Senior project manager jobs

We’re looking for a Principal Officer – Engagement to lead the development and delivery of SYMCA’s Engagement Strategy, embedding a culture of creative, inclusive, high-quality engagement across the organisation. You’ll coordinate engagement activities, manage engagement leads, and ensure that all engagement work aligns with the Mayor’s priorities and SYMCA’s strategic objectives. This is a senior role with significant influence—helping to build trust, strengthen relationships, and improve outcomes for South Yorkshire.

Applications must be accompanied by a cover letter to detail how you meet the essential criteria for the role (please see role profile attached). Please note, all applications should be made directly via our careers portal.

Please note South Yorkshire Mayoral Combined Authority does not hold a sponsorship licence and cannot provide Skilled Worker sponsorship for any roles advertised.  

About the role

In this role, you’ll champion best practice in engagement, ensuring that SYMCA’s approach is ethical, accessible, and impactful. You’ll design and deliver engagement activities and training, provide internal consultancy, and work with partners to maximise collective impact. Your work will help shape policy, improve organisational capability, and foster a culture of engagement excellence.
 

Key responsibilities include:

• Design and deliver a corporate engagement training programme to build internal capability and confidence.
• Design and deliver some engagement activities directly but chiefly provide consultancy and advice to the organisation on ethical and accessible engagement, ensuring compliance with best practice and legal standards.
• Collaborate with Bloomberg I-Team and Insights team to co-design innovative engagement and social research projects.
• Coordinate outreach and partnership working with key stakeholders including local authorities, MCAs, Government, VCSE, and universities.
• Convene and manage internal and external engagement networks to build organisational capacity and foster peer learning.
• Identify emerging trends and best practices in engagement, translating insights into strategic recommendations.

About you

We’re looking for an enthusiastic strategic leader with proven experience in designing and delivering engagement programmes. You’ll need excellent communication and project management skills, the ability to work across complex structures, and a passion for championing inclusive engagement. If you thrive on driving culture change and building strong relationships, this role is for you.

Essential:

• Experience delivering engagement projects in partnership with external organisations.
• Experience designing toolkits and delivering training to build engagement capability.
• Excellent communication and project management skills.
• Experience managing high-level stakeholder relationships.
• Experience in ethical and inclusive engagement approaches and using digital tools to manage relationships.
• Experience presenting, organising events, and managing meetings.
• Interest in devolution and its potential to empower communities and restore trust.
• Demonstrable interest in behavioural insights, social research, and participatory engagement methods.

Benefits

All colleagues have access to a Local Government Pension Scheme and the chance to be part of an organisation where you can really make a difference. Located in Sheffield City Centre, we are well-placed for transport links and encourage employees to take advantage of the active travel facilities. Work/life balance is extremely important to us here at SYMCA with our recognised family/friendly policies, genuine work flexibility, recognition, and shared success.
 

In addition to the above, some of benefits include -

Holiday Entitlement – From 28 to 36 days annual leave entitlement (depending on length of service) plus bank holidays. Pro-rata for part time colleagues.
 

Annual Leave Purchase Scheme – The ability to purchase up to a further 15 days per year in additional to your normal annual leave
 

Hybrid working – Our offices are a space where we come together and collaborate. Most of our roles are offered on a hybrid basis with the exception of some support roles being onsite full time. Please note, unless specified within the job advert, we cannot accommodate remote working contracts. 
 

Flexible Hours Scheme – Most roles within SYMCA work under the Flexi-Scheme which allows office-based employees’ flexibility and discretion over their working hours. Under the scheme employees can accrue a defined amount of credit or debit of working hours, and to take time-off in the form of Flexi-Leave or banked Annual Leave.
 

Rewarding You - Reducing everyday expenses through discounts, benefits, financial advice, wellbeing solutions and more with Reward Gateway and Cycle-to-Work schemes. 
 

Training on the job - Support with upskilling skills through on-the-job training and qualifications
 

Professional Membership Fees – Where membership to Professional bodies is applicable to your role, SYMCA will reimburse your membership fees where applicable and following approval by Line Management. 
 

Diversity at South Yorkshire Combined Mayoral Authority
 

Our workforce is made up of a diverse community, where we all belong and feel part of something bigger. We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from individuals, regardless of age, gender, ethnicity, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, socio-economic background, religion and/or belief. 

All employees are eligible to request Flexible Working arrangements from day one of employment as such all requests will be considered subject to operation requirements. 

Where candidates share disabilities within the application process, if they demonstrate that they meet all essential criteria from the Role Profile within their application, they will automatically be invited to interview. 

Accountability Officer

Salary: £47,000p.a. FTE (pro-rata salary for 30+ hours)

We also offer 27 days of annual leave (pro-rated for hours worked) plus bank holidays and a birthday day off, 8% employer pension contributions, a core hours system of working and enhanced family friendly policies 

Contract:  Permanent

Hours: 37.5 hours per week (30+ hours per week and job share will be considered. We are open to discussing how this may work for you.)

Location: Wigan, London (office or hybrid working) or remote-based with occasional travel

Keep Britain Tidy is one of the UK’s leading environmental charities. At a time when we are living in a world that is facing its greatest environmental challenges, the work we do has never been more important or more urgent.

As we’re moving forward we recognise that a diverse workforce yields the best results.  We embrace all the different identities in the UK and we want our workforce to reflect that.

Environmental change is affecting us all and we want people from all backgrounds to be part of the solution and help us make the changes that cannot wait. It is for this reason that Keep Britain Tidy has flexible and supportive policies for all our staff, and welcomes applicants from all backgrounds. 

If you love keeping organisational systems in order, we want to hear from you.

This is a satisfying role where you can develop links across the organisation and maintain efficient functionality of multiple key systems alongside other stakeholders. Key areas of responsibility include:

• GDPR
• Health and Safety
• Risk register
• Emergency planning and business continuity processes
• Legal signposting
• Document storage
• Policy and process

Working closely with the senior executive team, this role has wide reach across the organisation.  Regularly meeting with programme teams this role ensures compliance and engagement across the organisation supporting staff to ensure that we operate safely and securely. Acting as the Data Protection Officer and providing support on health and safety this role leverages strong business partnering skills to make a real difference across the organisation.

All our roles benefit from generous holiday entitlement and pension contributions, including the opportunity to join the UK’s first net zero carbon pension scheme and to receive extra days leave for using alternatives to flights. If you need any reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process, you just need to let us know. 

If you are interested in this job and want to help us make a difference, please review a copy of the full job description and ensure that you meet the essential criteria found in the person specification before applying. 

After reading the application information, if you would love to work with us and apply, please continue to apply. 

As part of the application process you will need to answer five multiple choice questions, three sift questions, submit your CV and complete equal opportunities monitoring information as we want to try to make sure that our workforce is representative of the population and we are not excluding any community. Please note that this information will be held separately.

Please submit your application before the closing date.

The deadline for applications is 09:00, 02 February 2026.

Interviews will be held via MS Teams w/c 23 February 2026 

If you require an in-person interview, please let us know. 

We have signed the pledge to always #WeShowTheSalary for the roles that we advertise.

No agencies please.

Our client is a large, well-established UK charity dedicated to improving lives and strengthening communities. Their people are at the heart of everything they do, and they are proud to foster an inclusive, supportive culture where colleagues feel valued and empowered to make an impact.

The RoleWe are seeking an experienced and proactive Interim HR Business Partner to join our friendly and collaborative HR team for an initial period of 3+ months. This is a key role supporting managers and staff across the organisation, providing expert guidance on people matters while championing a positive culture aligned with their mission of supporting communities.

You'll work closely with senior leaders, enabling high-quality people management, driving engagement and wellbeing initiatives, and ensuring our HR practices continue to reflect our values.
Key Responsibilities

• Act as a trusted partner to managers, providing pragmatic HR advice across the full employee lifecycle.
• Support organisational change projects, restructures, and workforce planning activities.
• Lead on employee relations matters, ensuring supportive, fair and timely outcomes.
• Work closely with HR colleagues to deliver people initiatives that strengthen engagement and wellbeing.
• Use HR data and insights to influence decision-making and support continuous improvement.
• Ensure HR policies and processes are aligned with charity sector best practices and UK employment legislation.
• Promote an inclusive, supportive culture that reflects the charity's commitment to serving communities.

About You

We're looking for someone who is not only an experienced HR professional, but also genuinely passionate about supporting people and communities. You will thrive in a collaborative environment and bring a calm, solutions-focused approach.

You will bring:

• Experience in an HRBP or senior HR advisory role, ideally within the charity, public, or not-for-profit sector.
• Strong knowledge of UK employment law and HR best practice.
• Confidence managing a varied caseload of employee relations matters.
• The ability to build strong, trusting relationships at all levels.
• A proactive mindset with the ability to work autonomously.
• A warm, people-first approach aligned with our values.

What We Offer

• A welcoming, friendly HR team who value collaboration and kindness.
• Meaningful work that contributes directly to improving lives and building stronger communities.
• Flexible hybrid working arrangements.
• Opportunity to make a positive impact during a key period for the organisation.

If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV.

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The Head of HR is a new role for the organisation. Over the last few years, the organisation and our staff team have grown significantly. To enable us to achieve our mission to give all young people a home, it is crucial that we make a significant shift in our HR and people plans so that staff and managers have all the support they need to succeed in these challenging times. To do so, we need to make a strategic shift with our HR capacity, improve our people systems, and make NHYC a great place to work for our 70+ strong staff team. You will work closely with the Chief Operating Officer to develop and implement NHYC’s People strategy for 2025-2030, taking on a varied role around key areas of organisational development and HR operations. You will need to build strong and trusting relationships with staff from across the organisation and act as a key advisor to the Executive Team.

We are happy to consider candidates taking their first step into leadership and we will consider exceptional part time candidates to ensure we find the right person or people for the role. We particularly welcome candidates from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities as these are overrepresented communities in our services and yet underrepresented within our leadership.

• Permanent, full-time role in our Leadership Team (part-time considered)
• Salary: £46,800 (salary scale £46,800-£52,000)
• Deadline to apply: 9am, Wednesday 11 February 2026

Mslexia, the UK’s best-loved writing magazine for women, is seeking a Chief Executive Officer to lead the organisation into an exciting new phase of growth and impact.

Founded in 1999, Mslexia is a national publishing and outreach charity dedicated to addressing gender inequality in literature. We support over 50,000 women writers through our magazine, books, competitions, courses, events and online community. Financially independent for more than 20 years, we now want to build on our success, strengthen our sustainability and extend our reach.

This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of a respected, values-driven organisation with a strong brand, loyal audience and passionate team.

About the role

As CEO, you will provide strategic, operational and inspirational leadership for Mslexia, working closely with the Board of Trustees and leading a team of talented staff.

You will be responsible for:

• Setting and delivering organisational strategy with the Board.
• Leading and supporting the staff team, fostering a positive, inclusive and high-performing culture.
• Overseeing financial management, budgeting and long-term sustainability.
• Developing and diversifying income streams, including commercial activity, partnerships and fundraising.
• Acting as the public face of Mslexia, championing its mission locally, regionally and nationally.
• Strengthening governance, systems, policies and risk management.
• Building partnerships and promoting the Mslexia brand and influence.

We are looking for an inspiring, values-driven leader with the vision, credibility and skills to lead a purpose-led organisation.

You will bring:

• Senior leadership experience in the charity, public, commercial or related sector.
• Strong financial literacy and experience managing multiple income streams.
• A track record of leading and motivating teams.
• Experience working with a Board or similar governance structure.
• Strategic thinking skills, with the ability to turn vision into action.
• Excellent communication, influencing and relationship-building skills.
• A strong commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion.

Desirable:

• Experience in the arts, culture or creative industries.
• Experience of hybrid earned / grant-funded income models.
• Events or publishing-related experience.

Why join Mslexia?

• Lead a nationally respected charity with a clear social mission.
• Work with a skilled, passionate and supportive team.
• Shape the future of women’s writing and gender equality in literature.
• Flexible working and family-friendly policies.
• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays.
• City-centre Newcastle location.

How to apply

Mslexia is working with Jobs with Purpose to recruit to this role. You can access a detailed candidate pack below, including a job description and person specification.

To apply, please forward a detailed CV and a supporting statement (maximum three sides) explaining how you meet the requirements of the person specification and any other information relevant to the role to David Robinson at Jobs with Purpose.

For a confidential discussion about the role, email David with your availability and brief details regarding your experience and interest in the position.

Closing date: Monday 9 February 2026, 12 noon
Interviews: Week commencing 16 February 2026

Mslexia is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.

This is an exciting role in a unique organisation.  Our vision is to provide an outstanding experience for all UCL students and to be one of the best students’ unions in the UK and the world.  We aim to build a vibrant and empowered student community with real influence in UCL and beyond, that enables students to enjoy their time at university; pursue their interests and passions; see the world in new ways; and develop the skills and experience to change the world for the better.

We are a registered charity employing over 150 career staff and 300 student staff, delivering a wide range of services and representative functions for UCL students. We have the widest portfolio of services of any student organisation in the country, managing UCL’s extracurricular programmes for sport, music, drama, dance, media, volunteering, academic societies and intercultural engagement; providing a wide range of fantastic social spaces; leading on student democracy and representation across UCL; and offering excellent student support services.

It's an exciting time to join our growing organisation as we lead the delivery of UCL’s groundbreaking new Student Life Strategy. This is enabling us to build more programmes to improve students’ mental and physical wellbeing, promote genuine equity for all, build students’ skills and confidence, develop their international connections and intercultural skills, and make a real contribution to our local community.

We support hybrid working. Excellent benefits including defined benefit pension scheme and generous holiday entitlement. We are proud of high levels of staff engagement and pride ourselves on being a great place to work. We will consider applications to work on a flexible and job share basis wherever possible. 

The role is full-time and permanent. This role is based at our Bloomsbury campus with flexibility to work from home on a 40/60 basis (40% working from the office).

We are looking for a Sports Development Coordinator (Community and Workforce) to deliver a number of key areas of growth and development from the UCL Student Life Strategy. Key work areas include overseeing the delivery in our existing and future Focus Sports and coordinating TeamUCL Playmakers, our sports leadership and volunteering programme

Do you have experience in sports development and community engagement? Do you want to develop and upskill students through sport? If the answer is yes, then we want to hear from you.

Be part of The Vegan Society’s journey as we begin delivering our new three-year strategic plan to drive meaningful change.

We are seeking an experienced Executive Assistant to provide high-level administrative support to the Chief Executive Officer. This role is central to ensuring the CEO’s time and priorities are managed effectively and that communication with internal and external stakeholders is clear and timely.

Key Responsibilities

• Manage the CEO’s diary, travel arrangements, and correspondence.
• Prepare reports, presentations, and briefing materials for meetings, events and other public engagement activities.
• Provide administrative and minute-taking support for Board and committee meetings.
• Support the CEO with strategic projects as required.
• Handle confidential information with discretion and professionalism.

Essential Skills and Experience

• Proven experience supporting at CEO or Director level.
• Strong organisational and time management skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication abilities.
• Ability to manage multiple priorities under pressure.
• Competence in Microsoft 365 and familiarity with online meeting/event platforms.
• Professional, proactive, and adaptable approach.

Desirable: Experience in a not-for-profit or mission-driven organisation and knowledge of governance frameworks.

Benefits

• Flexible working hours.
• Ethical pension scheme (5–7% employer contribution).
• Health cashback scheme & Employee Assistance Programme.
• 25 days annual leave, 8 bank holidays and Christmas closure days.
• Death in service benefit.
• Climate perks (additional paid time off for sustainable travel).
• Animal companion compassionate leave.

How to Apply

If you are interested, please send your CV along with a personal statement (no longer than two sides of A4) demonstrating how you meet the essential criteria outlined in the person specification.

Closing date for applications: Friday 30th January 2026.

Interviews will be held: Wednesday 11th/Thursday 12th February 2026.

Apply now and help shape the future of The Vegan Society.

Responsible for all Continuous Professional Development (CPD) resources and activity of the Royal College of Paramedics, The primary role of the National CPD Lead will be overall responsibility for all CPD delivered by the Royal College of Paramedics, including ensuring the quality of content across the current and future range of platforms, (including video, webinars, events, podcasting). 

The National CPD Lead is responsible for the efficient and effective management of specific pre-agreed workstreams aligned with realisation of the Royal College’s strategy objectives, this will require budget awareness along with supervision and management of team members. 

As a senior member the College team – the National CPD Lead will provide a leadership presenceacross the organisation, contributing to policy and planning, staff development and membershipengagement and growth. They will be an able, confident and competent communicator, engagingeffectively at all levels, from student members to the Royal College of Paramedics Board and Council to national partners and colleagues. 

The primary role of the National CPD Lead is to provide assurance, support and leadership in the provision of face to face and virtual CPD delivered by the College of Paramedics, including: 

• Ensuring the quality of content across the current and future range of platforms (including events, video, webinars, courses, and podcasting). 

• Reviewing and developing CPD activities which meet the needs of members and the profession

As an employee, the National CPD Lead will promote the Royal College, and its aims and objectives by building effective relationships with members, other healthcare colleagues, employers and other stakeholder bodies. 

The Person: 
We are looking for an enthusiastic and highly motivated individual to work directly with the Head of Education to drive innovation and change and deliver the Continuous Professional Development and Education objectives as part of the overall College strategy. 

The National CPD Lead will act with integrity, positivity, and adaptability, using their skills to build effective relationships and work within a shared vision.

Closing date: 23:59hrs on 30.01.26 
Interviews: w/c 16.02.26 in the area of Leeds/Bradford 

CEO

We are seeking an experienced and motivated leader to guide a purposeful organisation through its next chapter.

Location: Fully remote within the UK with occasional national travel
Salary: £55,000 to £65,000
Contract: Full time, permanent
Benefits: Pension, generous annual leave, Christmas closure, family leave and sickness policies available on request
Closing date: Monday 9th February

THE OPPORTUNITY

We are looking for a new CEO! Can you uphold the thoughtful shaping and delivery of an impactful charity? Do you have senior experience in a purpose-led organisation with financial and business skills you can bring? Then you might be the right person to guide this team.

This is a great opportunity to make a life-changing difference to people living with disability!

If this is something you are passionate about, then a CEO role is a great way to use your professional experience to be a nationwide change-maker.

ABOUT THE ORGANISATION

Whether it’s mobility, daily living, or hobbies and sports, the charity creates solutions that change lives. At the heart of their work is designing and building custom made equipment, tailored to each person’s unique needs.

Volunteers bring together creativity, technical skills, and problem-solving expertise, including metalwork, carpentry, electronics, computer programming, and 3D printing, to deliver solutions that can’t be found anywhere else.

IF YOU JOIN THE TEAM…

You’ll have the rare chance to take the helm of a charity with a powerful social mission and build on their proud 60-year history, stewarding them into a new era of growth. A vibrant, passionate community of innovators and problem solvers will be right there with you.

You’ll join the vision for the charity to be a place where people of all ethnicities and backgrounds feel welcomed to work, volunteer or seek help. The organisation encourages flexible working and a culture that prioritises people, wellbeing, and collaboration.

WHO WE’RE LOOKING FOR

We are searching for a CEO who can help ensure REMAP remains resilient, relevant, and well-prepared to respond to emerging pressures and opportunities.

We are particularly seeking someone:

• Who will strengthen financial sustainability and income generation
• Has a proven track record of senior responsibility
• Energise and support a nationwide volunteer community – strengthening relationships between central staff and locally rooted branches

You do not need to meet every requirement to be considered. If you can demonstrate the experience, passion, and capability to lead with purpose, we encourage you to apply.

WHAT’S NEXT

If you are excited by this opportunity and ready to bring energy and expertise to a mission-driven organisation, we would love to hear from you.

Other roles you may have experience of could include: Chief Executive, Executive Director, Managing Director, Head of Operations, Director of Services, Director of Strategy, Director of Programmes, Operations Director, Charity Director, Social Impact Director, Senior Leader, Development Director, Leadership Consultant, Transformation Lead, Governance and Strategy Lead  #INDNFP

PLEASE NOTE: This role is being advertised by NFP People on behalf of the organisation.

Harris Hill is delighted to be working with The Camelia Botnar Foundation to recruit its new Chief Executive Officer.

The Foundation was created to support young adults aged between 16 and 21 who are disadvantaged or in problematic situations. The Foundation provides residential training and work experience, helping young people to learn a skilled trade, embark on a useful career path and successfully make their own way in life.

As Chief Executive, you will:

· Provide strategic leadership of the Foundation.

· Have oversight of the charity’s financial position, including budget setting and regular management accounts.

· Grow and diversify income to strengthen financial resilience.

· Develop strategic partnerships and act as the public face of the organisation.

If you are inspired and excited by what The Camelia Botnar Foundation does, we’d love to hear from you.

Job title: Chief Executive Officer

Salary: £90,000 plus annual bonus (pro-rated for part time applicants).

Contract: Permanent / full-time or part-time (minimum of three days a week).

Location: Maplehurst Road, Cowfold, West Sussex RH13 8DQ.

How to apply:

Please review the Recruitment Pack for further information about The Camelia Botnar Foundation, the CEO position and for details on how to apply.

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

Both The Camelia Botnar Foundation and Harris Hill operate an equal opportunity policy and commit to treating all of our candidates and jobseekers fairly. We welcome and encourage applications from everyone regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.

We are Recruiting for Development Officers in Greater Manchester, Merseyside and Lancashire. 

Join Inclusive North to deliver The Phoenix Way programme and help drive meaningful, community-led change. As a Development Officer, you’ll play a vital role in growing partnerships, strengthening funding opportunities, and amplifying the voices of marginalised communities.

This is an exciting opportunity to work within a collaborative organisation where innovation and impact sit at the heart of everything we do. You’ll support partnership development, coordinate projects, and contribute to capacity-building activities that ensure the long-term sustainability and growth of TPW’s mission. Working closely with a passionate team and diverse stakeholders, you’ll help shape initiatives that create lasting social impact and strengthen local funding ecosystems.

If you’re motivated by purpose, thrive in collaborative environments, and want your work to make a real difference, this role offers the chance to grow, lead, and contribute to meaningful change.

We are recruiting for: 

X1 FTE Development Officer in Lancashire (Inclusive North)

X2 FTE Development Officers in Greater Manchester. (GMECN)

X1 FTE Development Officer for Merseyside & Cheshire (One Knowsley) 

The aplication window is open unti 2nd February, but we hold the option to close the window earlier depending on the number of applicants.

What We Offer: 

Salary of £32,115 

Pension: 5% Contribution 

How to Apply?

Please send your CV, along with a covering letter, no more than 2 sides of A4 (Font Size: 12) OR:​​

A CV or a short video (no longer than 5 minutes long) answering the following question:

​ What excites you most about this role, and how is it directly connected to your skills and experience? (Consider the requirements of the specification, as found below.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – The Eveson Trust
Location: Worcester (minimum two days per week in the Trust’s office; travel across Worcestershire, Herefordshire and the West Midlands)
Salary: circa £75,000
Contract: Permanent, 35 hours per week

Are you a judicious, outward-looking leader who can sharpen strategy and raise the profile of a regionally rooted grant-maker with a significant endowment?

About The Eveson Trust
The Eveson Trust is a Worcestershire-based, place-focused grant-maker established from the bequest of Violet Mary Eveson. With an endowment of approximately £100 million, the Trust supports an annual grants programme of around £5–6 million and in 2022 modernised its legal structure by becoming a Charitable Incorporated Organisation while retaining strong local roots.

We exist to relieve need and enhance quality of life across Worcestershire, Herefordshire and the West Midlands, prioritising support for people with disabilities, mental-health needs, children and young people in need, older people, those experiencing homelessness, and users of hospitals and hospices. Our next CEO will be central to translating stewardship into measurable local impact and sustainable grant practice.

As our next Chief Executive Officer, you will:

• Strategy & Impact: lead the development and delivery of a refreshed strategic plan and grant-making framework that focuses resources where they will make the greatest measurable difference.
• Governance & Finance: support and advise the Board and sub-committees, ensuring robust governance, high-quality committee papers and sound financial stewardship of the endowment.
• Operational Leadership: strengthen internal systems and processes, make effective use of Salesforce, and propose a right-sized resourcing model to deliver the Trust’s ambitions.
• Income & Investment Oversight: work with the investment advisers and Trustees to balance spending policy, long-term capital protection and responsible investment principles.
• Community & Partnerships: build regional funder partnerships, increase reach in under-represented areas and foster strong relationships with grantees and local stakeholders.
• Grants Quality & Safeguarding: ensure rigorous due diligence, proportionate monitoring and consistently high standards of safeguarding and risk management.
• Brand & Profile: establish and deliver a communications plan that raises the Trust’s visibility across urban and rural communities.
• Team & Culture: lead, mentor and develop a compact team and oversee high standards in HR, data protection and operational compliance.

Who you are

• A seasoned senior leader with demonstrable experience in grant-making, philanthropy or a closely comparable mission-driven setting.
• Financially literate and confident with investment reports, annual accounts, budgets and risk analysis.
• Experienced in modern grants processes, due diligence and impact-focused monitoring.
• Comfortable advising and constructively challenging Trustees, producing concise, evidence-based committee papers.
• A strong relationship builder with a track record of partnership development and external representation.
• Skilled in strategic analysis, clear judgement and using data (for example Salesforce reporting) to inform decisions.

Why The Eveson Trust?

• A rare leadership opportunity to steward a significant endowment and shape a strategic grant-making approach across a diverse regional footprint.
• A respectful, detail-focused Board and a compact, capable team who value proportionate, evidence-based practice.
• The chance to expand the Trust’s presence in under-represented boroughs and to develop meaningful funder partnerships.
• Competitive salary, defined-contribution pension, flexible working and a supportive, mission-focused culture.
• The role offers clear scope to design the team and systems needed to deliver a more impact-focussed future for the Trust.

For full details of the role including how to apply, please download the full appointment brief. For an informal and confidential conversation about this position, please contact Jenny Hills at Harris Hill at via the apply button with times to speak and (optional but appreciated) a CV or professional profile which will be treated with the strictest confidence.

Closing date for applications: 9am, Monday 2nd February 2026

As leading charity recruitment specialists and a certified B Corp, Harris Hill is committed to high and ever-improving standards of equitable and inclusive recruitment. We actively welcome applications from all sections of the community regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexuality and other protected characteristics.

The Difference is an education charity, founded to change the story on lost learning. Our vision is to see lost learning falling nationally by 2030 and for schools to be better equipped to support all children, particularly those most vulnerable.

Leading national policy strategy

As Head of Policy and Public Affairs, you will work closely with the CEO to develop and execute a four-year influencing plan.  Together we’ll aim to shift local and national incentives on inclusion by 2030, which see the national trend of rising suspension and absence begin to fall. 

You will hold relationships with the Department for Education and Ofsted and advise on policy priorities ahead, such as:

• Widening the definition of inclusion beyond special needs, recognising the needs of those young people historically or currently interacting with social services

• Reducing perverse incentives for schools to alter their school roll through admissions and pupil exits

• Expectations for multi-academy trusts in capturing and analysing data on lost learning, including how it disproportionately affects different groups

• Improving local alternative provision eco-systems, to improve outcomes for young people

• National standards for inclusive school practice, at a universal and targeted level

• Professional development standards for school inclusion

Developing implementation expertise in the middle tier

In your first six months, you will advise on the internal development of a new programme for middle tier policy actors: multi-academy trust and local authority leaders.  You will support the Programme team in its design, to plan strategically for the recruitment of trusts and local authorities, and you will plan the research and influencing work which will seek to share their success nationally.

Building the evidence base

In your second six months, you will work with the CEO to build out our research function. Your influencing plan will include how The Difference can learn from the work across our multi-academy trust, local authority and internal AP pioneer partners over the next four years, to develop influential publications. Research work ahead will include publishing sector-facing publications of The Difference’s own research, carried out by our research lead and associates; alongside managing external contractors and internal colleagues to bid for and deliver aligned research disseminating our ideas.

Raising your voice

This is an exciting opportunity for someone committed to inclusive policy change. The Difference has always punched above our weight in national and sector press reach. In post,  you will publish blogs and comment pieces, disseminating our shared ideas.  You will be a prominent voice on inclusion.

The Difference is still a small and growing charity. This means that our work is fast-paced, our roles are broad, and there is a culture of being highly autonomous, reactive and flexible, as the needs of the organisation evolve. If this sounds exciting rather than daunting, then this could be the role and team for you!

The Role
This is an exciting time to join The Difference as we increase our impact, reach more schools, and develop our influencing strategy. As Head of Policy and Public Affairs you will: 

Design and execute an impactful influencing plan 

• Design an influencing plan - Identify via horizon scanning opportunities to influence national policy using open policy windows, or by nudging/creating new ones. 

• Execute an influencing plan - Utilise own assets and assets across the organisation, including the Director team, to deliver against the influencing plan.

• Relationship building - Build highly credible and impactful relationships with a variety of stakeholders who hold power. This will include policy makers in national governments, local government officials, politicians, other third sector organisations and think tanks. 

• Leadership - Play a significant role internally and externally in communicating the organisation’s policy position, raising organisational and own brand.

Build policy capacity and credibility across the organisation

• Policy positions and solutions- Use the concepts, work and experience of The Difference’s programmes to develop new, and refine existing, national policy positions to shift incentives. 

• Thought leadership - Be the organisation’s education policy and political expert. 

• Generating income - Use own and team’s expertise and credibility to generate income via speaking engagements and consultancy to support the organisation’s financial sustainability. 

Person Specification

Essential – We are looking for someone with the following knowledge, experience and skills, though you may be stronger in some areas than others:

• Deep expertise in education policy, particularly on the topic of lost learning and the various policy and political debates, including areas of controversy, surrounding this policy topic. 

• Strategic thinker with a proven track record in identifying policy windows and designing activities that lead to meaningful national policy change. 

• Excellent relationship builder, who brings with them their own network of influential stakeholders and has a plan for building new relationships. Adept at navigating tricky situations and explaining complex, sometimes difficult, messages.

• Expert convener with a strong knowledge of the education sector, including which schools, trusts and local authorities are influential and experience in bringing a variety of perspectives together to generate consensus. 

• Persuasive and clear writing style for publication, including reports, press, blogs and ghost writing for members of the senior leadership team, often based on consensus positions, and designed to communicate key messages for impact. 

• Confidence and credibility in communicating nuanced messages in a contentious landscape, in writing, verbally and in public (e.g. on panels), to raise the profile of The Difference. 

• Strong project manager who can design systems and processes to keep self, team and other stakeholders on task and on time. Experience of designing programmes of work and monitoring their effectiveness. Flexible project management style that can adapt to a changing environment. Confidence in managing a variety of stakeholders and supporting them to deliver on time. 

Desired – You are more likely to be successful in your application if you have one or more of the following: 

• Familiarity with The Difference’s programmatic work, theory and practice. 

• Lived experience or insight into the school experiences of marginalised young people (e.g. those with experience of the care system, mental ill health, special educational needs, exclusion, and racism).

We know that some people, especially those from marginalised backgrounds, may hesitate to apply unless they meet every listed requirement. If this role excites you and you believe you could make a strong contribution, we warmly encourage you to apply. 
We actively welcome applications from people whose backgrounds are under-represented in the charity sector, including but not limited to: people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, people with experience in the case system, non-graduates and first-in-family graduates.

Job Title: School Gardener for Young Marketeers Leeds

Position Type: Freelance

Reports to: Project Coordinator

Based at: Home-working and at schools in Leeds

Working Hours: February – July 2026:  

16 x school gardening sessions at £110 per session plus 2 days planning @ £220 = £2200

3.5 days @ £165 for delivering 8 x school assemblies and attending Market Day  = £577.50

Total:  £2777.50

Contract: Temporary

Job Purpose

· To deliver Young Marketeers gardening sessions and assemblies in eight Leeds primary schools

Background to School Food Matters

At School Food Matters we believe that school food can unlock a happier, healthier, more sustainable future for every child. We want a school food system that delivers for all children, so they can enjoy nutritious, delicious and sustainable school food and leave school with an informed and positive relationship with food. To achieve this, we campaign for a better school food system, bringing the voices of children, parents, and teachers to government policy, and deliver fully funded food education programmes in schools across the country.

Young Marketeers

This much-loved programme was started in London in 2012. It is now running in about 125 primary and special schools across England.  This is the fourth year it has run in Leeds. The programme provides hands-on opportunities for children from primary schools to grow fruit and veg from seed to sell at their local market. Young Marketeers is also a platform for School Food Matters to promote food education to schools and communities as a way to support children to live happy and healthy lives. Children learn the art of growing veg from seed, and market traders will share their secrets on how to create a winning market stall. Primary schools will be visited by our gardener in March/April and then again in May/June and receive further tips on how to ensure a bumper crop. Then in July, they head to the market to sell their produce, and to meet the Mayor!

Key Tasks include:

· Build and maintain relationships with teachers, teaching assistants and senior leaders to ensure the smooth running of the project

· Plan and deliver

o One assembly in each school

o Two food growing sessions in each school with a class of 30 children (divided into 2 groups of 15)

· Attend Market Day in the city centre in July with all schools

• Complete monitoring and evaluation forms in accordance with instructions from our Evaluation team
• Take photos of workshops and events where possible
• Keep Project Coordinator and Leeds Project Officer fully updated on progress

· Keep up to date with safeguarding requirements and reporting procedures

• Maintain the ethos of the charity and positively promote our work at all times

Person specification

Essential

· Experience of delivering food growing sessions to children

· Knowledge of fruit and vegetable growing

· Excellent administrative and organisational skills with great attention to detail

· Ability to work in a team, and seek help when needed

· Self-motivated and optimistic with a can-do attitude

Desirable

· Experience of working for a charity or not for profit organisation

· Experience of working in primary schools and engaging children

· Experience of building relationships with partner organisations and individuals