Advisory Board to maintain effective oversight and fulfil its strategic and fiduciary responsibilities.
• Ensure appropriate governance structures and processes are in place and operating effectively.

Finance, risk & sustainability

• Provide oversight of financial performance, ensuring robust budgeting, forecasting, and financial controls are in place.
• Hold the Head of Finance accountable for financial accuracy, compliance, and reporting.
• Ensure clear visibility of financial position, risks, and sustainability planning.
• Work with the Advisory Board and SLT to support income diversification and long-term financial resilience.

Funding, partnerships & external relations

• Maintain and develop relationships with funders, commissioners, social investors, and strategic partners.
• Act as a credible and confident external representative for Ubele.
• Support the organisation to navigate a complex funding environment with clarity and focus.
• Ensure external partnerships align with organisational priorities and capacity.

Legal, regulatory & safeguarding compliance

• Maintain overall accountability for safeguarding, compliance, and organisational risk.
• Ensure appropriate systems, policies, and practices are in place and actively implemented.
• Hold SLT members accountable for compliance within their areas.
• Ensure regulatory requirements (CIC, employment law, contracts, data protection) are met.

Person Specification

We recognise this is an interim role with a specific organisational mandate. We are seeking a leader who can quickly assess, prioritise, and act, rather than someone looking to reshape the organisation over the long term.

Leadership & change

• Significant experience leading organisations through implementation phases of change, with a clear focus on delivery.
• Demonstrated ability to bring structure, pace, and discipline to complex transformation programmes.
• Experience stabilising organisations during or following periods of uncertainty or extended change.
• Confidence in making decisions, setting direction, and maintaining momentum.

Operational & leadership capability

• Track record of line managing senior leaders and holding teams to account for delivery and performance.
• Highly developed operational skills, with experience strengthening systems, processes, and organisational effectiveness.

• Experience embedding performance management frameworks and improving accountability.
• Ability to balance strategic oversight with close attention to operational detail.

Governance & organisational leadership

• Understanding of CIC governance, regulatory requirements, and Advisory Board relationships.
• Experience working closely with a Chair and Advisory Board on strategy, performance, and risk.
• Experience leading organisations of comparable scale and complexity (£3–4m+ turnover)

Funding & external environment

• Experience working within complex funding environments, including grants, contracts, and partnerships.
• Ability to maintain credibility with funders, partners, and stakeholders.
• Experience supporting income diversification and organisational sustainability.

Cultural competency & values

• Strong understanding of racial justice, community development, and the experiences of African Diaspora communities in the UK.
• Commitment to equity, inclusion, and community empowerment.
• Ability to lead with clarity, emotional intelligence, and cultural awareness.

Operational, financial & compliance

• Experience overseeing organisational finances, risk management, and compliance frameworks.
• Strong understanding of performance reporting, data, and evaluation.
• Familiarity with safeguarding and quality assurance in community or social impact settings.

Additional Information

This is an interim leadership role with a clearly defined mandate to reinforce the organisations foundations, embed change, and strengthen operational effectiveness.

The focus of the role is on delivery rather than strategy development, and on ensuring that existing plans are implemented in a structured, consistent, and sustainable way.

As such, we are seeking someone who can work at pace, make decisions, and bring clarity and direction, while supporting the organisation through a period of transition.

A visible and consistent presence at Wolves Lane is essential to support leadership alignment, team cohesion, and organisational effectiveness.

This role involves responsibility for socially impactful and occasionally emotionally demanding work. A commitment to wellbeing, reflective leadership, and resilience is essential.

This job description may evolve as Ubele continues its organisational development.

Group Head of Finance
Eltham College Family of Schools | South East London
Salary circa £75,000 + excellent benefits

A rare opportunity to join one of London’s leading independent school groups at a genuinely exciting point of transformation and growth.

The Eltham College Family of Schools — comprising Eltham College Senior School, Eltham College Junior School and Blackheath Prep — is a high-performing, values-led organisation with an outstanding reputation for academic excellence and a rich co-curricular offering. Named London Independent School of the Year 2024 by The Sunday Times, the group continues to thrive despite wider sector challenges.

This is a pivotal appointment.

The newly created Group Head of Finance role offers the chance to step into a business that is not only successful, but evolving — with significant change underway across systems, structure and ways of working. For a commercially minded and hands-on finance leader, this is an opportunity to truly get your teeth stuck into something meaningful.

The opportunity

Reporting to the Bursar and working closely with the Executive Team, you will act as the senior finance professional across the group, providing both strategic leadership and operational oversight.

Crucially, you will join at a time of real momentum:

• A new finance system is being implemented across the group, requiring leadership to embed, optimise and enhance reporting capability
• The finance function is undergoing restructure, offering the opportunity to shape team design, capability and future direction
• There is a clear mandate to modernise processes, strengthen controls and drive efficiencies
• Senior stakeholders are engaged and open to fresh thinking and improvement

This is not a role where you simply maintain — this is a role where you build.

You will lead financial planning, reporting and governance across all three schools, supporting key strategic decisions including investment, estates development and long-term financial sustainability. Alongside this, you will remain close to the detail, ensuring operational excellence across the finance function.

The environment

Set across a stunning 70-acre campus in south-east London, Eltham College combines heritage with ambition. The group benefits from strong financial foundations, high demand, and a clear vision for continued success.

It is a collaborative and values-driven environment, underpinned by a commitment to education, development and community. Staff benefit from excellent facilities, strong leadership, and a culture that genuinely invests in people.

The person

We are looking for a qualified accountant with strong technical grounding and proven experience operating in a senior finance role.

You will bring:

• Experience of leading finance within a complex, multi-entity or multi-site environment
• A track record of improving systems, processes and controls
• The ability to lead through change and bring teams with you
• Strong stakeholder engagement skills, with the credibility to influence at senior level
• A proactive, hands-on approach with the ability to balance strategy and delivery

Experience within education or the independent school sector would be beneficial, but is not essential.

Why join?

This is an opportunity to join a thriving organisation that is not standing still — but actively investing in its future.

You will play a key role in shaping a modern, high-performing finance function, with the autonomy and support to make a real impact. For someone motivated by change, improvement and leadership, this role offers both challenge and reward in equal measure.

If interested do get in touch with Rosemary Pini from Allen Lane who is partnering with Eltham College with this vacancy.

The Grants and Programmes Manager will manage the delivery of a portfolio of work within the Grants and Programmes function at Battersea. This is an exciting time for Battersea as we expand our work to impact more dogs and cats.
Over the coming five years it is planned that the size and complexity of our activities will grow, including the establishment of several multi-year programmes in the UK and abroad.

This is a senior role within the Grants and Programmes team in the Global Programmes Directorate, requiring excellent experience of people management, strategic leadership and good grant making practice.

The successful postholder should be comfortable making proposals, suggesting alternative approaches and solutions, supporting the contributions of others, and advancing the collective interests of a team. They should also be comfortable working with considerable scope, and complexity and nurturing relationships with colleagues and external partners as an integral element of the role. The successful postholder should be able to develop and maintain effective relationships with stakeholders, to pose and field questions of considerable complexity and sensitivity and use discretion in carrying out a constructive and effective dialogue; they will be comfortable with proposing ideas, engaging in productive debate, supporting the contributions of others, and in other ways advancing Battersea’s strategic interests.

What we can offer you:
In return for your commitment to our cause and to recognise the value of our employees, Battersea offers a range of benefits to support the wellbeing of our employees. These include:

• 28 days of annual leave (plus 8 days paid public holidays) per year
• Discounted gym membership and cycle to work schemes
• Employee Assistance Programme and access to Wellbeing Resources
• Generous pension contributions - up to 10% employer contribution
• Free healthcare cash plan, where you can claim for a range of treatment including dental, optical, physiotherapy, chiropody and acupuncture every year
• Annual interest-free season ticket loans

We are also committed to providing learning and development to our employees. During your time with us, we provide support for your professional and career development, including access to digital and in-person training programmes, leadership and management training, mentoring and much more.

Our hybrid working model:
We operate a 50% onsite hybrid working model, with our office-based staff splitting their time between site based and home working. This enables our office-based staff to balance the benefits of home working with onsite collaboration and maintaining a connection to our cause.

Diversity and inclusion:
We are committed to providing a welcoming and inclusive experience for all staff, volunteers and trustees and those hoping to join us. We operate an anonymised shortlisting process and actively seek to ensure our process is fair and equitable for all.

We understand the value of diverse voices, perspectives, and experiences to help us deliver even more for our dogs and cats, and we welcome applicants from all sections of the community.

As a Disability Confident Committed Employer we will ask about any adjustments you may need at application and/or interview stage, and if you are offered a role with us, we’ll talk to you about any workplace adjustments you may need to help you perform at your best. If you would like to talk more about this, please contact us. Greyscale copies of the recruitment pack are also available on request.

More about us:
At Battersea, we aim to never turn away a dog or cat in need of help. We give each one lots of love, expert care and get to know their characters and quirks so we can find them a new home that’s just right for them. Join us and help us be here for every dog and cat, wherever they are, for as long as they need us.

Acceptable use of AI:
At Battersea, we value expertise. We recognise each candidate that applies to us will have a range of expertise they can offer us, so we want to hear about this in your own words. We understand the support that generative artificial intelligence (AI) software can offer but it can also lead to numerous applications presenting as generic and impersonal. This makes it difficult to gain understanding of your unique experience.

To best showcase yourself, we encourage you to write your responses without the assistance of AI. If you require the use of AI software to aid in completing your application, we ask you use the generative responses as a prompt for writing your answers and avoid copying and pasting. You must also ensure the information presented in your application accurately reflects your experience.

Closing Date: 3rd May 2026
All applications must be submitted before the closing date advertised. We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if a high volume of applications is received.

Interview Details:

• First Stage: Online (via MS Teams) with a task to complete. The task will be shared when invited to interview - w/c 18th May 2026
• Second Stage: In Person - Date to be confirmed

For full details on the role, please download the recruitment pack.

Job description

Role: Partnerships and Programme Development Manager

Directorate: External Affairs

Team: Corporate Partnerships

Manager: Senior Strategic Partnerships Manager

Direct reports: N/A

Role purpose

This role supports the development of WorldSkills UK’s income and partnership activity by turning programmes and ideas into clear, compelling funding opportunities. You will work across teams to develop proposals, manage partnerships, and support reporting and planning processes that contribute to long-term financial sustainability.

You will play a key role in strengthening how we plan, communicate and deliver partnership activity, helping to build strong relationships with funders and partners while improving internal systems and processes.

Key tasks and responsibilities

Partnership and project delivery

· Manage delivery of partnerships and events, ensuring they are well planned, on time and within budget

· Support management of key strategic partner relationships

· Coordinate teams and stakeholders to deliver partnership activities

· Ensure partnerships align with WorldSkills UK’s strategic priorities and equity, diversity and inclusion commitments

 

Income development and proposals

· Develop funding opportunities from programmes and organisational activities

· Produce high-quality proposals, presentations and funding applications

· Support applications to trusts, foundations and corporate partners

· Contribute to the development of partnership agreements and documentation

Reporting and planning

· Support delivery of income and fundraising plans through regular monitoring and reporting

· Track progress against agreed objectives and provide clear updates and analysis

· Contribute to income forecasting and financial tracking, working with colleagues in Finance and across the organisation

· Support the development and reporting of project plans (Project Initiation Documents) and associated performance measures

Systems, processes and knowledge management

· Use and help improve our CRM system (HubSpot) to manage relationships and track opportunities

· Maintain accurate records, documentation and reporting systems to support partnership activity

· Identify opportunities to improve ways of working and streamline processes across the team

Research and pipeline development

· Carry out research to identify potential partners, funding opportunities and sector trends

· Support the development of a strong and diverse pipeline of prospective partners

· Contribute to internal decision-making by providing relevant insights and analysis

General

In addition to the key tasks and responsibilities set out above, employees at this level are expected to:

· Produce specification requirements in line with procurement processes for outsourced activity

· Contribute to organisational risk and issues management processes.

· Support delivery of WorldSkills UK’s strategic priorities and annual business plan

· Ensure resources (staff, suppliers, partners, volunteers) are managed efficiently and effectively

· Contribute to a performance‑driven culture with robust monitoring, evaluation and reporting

· Demonstrate WorldSkills UK’s values in all aspects of the role, contributing to a collaborative, inclusive and high-performing organisational culture

· Promote and comply with WorldSkills UK’s policies, including safeguarding, health and safety, equality, diversity and inclusion

· Carry out any other duty as may be reasonably assigned that is consistent with the nature of the role and its level of responsibility. Any significant changes will be made in consultation with the post holder taking account of their experience, skills and capability

We’re looking for an experienced, proactive fundraiser who can think strategically and deliver hands-on. Someone confident writing bids, building partnerships and spotting opportunities for growth.

This is a key role at a pivotal moment for AudioActive, offering the chance to build on strong foundations and shape a diverse, sustainable income model and power a team that is dedicated to empowering young people through music.

What you’ll do

• Lead and deliver AudioActive’s fundraising and development strategy
• Grow income across trusts & foundations, tenders, contracts and partnerships
• Write high-quality bids, proposals and pitches
• Develop new business partnerships aligned with our mission
• Build strong relationships with funders, partners and supporters
• Work closely with the CEO and team to align income with programmes
• Track performance, manage targets and identify new opportunities