Permanent Education Jobs

We are looking for a new member of the Programme Communications Team to lead on developing and implementing strategic marketing and communications for the Academy’s Enterprise Directorate. This role will have responsibility for elevating and increasing awareness and engagement of the entrepreneurship programmes, delivered by the Academy.

The role

Are you ready to shape the future of engineering and entrepreneurship? We’re looking for a visionary Senior Marketing and Communications Manager to join our dynamic Programme Communications Team. In this pivotal role, you will be at the forefront of promoting innovative engineering solutions and entrepreneurial spirit, contributing directly to the visibility and success of the Royal Academy of Engineering’s Enterprise Directorate (the Enterprise Hub and the Leaders in Innovation Fellowship).

As the Senior Marketing and Communications Manager, you'll craft and execute a robust Marketing and Communications Strategy. Your expertise will enhance our brand, attract diverse talent, and engage stakeholders across the globe. Through your leadership, our entrepreneurship programmes will resonate deeply within the tech and engineering communities.

Experience and Skills: You bring a rich background in B2B and B2C marketing, with a proven track record in developing strategic communications. Your expertise in SEO, content production, website management, and stakeholder engagement will be key.

Visionary Thinking: You are up to date with the latest marketing trends and possess the creativity to apply them effectively.

Leadership: With strong leadership skills, you are ready to mentor and manager team members and lead projects to successful outcomes.

Who are we?

Engineering matters. It shapes our everyday lives, from our ability to turn the lights on, have a hot shower and commute into work, to the mobile phones we rely on to keep connected. It also plays a vital role in addressing some of the biggest challenges facing society today, from climate change, to global health pandemics and cyber threats.

The Royal Academy of Engineering is a charity that harnesses the power of engineering to build a sustainable society and an inclusive economy that works for everyone. In collaboration with our Fellows and partners, we’re growing talent and developing skills for the future, driving innovation, and building global partnerships, and influencing policy and engaging the public. Together we’re working to tackle the greatest challenges of our age.

With a diverse workforce and an inclusive and supportive culture, we look to attract candidates from wide and different backgrounds who have a passion for the role engineering plays in society. Our aim is to make the Academy the best place to work for the staff we have and those we seek to attract.

Why work for the Royal Academy of Engineering?

We’re looking for people who are driven to make the world a better place. If you’re passionate about what you do and want to work collaboratively with talented colleagues to make change happen now and for future generations, we want you to get in touch.

This is the perfect time to join us. We have a dynamic, visionary CEO, a strong leadership team and an ambitious and exciting strategy. The value we bring as experts in our field and change agents is highly recognised and makes the Academy a motivating place to be. Our work today builds on a long, proud history with a focused and ambitious future which we’d love you to be part of.

We are looking for talented people who want to make a difference, to join our team – is this you?

Company Benefits

The Academy offers a fantastic package of additional benefits including:

• BUPA cash plan
• Private medical insurance
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme
• Independent Financial Advice
• Non-contributory pension scheme with 10% employer contribution
• Life Assurance, 4x annual salary
• Health and wellbeing programmes
• Generous holiday allowance
• Wellbeing days and office wide Christmas leave
• Significant investment into your personal and professional development
• Regular social activities
• Subsidised restaurant

Location

Our light, spacious head office is based in a fantastic location in central London with views over St James’s Park and close to the West End. We operate hybrid, flexible working practices with a baseline for office-based working of a mandatory weekly team day plus further days each week as required for the role and the Academy.

How to apply/Interview process

To find out more and to apply, please visit our website. As part of your application, you will be asked to upload a CV and a supporting statement explaining your interest in this role and how you fit the experience, knowledge, and skills profile.

Closing date: Midnight on 26 May 2024.

Interview dates: w/c 3 & 10 June 2024 (in person).

The Academy is committed to making reasonable adjustments to remove barriers that hinder applicants from applying or staff from working effectively and comfortably.

Working at Koreo

Koreo is a learning consultancy dedicated to imagining and building a better world. We work across civil society to help everyone experience the transformative power of radical learning. Since 2004, we have become one of the UK's leading learning and development partners for organisations with a social purpose, working alongside leaders in communities, social change organisations of all sizes, and convening learning networks across sectors and industries.

Our work is made up of a combination of consultancy projects, from large scale culture change programmes to discrete strategy and people development projects, as well as through our own programmes developing emerging and existing talent across the social change sector.

You can learn more about what it’s like to work at Koreo by exploring our Company Toolkit at www.koreo.co/toolkit.  You'll benefit from:

• 25 days holiday (5 days of which are fixed in August and Christmas), plus bank and public holidays

• Enhanced sick pay and family leave policies, flexible working arrangements, workplace pension scheme

• Cycle to Work scheme

• Fully comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme

The Job

The Learning Networks Portfolio Manager will:

• Report to the Managing Director

• Be employed on a permanent contract

• Be based remote or hybrid, with regular travel to London

• Be paid a pro rata full-time equivalent salary of £45,000-50,000

The Role In Brief

This position plays a central role in the delivery of Koreo’s work; responsible for a portfolio of the company’s biggest and most established programmes. It will be a varied role and will require someone to lead project teams in the design and delivery of high quality national learning programmes, while also playing a key role in the development of Koreo as an organisation
better able to build a just and regenerative future.

1. Responsible for the successful delivery and development of a portfolio of national learning programmes and projects. This portfolio of work is primarily focused on cross-sector learning programmes that bring cohorts of people together around learning missions. Examples include Civic Futures and the London Engagement Collaborative
with the GLA.
2. Responsible for sustaining and growing the portfolio, and with it Koreo’s profile, network, and income. This might be focused on developing the existing programmes in the portfolio, or could include wider writing, public speaking, pitching and networking
which support the distribution of the work.
3. An internal leadership role in developing a just and inclusive culture in which a diverse team can do its best work. This includes line management of one Project Coordinator, development of organisational practice and process, and work with the team on culture and development.

We’re looking for someone with the following skillset:

Commitment to Koreo Mission:

● An interest and motivation in driving social change through learning, and supporting people to create a more just and regenerative world through learning and development.

● An interest in understanding how social change happens in a complex world, and a commitment to supporting social change work that is consciously anti-oppressive, aware of power and agency, and committed to facing the big, messy challenges of the 21st century in a way that is both just and regenerative.

Strategic Leadership:

● Experience of a role with responsibility for the leadership of a team or portfolio of projects.

● Experience of strategy development and implementation, either at a programmatic or an organisational level.

Programme Management & Delivery:

● Experience of leading the design and delivery of learning programmes in an equivalent environment. 

● Experience leading projects which required the effective management of a range of stakeholders through project and programme work. You will be able to demonstrate how you have engaged with those stakeholders to build their connection with and investment in the project, and how you managed that work. 

● Experience of designing and facilitating learning/collaboration/experimentation spaces for individuals and groups, either in an organisational or programmatic context. 

● Skills & Knowledge which enable you to design high quality programmes and learning spaces, to support individuals with their learning, and to facilitate group spaces. 

● A familiarity with subjects relevant to Koreo’s work is essential. Successful candidates will likely be interested in subjects like collective impact, new approaches to power, working in and with complex systems, organisational design and psychology, participatory futures, activism and organising, multi-disciplinary practice, and much more that we don’t know about yet.

● An ability to communicate clearly and effectively with a range of stakeholders, with excellent verbal and written skills.

Operational Excellence:

● Experience working in a role which required excellent project planning, management & reporting. 

● Experience working in a role in which you were responsible for building and then delivering against project budgets.

● Experience working with a CRM to manage relationships and programmes of work. 

● An ability to organise and manage yourself, to work and deliver at pace to a high standard across a number of projects, to spot and solve problems as part of a proactive attitude.

● An ability to cope well with competing demands and changing environments, demonstrating flexibility and an ability to work in different settings and with different people.

Development & External Influencing:

● An understanding of the landscape of social change work, with a particular focus on UK non-profit and public sectors and the needs of people, organisations and networks in this space. 

● Experience of winning, and/or growing projects or programmes of work to deliver on a business development target. This may be through growing existing projects, writing proposals/tender responses, or by taking a new idea from concept to operational delivery. Experience of doing this in an equivalent context is desirable.

● An ability to influence externally, with a particular focus on the production of content (in the form of blogs, articles, reports, videos, infographics) that support campaigns and external influencing. 

People & Culture

● An ability to building positive relationships in a small, busy and ambitious team, leading and able to hold relationships with colleagues and our wider community.

● A commitment to your own personal development and learning, and an understanding of how that development will be supported by your work at Koreo.

It’s desirable, but not essential that the person has:

● An understanding of Justice, EDI, and anti-oppression and how to apply that understanding into organisational development.

● Experience of designing and delivering cross sector learning networks.

● Experience of client and account management in a consultancy context.

● Experience of designing spaces for cross-sector groups.

● Familiarity with practices like coaching, action learning, or particular methods of group work.

● Experience using Asana or an equivalent.

● Experience using Hubspot.

● An existing network in a relevant sector.

● An existing practice (and examples) of sharing your thinking or practice with a wider audience.

● Experience of line management.

Further information about the role can be found in the job pack linked on our socials or Medium page.

ROLE PURPOSE

This position involves identifying and prioritising potential donors capable of making significant contributions to help us deliver a range of projects aimed at enhancing the student experience and supporting the local community. By providing the Development and Fundraising Team with tailored and insightful research, this role will enhance the prospect funding pipeline and facilitate the cultivation of a diverse pools of donors, including individuals, grant-making trusts, and companies. This role will also manage a well-structured stewardship program for donors. Responsibilities include promptly acknowledging donations, creating personalised impact reports, and overseeing bi-annual events which recognise and celebrate their support.

PRINCIPAL ACCOUNTABILITIES

· To maintain and develop the University’s database of fundraising prospects through proactive identification, analysis, and segmentation, (individual and aggregate) record updating, and original research, including the identification of new prospects.

·  To prepare prospect profiles (which may include wealth ratings), and work with relationship managers to devise appropriate tailored cultivation and solicitation plans, enabling appropriately targeted fundraising asks.

·  To develop and manage reporting in the database across fundraising portfolios to help ensure prospects are strategically moving along the prospect pipeline towards major gift solicitation • To produce and provide due-diligence reports on prospective donors as part of the University’s gift acceptance procedures.

· To deliver an annual donor recognition event to acknowledge and celebrate the support of the University’s most generous supporters.

· To organise smaller bespoke events for higher level donors to the university, for example, site visits to project sites and/or opportunities to meet student beneficiaries.

· To write insightful and impactful bespoke reports for donors supporting the University, ensuring reports demonstrate the positive impact of support and encourage repeat gift solicitation from the fundraising team.

· To keep abreast of regulations, including the Privacy and Electronic Communications Regulations (PECR) and the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) ensuring that all prospect research and cultivation is compliant and understood by fundraisers.

· To undertake any other duties as appropriate within their competence, as required by their Head of Unit from time to time.

CONTEXT

The primary purpose of the Development team is to secure philanthropic income to support the delivery of the University’s Being Westminster 2022-2029 strategy. The Development team forms part of the Global Recruitment, Admissions, Marketing and Communications (GRAMC) directorate. The team also works closely with the Business Engagement Directorate to deliver an integrated approach to the University’s relationships with its key external stakeholders. The Development team collaborates with the Alumni Relations team to inspire and engage the University of Westminster’s vibrant, global community of alumni and supporters to build lifelong and mutually beneficial relationships with the institution.

DIMENSIONS

· The role has no budgetary responsibility.

· This role will be expected to manage a varied workload with limited, direct supervision.

· The post holder will be expected to support key GRAMC activity which may include some unsocial working hours.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

QUALIFICATIONS

Essential

·  Educated to degree level.

·  Membership in a relevant professional body (e.g. CASE)

TRAINING AND EXPERIENCE

Essential

· Experience researching potential funders/prospects or investors using a range of sources and analysing and synthesising findings.

· Familiarity with a range of tools and information sources useful to prospect research

· Strong working knowledge of fundraising and understanding of the fundraising and gift management process.

· Experience of working with CRM systems

· Experience in working with large and complex sets of data; analyzing and communicating key findings in an understandable way

· Experience in handling confidential data with tact and discretion, with good practical knowledge of the Data Protection Act

· To understand individual health and safety responsibilities and an awareness of the risks in the work environment, together with their potential impact on both individual work and that of others.

· Experience in delivering events that recognize and acknowledge key stakeholders thoughtfully and creatively.

 Desirable

· Experience working within a Development and Alumni Relations/Advancement function within a UK HEI

· Experience of The Raiser’s Edge

· Thorough knowledge of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR)

APTITUDES, ABILITIES AND PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

Essential

· Excellent interpersonal, networking, and verbal communication skills and proven credibility in engaging senior internal and external stakeholders, clients, and donors

· Strong writing skills and the ability to write compelling and insightful reports that demonstrate impact.

· Ability to work well under pressure and to successfully manage several projects simultaneously, to deadline.

· MS Office proficiency and experience with Excel spreadsheets

· Excellent organizational skills, methodical approach, and attention to detail

· High attention to detail

· Fully committed to contributing to a stimulating learning and working environment that is supportive and fair, based on mutual respect and trust, and in which harassment and discrimination are neither tolerated nor acceptable.

· A proven record of working cooperatively and flexibly as part of a team.

· Commitment to the role of philanthropy within a university setting

· Resilient and tenacious

· Self-starter, able to act on own initiative.

· The post holder will be expected to work unsocial hours on occasion.

HOW TO APPLY

To apply for this vacancy, please visit our vacancies page where you will be able to download our application form template. You will then be requested to complete a quick registration before being able to upload the completed application form and any supporting documentation.

Applications should include:

· A concise statement in support (ideally no longer than two pages), addressing the criteria in the Person Specification and motivation for applying.

· You may also include an up-to-date curriculum vitae;

· names and contact details of two referees (although referees will only be approached at the offer stage).

The deadline for receipt of applications is midnight on 8 June 2024.

Interviews will take place on 19 June 2024.

An appointment will be made subject to proof of eligibility to work in the UK and satisfactory references being obtained.

At the University of Westminster, diversity, inclusion and equality of opportunity are at the core of how we engage with students, colleagues, applicants, visitors and all our stakeholders.

We are fully committed to enabling a supportive and safe learning and working environment which is equitable, diverse and inclusive, is based on mutual respect and trust, and in which harassment and discrimination are neither tolerated nor acceptable.

The University has adopted Smart Working principles to support and further our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion aims of being an inclusive, collaborative and flexible employer. Further details of Smart Working can be discussed at interview stage.

OUR BENEFITS

The University offers a range of well-being and work-life balance benefits to recognise and reward the essential contribution our colleagues make to success and growth. Our benefits are inclusive for colleagues of all backgrounds including LGBTQ+ colleagues, disabled colleagues, pregnant colleagues, parents, and carers, as well as colleagues of all genders, ages, ethnicities, nationalities, religions and beliefs, and marriage and civil partnership status.

· 35 days annual leave per year, plus bank/national holidays and University of Westminster closure days (pro-rata for part-time staff).

· A generous occupational pension scheme.

· Annual incremental progression and/or cost of living reviews.

· Generous maternity, paternity, and adoption leave.

· Flexible working and smart working.

· Learning and development opportunities.

· Free membership rates for a wide range of sporting facilities, including gyms at Regent Street and Harrow campuses, as well as the Chiswick Sports Ground.

· Employee assistance programme.

· The opportunity to participate in other attractive employee benefit schemes such as Cycle to Work, Eye Care Vouchers, Season Ticket Loans, and Give As You Earn.

Are you looking for a dynamic and rewarding role working for an organisation with the feminist agenda at the core of its ethos? Do you believe in our values; to listen and support, to empower and respect, collaborate, innovate, and take accountability? 

 Then Advance Charity could be the career choice for you!

We are looking for an IT Project Manager

 Salary:            £42,000 - £45,000 (depending upon experience)

Location: Hammersmith, with travel to other Advance sites (some working from home)

Hours:               35 Hours per week

Contract:           Permanent

This post is open to female applicants only as being female is deemed to be a genuine occupational requirement under Schedule 9, Paragraph 1 of the Equality Act 2010.  

Please note: Any offer of employment will be made subject to references, confirmation of the right to work in the UK, and satisfactory enhanced DBS check.

About us

Advance is an award-winning and innovative women-only organisation, established in 1998, providing emotional and practical support to women and girls survivors of domestic abuse and supporting women with short-term sentences to reduce offending.   We believe in empowering women and girls to lead safe, non-violent, equal lives so that they can flourish and contribute to the community.  

We are a community-based organisation who lead in best practice approaches to supporting women in their local community. We achieve this by being available to meet and support women in local settings and at our women’s centres, and by working in close partnership with other agencies. 

Our values are to listen and support, to empower and respect, collaboration, innovation, and accountability.

About the role:

Reporting to the Director of Finance & Operations, the IT Project Manager will lead the scoping, researching, sourcing, design develop and implementation of several new systems relating to CRM, Case Management, Finance and HR.

The IT project manager will also support the Director of Finance & Operations in managing the relationship with the IT Support contract, providing IT support where necessary and in renewing the IASME (Information Assurance for Small and Medium Enterprises) accreditation.

About You:  You are pro-active, driven to improve processes and ways of working and have good stakeholder management skills and experience. You have the ability to work independently and use initiative. You will have good research and planning skills and are able to remain calm under pressure. You have good organisational skills including attention to detail and multi-tasking skills.

You are approachable, positive, flexible and ready to take on a wide range of tasks.

To be successful as the IT Project Manager you will need the below experience and skills: 

You will have previous experience in IT change management with significant experience of overseeing implementation projects, allowing you to hit the ground running. You will have an excellent understanding of computer systems, security and databases to allow you to ensure

an excellent and reliable IT service is provided to all staff on and off site. You will have strong Project, Stakeholder & Programme management skills and significant experience of delivering major business critical projects including the desired benefits and outcome to time, cost and quality, including the management and maintenance of standard project controls and documents.

You will have a bachelor’s degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent professional experience and 

A PMP, PRINCE2, Agile or other industry standard Programme or Project Management qualification. A good knowledge of Microsoft Server technologies, 365 admin level experience across Teams, SharePoint, OneDrive, Exchange Online etc. is essential for the role. Your experience will include supporting network devices and concepts, printers, softphones and other business hardware and software.

How to apply: 

If this sounds like the opportunity for you, please click on the ‘Apply Job’ button below.

Closing Date for Applications: Sunday 19 Mary 2024 at 23:59

· Interviews are taking place on a rolling basis 

*Advance reserves the right to close the advert early, or on the appointment of a candidate.

What we can offer you - Employee Benefits: 

• A 35-hour working week
• An exceptional 30 days of paid holiday per year (pro rata for part time), PLUS public holidays on top (that's nearly 40 days paid holiday per year!) 
• Additional days off to celebrate International Women’s Day, and for religious observance and moving home
• Perkbox - an employee discount platform where you can receive free rewards as well as take advantage of savings on clothes, groceries, travel, leisure and more
• Pension scheme
• Enhanced maternity/adoption provision
• Access to our Employee Assistance Programme
• Employee eye-care scheme
• Clinical supervision for front line staff and first line management roles
• Refer a Friend Scheme - £250 for each referral who passes probation
• Organisation wide away days
• Thorough induction and training

Career development pathways 

Accessibility

We welcome applications from people who identify as neuro diverse and want our recruitment process to be as accessible as possible. If you need us to make an adjustment or provide additional support as you apply for a role, please email the Talent team via our website and we will contact you to discuss how we can help. 

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Diversity, Inclusion and Equal Opportunities

We value diversity and believe the variety of ideas, perspectives and experiences it brings creates an effective environment in which talents can be fully utilised to achieve our goals.

We are committed to providing equality of opportunity and actively seek to recruit people from groups underrepresented in our current team. We have policies and processes in place to ensure that all employees are offered an equal opportunity in recruitment and selection, promotion, training, pay and benefits.

The founder and sponsor of the Harris Federation, Lord Harris of Peckham, opened our first school in 1990. We have, over the past thirty years, implemented ideas and initiatives that have transformed the opportunities of pupils from working class and disadvantaged backgrounds. Harris academies are widely recognised as a force for social mobility. We are immensely proud of the role that our alumni are now beginning to play in the world and of what we believe our current generation of pupils will go on to achieve.

We now have over 50 schools educating more than 40,000 young people across London and Essex, and employ over 5,000 staff across our academies and head office. With the majority of our academies located in areas of high socioeconomic disadvantage, a high-quality education is key to the futures of the pupils we serve.

As a provider of employment and education, we value the diversity of our staff and students, and all our staff are equally valued and respected. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment for our students and staff.

Our work will impact many generations to come, and our staff come from all backgrounds and walks of life, coming together to inspire young minds. We promote an inclusive culture that embraces the valuable and enriching contribution that all of our community make. We continue to be proactive in uplifting and supporting all voices at Harris.

To discover more about our culture, ethos and what it is like to work here, visit the page.

Your responsibilities will include:

• Ensuring that purchasing administration from point of order through to payment is administered in line with agreed Service Levels
• Ensuring Suppliers are informed and up to date with payments, striving to ensure positive supplier engagement as a baseline to securing favourable terms
• Ensuring creditors control accounts and purchase ledger are operated accurately, efficiently and to agreed timescales
• Ensuring smooth operation of the payment process
• Ensuring that accounting information is correct and can be relied upon
• Ensuring all employee expense processing and auditing is completed on time and in line with internal policies
• Ensuring timely problem and issue management in line with agreed service levels
• Developing and maintaining insightful management reporting on key performance indicators
• Ensuring a high level of data quality is maintained
• Driving efficiencies and effectiveness of the team, processes, data, and systems to enable improvements in the end-to-end P2P workflow
• Developing and leading an efficient and motivated team to delivery of accurate and timely P2P information and results
• Maintaining effective communication with key stakeholders developing strong and positive relationships

We would like to hear from you if you have:

• Proven experience in similar Accounts Payable leadership roles
• Experience of processing high volume transactions across complex structures
• Knowledge of accounting and VAT principles
• Experience of running and driving improvements within an Accounts Payable function
• Track record of managing and developing high performing team
• Experience of Oracle Fusion or similar complex financial systems
• Strong ownership and accountability along with a positive can do attitude
• Ability to assess performance from a holistic view, drawing out key areas for improvement and resolution
• Strong data analysis and problem solving skills
• Excellent customer service and communication skills
• Strong time management techniques to plan and organise workload
• Strong people management skills

For a full job description and person specification, please download the Job Pack.

If you would like to discuss the opportunity further, or if you have any questions, please contact us via email to arrange a conversation.

Before applying please ensure you download the job pack from our careers website, this will help with completing your application. Please note that we only accept applications submitted online before the closing date.

When applying, you will have the option to import your CV or use a LinkedIn profile which will auto populate the online application. 

A reminder to check your junk mail for our email communications and add us to your safe senders list to ensure all future email communication is received.

Job Title: Head of Employer Partnerships 

Reports to: Deputy CEO (but the role will also work in close collaboration with both the CEO and the Director of Programmes).

Location: Open to national flexibility on location. May occasionally need to attend our London office - Quantum House, 22 – 24 Red Lion Court, Fleet Street, EC4A 3AB.

Purpose: This is a fantastic opportunity for a dynamic professional to take the lead role in engaging employers, corporate funders, and professional networks and securing funded partnerships with them. This will provide essential income for the charity’s work with schools. It will also help the recruitment of skilled, diverse volunteers to support delivery of the charity’s innovative programmes for children and young people.

The postholder will work closely with our established employer networks and develop new networks; give leadership to a small team currently managing our partnerships and business development; and work collaboratively with an involved senior leadership team and further supportive colleagues right across the charity to achieve our aims.

Remuneration: £36k - £41k - depending upon experience. Pro rata depending on agreed full time equivalent hours of appointment (see below)

Additional Terms: We want to support our staff to get the absolute best contribution from them. We offer:

- 30 days paid holiday, exclusive of statutory bank holidays.

- A competitive pension scheme and employer contribution

- An environment that supports ongoing professional development

- A volunteering allowance of up to 5 days per annum – pro rata in accordance with the length of contract.

- Additional family friendly benefits including enhancements to Statutory Payments.

Appointment Terms: Permanent and full time. However, we would consider applications from those with excellent experience if they can provide a minimum of 0.8fte.

Closing date for applications: 12pm (noon) on Monday 13th May 2024

Interviews: Week commencing 20th May, likely Thursday 23rd May 2024 at our London offices

This is a super exciting role for someone who is passionate about improving life chances for children. We are looking for someone who is resilient, relentless, and driven by moral purpose to help secure the employer partnerships that will provide us with the income and delivery channels to achieve our charity’s ambitious plans. In return you will be working collaboratively with an equally passionate and supportive team of colleagues helping you fulfil your role, whilst enjoying the benefits above, and developing your talent further!

Job Purpose:

The successful candidate will be responsible for charity-wide strategic partnership engagement and management. The focus will be on developing new relationships with corporate partners, employers, and other organisations that help fund and grow the reach of our charitable work, establishing a strong and supportive network of employers.

To be successful, candidates should have experience of developing and securing funded corporate partnerships. This experience could be in the charity sector or within a different context. You should be able to demonstrate a proven track record in building, developing, generating income from, and owning effective long-term relationships with new and existing partners. You will need to show experience of managing stakeholder relationships at all levels of seniority.

The ideal candidate will be proactive, resilient, and used to managing competing priorities within a varied and exciting workload. They should be flexible, collaborative, and willing to perform varying duties depending on the shifting needs of a small charity with national presence.

We are looking for a strategic individual who can target, drive forward and subsequently deliver successful partnerships with employers and professional associations. The post-holder will understand the personal and professional benefits of volunteering in education and is passionate about supporting young people to realise their potential. They will share and champion our organisational values of being inspiring, inclusive, innovative, impactful, all underpinned by working with integrity at all times.

The ideal candidate will be a strongly self-motivated professional, with excellent communication skills, able to absorb key information quickly and work well with a small team and in a dynamic, supportive, and fun working environment.

Key Accountabilities:

Identifying and securing new employer partnerships:

• Lead on identifying different opportunities to generate income growth for our charity, including ‘charity of the year’ partnerships and developing and promoting a range of attractive strategic opportunities for corporates/ employers looking to sponsor and fund our charity;
• Researching and developing a prospect pipeline, including spending time generating new leads and meeting clients, to support the development of new corporate partners and ensure that CRM information is continuously updated;
• From this pipeline, identify, contact, and pitch to prospective partners about the benefits to them of supporting the charity. Prepare and deliver compelling and evidence-based pitches and presentations including developing assets and proposals, reporting, credentials, and pitch decks to support income generation from employer partnerships;
• Generate awareness and visibility of the Education and Employers’ partnership proposition – e.g. delivering a regular series of virtual and face to face sessions to engage with new organisations and sell the benefits of Education and Employers corporate funded partnerships;
• Ensure these briefing sessions are supported by valued current partners who can outline the benefits they themselves have seen organisationally and at an individual employee level leading to the establishment of new partnerships and income from employers;
• Developing an advocates/trusted partner approach by ensuring we equip our trustees, staff, and close partners with organisational assets to share across their wider connections;
• To explore and engage with Social Value/CSR networks, consultancies, and professional bodies to be their programme/charity of choice to deliver social value programmes on behalf of their clients’/ members’ behalf;
• Stay up to date with trends in charity fundraising from corporate partnerships and review how charities in the wider sector are best succeeding in this area.

Establishing, negotiating, and managing new partnerships and further developing existing employer partnerships:

• Negotiating new funding partnerships with clients that are deliverable, cost-effective, and generate money in addition to the cost of managing the partnerships;
• Persistently and professionally following up with clients at different stages of interest, in order to move forward and hopefully convert these partnership discussions into signed contracts/ commitments – i.e. moving discussions along to ‘close the deal’;
• Building strong relationships through a stewardship programme to engage with partners in a variety of ways on a regular basis, in particular with existing partners that are not currently funding partners to transition them to a funded model;
• To work closely with the current Partnerships Manager to effectively handover all successful bids to the Partnership Manager to develop project plans and delivery timelines;
• Design and develop organisational wide project implementation tools and processes to ensure end to end project management supports consistency in delivery, tracking and evidencing impact to successfully achieve strategic priorities and secure new and ongoing funding sources;
• Ensure all contact development activity is recorded on our Customer Relationship Manager system (Salesforce) so that we have clear oversight of our contact history and touchpoints with employers and networks;

Team management and working with the SMT and wider charity to develop employer partnerships:

• Supporting with seeking out new funding opportunities and writing bids that support the organisation to meet it strategic aims including regularly reviewing funding and grants websites;
• Work with colleagues across the organisation to support and create engagement opportunities for corporate partners and prospects that align with our strategic plan;
• Work closely with the Communications Manager and Director of Schools Programmes to create innovative ways to engage new corporate partners, via local networks and social media.
• Future line management of the Employer & Business Development Manager;
• To work closely and proactively with SLT, stakeholder partners and trustees to support and enhance our collective work with employers and to ensure a joined up, strategic approach;

Other

• Represent Education and Employers and the Senior Management Team at external events and conferences as appropriate;
•  Other ad hoc duties as required.

Person specification:

These are the required Skills, Knowledge, and Expertise required to undertake the role:

Essential

• Demonstrable experience of generating income from researching, establishing, and developing employer and/ or professional organisation partnerships;
• Demonstrable experience of being target driven and experience of meeting either demanding income or delivery KPIs and targets.
• Demonstrable experience of managing the income generation pipeline right from approaching clients, to engaging them, and finally through to contracting with them to secure inward income and deliver their agreed objectives.
• Awareness and understanding of navigating the multiple decision makers and decision-making gates in corporate organisations and professional member organisations;
• Experience of working with internal colleagues to develop achievable, realistic delivery plans for employer funders and execute them via effective programme and project management;
• Demonstrable experience of client management, including establishing initial rapport and building long term sustainable stakeholder relationships by working effectively and collaboratively with staff and partners across multiple geographical locations;
• Excellent people skills, the ability to influence (including with senior representatives) and the manner to professionally represent the Charity with external employers, professional bodies, and with schools and the education community;
• Knowledge and understanding of the role that marketing and internal and external communications campaigns can have in generating mass engagement of users with a programme or campaign at a national level;
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with strong ability to engage and persuade, including the ability to pitch and present to stakeholders in a professional and engaging manner, including online via video conferencing software like Microsoft Teams and Zoom.

Desirable

• A passion for supporting young people in realising their potential through harnessing skilled volunteers to engage in education; 
• A successful track record in delivering tangible outcomes through engagement with employers and professional networks;
• Specialist knowledge of the education and employment sectors and the policy environment and delivery models which underpin relationships;
• Experience of working to deliver significant national income targets or Key Performance Metrics using resources (human and financial) efficiently and effectively;
• Understanding of risk management and data protection.

Personal Attributes

• Good level of education, demonstrating strong client facing aptitude and communication skills both written and verbal. Comfort in working with a variety of senior external stakeholders.
• Self-motivated and relentless in pursuing goals, having an entrepreneurial and enterprising approach to their work;
• Personal resilience and professional persistence in following up leads and moving discussions through to a conclusion;
• Good working knowledge and practical application of Microsoft office tools and the ability to understand and work with customer relationship management software such as Salesforce;
• A “doer”- ability to work at pace and pro-actively anticipate requirements and act to provide workable solutions to these;
• Solutions orientated, perceiving processes as the means rather than the end and as an aid to effective delivery;
• Influencer - demonstrates personal ‘presence’ and gains the confidence of others through temperament, capability, and calibre;
• Demonstrates sensitivity and possesses the ability to effectively manage the organisational tensions that sometimes develop between internal and external stakeholders involved in the organisation and delivery of programmes;
• Team Player: working collaboratively and flexibly with other colleagues to achieve outcomes and is keen to add value to the Charity’s culture and ethos;
• Able to undertake some occasional work in the evenings and at weekends;
• Able to occasionally travel in the UK (England primarily). Although most of the role can be done online from a home location.

Application process:

The Education and Employers charity values having a diverse workforce. We are committed to equality of opportunity and welcome applications from all individuals from all backgrounds.

The closing date for applications is 12pm (noon) on Monday 13th May. Successfully shortlisted candidates will be notified no later than close of play on Thursday 16th May.

Interviews will take place in the week commencing 20th May, most likely on Thursday 23rd May at the Education and Employers’ offices in Fleet Street, London.

The interview panel will constitute our CEO Nick Chambers, our Director of Programmes Charlotte Thurston, and our Deputy CEO Dominic Judge - who will initially line mange the role.

Please send a CV and a covering letter (no more than 4 sides maximum for the latter, ideally shorter) addressing the job description and person specification, setting out your interest in and suitability for the role

Applications will only be accepted from those with the right to work in the UK with a valid passport/visa.

Please note, we will only consider applications with both a CV and covering letter.

Applications from recruitment agencies will not be considered under any circumstances.

Thank-you for your interest, we are an organisation that develops talent, and we welcome applications even if you can’t meet exactly every word of the job description. If you have what it takes, we will work with you to develop your talent further. We very much look forward to receiving your application!

Good luck,

Nick, Charlotte, and Dominic.

Finance Business Partner
Salary: £42,000 - £49,000
Permanent, flexible working
Hybrid working, 3 days a week in office
Office based in Sutton

My client is a specialist education provider supporting schools across London and South England. As a Finance Business Partner, you will play a crucial role in supporting budget holders in their financial and strategic decision making. Working with a team of Assistant Finance Business Partners you will be responsible for the month end reporting cycle, periodic forecasting and yearly budget setting. Supporting a Regional Finance Business Partner, you will help translate financial information into insightful commentaries, and provide input into benchmarking, dashboarding and financial modelling as required.

Key areas of responsibilities;

• Lead and manage a team of Assistant Finance Business Partners and Finance Officers, including performance management, development, succession planning, sickness monitoring, etc. 
• Lead the preparation of monthly management accounts pack (including income & expenditure, and balance sheet) to regular deadlines; specific duties will include: approve monthly journals, reconciliation of balance sheet accounts, income analysis and inter-company recharges. 
• To actively collaboration with the wider finance team to maintain and champion the integrity of financial information, specifically purchase ledger for supplier invoices, commitments, expenses and petty cash; procurement for contracts; and assets accountant for capital expenditure and maintaining fixed assets. 
• To support and enable budget holders with budget management, exercising considerable judgement, in particular with Principals, School Business Managers HR and staffing resources, to problem solve where 

Who are we looking for?

• A formally qualified, part qualified or qualified by experience accountant with relevant experience of financial accounting gained in a large, complex organisation (this could be commercial, Not-for-Profit or practice) 
• Good communication and interpersonal skills both written and oral, able to communicate effectively with finance professionals, senior management and trustees, and non-accountants to achieve cooperation and results
• Ability to manipulate data, analyse information, identify anomalies and extract pertinent information. Excellent attention to detail

My client offers hybrid working with established training and team practices to ensure full support and engagement at all times.

If you are looking to develop your career in not-for-profit finance or change sectors, then this is the position for you.

Do you have experience connecting university students and non-profits for mutual gain? Are you a storyteller and collaborator?

We are looking for a Community Research Initiative Manager to lead the innovation, delivery, and evaluation of a range of community-based student opportunities at UCL. This currently includes: collaborative PGT dissertations; research skills volunteering; our new Pro bono Community Research Service; and developing community-based class projects for university colleagues. We are seeking an innovative, creative, and passionate person to fill the role of Community Research Initiative manager.

This is an exciting role in a unique organisation.  Our vision is of 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 100 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 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.

As an internationally recognised charity NEBOSH plays an important role in the health, safety and environmental professional community. Through NEBOSH qualifications, learners and their employers can improve the lives of people around the world by keeping their colleagues and their communities safe from work-related accidents and ill-health.

Highly respected by governments, employers and learners alike, tens of thousands of people from more than 170 countries study for a NEBOSH qualification every year through its network of over 450 Learning Partners.

We are now seeking an exceptional candidate to support our ambitions as we develop our social purpose programme and identify opportunities to further our reach and impact as a charitable organisation.  Successful candidates will be passionate ambassadors for the organisation’s mission and values and support the strategic direction of NEBOSH by bringing knowledge, ideas and relevant experience to identify opportunities and be a leading voice as we continue our important work in the health, safety and environmental community.  

Candidates will bring strong credentials in research, innovation and identifying new opportunities. They will have demonstrable project management experience and a commitment to positive social and environmental impact.

What you will be doing:

• Building relationships with other charitable and social purpose led organisations, corporate and governmental customers from within the health and safety sector giving consideration of partnership opportunities

• Developing research methodologies and conducting analysis that provide insight into charitable opportunities in the UK and internationally that align with our charitable objects

• Establishing and embedding aligned and integrated social development processes that provide direction and guidance for undertaking charitable activities, including consideration of safeguarding procedures

• Contributing towards an organisation-wide communications strategy that showcases NEBOSH as a prominent health and safety education charity.

• Monitoring the social purpose programme budget including clearly reporting on both used and committed funds.

 About You:

Knowledge and Experience:

 Significant experience, with a track-record of effectiveness, in:

• Researching, Identifying and building new social development opportunities

• Project Management, including understanding of the Agile framework

• Demonstrating a commitment to positive social and environmental impact including development of  ESG and Sustainability Initiatives

• Business case and Tender application processes

• Budget management and accountability

• Reporting - formal report/paper writing at Board or equivalent leadership level

• Forging business relationships

• Not for profit or Charity organisations

 Key skills and attributes for the job:

• Sets and meets high standards

• Energetic and energizing

• Written communication - Presentation to a range of audiences (board and executive level)

• Verbal communication - Ability to communicate across various levels with confidence and clarity

• Decision-making

• Critical thinking

• Ability to work at pace and under pressure

• ‘Can-do, will-do’ attitude

• Collaborative approach

• Demonstrates integrity in all situations

What we offer

Work base:

The role will work in hybrid manner where you will work both from our office in Leicester and from home.

 Salary:

Up to £50,000 per annum (Depending on experience)

 Working Hours:

35 hours per week, Monday to Friday

 Benefits:

• Company Pension (10% employer)

• Enhanced holidays (FTE 25 days raising to 33 days with service)

• Health Care Cash Plan

• Private Medical

• 3 x salary Death in Service

• Discounted Gym membership

• Cycle scheme

• Holiday Buying scheme

• Extensive discounts and exclusive offers

• Free parking

NEBOSH has signed the Federation of Awarding Bodies Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Pledge. The pledge highlights its commitment to the fundamental principles of ensuring equity and inclusivity for all learners, stakeholders and colleagues.

This is a newly created role and there is a great deal of untapped potential here for a proactive leader to support the CEO and SLT to create efficiencies in how we manage our internal infrastructure (IT Systems and processes), Finance and charity Governance, and HR/people to ensure we maintain and develop a thriving and nurturing working environment. The individual will have significant involvement in the strategic vision of the organisation as a whole. With a broad portfolio, the role combines both operational and strategic elements and must be able to flex up and down accordingly. 

Safeguarding is of fundamental importance to the work of the RSCM at every level, so this is a vital role which involves working collaboratively with staff and volunteers across the UK to ensure safeguarding policies and procedures are implemented and kept under review, keeping up to date with legislation and best practice.

You will act as the RSCM's Lead Recruiter through 31:8 for processing DBS applications, receiving updates and deciding levels of clearance required for staff and volunteers including for events and courses. 

Thee will be a high degree of liaison with Trustees, management and staff as well as the need to network with other agencies as appropriate.

For a full job description see the attachment.

RSCM works to positively promote the importance of effective safeguarding, holding to the Christian belief of valuing each person as someone who bears the image of God and is loved equally by God, and therefore should be protected from harm. 

Our vision is for an environmentally engaged society with better connections to nature. 

Our mission is to improve life chances of children and young people through a range of Outdoor Learning experiences, enabling them to learn from nature, empowering them to have a positive impact on the environment. We do this through grant support, direct delivery, research and advocacy.

The Role

In this new role as a Development Surveyor at the Trust, you'll play an important part in advancing our Property Strategy, taking forward capital projects, in support of extending our charitable impact and growing our income to do so. Working closely with the Property Director, you'll lead multiple capital projects of differing scales and varying timelines, focusing on the redevelopment of rural assets, brownfield sites, and new developments focused on rural land and property.

Your expertise will be instrumental in managing relationships with partners, planning authorities, consultants and influential stakeholders to ensure successful project outcomes. You'll be part of the Head Office-based Property team, with occasional travel to our rural landholdings across England.

Main Accountabilities:

• Assess and manage the Trust's portfolio of capital projects with a focus on maximising value and impact.
• Lead the development process from inception to completion, ensuring alignment with the Trust's strategic objectives and values.
• Cultivate and maintain productive relationships with stakeholders and potential partners to advance developmentprojects.
• Serve as a Trust ambassador, representing our interests in various forums and engagements.
• Provide expertise in financial and development appraisals to guide decision-making.
• Provide regular progress updates to the Property Director, addressing risks and opportunities.
• Oversee local consultations and stakeholder engagement to ensure project alignment.
• Manage contracts and negotiations to ensure timely and cost-effective project delivery.
• Co-ordinate design team meetings and liaise with professionals to drive project success.
• Conduct post-completion evaluations to capture feedback and improve future processes.

Person Specification:

Specific Requirements

• Proven track record in managing development projects, with a focus on rural property.
• Understanding of rural property characteristics and relevant legal frameworks.
• Proficiency in Health & Safety laws and regulations.
• Strong grasp of technical and contractual aspects of project development.
• Experience in financial modelling and analysis.
• Skilled in co-ordinating multiple external consultants, contractors, and planners.
• Ability to effectively communicate complex concepts and findings.

Personal Qualities

• Motivated and results-driven with a commitment to excellence.
• Confident leadership skills with the ability to influence and engage stakeholders.
• Strong communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Detail-oriented with excellent organisational skills.
• Ability to thrive under pressure and meet tight deadlines.
• Collaborative mindset with a focus on cross-organisational alignment.
• Comfortable navigating complex contracts and commercial environments under time constraints.

Skills and Knowledge

• Degree or equivalent qualification or experience in surveying, property management or development, pre-construction project management (client side), or related field.
• Membership in a relevant professional body (eg, RICS, PMI).
• Proficiency in MS Office suite and development-specific software.
• Experience with GIS mapping software is desirable.

How to Apply

In the first instance, please download, complete and save the Application Form available via The Ernest Cook Trust website and then Upload your completed application form to our recruitment portal (The link is posted on the job description on our website).

(CVs will not be accepted)

Closing Date

Monday 13 May 2024 at 17:00.

1st Interviews

Monday 3 June 2024 at Fairford, Gloucestershire GL7 4JH.                                                                                           

2nd Interviews

Monday 17 June 2024 at Fairford, Gloucestershire GL7 4JH.                                                                                     

Find more information about The Ernest Cook Trust on our website.

We look forward to hearing from you.

ABOUT US

As a landowning educational charity, the Trust is uniquely placed to share its woodlands, farms and natural habitats to inspire a greater love and understanding of the natural world, farming and sustainability. We do this for children, young people, their families and communities, particularly those who face barriers to accessing and participating in the outdoors.

We are part of an impressive community of networks and organisations across the UK, working to help create a more environmentally engaged society. Our work is increasingly done in collaborations and partnerships with like-minded organisations, particularly with our funding partners, whose contribution significantly boosts the scale and reach of our work.

The Trust’s Estates

The Trust owns and manages over 9,000 hectares of land and property made up of mainly let farmland but also 584 hectares of woodland, houses, cottages and a growing commercial portfolio. Land is owned in six counties: Buckinghamshire, Cumbria, Dorset, Gloucestershire, Leicestershire and Oxfordshire. These rural landholdings are managed for income return and capital growth, whilst seeking ways to improve the environment and important habitats, evolving and protecting the landscapes.

Active management dictates that we are constantly looking for new opportunities and ways to evolve and improve our income stream in support of the Trust’s overall charitable object, which is education. These already include long-term housing development proposals, natural capital and carbon, and biodiversity net gain projects alongside other long-term ambitious plans.

OUR VALUES

The unique spirit of The Ernest Cook Trust is best expressed through our values:

Cultivating Connections
At the heart of our work lies the belief that meaningful and lasting change happens through the cultivation of connections. We value the relationships we build with the people and communities we serve, as well as each other and the partnerships we form with like-minded organisations. We understand that these connections create the conditions for people and places to flourish.

Freedom to Try
We embrace a culture of innovation and resilience, where both our team members and the individuals we serve have the freedom to try new things. This value encourages a dynamic and adaptable approach, nurturing trust and courage in ourselves and others.

Progressive Stewardship
We believe in responsible, forward-thinking management of our outdoor resources, as places where diversity can thrive. By actively caring for the environment, we ensure that the beauty and benefits of the outdoors are accessible to all, changing lives through individual and shared positive experiences.

WHAT TO EXPECT

Join our growing team at the Trust for a friendly and rewarding experience. We offer competitive salaries, a range of benefits plus a training budget for your personal growth.

We currently have around 45 members of staff based either at our Gloucestershire Head Office, across our UK landholdings and in our regional hubs (Gloucestershire, Cumbria/Lancashire, Leicestershire) or working hybridly.

Enjoy our generous benefits:

• 10% employer pension contribution (5% from employees)
• 27 days annual leave, plus statutory holidays.
• Life Assurance.
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme, providing 24/7 support for health, mental wellbeing, and more.
• Dynamic, creative, and welcoming work environment.

Working for us will involve wellies, because we firmly believe that everything is better outdoors!

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Embracing diversity is an essential part of the work of The Ernest Cook Trust. We are committed to treating everyone as a unique individual, fairly and with respect, irrespective of race, disability, age, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, or religion. We are committed to ensuring equality, respect, and safety for all, and prioritising the wellbeing of the children, young people and vulnerable adults we support. Our safeguarding policy can be found here.

The appointment will be subject to satisfactory background checks including Disclosure and Barring Service and relevant online searches to comply with best practices in Safeguarding, and proof of the right to work in the UK.

The Task Ahead: Finance Manager

As The Difference moves from its early start-up phase into the delivery of our 2025-30 strategy, our programmes and sector-influencing work are expanding to reach more schools and to deepen our impact. Alongside this growth, our team - and the operational function which supports them - is also growing.

As Finance Manager, you will be a key member of the Finance & Operations team. You will hold end-to-end responsibility for the finance function, from reconciliations to budgeting. You will decide where and how our existing processes could be improved, as well as developing new systems that will underpin our work as a larger and more established charity. You will be supported by the Director of People, Finance & Operations, as well as our external auditors.

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 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!

Areas of Responsibility

The Difference is looking for a Finance Manager to lead our finance function in the following ways:

• Oversee our internal bookkeeping, payment, and accounting processes, and improve these systems ongoingly.

• Lead on budgeting and forecasting across the organisation, supporting teams to predict income and expenditure and make sound financial decisions.

• Lead on the production of management accounting information, including internal monthly management accounts, quarterly reports for Trustees, and financial reports for investors.

• Lead on The Difference’s audit process, with external auditors.

• Work with the Development & Impact Manager to update fundraising pipelines, and ensure the availability of high quality income projections for Trustees.

• Support accurate budgeting and reporting for grant funding, including tracking spend of restricted funds.

• Support business planning by working with teams to model potential future work - e.g. costs of expansion of an existing programme; modelling potential new programmes.

Person Specification

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

• Values – Your experience evidences shared values with The Difference (see below) and a personal commitment to our mission to improve life outcomes for vulnerable people.

• Finance experience, operational and strategic – Experience across all areas of finance, from accurate invoicing, payments and record-keeping, through to setting and managing budgets, financial modelling and forecasting, and working with external accountants or auditors.

• Finance process development – Experience of developing finance systems; the ability to recognise how processes could be continuously improved, and enact this improvement.

• Leadership of self and others – Confident in identifying skills or information gaps within your team, and drawing on the expertise of others to address these gaps. Able to show how you've continually grown your own skills and those of your team members so that together you can efficiently cover workload and plan ahead.

• Proactive problem-solving – Ability to thrive in a fast-paced start-up environment and to problem-solve: from rolling sleeves up and diving into detail to working collaboratively to build capacity.

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

• Accounting qualification and experience - Some form of accounting qualification and post-qualification experience.

• Early-stage charity/social enterprise experience – You may have specific experience growing charities or businesses for social good at the early or start-up phase.

• Experience of charity finances – You may have worked for or supported other charities, and have experience of working with philanthropic grants, charity accounting, and governance.

• Insight into schools – You may have experience working in the education sector, whether that’s through working for a business or charities that partnered with schools, or through working in a school yourself. 

Why Work for The Difference?

Schooling isn’t working for the children who need it most. Every week in England 109 children – equivalent to three full classrooms – are permanently excluded. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Since the pandemic, school suspensions have risen significantly, as has persistent absenteeism. 1 in 5 children are missing more than 10% of their time in school. Children who are excluded or persistently absent are much more likely to already be experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage. They are more likely to live in poverty, have additional learning needs, suffer mental health challenges, or experience a lack of safety outside school. Certain ethnicities are also disproportionately affected, notably Gypsy Roma Traveller and black Caribbean children. 

Exclusion and high rates of absence can have a dramatic effect on life chances. These young people are more likely to drop out of education or employment, become vulnerable to long-term mental ill health, or be at risk of criminal exploitation. The Difference believes that children and young people deserve better and that the education system has to change.

Our Organisation 

The Difference is a young education charity, founded to change the story on lost learning.  By 2030, we want rates of exclusion and absence to be falling nationally and for schools to be better equipped to support all children, including those who may be vulnerable. The Difference was born out of a year of research into school exclusions with think-tank IPPR. This research identified a lack of inclusion expertise in schools and proposed a new leadership development programme to fill this gap. In 2018, Difference founder Kiran hired the team who took this idea from concept to reality, beginning work with our first schools.

The Difference is now a 22-strong team delivering multiple school leadership programmes, alongside a growing research and policy arm. The team is supported by our Youth Advisory Board, made up of young people who have experienced exclusion and who provide their expertise and insights on how school inclusion work should be done. This work is needed more than ever. Effects of COVID-19, coupled with the spiralling cost of living, have substantially increased levels of vulnerability. Schools serving excluded pupils face under-funding. The Difference has had excellent early impact but there is work ahead to capture this, share learning with schools and policy-makers, and grow our capacity to lower exclusions across England.

Our Values

• High Expectations - We are ambitious for excellence from young people, colleagues and ourselves.  We don’t believe in writing off someone’s potential because of their identity or experience of crisis. 

• Strong Relationships - We prioritise genuine relationships over transactional interactions, and know that this requires deliberate relational practice. We see colleagues and partners as people first and their roles second; and know this greater trust allows us to take more risks, gain more feedback and have greater impact.

• Internalised Locus of Control - We work hard to reframe difficult situations to discover what we have within our power in terms of solutions. We take it upon ourselves to walk towards challenges and can take a high level of ownership and agency in our work/

• Pragmatism - We believe leadership means recognising current limitations and striving for improvements within and beyond them.  We develop consensus and chart new ways forward, challenging false and extreme positions like “zero exclusions” or “no excuses”.

• Scientific approach - We take a diagnostic approach to unpicking causes of problems. We are loud and proud of our failures, recognising failing fast and often is key to finding the best solutions. We test solutions and are willing to use data and feedback to make adjustments and choose new directions. 

• Not Squeamish about Structural Inequality - We believe patterns of inequality can and should be disrupted. We strive to be clear-eyed about these inequalities, and both the individual practice and system-changes required to address them. We push ourselves to overcome awkwardness in talking about this; and begin by acknowledging our own biases and blind spots.

• Asset-based - We work hard to avoid deficit thinking and aim to start with what’s strong, not what’s wrong. We are careful not to frame our colleagues and stakeholders - particularly young people and families – as victims but instead to recognise their agency.

• Wise selves - To both enjoy work and do their best, we want to make decisions and work with others in our “wise” - or regulated - selves. We also want to bring our compassionate self to those we work with, externally and internally, to support one another through challenging times. 

How To Apply 

To apply, please complete all sections of the application form by midnight on Sunday 19th May.

First round interviews will be held during the week beginning 27th May, over video call. Please indicate if you would not be available to attend an interview during this week.

If successful in this stage, second round interviews (including a task to be completed the same day) will take place on the week beginning 3rd June, at our office in Bethnal Green. 

We are committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups in the charity sector such as people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, people with experience in the care system, non-graduates and first-in-family graduates. 

As part of our commitment to fairer recruitment, all applications will be assessed with names and any protected characteristics redacted.

Recommended Reading 

If you’d like to understand more about The Difference and what we are trying to achieve, we would recommend the following:

• The research which underpins our organisation.

• Our latest Impact Report, sharing our work in 2023

About Schoolreaders:

Schoolreaders was launched ten years ago in Bedfordshire with the aim of recruiting volunteers to provide one-to-one reading support for children in primary schools across the country. Over 22,000 children in over 1000 schools are receiving weekly reading sessions from a Schoolreaders volunteer. One in four children are leaving primary school unable to read to the expected Government standard. Our service is needed more than ever before with 1 in 6 primary schools across the country asking Schoolreaders for reading volunteers. Building on past successes, we have ambitious plans to expand our provision, focussing on areas of deprivation in which children need our support the most. 

Role Description:

We are looking for a highly motivated, experienced Head of Fundraising to lead our small, dynamic Schoolreaders fundraising team and help grow income in line with the Charity's ambitious and exciting plans. This is the ideal opportunity for someone hoping to achieve great results within a rapidly growing charity which is impacting the lives of thousands of children every week. 

What you can expect:

A highly rewarding, senior fundraising role where you can develop your own skills whilst making your mark on a fast growing national children's charity. Schoolreaders is a highly professional charity which values every team member's contribution to our team efforts. We offer a generous holiday allowance, enhanced sick pay, an employee assistance programme, plus training and development opportunities. If you want to lead a great team in a fast moving, welcoming environment whilst making a huge impact on children's literacy across the country, this could be the perfect role for you! 

Applications will be reviewed, and interviews offered, on an ongoing basis. We reserve the right to close the role prior to the closing date should a suitable applicant be found, so please submit your application as soon as possible.

Schoolreaders is committed to safeguarding the welfare of children and young people and requires staff to share this commitment. This post is subject to a range of vetting checks including a basic disclosure check of unspent criminal convictions.

Schoolreaders is a Charitable Incorporated Organisation registered in England and Wales (1159157)