Senior Operations Officer

The the engine room that powers grassroots transformation.

You've mastered the art of making things work smoothly – maybe in charity operations, facilities management, or business support. You know that every compliance checkbox ticked, every system optimised, and every pound saved directly translates into changed lives. You're ready to step up into a role where your attention to detail genuinely matters.

We're looking for a Senior Operations Officer who can keep everything running while keeping people at the centre. You'll be the person who welcomes callers seeking help, negotiates charity discounts with suppliers, coordinates staff onboarding, manages compliance, and ensures our Board can focus on strategy. It's operational excellence meets genuine compassion.

What you'll be doing

• Keep our operations safe and compliant – conduct risk assessments, manage health and safety, coordinate facilities maintenance, and ensure we meet all legal requirements.

• Enable brilliant people to do brilliant work – support HR processes from onboarding to exits, manage DBS checks, coordinate team events, and be the go-to person who solves problems.

• Be the first point of contact for people seeking help – answer calls with empathy, direct clients to appropriate support using your knowledge of local services, and ensure no one leaves Grapevine without assistance.

• Support recruitment and governance – process applications through our system, coordinate Board meetings, and provide key liaison support for trustees.

• Drive continuous improvement – review and enhance internal processes, explore AI and automation opportunities, and negotiate contracts that stretch our resources further.

• Manage the everyday essentials – coordinate post, emails, building access, waste collection, vehicle checks, and the hundred other details that keep a charity functioning.

What we're looking for

We need someone who combines operational excellence with warmth, resourcefulness with reliability, and efficiency with empathy.

You'll need:

• Experience in operations, facilities management, HR administration, or business support – ideally in the charity or public sector.

• Proactive problem-solving skills – you spot issues before they escalate and find creative solutions within tight budgets.

• Excellent organisational abilities and meticulous attention to detail.

• Confidence working independently while knowing when to escalate or collaborate.

• Strong IT skills and willingness to explore tools that improve efficiency.

• Understanding of health and safety regulations and risk assessment processes.

• Experience with HR systems, DBS processes, or recruitment support.

• Familiarity with charity governance and Board support.

• Knowledge of facilities management, including building safety and maintenance coordination.

Why Grapevine?

At Grapevine, we believe people in communities are the answer to the challenges they face – and we work alongside them to build power and create lasting change. For 30 years, we've been a nationally acclaimed example of community-led transformation.

You'll join a values-driven team that trusts you to make decisions, celebrates your initiative, and recognises that behind every operational task is a person we're enabling to change lives. We're high-trust, human-centred, and built on shared accountability. We repay out-of-hours effort with TOIL, cherish diverse lived experience, and never lose sight of the people behind the work.

Our offer:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays (pro rata)

• 8% non-contributory pension (we pay it all)

• Flexible working arrangements

• Employee Assistance Programme

• Supportive culture with continuous learning baked in and real autonomy with genuine support

• A management team role where your voice shapes how we operate

Ready to make operations meaningful?

If you're excited by purpose-led work, comfortable with honest reflection, and believe that systems should serve people (not the other way round), we'd love to hear from you. Apply if you can see yourself as the person who keeps our award-winning work running smoothly while treating every caller, colleague, and compliance requirement with equal care.