Partnerships Manager, National Year of Reading

Job Title: Partnerships Manager, National Year of Reading

Salary: £40,000-£45,000 per year

Contract: Fixed term (6 months initially)

Hours: 35 hours per week

Location: A minimum of two days per month in London office, remote

Interviews: w/c 8th September

Start: w/c 15th September

Charity People is delighted to be partnering with the National Literacy Trust as they recruit for a Partnerships Manager to join their team to deliver the 2026 National Year of Reading. The National Literacy Trust is a dynamic and impactful charity dedicated to empowering children, young people, and adults from disadvantaged communities with the literacy skills they need to thrive.

The National Year of Reading 2026 is a national campaign which will address the steep decline in reading amongst children, young people, and adults. A Department for Education initiative, in collaboration with the National Literacy Trust as delivery partner, the National Year of Reading will position reading as a powerful contemporary activity and will aim to engage new audiences in reading and to change the national reading culture for good.

Reading is central to the Government's Plan for Change: it supports success in school, work and in life, boosts wellbeing, brings people together and increases empathy. This is a hugely exciting time to be part of a strong and hard-working team to drive a collective impact approach by coordinating partnerships across the literacy sector and community organisations, and to ensure the campaign reaches and benefits the communities most in need.

Key Responsibilities:

• Build and manage partnerships with charities, libraries, and community organisations.
• Develop joint working agreements, funding bids, and partnership agreements.
• Ensure due diligence and effective information sharing.
• Support campaign alignment, volunteer strategy, and funding deployment.
• Maintain records in Salesforce and uphold brand values.
• Represent the charity at a senior level
• Contribute to legacy planning beyond 2026.

You will bring:

• Strong project and partnership management experience
• Relationship management across varied organisations
• Experience in the literacy/voluntary sector
• Creative, resilient, and confident communicator
• Financial planning and reporting skills

It would be a real advantage if you have experience working with publishers, booksellers and experience in events.

Charity People is a forward thinking, inclusive organisation that actively and deliberately promotes equity, diversity and inclusion. We know organisations thrive when inclusion is at the forefront. We evidence our commitment by matching charity needs with the skills and experience of candidates irrespective of background e.g. age, disability (including hidden disabilities), gender, gender identity or gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, or sexual orientation. We do this because we believe that greater diversity leads to greater results for the charities we work with.