Contract manager jobs in London
Title: Senior Policy and Advocacy Manager
Salary: From £45,000 - £55,000 per annum
Contract: Permanent
Hours: 37.5 per week (Monday to Friday)
Holiday: 25 days per year plus bank holidays
Location: Home based with regular travel within / to London and across the UK
Probationary Period: 3 months
Reports to: Head of Department
Benefits: An additional 3 days holiday between Christmas and New Year, Flexitime policy, 5% pension contribution
Title and salary to be commensurate with experience.
We are River Action
We are a small and agile campaigning organisation on a mission to rescue UK rivers from a toxic cocktail of agricultural, sewage and industrial pollution and water shortages. We support community action, galvanise and mobilise public opinion, influence government policy, take legal actions and call out destructive industrial practices to incentivise changes that end river pollution and secure freshwater.
We are building a talented team of positive disrupters and stakeholder mobilisers to deliver our strategy to urgently protect and restore our rivers for the benefit of communities, rivers and wildlife.
Britain’s rivers are our life support system and they are dying. We need urgent action to bring them back to life.
Who we are looking for
We are expanding our political influence by introducing this new position, which will work closely with our existing Policy and Advocacy Manager to bolster our strategic reach particularly in the areas of water scarcity, security and justice, sewage and chemical pollution, and water sector reform.
We are seeking a dynamic and self-motivated individual who shares our passion for protecting rivers and securing our nation’s water, food, health, jobs and economy to join our team to drive forward our policy and advocacy work. This role requires a strategic thinker with strong policy insights capable of blending analytical problem-solving with intelligent advocacy to drive meaningful change. This role requires someone to have excellent writing skills and the ability to draft complex policy documents as well as top line arguments for wider communication.
The ideal person will bring a combination of expertise, energy and ideas to amplify our impact, holding decision-makers and polluters accountable with a professional and diplomatic approach. They will engage with influential people across the sector, government, industry and media.
If you thrive in fast-paced environments and want to be at the forefront of environmental policy and advocacy across multiple campaigns, we’d love to hear from you.
What you’ll be doing
As a Senior Policy and Advocacy Manager, you will lead the development and drafting of River Action’s overall policy strategy as well as leading on specific policy areas. You will play a leading role in shaping and advancing River Action’s political and policy influence, working closely with the Senior Management Team, Chief Executive and wider organisation to develop and execute an impactful policy and advocacy strategy.
River Action is the Co-Secretariat for the APPG on Water Pollution, offering our Policy and Advocacy Manager a unique opportunity to shape the policy direction for River Action and also to influence policy development across Parliament.
You will also work closely with our public affairs agency who manage our daily Westminster activities.
You will:
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Lead River Action’s development and delivery of our policy and advocacy strategy on sewage, industrial water pollution, and water scarcity
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Collaborate with River Action’s team and external partners to ensure our collective work is underpinned by robust and forward-thinking policy analysis and evidence.
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Develop policy analysis to support campaign, communications and policy strategies, based on a strong evidence base and a sound understanding of the relevant legal and policy frameworks.
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Translate complex policy and evidence into concise documents with clear messages and compelling campaigns to engage political and policy stakeholders.
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Monitor and analyse political and policy developments, interpreting their implications and opportunities for River Action and its supporters.
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Generate analysis to enable participation in public consultation processes, including drafting high-quality and persuasive consultation responses and briefings for Westminster and Whitehall audiences.
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Increase our political influence with exciting policy interventions, ensuring River Action’s voice is heard at the highest levels of decision-making.
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Build and maintain relationships with key policymakers, civil servants, industry experts and partner organisations.
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Support grassroots community groups and third-sector partners in engaging with their local representatives for effective advocacy.
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Organise and attend key political meetings and events, including the Water Pollution APPG, stakeholder roundtables and parliamentary events.
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Manage strategic policy partnerships, including our relationship with Wildlife and Countryside Link and other third-sector organisations.
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Ensure River Action’s policy and advocacy efforts align with our creative campaigns, by making sure colleagues and spokespeople are well-briefed and communications content is well-informed to maximise reach and impact.
You will also:
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Actively engage in professional development and training.
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Adhere to health and safety policies while working in different locations.
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Maintain confidentiality in all areas of work at River Action.
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Demonstrate a strong commitment to an inclusive, equal and diverse workplace.
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Work collaboratively with colleagues across River Action to collectively deliver our mission while being true to our values.
UK travel will be required and regular trips to London. Training and operational activities may require overnight stays away from home, in which case costs will be covered and standard River Action procedures will apply.
What you’ll bring
The position will suit a self-motivated, strategic and determined person. You will be an excellent communicator, with exceptional writing skills and comfortable representing River Action and engaging with diverse stakeholders in positions of responsibility. You will have a passion to protect and restore our waterways and to hold decision-makers and polluters to account.
Essential knowledge, skills and experience:
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Experience in a senior policy and advocacy role, ideally within the environmental sector and including experience of water policy.
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Policy and/or legislative experience, with a good understanding of the workings of the UK government and Parliamentary procedure.
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A good understanding of the UK water industry, the key UK water-related policies and the issues that are impacting our rivers, land and wildlife.
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Knowledge of the challenge of water scarcity.
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Excellent communication and writing skills with close attention to detail and the ability to produce concise and persuasive briefings, reports and consultation responses.
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Strong interpersonal skills and a collaborative approach to working creatively and at a fast pace with colleagues, stakeholders and partners.
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Excellent organisational skills, including the ability to proactively plan and prioritise work and to report your progress and impact.
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Ability to work flexible hours and travel as necessary.
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A good and supportive team player with a willingness to muck in as and when required.
Why join us?
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Be part of a mission-driven organisation working to restore and protect the UK’s rivers.
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Work at the heart of political and environmental change, influencing decision-makers at the highest levels.
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Work in an agile, supportive and happy work environment where your ideas and expertise will have real impact.
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Opportunities for professional development and growth within the organisation.
Diversity and inclusion
Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies show that women and people of colour are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single criteria. We are committed to building a diverse, inclusive and equitable workplace. So if you like the look of this role but your past experience does not align perfectly with everything in the job description, we’d still love to hear from you. You may be just the right person for this role.
How to apply
To apply, please submit to jobs at riveractionuk dot com with the subject Senior Policy and Advocacy Manager’:
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your CV (2 pages),
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a cover letter (2 pages) explaining why you want to work for River Action and how your skills and experience meet the requirements of the role, and
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a written submission (2 pages) as described below.
Only applications including all three documents will be accepted. Please provide your documents in pdf format.
Written submission
Please prepare a 2 page policy briefing for Parliamentarians on the issue of water scarcity and water justice and how it affects UK rivers and our security. Your briefing should be written in a clear, persuasive style suitable for a Parliamentary and government audience and:
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Identify causes of water scarcity and injustice.
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Provide a concise analysis of the impact on rivers, biodiversity and our economy.
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Summarise and assess gaps in relevant UK Government policies, legislation and plans.
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Propose two or three practical policy recommendations for decision-makers.
Application process
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis until 5pm on Wednesday 15th July.
Should your application be selected during sift, the next stage will involve an initial 15-minute interview. You may then be invited to attend a second interview with a panel.
Interviews will be held in the weeks commencing 19th July and 26th July via video conference.
Please indicate in your covering letter or in a covering email your availability for interviews.
If you have any questions about the role or your application, please contact us on jobs at riveractionuk dot com.
First Give
First Give is a national charity that partners with secondary schools to inspire and equip young people with the knowledge, confidence, and skills to drive change. Through our structured programmes, students explore social issues, connect with charities, and take tangible steps to improve their community.
Empowering and equipping young people to meaningfully contribute to their community is a first step to addressing many of the challenges we face at this time of social disconnection and division. Our vision is of a more generous society where everyone is willing and able to give their time, money and skills to the causes they care about.
Trusts and Foundations Manager
We are seeking a dynamic, strategic and relationship-driven Trusts and Foundations Manager to lead on growing and stewarding First Give’s portfolio of high-value funders. This role will focus on securing income from Trusts and Foundations from first engagement to account management, delivery and reporting.
First Give is a small charity, with a growing fundraising team and big ambitions. You will therefore be someone who thrives in a start-up environment, willing to try new things. We are looking for an exceptional writer, someone who can translate the impact of our work into proposals that inspire and motivate the reader to give.
You will play a pivotal role in shaping First Give’s income growth, working closely with our Head of Philanthropy and Partnerships and the Director to manage relationships with existing donors, and leading on the development of high value bids to expand our work. This role will also support key engagement activities, including hosting donors at student-led Final events and facilitating employee volunteering at schools.
This is an exciting opportunity for a confident communicator and grant fundraiser with experience managing and deepening relationships with high value trusts and foundations gifts – someone who thrives on storytelling and social impact. We currently have a strong pipeline of trusts and foundations and are looking for someone eager to write applications and secure funding.
Contract: Full-time, 35 hours per week; core hours - 10am till 4pm
Location: We have office space at the Pears Hub in West Hampstead, where some people come in one or two times a week, we're very flexible.
Application process:
- Application form
- Task and interview (interviews will be conducted on MS Teams)
Please also fill out this equality & diversity monitoring form (this will not be linked to your application).
1. Application closes: 20th July 9am
2. Interviews: 23rd and 24th July
3. Start date: 1st September
The students we work with come from a diverse range of backgrounds, and so do we. We want to ensure that we are recruiting, retaining and promoting a diverse mix of colleagues. We want to foster a diverse and inclusive culture, to empower our teams to achieve our vision drawing on the broadest possible range of experiences. We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates from minoritised groups currently underrepresented on our executive team, particularly black and minority ethnic and disabled candidates.
Please get in touch with Carmen O’Loughlin if you would like to request reasonable adjustments to the recruitment process or have any queries about the role.
Creating opportunities where young people are inspired and empowered to give their time, money or skills to charities and causes that they care about


The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Independent Age is the national charity focused on improving the lives of people facing financial hardship in later life. We believe no one should face financial hardship in later life.
Our Helpline and expert advisers offer free, practical support to older people without enough money to live on. Through our grants programme, we support hundreds of local organisations working with older people across the UK.
We use the knowledge and insight gained from our support services and partnerships to highlight the issues experienced by older people in poverty and campaign for change.
We would love to find individuals from all walks of life and diverse backgrounds to join us on this journey.
Responsibilities and Person Specification:
This is a critical and influential role at Independent Age, reporting to the Head of Governance. The post holder will provide high-quality support across a broad and impactful portfolio, including risk management, procurement and contracts, governance, safeguarding and business continuity, helping to build a culture where accountability, learning and continuous improvement drive meaningful change.
Working closely with senior leaders and the Board, you will play an important role in enabling effective and confident decision-making across every level of the charity. This is an opportunity to contribute across a wide range of areas and to see the direct impact of your work on how the organisation functions and delivers its mission.
We are looking for someone with a genuine passion for risk management, alongside a strong understanding of not-for-profit governance best practice. You will also bring experience in at least one of the following areas: procurement, contracts management, third party contract risk, business continuity planning, policy management or safeguarding.
You will be an excellent communicator, confident working with senior stakeholders, with strong attention to detail and a proactive, can-do approach. Above all, you will take pride in getting things done efficiently and to a high standard and be motivated by the opportunity to work for a values-led organisation making a meaningful difference to older people.
This is a full-time role, 35 hours per week, which you can choose to work over five days or a 9-day fortnight.
If your experience doesn’t align perfectly with all of the above criteria but you do meet most of them and are excited about the role, we encourage you to apply anyway.
What it’s like to work at Independent Age:
We celebrate diversity at Independent Age and champion the differences that make each of us unique. We actively support and encourage people from a variety of backgrounds, experiences and skill sets to join us and help shape what we do. We aim to attract and retain a wide range of talent and create an environment where everyone can feel safe, protected, welcome and included. In line with this, our office has many inclusive features, and there is no dress code.
We offer great benefits including 28 days annual leave plus public holidays, a generous pension scheme with life assurance, and fantastic learning and development opportunities. We also offer a number of enhanced leave provisions and benefits.
We know that a good work life balance helps us perform at our best and supports wellbeing. Flexible working hours and hybrid working is standard for all, but if you need a different form of flexibility, we are always happy to talk flexible working. Those contracted to work in the office are required to attend the office a minimum of 4 days per month. This role supports Board and committee meetings which may be held online or in the office, meaning availability to support with this is required.
You can find out more about what it’s like to work at Independent Age on the Careers page on our website.
Application Process:
To apply, please visit our website to submit a CV and a Supporting Statement, detailing how your skills and experience meet the criteria within the Job Description and Person Specification (please do not hesitate to contact us if you have specific requirements and need support to apply in an alternative format).
To support our commitment to equity, diversity and inclusion our hiring managers use anonymous shortlisting. Therefore, please do not include your name, photo, or information to indicate your gender or age in your CV and supporting statement. Please do not omit dates of employment. Please ensure the title of any uploads does not contain your name.
Independent Age is committed to safeguarding and follows Safer Recruitment practices to ensure we are safeguarding those we work with. We therefore ask that you supply your full work history with explanations for any gaps in the application documents you submit and, if offered the post, we will require two employment references including your current or most recent employer. A Basic DBS check will be carried out for the successful candidate.
Closing Date: Tuesday 14 July, 23:59
1st Interview Dates: Tuesday 21 and Wednesday 22 July, online via Microsoft Teams
2nd Interview Dates: Wednesday 29 July, in person at our London Office (Avonmore Road)
Independent Age is the national charity focused on improving the lives of people facing financial hardship in later life.


The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
In this role you will get to work as part of our growing Opportunities team to invite people into the community of generous Christian givers in the UK and serve UK Churches with support services and giving needs. You will attend events, grow networks and spot new opportunities to advance our vision, mission and strategy. Where needed you will speak on behalf of Stewardship and deliver content with excellence. You will get to support the growth of Stewardship over the coming years as we identify new clients to join the ecosystem that enables Kingdom ministry to thrive all over the UK and around the world.
Occupational Requirement (OR)
As a result of our Christian ethos, this post is covered by an Occupational Requirement (OR) under Part 1 of Schedule 9 to the Equality Act 2010. The successful applicant will be expected to be a practising Christian and to clearly demonstrate a personal commitment to the mission, principles, values and practices contained in our Ethos Statement, by:
· Active membership of local church congregation.
· Undergoing a course of teaching or training in personal financial stewardship and giving/generosity or experiencing the benefits from personal discipleship in this area.
An understanding of the faith aspects of the work of Christian charities, including the preparedness to pray with colleagues, where appropriate.
We help Christians be the best stewards of the resources God gives them



The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Prospect Research Manager
Job Title: Prospect Research Manager
Salary: £37,500
Contract Type: Full time (35 hours per week) although 28 hours may be considered; the role may require occasional evening and weekend work
Reporting to: Senior Partnership Development Manager, Corporate Partnerships team
JOB PURPOSE
The purpose of the Prospect Research Manager is to lead prospect development for major gifts, partnerships and business development, driving growth in our pipeline to help Magic Breakfast reach ambitious targets and unlock new income opportunities.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Lead prospect profiling, network mapping, qualification, and intelligence gathering to support the Major Giving and Business Development teams.
- Drive cross-fundraising initiatives to support prospecting, including:
- Developing an inspiring suite of ‘projects for funding’ for potential partners
- Organising in-house prospecting events to deepen engagement
- Coordinating our ‘new business roadshow’ to foster a prospecting culture across account management teams
- Conduct thorough risk screening and due diligence for prospects and, where required, existing partners, in line with Magic Breakfast’s Ethical Fundraising and Due Diligence Policies.
- Deploy varied new business tactics- including cold calling, email outreach, stakeholder mapping, event networking, and LinkedIn engagement- to secure prospect meetings.
- Identify and attend networking events to strengthen relationships and uncover new opportunities.
- Serve as the key link between I&I and Fundraising, ensuring the latest statistics, stories, and case studies are available to craft compelling, theme-based cases for support.
- Establish processes to measure the impact of work in driving new business across Major Giving, Partnerships, and Business Development, and use these insights to create a continuous feedback loop for learning and improvement.
APPLICATION PROCCESS
Should you wish to discuss the role before applying please email our People and Culture Team.
Shortlisting: 13-15th July
Interview 1: 21st, 22nd, 23rd July
Interview 2 and Informal Panel: 28th, 29th, 30th July
We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if a high volume of applications are received. This is to ensure that we can manage application levels whilst maintaining a positive candidate experience. Unfortunately, once a vacancy has closed, we are unable to consider further applications.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Hitchin Youth Trust is a small charity with a big heart. We support local young people (up to the age of 26) through the award of individual grants and bursaries, and we provide grants to local charities and organisations carrying out vital work with young people across our community.
We are also home to the Hitchin Charity Youth Hub at our base on Walsworth Road in Hitchin — a shared space where several local youth charities work side by side, because we know that collaboration makes everyone stronger.
In addition, we provide a meeting space at the Charity Hub. It is offered free of charge to local youth groups and charities, to help them to provide support and a wide range of other opportunities for the young people in our community.
As Youth Trust Manager — our sole employee — you’ll work closely with an engaged and forward-thinking Board of Trustees. The role is fabulously varied – one day you might be attending an investment meeting in London; the next, liaising sensitively with an individual or organisation enquiring about grant support; the next, checking toilet roll supplies and making sure the building is running smoothly.
Your work will span six key areas:
• Financial management — keeping our accounts accurate, reconciling income and expenditure, liaising with our investment broker and auditors, and producing monthly reports using Sage.
• Grant applications — receiving and processing applications, supporting applicants, preparing summaries for Trustees, and managing award payments.
• Representing the Trust — networking with local and national organisations, keeping our website and social media fresh, and organising events.
• Trustee clerking — preparing agendas and minutes, managing Charity Commission and Companies House returns, and supporting the annual audit.
• Buildings & facilities — managing the Charity Hub, overseeing bookings, maintenance and H&S compliance, and being the go-to person for building users and contractors.
• General administration — first point of contact for the Trust, maintaining our annual calendar, and keeping us compliant with legislation and best practice (including GDPR).
Who We’re Looking For
We are looking for someone who has a genuine passion for supporting young people in our community. In addition, you will need to offer:
· A great eye for detail.
· Be organised, proactive and self-motivated.
· Enjoy the variety a day will bring you, manipulating a spreadsheet, preparing Board papers, following up grant enquiries or representing the Trust at a local event.
· Have a warm manner. Be equally comfortable liaising charity directors, educational professionals and individual parents who may be desperately reaching out to the charity for urgent support.
Once you have read the Applicant Pack (which contains the more detailed Job Description and Person Specification for the post, alongside more information about the charity), please upload your CV alongside a covering letter which explains clearly to us what makes you a great fit for our role. Please ensure you also provide full details of 2 referees (references will be taken up at offer stage only).
Interviews will be held on Monday 20th July 2026
A small charity with a big heart supporting local young people (up to the age of 26).
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
As Senior Manager: Community Wellbeing Services, you will hold leadership responsibility for key services including Community Connections, Safe Haven and Counselling, ensuring they are safe, effective, high-quality and aligned within a coherent organisational approach. This is a senior leadership role accountable for the strategic direction, operational performance and integration of Catalyst’s community-based services and partnerships across Surrey.
Beyond service oversight, you will lead the development of a connected and responsive community offer, ensuring Catalyst’s services operate as part of a wider network of provision across Surrey. You will play a central role in shaping how services connect with each other and with external partners to create clear, accessible and holistic pathways for clients.
You will lead the development of a coherent community wellbeing operating model, ensuring clarity of roles, responsibilities and pathways across services.
You will define and drive what partnership working means at Catalyst, building strong, visible relationships across the VCSE sector, statutory services and local networks, and ensuring Catalyst is a trusted, active and vibrant presence within local communities.
A key focus of the role is ensuring consistent quality, strong safeguarding practice and effective performance across diverse community settings, supported by clear standards, oversight and continuous improvement.
You will be expected to be highly visible and present across services and partnerships, maintaining close connection to delivery, staff, communities and stakeholders.
Location: Nankeville Court, Woking (hybrid), with regular presence across community sites, partner organisations and Catalyst locations
Salary: £41,000-£45,000
Hours: 35 hours
Contract type: Permanent
About the organisation
Through Community, Specialist and Outreach services, we support recovery, mental health, and wellbeing—together, every step of the way.
About you
We are looking for an experienced, values-led leader with a strong background in community-based mental health, wellbeing, social care, counselling, community development or a related field. You will bring significant experience of leading staff and services in complex community settings, with the ability to balance strategic oversight with close connection to frontline delivery.
You will have strong safeguarding knowledge, sound professional judgement and experience of managing risk within multi-agency and community contexts. Confident working in partnership, you will be able to build trusted relationships across the VCSE sector, statutory services and local networks, influencing others and supporting joined-up, accessible pathways for clients.
You will be emotionally intelligent, resilient and inclusive in your leadership style, able to lead teams through change while maintaining clarity, professional boundaries and a strong focus on quality. You will be comfortable using data and insight to inform service improvement, performance and decision-making, and will be able to maintain a visible presence across services, partnerships and community settings.
A commitment to equality, diversity, inclusive practice and trauma-responsive services is essential, along with the ability to travel regularly across Surrey and work flexibly across multiple sites.
Please refer to the job description for a full breakdown of the key responsibilities and person specification.
Benefits
- 26 days annual leave plus bank holidays (increasing with service)
- Pension scheme and access to Simply Health (including optical, dental, counselling sessions)
- Birthday leave, employee discounts, and flexible working where possible
- Supportive probation, sick pay after probation, and wellbeing/EAP resources
Safeguarding & Checks
- This role is subject to a basic DBS check.
- A past history of drug/alcohol issues or criminality will not necessarily exclude you from this role; we encourage applications from people with lived experience where appropriate.
- All applicants must have a valid right to work in the UK.
Catalyst Support is an equal opportunities employer. We celebrate difference and are committed to fairness, accessibility, and inclusion throughout recruitment and employment.
We welcome requests for reasonable adjustments at any stage of the process.
Please note that we may close this vacancy early if we receive a high volume of suitable applications.
Please submit your CV and a cover letter setting out how your skills and experience align with the requirements of this role.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Using Anonymous Recruitment
This organisation is using Anonymous Recruitment to reduce bias in the first stages of the hiring process. Submit your application as normal and our system will anonymise it for you. Your personal information will be hidden until the recruiter contacts you.
This is a hands-on role that moves between two registers: structured qualitative research with proper analytical underpinning, and fast-turnaround reactive policy work. You will need to be genuinely comfortable in both able to run a multi-month thematic publication and turn around a tight briefing or consultation response within 48-72 hours when a policy window opens.
The role will lead The Difference's qualitative research and insight function, including research workstreams tied to the Difference Schools Partnership's annual thematic priorities, and our Harmful and Abusive Behaviours (HaB) workstream convening a sector council to build a shared framework for how schools understand and respond to peer-on-peer harm. You will produce briefings, evidence submissions and publications, manage external research partners, and work with the CEO, Head of Policy and Communications team to launch research with real impact. The role reports to the Head of Policy and works closely with colleagues across Strategy, Research and Programmes.
Key Responsibilities
- Lead The Difference's qualitative research and insight function, running research workstreams tied to annual DSP thematic priorities and emerging strands on MAT inclusion and LA working
- Design and deliver qualitative research with schools, MATs and local authorities interviews, focus groups, school visits and thematic analysis translating findings into evidence and policy recommendations
- Lead the Harmful and Abusive Behaviours research workstream, convening a sector council, producing briefing material and managing the route from convening to publication
- Produce timely, citable evidence for policy influence including drafting briefings, consultation responses and evidence submissions on fast turnaround
- Project manage publication cycles from scoping through to launch, working with coalition and media partners to maximise reach and tracking policy traction post-launch
- Brief, manage and integrate the outputs of external research partners where commissioned (e.g. FFT Datalab, Pro Bono Economics)
- Capture and develop case studies from DSP schools and the wider Difference network
About The Difference
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Every day, the equivalent of 5,500 children are suspended from England's schools, doubling their likelihood of being NEET by 24. The Difference is a young education charity founded to change this story through whole school inclusion. We train school leaders, carry out our own research, and turn frontline insights into policy recommendations lobbying Ofsted and the Department for Education to improve funding and support for inclusion. Our vision is to see lost learning falling nationally by 2030.
About You
Essential
- Dual capability across reactive and structured research : comfortable producing tight briefings on a 48–72 hour turnaround and running multi-month qualitative publications
- Experience in education research, policy research or applied social research, with examples of published, commissioned or internally-influential work
- Strong qualitative research skills : interview and focus group design, thematic coding, framework development, synthesis across multiple sources
- Persuasive writing for mixed audiences : able to write clearly and concisely for policymakers, school leaders, the press and the sector, and comfortable ghost-writing for senior colleagues
- Project management discipline : able to run multiple workstreams in parallel, manage your own deadlines, and keep colleagues and external partners on track
- Comfortable working at pace in a fast-moving environment where priorities shift as policy windows open and close : self-directed, flexible and able to make good judgement calls under pressure
- Shared values with The Difference and personal commitment to improving life outcomes for young people
Desired
- Strong working understanding of UK education policy, particularly around inclusion, exclusion, SEND, accountability and school improvement
- Confident data literacy and basic quantitative analysis : comfortable interrogating population-level datasets and translating findings into accessible policy language
- Understanding of why language matters when writing about behaviour, exclusion and vulnerability, and the ability to frame behaviour as a signal of unmet need consistently across all work
- Lived experience or insight into the school experiences of marginalised young people
- Experience of working in or with schools, multi-academy trusts or local authorities
- Existing relationships in education research, policy or sector organisations
Please see the attached Job Description for full role details and person specification.
We are committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups in the charity sector. As part of our commitment to fairer recruitment, all applications will be assessed with names and protected characteristics redacted.
The Difference exists to improve the life-outcomes of the most vulnerable children by raising the status and expertise of those who educate them.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
The Youth Endowment Fund
Senior Research Manager (SRM)- Youth Justice
Reports to: Head of Guidance and Policy
Salary: £54,320
Contract: 13-month maternity cover (fixed term contract)
Location: Central London, hybrid* (see p.6)
Closing date for applications: 9pm Monday 6th July
Interview dates: 22nd and 23rd July
About the Youth Endowment Fund
We’re here to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence. We do this by finding out what works and building a movement to put this knowledge into practice.
Violence continues to shape the lives of too many teenage children. In the past year, nearly one in five said they had been a victim, one in eight admitted to carrying out violence themselves, and half told us they had witnessed violence being committed against someone else. This violence takes many forms— from physical and sexual assault to robbery and threats with weapons. And the consequences are often severe. Nearly three in ten victims, equivalent to 5% of all teenage children in England and Wales, needed medical treatment from a doctor or a hospital.
At the Youth Endowment Fund, we work to prevent this violence. To do this, we aim to build the evidence base on what works, and then use this to change policy and practice.
In the first instance, this means producing strong, relevant evidence through research, data analysis and insights into young people’s lives. But evidence on its own isn’t enough. We must use this evidence to promote real change in day-to-day practice and ambitious system reform to better protect children.
About the role
This role is a hugely exciting opportunity to change practice and policy in the Youth Justice sector. Using the vast body of evidence YEF has compiled (including four new research projects that are currently underway), the Senior Research Manager (SRM) for Youth Justice will spend the year writing two reports:
- A Practice Guidance Report (publishing in May 2027).
- A System Guidance Report (publishing in September 2027).
Practice Guidance Report
The Practice Guidance Report will provide 5-8 evidence-based recommendations on how individual Youth Justice Services can prevent children’s involvement in violence. It will be similar in style and approach to previous YEF Practice Guidance in other sectors (such as the education practice guidance, and youth sector practice guidance report). It will likely recommend a range of evidence-based strategies including:
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The importance of commissioning evidence-based interventions (detailed in the YEF Toolkit).
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How to meet the health needs of children in the Youth Justice System.
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How to respond to serious violence and weapons carrying.
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How to support the sentencing process.
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How to support children in and after custody.
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How to ensure effective diversion takes place.
The SRM for Youth Justice will lead the development and writing of these recommendations.
System Guidance Report
Targeted at policy makers and system leaders (including national government and the inspectorate) this guidance report will make 5-8 policy recommendations on how the Youth Justice sector can be reformed to better protect children from involvement in violence. While the practice guidance will focus on day-to-day changes that Youth Justice services can make, the system guidance will focus on how the system itself should be changed to make it easier for Youth Justice services to do ‘what works’. It will be similar in style to the education system guidance. It will likely recommend a range of evidence-based reforms, including:
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How to use funding, training and inspection to improve the provision of evidence-based interventions in the Youth Justice System.
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How to ensure that other agencies and sectors (such as health and education) effectively collaborate with Youth Justice Services.
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How to improve responses to the most vulnerable children and young people, and how to improve sentencing, custody and resettlement.
The SRM for Youth Justice will also lead the development and writing of these recommendations.
Both guidance reports will include as a priority recommendations that will reduce the racial disproportionality currently evident in the Youth Justice System, and you will work closely with a Race Equity Advisor who will play a vital role as a critical friend.
You will also be supported by a brilliant internal YEF Youth Justice Change Team (former Youth Justice practitioners who work within YEF to change practice and policy across the sector), in addition to external expert input from the leading sector experts. This will include liaising closely with the Ministry of Justice in producing both reports. You will also be able to draw from the practice and system guidance reports that YEF has already produced on diversion.
This role is a unique opportunity to change the Youth Justice System and YEF will invest significant resource in making the recommendations that you write happen. For instance, we published our Education System Guidance Report in May 2025. Three of the eight recommendations included in it have already been enacted. We intend to push for practice and system change at pace and will use the work you produce to do so.
The Senior Research Manager will be part of YEF’s Research team. The Research team is at the heart of our efforts to learn what works and put it into practice. We do this by developing the YEF’s funding strategy and creating free, highly accessible research summaries and actionable recommendations for policy makers, commissioners and practitioners. We’re a high-performing team which values intellectual rigour and getting to the truth, compassion for children, ambition about what we can achieve and humility about what we know. We love to discuss the latest developments in research methods, but we’re not just interested in research for its own sake. We want research to lead to actual changes in outcomes for children.
Key responsibilities
You’ll...
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Write a practice guidance report for the Youth Justice Sector. This will use the best available evidence (including a range of research that YEF has funded, commissioned, and synthesised) to provide evidence-based recommendations to Youth Justice Services on how to prevent children’s involvement in violence. You will work closely with the internal YEF Youth Justice Change Team, an external expert panel and the Ministry of Justice to produce high quality guidance.
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Write a system guidance report for the Youth Justice Sector. This will use the best available evidence (including a range of research that YEF has funded, commissioned, and synthesised) to provide evidence-based recommendations to Youth Justice policy makers and system leaders on how the sector can best protect children from involvement in violence.You will work closely with the internal YEF Youth Justice Change Team, an external expert panel and the Ministry of Justice to produce high quality guidance.
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Become the YEF’s expert on Youth Justice. You’ll make sure we understand the key issues, stay on top of the latest research and are connected to the right people.
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Read, comment on, and support the publication of four research projects focused on the Youth Justice system concluding in late 2026.These projects, which are currently underway, are reviews of current practice that focus on: Youth Justice responses to serious violence, VAWG and weapons; a review of how community sentences and court orders are used for children involved in violence; a review of custody aftercare and resettlement programmes for children and young adults; and a review of whether the youth justice system is currently meeting the health needs of children within it. Alongside YEF’s existing research (particularly the YEF Toolkit), these reviews will support the development of guidance.
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Develop great relationships with experts and represent YEF in external meetings and events. You’ll promote evidence-based policy and practice by speaking at conferences and events.
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Work with our Change Team to produce resources and accessible summaries for Youth Justice colleagues on the evidence. This will also include supporting the Youth Justice change team in producing a self-assessment tool based on your practice guidance report.
About you
You are this sort of person:
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You want to play a significant part in reducing the level of violence affecting children and young people. You care about having an impact. This might mean you’ve worked directly with young people at risk of becoming involved in crime, for organisations that fund or deliver relevant programmes, or have conducted research on this topic.
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You share our belief that an evidence-based approach is our best hope of
preventing violence. You’re fascinated by research, but you’re not just interested in research for its own sake. You want to achieve actual changes in outcomes for children.
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You know a lot about Youth Justice. You know the key ideas and debates, recent policy developments and key people. You’re comfortable talking about Youth Justice with experts. There are many ways to acquire this knowledge. You might have worked in Youth Justice, in associated organisations, or learnt about it during a degree.
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You take ownership of your work. You demonstrate ownership and agency and can take the leading role on a project. You can take broad objectives and deliver a concrete workplan to make them happen.
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You’re a confident reader of research and have strong critical appraisal skills. You know when research can be trusted and when it can’t and can confidently articulate your views on the strength of research. You might have gained this expertise through your academic studies, research or professional experience.
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You have at least three years’ experience working in a role that required you to think about research. This could include a range of roles in policy, academia, funding or practice.
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You write in a way that people easily understand. You have that rare skill of writing in plain English. You have experience of translating complex research findings into plain writing that everyone can understand.
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You have excellent project and time management skills. You can work independently, quickly and to a high standard.
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You are good with people. You’re comfortable working with a wide range of people, including senior academics and other research experts, children and their families, practitioners and policy makers. You’re able to provide constructive challenge when required. You care more that good things happen than who gets the credit. You support your colleagues to produce excellent work.
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You learn fast but remain humble. You like learning. You’re very good at synthesising information. You know how much you don't know and that you can always learn more.
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You’re committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. You believe and act in a way that celebrates and encourages a range of experiences, views and values.
While it’s not a criterion, we’re especially interested to hear from applicants
who have lived experience of youth violence.
It’s also important to us that the people we hire do not discriminate. We believe in being inclusive and giving everyone an equal chance to succeed. Applications are welcome from all regardless of age, sex, gender identity, disability, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, race, sexual orientation, transgender status or socio-economic background.
Additional benefits include
£1,000 professional development budget annually, 28 days annual leave plus Bank Holidays, four half days for volunteering activities.
Hybrid working details
The office is based in Central London. Those living in and around London are expected to be in the office a minimum of 2 days per week. If you live outside of London and work remotely, you’ll be expected to work from the London office 2 days per month.
To apply:
To apply, please send a CV, cover letter and the monitoring form via our application page by 9:00 pm Monday 6th July.
When applying for this role, ensure you complete our Monitoring Form and attach your CV. Additionally, please submit a supporting statement that answers the following questions. Your response to each question should be no longer than 400 words:
- Why do you want the job?
- Can you give an example where you’ve had to summarise evidence on a specific topic that was highly contested? How did you manage the process and communicate the result?
- Please provide an overview of your experience in relation to Youth Justice and explain why this experience makes you a good fit for this role.
You will also be required to provide proof of your eligibility to work in the UK. As part of our commitment to flexible working, we will consider a range of options for the successful applicant. All options can be discussed at interview stage.
Interview process
Interviews will take place on 22nd and 23rd of July.
There will be a task to prepare for in advance.
Personal data
Your personal data will be shared for the purposes of the recruitment exercise. This includes our HR team, interviewers (who may include other partners in the project and independent advisors), relevant team managers and our IT service provider if access to the data is necessary for performance of their roles. We do not share your data with other third parties, unless your application for employment is successful and we make you an offer of employment. We will then share your data with former employers to obtain references for you. We do not transfer your data outside the European Economic Area.
We exist to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence.
Actively Interviewing
This organisation is scheduling interviews as applications come in. They're ready to hire as soon as they find the right person. Don't miss your opportunity, apply now!
Major Donor Manager
Salary: £42,000 - £45,000 per annum (DOE)
Location: Stevenage, Hertfordshire (Hybrid – minimum 2 days per week in the office)
Contract: Permanent, Full-time (37.5 hours per week)
Closing Date: Applications reviewed on a rolling basis
Occupational Requirement: Practising Christian (Equality Act 2010 Schedule 9 applies)
Build transformational relationships. Change lives.
At Mercy Ships UK, we're on an exciting journey of growth. With ambitious plans for the next five years, a growing supporter base and a renewed focus on philanthropy, we're looking for an experienced and passionate Major Donor Manager to help secure transformational support for one of the world's most impactful healthcare charities.
This is a unique opportunity to develop meaningful relationships with high-net-worth individuals and major donors, connecting them to a mission that brings hope, healing and lasting change to communities across Africa.
About Mercy Ships
Mercy Ships is a global Christian charity that uses hospital ships to deliver free, life-changing surgeries and healthcare services to people who would otherwise have little or no access to safe medical care. For more than 40 years, Mercy Ships has worked alongside governments and local healthcare professionals to strengthen health systems and create sustainable change.
Since 1978, Mercy Ships has:
- Impacted more than 2.88 million people
- Performed over 122,000 surgical procedures
- Delivered more than 556,000 dental procedures
- Trained over 55,000 healthcare professionals
- Worked in more than 55 countries around the world
Our mission is simple yet profound:
Following the 2,000-year-old model of Jesus, we bring hope and healing to the world's forgotten poor.
The Opportunity
As Major Donor Manager, you will play a key role in developing and growing Mercy Ships UK's major donor programme. Working closely with the Director of Philanthropy and Partnerships, you will build relationships with individuals capable of making five-figure gifts and develop tailored stewardship journeys that inspire long-term philanthropic support.
This is a highly relational fundraising role, ideal for someone who enjoys connecting with people, understanding their motivations and creating opportunities for transformational giving.
Key Responsibilities
You will:
- Develop and manage a pipeline of approximately 100 major donor prospects.
- Identify, research and cultivate new major donor opportunities.
- Build strong relationships with current and prospective supporters.
- Secure and steward five-figure gifts in support of Mercy Ships' programmes.
- Create personalised donor engagement and cultivation plans.
- Prepare compelling proposals, reports and impact updates.
- Represent Mercy Ships at donor meetings, events and networking opportunities.
- Collaborate with colleagues across philanthropy, marketing and communications.
- Use CRM data and insight to manage donor relationships and track progress.
- Support the delivery of ambitious fundraising and income targets.
About You
We're looking for a skilled relationship fundraiser who can demonstrate:
Essential Experience
- Proven experience securing and managing major gifts or high-value relationships.
- Experience securing four or five-figure gifts from individual donors.
- A track record of achieving income targets through relationship-based fundraising.
- Experience identifying and cultivating high-net-worth individuals.
- Experience building relationships with senior stakeholders or philanthropists.
- Strong experience using CRM systems to manage supporter engagement.
Essential Skills
- Outstanding relationship-building and stakeholder management skills.
- Excellent written communication skills, including proposal writing.
- Strong presentation and influencing abilities.
- Excellent networking skills.
- Ability to manage multiple priorities and relationships effectively.
- High attention to detail and strong organisational skills.
Personal Qualities
You will be:
- A committed Christian who supports the mission, vision and values of Mercy Ships.
- Passionate about seeing lives transformed.
- Self-motivated, proactive and results-focused.
- Professional, credible and confident when engaging external stakeholders.
- Collaborative, positive and adaptable.
Why Join Mercy Ships?
This is a rare opportunity to join a growing philanthropy team at a pivotal moment in our development. You'll have the chance to build meaningful relationships, secure transformational gifts and directly contribute to life-changing healthcare programmes across Africa.
Benefits Include:
- 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays
- Additional annual leave for length of service (up to 30 days)
- Up to 7% employer pension contribution
- £1,000 annual learning and development budget
- Employee Assistance Programme
- Free onsite parking
- Travel and training loan schemes
- Hybrid and flexible working arrangements
Additional Information
This role will involve regular travel for donor meetings and occasional evening and weekend events. There may also be opportunities for international travel.
Due to the nature of the role and the need to represent Mercy Ships authentically within Christian supporter communities and networks, there is an occupational requirement for the successful candidate to be a practising Christian.
Apply Now
If you are an experienced relationship fundraiser who is passionate about building meaningful donor partnerships and helping transform lives through healthcare, we'd love to hear from you.
Please submit your CV and a covering letter outlining your suitability for the role and your motivation for joining Mercy Ships UK.
Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and we reserve the right to close the vacancy early if a suitable candidate is identified.
Hope. Healing. Transforming Lives.
Mercy Ships is a faith-based international development organisation that deploys hospital ships to some of the poorest countries in the world
The Youth Endowment Fund
Senior Evaluation Manager
Reports to: Head of Evaluation
Salary: £54,300
Location: Central London, hybrid*
Contract: 24 months full-time (Fixed term contract)
Application deadline: 5pm, Monday 6th July 2026
About the Youth Endowment Fund
We’re here to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence. We do this by finding out what works and building a movement to put this knowledge into practice.
All of us will experience violence at some point in our lives. For many children, it is a daily reality. Each year, tens of children are killed, hundreds are hospitalised, 1 in 5 teenage children are victims and the majority admit to feeling afraid of violence. It scares them when they travel home from school, prevents them from going out and makes the most vulnerable feel like they don’t matter. It is taking lives, traumatising families and dividing communities. It robs potential, progress and hope. But it doesn’t have to be this way.
The Youth Endowment Fund exists to try and permanently change things. To succeed, we must build an exceptional body of knowledge about violence affecting young people and how we reduce it. This knowledge has to be both rigorous and highly relevant to those making decisions about how to support vulnerable young people. We need to find out what works and what doesn’t through evidence synthesis, data analysis and qualitative research into children’s lives. We need to convert this into highly accessible content on what works, how delivery organisations need to change their practice and how the systems they operate in need to be reformed. We then need to work with the right people that can make change happen, across systems, policies and practice, to have a real impact on reducing violence affecting children’s lives.
The evaluation team contributes to the design and implementation of the fund’s various funding rounds. The team is also responsible for assessing, appointing, monitoring, and the quality assurance of rigorous impact evaluations from experts in the field. The Senior Evaluation Manager will play a key role in leading evaluation work. The post holder will also lead a team of evaluation managers, ensuring they have the support to deliver a portfolio of evaluation projects.
Key responsibilities
The core of your job is to ensure that we are excellent at evaluation, so that we can find out the very best ways to prevent young people and children from becoming involved in violence.
Evaluation
Working with the Head of Evaluation the post holder will:
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Implement the processes for assessing the quality of evidence underpinning applications to the fund and making funding recommendations to the Grants and Evaluation Committee.
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Shape the evaluation approach for individual grant rounds, including leading on this for a small number of rounds.
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Act as a source of expertise on the statistical underpinnings of YEF’s evaluation work, including on issues such as power calculations, regression analysis and missing data.
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Lead the delivery of YEF’s evaluation work, designing, commissioning and managing complex and large-scale RCTs and QEDs
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Be responsible for YEF’s evaluation policies and reporting templates, ensuring they remain consistent and fit for purpose.
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Be responsible for the ongoing development of YEF’s commissioning guidance.
Team management
The post holder will likely lead the recruitment, management and development of a team of evaluation officers and will:
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Ensure they have the knowledge, skills and support to carry out their work effectively.
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Provide regular feedback and coaching on written outputs.
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Supervise and project manage the team’s evaluation work, providing quality assurance and monitoring of progress against project plans and project budgets.
Collaborative working
The post holder will contribute to the wider YEF team and will:
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Be accountable to YEF’s Fund Leadership Team for the delivery of evaluations, on time and on budget, including reporting on risks and issues.
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Work closely with colleagues across YEF and specifically the Programme team.
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Ensure high-quality evidence is at the heart of all YEF activity and that the evidence we produce is communicated in a clear and accessible way which will drive sustainable change.
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Support the management of YEF’s panel of evaluators and expert panel
General
The post holder may be involved in other elements of YEF's projects, working with senior colleagues to commission, scope and deliver projects.
About you
You are this sort of person:
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You don't want your days to pass without making a difference. You want to play a significant part in reducing the level of youth violence and see the value in an evidence-informed approach.
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You are an excellent communicator. You can produce technical documents that accurately report methodological and statistical information. You will combine this with experience of communicating complex evidence and analysis in a simple and accessible format to non- experts.
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You have a post-graduate degree (Masters or PhD) in social science, social policy, public health, health services or other field, with a significant quantitative component, or relevant experience equivalent to a Masters qualification.
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You have strong knowledge, experience and technical expertise in evaluation methodologies including experience of RCT design and/or design of complex quasi-experimental evaluations (e.g. propensity score matching, regression discontinuity design, instrumental variables).
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You have quantitative analysis skills including experience of using advanced analytical software such as R, Stata or SPSS.
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You have significant experience in carrying out or commissioning research including designing all aspects of the research and managing external contractors. This may be in academia, government or a related sector.
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You have strong relationship management skills. You are comfortable working with a wide range of people, including senior academics and other research experts, children and their families, practitioners, and policy makers. You’re able to provide constructive challenge when required.
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You bring the best out of your colleagues.You have experience in leading teams and managing others to achieve amazing results. You can both take and give direction. You are collaborative and a team player, able to build strong relationships across the whole organisation. You are happy to help out when and where it’s needed.
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You have excellent project and time management skills and the ability to deliver high-quality work in a fast-paced environment.
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You learn fast but remain humble. You like learning. You’re very good at synthesising information. You know how much you don't know and that you can always learn more.
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You work well in a team. You care more that good things happen than who gets the credit. You support your colleagues to produce excellent work.
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You’re committed to equality, diversity and inclusion. You believe and act in a way that celebrates and encourages a range of experiences, views and values.
You may have, but they are not essential:
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A good level of knowledge and understanding of crime or serious violence. You know the facts, understand the issues, know the key people, and can discuss the theories. You’re knowledgeable on this topic and very at ease discussing it with experts. Alternatively, you might have a strong understanding of a relevant area such as education, youth work or social care.
While it is not a criterion, we are especially interested to hear from applicants who have lived experience of youth violence.
It’s also important to us that the people we hire do not discriminate. We believe in being inclusive and giving everyone an equal chance to succeed. Applications are welcome from all regardless of age, sex, gender identity, disability, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, race, sexual orientation, transgender status or social economic background.
Hybrid Working Details
The office is based in Central London. Those living in and around London are expected to be in the office for a minimum of 2 days per week. If you live outside of London and work remotely, you’ll be expected to work from the London office 2 days per month.
As part of our commitment to flexible working we will consider a range of options for the successful applicant. All options can be discussed at the interview stage.
To apply
To apply, please send a CV, cover letter and the monitoring form via our application page by 5:00pm on Monday 6th July
When applying for this role, please ensure that your cover letter can answer, within a maximum of 1000 words, the following questions:
- Tell us about why you want to work at the Youth Endowment Fund, and any experience you have that demonstrates your commitment to preventing youth violence.
- Tell us about your experience in designing, commissioning and managing evaluations. We’re particularly interested in hearing about the methodologies and tools you’ve used to ensure evaluations are rigorous and produce robust evidence.
- How do you ensure that your work – whether technical analysis or collaborative evaluation management – is inclusive and accessible?
You should also include the contact details of two referees, one of whom must be your current or most recent employer. Referees will only be approached with your express permission.
You will also be required to provide proof of your eligibility to work in the UK.
Interview process
Shortlisted candidates will be sent a technical task to complete before the interview. Interviews will take place on the week commencing 20th July 2026.
Personal data
Your personal data will be shared for the purposes of the recruitment exercise. This includes our HR team, interviewers (who may include other partners in the project and independent advisors), relevant team managers and our IT service provider if access to the data is necessary for performance of their roles. We do not share your data with other third parties, unless your application for employment is successful and we make you an offer of employment. We will then share your data with former employers to obtain references for you. We do not transfer your data outside the European Economic Area.
We exist to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Position: Senior Individual Giving Manager (Development)
Hours: Full-time (35 hours a week)
Contract: Fixed Term Contract - 12 months (Maternity Cover)
Location: Office-based in London. With flexibility to work remotely.
Salary: Starting from £40,630 per annum plus excellent benefits
Salary Band and Job Family: Band 3, Charity
You will start at our entry point salary of £40,630 per annum, increasing to £43,170 after 6 months service
About us
We make sure people living with MS are at the centre of everything we do. And it’s this commitment that unites us across the UK.
Our strategy is based on what people affected by MS have told us is important to them. It gives us a clear and determined focus.
Our work is based on the hopes and aspirations of our MS community. Together we campaign at all levels, fund ground-breaking research and provide award winning support and information.
Our people are our greatest asset and the key to our success. We offer a vibrant, progressive working environment where you'll be able to make a difference.
About this job
Join the MS Society as our new Senior Individual Giving Manager (Development).
We’re looking for a motivated, organised and creative Senior Individual Giving Manager to lead our ambitious, supportive development team at the MS Society for a 12-month fixed term maternity leave cover.
You’ll be responsible for the strategic planning and oversee the delivery of multi-channel fundraising campaigns and supporter engagement projects ensuring they are delivered to time, income targets and expenditure budgets. You’ll have space to be creative, freedom to test new ideas, and the chance to shape the future of our development programme.
This is an exciting opportunity for someone with experience working in Individual Giving roles. You’ll have a proven track record of managing successful direct marketing campaigns from start to finish. You’ll analyse results, test new ideas, and find ways to improve future campaigns.
With great interpersonal skills, you’ll manage a high-performing team, work collaboratively with internal stakeholders and external suppliers to deliver high-quality campaigns and build relationships with supporters. With a creative and enthusiastic approach, you’ll take ownership of your work, shape our individual giving programme, and make a real difference to people living with MS.
We’re committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and we encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and experiences—especially those with lived experience of MS or disability.
Closing date for applications: 9:00am Monday 13 July 2026
Interested?
PLEASE PRESS THE 'HOW TO APPLY' BUTTON FOR MORE INFORMATION.
Equal Opportunities
We particularly welcome applications from people with disabilities and or from ethnic minority backgrounds.
We’d be grateful if you downloaded and completed the equality and diversity monitoring form and submit it with your application.
Disability Confident Employer
We’re a Disability Confident Employer and we’re committed to promoting equality and diversity.
You can ask for reasonable adjustments as part of both our recruitment and new starter on-boarding processes.
If you need any help or adjustments to apply for this role, please contact us. You can also ask for the application materials to be sent to you in a different format. Such as for them to be sent to you by email or in a larger word format.
More about our employee benefits:
We have a wide range of employee benefits including (but not limited to):
Encouraging work life balance
- 38 days paid annual leave (including bank holidays), pro-rata for part-time
- More annual leave entitlement, based on length of employment
- Smart working options (with the opportunity to work remotely and find a smart working pattern that suits both you and us)
- Flexible working options
Caring for you and your family
- Generous sick pay entitlement
- More sick pay entitlement, based on length of employment
- Opportunity to buy and sell annual leave in each calendar year
- Free access to a GP virtually 24 hours a day/7 days a week allowing you unlimited advice, reassurance and where appropriate diagnosis
- Enhanced leave for new parents
- Free access to a confidential 24 hours a day/7 days a week helpline service for both you and your family with a specialist range of support and information
- Special leave options (such as up to 5 days paid leave for domestic or personal emergencies a year)
- 10 days paid disability leave a year, pro-rata for part-time
- 10 days paid carers’ leave a year, pro-rata for part-time
- Cycle to work scheme
- Death in service scheme
- New family-friendly benefits, including paid leave:
- In the event of miscarriage or still birth
- To support fertility treatments
- For antenatal appointments for both parents
Thinking about your finances
- Enhanced salary sacrifice pension scheme
- Discounted season ticket loan and interest-free emergency loans
- Give as you earn to support other charities of your choice before tax
- New employee portal including lifestyle savings vouchers and personal wellbeing
Enriching your life at work
- Personalised development plans with a wide range of training courses and opportunities to source additional training options with your line manager
- Yearly internal apprenticeship opportunities
- New, modern offices that embrace working together both in-person and remotely
- Various opportunities to influence how we internally operate (including surveys, and focus and committee groups)
- Active and supportive internal employee networking groups for collaboration and peer support
- 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering for MS Society activities during normal working hours (such as fundraising events, or campaigning in the local community)
- 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering with other charities during normal
Safeguarding
We’re committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of everyone who uses our services and we come into contact with.
This is regardless of Gender, Race, Disability, Sexual orientation, Religion or belief, Pregnancy, Gender reassignment.
We recognise our particular responsibility to make sure vulnerable adults and children are protected.
We have measures in place to protect everyone we come into contact with from abuse and maltreatment of all kinds.
Your right to work in the UK
You must have the right to work in the UK to work in paid employment with us. You’ll need to share documents showing you’re eligible to work in the UK if we offer you employment.
You can find the UK visas and permits granting you the right to work in the UK on the UK Government website. We currently don’t have a Sponsor Licence agreement with the Home Office and aren’t able to support you with your visa applications.
No agencies please.
To fund world-leading research, share the latest information and campaign for everyone's rights. Together we are a community. Together we can stop MS

About Adolescent Health Study
The Adolescent Health Study (AHS) is an ambitious new UKRI-funded initiative to establish a prospective, longitudinal population study that will generate a globally leading open science data platform and research resource. AHS aims to recruit at least 100,000 young people aged eight to 18 years from across the UK and to follow their mental and physical health and wellbeing over at least 10 years. It plans to collect data through questions and measures; to obtain bio-samples for a wide range of genomic and other high-throughput assays; and to capture linked data relevant to health and wellbeing from participants’ health, education and other administrative records. Recruitment will take place mainly through schools. There will be a strong emphasis on engaging with and involving young people, schools, parents and other relevant stakeholders in the design and delivery of the study, as well as on including young people that represent as wide as possible a range of backgrounds, experiences and characteristics. AHS will focus on enabling a wide range of research, including studies of the critical biological and social developments that occur during the transition from childhood to adulthood and the determinants of both mental and physical health and wellbeing in adolescents and young adults.
Purpose of the post
The Procurement Lead is responsible for developing and delivering a robust procurement and commercial strategy that ensures value for money, compliance with Procurement Act 2023 regulations in line with AHS being primarily public funded and supports AHS study and operational objectives. The role will lead on sourcing, contracting, supplier management, and commercial governance, ensuring ethical, transparent, and efficient use of public funds.
Main responsibilities
Procurement Strategy & Leadership
- Develop and implement a procurement and commercial strategy aligned with organisational goals and funding requirements.
- Lead procurement planning across research programmes, operations, and corporate services.
- Act as a subject matter expert on public procurement policy and best practice.
- Drive continuous improvement in procurement processes, systems, and capability.
Tendering and Contract Management
- Oversee end-to-end procurement processes including tendering, evaluation, and contract award.
- Ensure compliance with UK public procurement regulations (e.g., Procurement Act and associated guidance).
- Draft, review, and negotiate complex contracts, including research, clinical, and grant-related agreements.
- Manage contract lifecycle including performance monitoring, renewals, and extensions.
Commercial Governance & Compliance
- Establish and maintain procurement policies, procedures, and governance frameworks.
- Ensure all procurement activities meet audit, transparency, and reporting requirements for public funding.
- Identify and mitigate commercial risks across supplier engagements.
- Support internal and external audit processes.
Supplier & Stakeholder Management
- Build and maintain strategic supplier relationships, ensuring high performance and innovation.
- Collaborate with internal stakeholders (research teams, finance, legal) to understand needs and deliver value-driven procurement solutions.
- Work with external stakeholders including funders, partners and strategic advisors to develop optimum outcomes
- Provide commercial advice and guidance to senior leadership and project teams.
- Promote sustainable and ethical sourcing practices.
Financial & Value Management
- Deliver value for money through effective sourcing and negotiation strategies.
- Monitor procurement spend and identify cost-saving or efficiency opportunities.
- Contribute to budgeting, forecasting, and financial planning processes.
- Ensure funding is used appropriately, ethically and in line with public funding requirements.
Knowledge, skills and experience
Essential
- Professional qualification in procurement or supply chain e.g., CIPS Level 5 or equivalent
- Degree or comparable experience in business, finance, law, or related field.
- Proven track record of managing complex procurement exercises and contracts.
- Experience in procurement or commercial roles within regulated procurement environments, specifically those classed as a public authority
- Strong understanding of UK public procurement regulations and best practice.
- Commercial acumen with strong negotiation and contract management skills.
- Experience of drafting and reviewing heads of terms and commercial agreements.
- Knowledge of intellectual property (IP) considerations in research contracts.
- Strong experience in supplier and stakeholder management.
- Excellent analytical, financial, and problem-solving abilities.
- Strong communication and influencing skills across all levels of an organisation.
- Ability to manage multiple projects and priorities effectively.
Desirable
- CIPS Level 6 or equivalent
- Membership of a professional body (e.g., MCIPS or FCIPS).
- Experience managing high-value and complex contracts, including collaborative or partnership agreements
- Experience in procurement or commercial roles within charity and/or research sectors
- Detailed understanding of intellectual property (IP) considerations in research contracts.
- Detailed knowledge of the UK Procurement Act (or Public Contracts Regulations 2015 historically) and transitions between them.
- Experience of drafting and reviewing heads of terms and commercial agreements.
- Understanding of subsidy control, state aid, or funding compliance frameworks.
- Ability to analyse procurement data and generate insights using tools such as Excel, Power BI, or similar.
- Experience leading organisational change or transformation programmes in procurement.
- Ability to build procurement capability across a non-procurement stakeholder base.
Dimensions
- This is a full-time role, 37.5 hours per week, offered initially as an 18-month fixed-term contract with potential route to permanency.
- Flexible working across several geographical locations in the UK. Travel may be required to AHS locations and partner organisations.
- AHS is a national organisation, and our activities take place across the UK.
Application Process
All candidates are required to complete the application form which can be found when clicking 'Apply Now' via Charity Job.
Please refer to the ‘How to Apply’ section of the downloadable application form.
Please note that only applications submitted directly to Gravitate HR will be accepted for this position.
The closing date for applications is 11:00pm on Sunday 12th July 2026.
Interviews are currently expected to take place on Wednesday 19th and Thursday 20th August 2026.
Equal Opportunities Policy Statement
AHS is an equal opportunities employer, and as such aims to treat all employees, consultants and applicants fairly. It is our policy to provide employment equality to all, irrespective of:
- Gender, including gender reassignment
- Marital or civil partnership status
- Having or not having dependants
- Religion or belief
- Race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origins)
- Disability
- Sexual orientation
- Age
We are opposed to all forms of unlawful and unfair discrimination. All job applicants and employees who work for us will be treated fairly and will not be unfairly discriminated against on any of the above grounds. Decisions about recruitment and selection, promotion, training or any other benefit will be made objectively and without unlawful discrimination.
Values
It is an exciting time for the Adolescent Health Study (AHS) as we establish our senior leadership team and begin to plan the pilot studies. As the senior executive team evolves, the AHS values will be grounded in inclusivity, integrity, accountability, and collaboration.
All candidates are required to complete the application form which can be found when clicking 'Apply Now' via Charity Job, within Supporting Documents.
Please refer to the ‘How to Apply’ section of the downloadable application form.
Please note that only applications submitted directly to Gravitate HR will be accepted for this position.
The closing date for applications is 11:00pm on Sunday 12 July 2026.
Interviews are currently expected to take place on Wednesday 20 and Thursday 21 August 2026.
Strategic Partnership Development Manager
Contract type: Permanent, Full-time, 35 hours per week
Location: London, UK
UK hybrid working – a minimum of 40% of working time is spent face-to-face (London office, external meetings or travel). 60/40 hybrid working at WaterAid means roughly three days wherever you work best and two days together in person.
Salary: £47,423 per year with excellent benefits
*We offer competitive, market-aligned starting salaries. While most roles are offered at the advertised starting salary, we may adjust this in exceptional cases depending on a candidate’s experience, skills, and potential.
Change starts with water. Change starts with you.
Every day, millions of people live without clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene. WaterAid exists to change that – for everyone, everywhere. Join us, and your energy will help unlock people’s potential and create a fairer future.
About WaterAid
We’re a global federation driven by one vision: a world where everyone, everywhere has clean water, sanitation and hygiene by 2030. Powered by our values of Respect, Accountability, Courage, Collaboration, Integrity and Innovation, we work alongside communities, partners and supporters to make change happen.
About the team
The Corporate Partnerships Team is responsible for developing high value, high impact strategic partnerships with companies, where the value goes beyond financial alone to meaningfully contribute towards WaterAid’s mission, including finding ways to contribute to programmatic, policy and advocacy objectives.
About the role
As our proactive and driven Strategic Partnership Development Manager you will lead partnership development for a range of priority corporate sectors - working closely with global partnerships, programmes and policy colleagues - to secure new multi-year partnerships and drive sustainable change.
In this role, you will:
- Lead on partnership development for strategically important sectors including food and beverage and agriculture, as well as other sectors to be determined. Effectively utilising your commercial awareness and corporate partnerships expertise to present WaterAid’s partnerships offering and value-add externally to these industries.
- Develop and manage a pipeline of potential high value, annual and multi-year new business opportunities, ensuring there is sufficient lead generation, active movement and conversion to secure annual and multi-year 6-figure+ partnerships.
- Collaborate with colleagues across the WaterAid federation including partnerships, communications, programmes and advocacy to identify and develop high-quality propositions that meet both partner and WaterAid needs.
- Lead WaterAid’s presence at global events and conferences, building a network of contacts amongst companies and actively cultivating this network.
- Champion WaterAid’s commitment to equity, inclusion and safeguarding.
Requirements
To be successful, you will need:
- Proven experience in generating six-figure strategic, new business partnerships from cold in the charity sector or in a commercial setting and proven ability to meet and exceed personal targets.
- An externally focused and proactive attitude, with the energy and passion to engage people and excite them about WaterAid, alongside the ability to forge effective working relationships with stakeholders at all levels, including internal and external C-suite.
- Excellent presentation, verbal and written communication skills with an aptitude for writing high-quality and engaging proposals for a corporate audience.
- Strong working understanding of charity-corporate partnerships, corporate sustainability, Environmental Social and Governance (ESG) and Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Although not essential, we’d prefer you to have:
- Understanding and experience of international development
- Understanding of and active interest in the agriculture and food & beverage sectors, including key materially important sustainability topics.
Closing date: Applications close 12:00 PM UK time on the 10th July 2026.
How to apply: Click Apply to complete the pre-screening questions and upload your CV.
Can I use Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology in my application?
At WaterAid, we strongly advise against using AI technology at any stage of the recruitment process. Our goal is to ensure a fair and transparent process that provides every applicant with an equal opportunity to succeed. We value hearing about your unique experiences and perspectives in your application, and, if shortlisted, during the interview as well.
Pre‑employment screening
To apply for this role, you must be able to demonstrate your eligibility to work in the respective country. All pre-employment checks will be carried out according to local law and WaterAid’s Safer Recruitment policy. All UK based roles require a basic Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.
Benefits
- 36 days’ holiday (including 8 Bank Holidays)
- Option to buy an extra 5 days’ annual leave
- Employer pension contribution up to 10 %
- Flexible and hybrid working arrangements
- Season ticket loan
- Free annual eye tests
- ‘Give as you Earn’ charitable giving scheme
- Enhanced parental leave (maternity, adoption/surrogacy, shared parental and paternity)
- Sabbaticals
- One paid volunteer day each year
As part of our annual leave policy, all employees receive three additional days of annual leave on top of their standard allocation of 25 days. These days are designated to cover the period when our UK office closes between Christmas and New Year, allowing all UK WaterAiders to take a well-deserved break.
These days are automatically scheduled and cannot be changed or moved. Annual leave is accrued based on your start date. If sufficient leave has not been accrued by the time of the closure, the 3 days will be taken as unpaid leave or pro-rated, depending on your circumstances.
Our People Promise
We will work with passion and focus to make sure everyone everywhere has clean water, decent toilets and good hygiene. WaterAid is a place of purpose – where people have a real commitment and shared responsibility for the impact we have. We are a global community with diverse backgrounds and perspectives, motivated by inspiring, stimulating work. We are determined to be a place where people feel safe and able to contribute their voice and truly live our values.
Equal Opportunities
We welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, beliefs, customs, traditions, ways of life and status. This includes, but is not limited to, race, ethnicity, caste, colour, gender, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth, disability status, neurodiversity, age, marital and family status, sexual orientation and gender identity, health status, place of residence, economic and social situation.
Safeguarding
We are committed to protecting everyone we come into contact with. We have a zero- tolerance approach to abuse of power, privilege or trust across our global work, and to any form of inappropriate behaviour, discrimination, abuse, bullying, harassment, or exploitation. Safeguarding the people and communities we work with, our staff, volunteers and anyone working on our behalf is our top priority, and we take our responsibilities extremely seriously. All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks (which can include counterterrorism, safeguarding and criminal records checks).
Together, we’ll change the world through water.
Join us and be part of the change!
Our vision is a world where everyone, everywhere has sustainable and safe water, sanitation and hygiene.



Plan International UK is a global children’s charity striving for an equal world. One where every child can reach their full potential and every girl can choose her own future.
We bring people together to protect children’s rights and keep girls safe, in school and in control of their bodies – even when disaster strikes. And we won’t stop until we are all equal.
This is an exciting moment to join our major donor programme. We have doubled major donor income in the last two years, and we have ambitious plans to do even more with our brilliant supporters. You would be joining a high-performing team with real momentum behind it, leading a critical and growing income stream through a pivotal period.
As Major Donor Manager, you will lead the strategic direction of our major donor programme and the team behind it. This is a senior role responsible for managing and developing three philanthropy officers, holding oversight of the full portfolio, and leading our new business and prospecting effort.
Rather than holding a personal portfolio of live donors, which we will keep stable for our supporters during this period, you will own and drive the prospect pipeline through to the point of ask: shaping every approach, planning cultivation, and progressing new business, with high-value asks routed through the Philanthropy Lead and wider team to protect continuity for our partners. You will also drive the next phase of our giving circle, shape our events programme, and work closely with our Director of Fundraising, Trustees and senior volunteers to open doors and secure multi-year, six-figure support.
You will be an experienced major donor professional with the track record and judgement to lead a programme and team. Specifically, you will bring:
- Substantial experience of securing high-value gifts from high-net-worth individuals and building lasting relationships.
- A genuine appetite for developing people, with the skill to coach, motivate and grow an emerging team.
- The interpersonal skills to influence and collaborate with senior internal and external stakeholders, including Trustees and Leadership Forum.
- The instinct and pace to pick up an established programme quickly and drive the new business pipeline with confidence through a transition.
- A passion for our values, our feminist leadership principles and our vision for girls’ equality
For further detail of this role, please see the job profile.
Please note, due to the short nature of this contract and a requirement for the successful candidate to be able to start as soon as possible, unfortunately we are unable to provide sponsorship for this role.
The deadline for applications is 23:59 on Monday 6 July 2026
First-round interviews will take place on Monday 13 July 2026
Second-round interviews will take place on Monday 20 July 2026
We are committed to the safeguarding and protection of children, young people and adults in our work. We, therefore, apply rigorous recruitment and selection processes to ensure that only those who are suitable are recruited to work for us. Accordingly, appointment to all our roles is subject to a range of vetting checks and for this role this will include a Basic Disclosure and Barring (DBS) check. A criminal record will not necessarily bar you from working for us; this will depend on the circumstances of any offences.
Plan International UK is committed to being an inclusive employer and we welcome applications from candidates from all backgrounds.
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