Head of communication jobs in Stanford le hope, thurrock

At Rethink Mental Illness, we believe everyone should be able to live a fulfilling life, regardless of how severely mental illness affects them. Our services are growing — and so is our ambition. That’s why we’re looking for a passionate and skilled Business Development Manager to help us shape the future of our charity and the support we provide.

About the role

As our Business Development Manager, you’ll play a key role in sustaining and expanding the services that make a real difference to people severely affected by mental illness. You’ll bring teams together, write with clarity and purpose, and lead the end‑to‑end bid development process — ensuring we continue to deliver high‑quality, impactful support where it’s needed most.

You’ll champion collaboration, draw on the expertise of colleagues across the charity, and craft compelling, evidence‑based proposals that reflect who we are and what we stand for. From early development to final submission, you’ll help us win and retain contracts that directly improve lives.

What you’ll be doing

• Leading the end‑to‑end development of bids, retenders, and proposals in line with internal quality standards.
• Working collaboratively with teams across Rethink Mental Illness, building strong relationships and creating connected ways of working.
• Supporting and managing Bid Development Officers.
• Contributing to regional business development plans and helping shape sustainable, innovative service models.
• Writing high‑quality, insightful submissions that articulate our strengths, capabilities, and lived‑experience approach.
• Developing early-stage budget models and working with Finance and HR to finalise financials ahead of submission.
• Generating insight through data, evidence, and internal expertise to create winning proposals.
• Researching competitors and identifying what makes Rethink Mental Illness stand out.
• Supporting successful bids through structured handovers and mobilisation.
• Contributing to continuous improvement through feedback, learning, and maintaining our Bid Library.

What you’ll bring

Essential

• A strong track record of writing successful competitive bids or proposals.
• Excellent writing, critical thinking, and communication skills.
• The ability to interpret complex tender documents and understand commissioner expectations.
• Strong relationship-building skills and the ability to unite diverse teams.
• Knowledge of commissioning, current legislation, and best practice in mental health and social care.
• Experience constructing budgets and modelling service assumptions.
• Strong organisational and project‑management abilities, with flexibility to meet deadlines.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office and excellent general IT skills.
• A values‑driven approach consistent with Rethink Mental Illness’ ethos.

Desirable

• Experience working within mental health, health, or social care sectors.
• Lived or professional experience related to mental health and wellbeing.

Why Rethink Mental Illness?

When you join us, you’re not just taking on a role — you’re becoming part of a movement.
A movement committed to improving the lives of people severely affected by mental illness through high‑quality services, innovation, and compassionate support.

You’ll be part of a collaborative, supportive team where your growth and wellbeing matter, and where your work has a clear, direct impact.

Salary: £45,215 plus benefits (Our pay philosophy ensures consistency across locations and salaries. The starting salary for this opportunity plus benefits depends on location of the candidate).

The role:

We are recruiting for a values-driven and experienced finance leader to join Mary’s Meals International (MMI) as Senior Finance Manager. Reporting to the Head of Finance, you will provide leadership to the MMI Finance team, ensuring the effective delivery of high-quality financial management, reporting and control across our global movement.

This is a key role within the Finance & Procurement Directorate, supporting an ambitious growth strategy. You will play a central role in strengthening financial stewardship, ensuring robust controls are in place, and promoting value for money across our global network.

In this role, you will combine strategic oversight with hands-on leadership - driving excellence in financial reporting, treasury management, compliance, and continuous improvement of financial systems and processes.

You will:

• Lead and develop the MMI Finance team, fostering a high-performing, collaborative and accountable culture.
• Oversee the production of monthly management accounts, forecasts and trend analysis, providing meaningful financial insight to support decision-making.
• Lead on donor financial reporting and proposal support, ensuring accuracy, consistency and timely delivery.
• Support delivery of the annual budgeting process, including provision of key analytics and oversight of review processes.
• Ensure robust financial control across the organisation, safeguarding the proper and effective use of funds.
• Oversee statutory reporting, audit, treasury, payroll and pension activities, ensuring compliance with UK financial, charity and tax regulations.
• Work closely with National Affiliates and Programme teams to strengthen financial processes, systems and controls across the global network.
• Drive continuous improvement of financial policies, reporting and systems, promoting a consistent and high-quality control environment.

About you

You will be a qualified finance professional (CCAB or equivalent) with substantial post-qualification experience and a strong track record of leading finance teams. Strategic yet pragmatic, you will be comfortable operating at both operational and senior levels - providing clear financial insight, strengthening controls, and supporting organisational growth across a global network.

You will bring significant experience in UK financial reporting (FRS 102), alongside proven experience developing high-performing teams and implementing effective policies, systems, and change initiatives. With strong analytical and conceptual capability, you will translate complex financial data into clear, actionable insight. You will also have experience managing auditors, financial institutions, and external service providers, and be able to prioritise effectively, work autonomously, and deliver to deadlines.

Strong communication skills, sound judgement, and cultural sensitivity are essential in building effective relationships across diverse international contexts. Experience within a UK charity or multinational charitable context, including understanding of UK charity reporting (Charities SORP) would be highly desirable.

About us:

Mary’s Meals is a global movement supported by people from all walks of life, united by one goal, that every child receives a nutritious daily meal in a place of education. Today, more than 3 million children will receive Mary’s Meals, changing lives through access to food and education. 

We believe in the innate goodness of people, respect the dignity of every human being and family life, and are committed to good stewardship of the resources entrusted to us. In line with our values, Mary’s Meals is fully committed to a culture of safeguarding. We expect all members of the Mary’s Meals family to share this commitment and to work in the best interests of the communities we serve. Our safe recruitment practices ensure that only those aligned with our high standards join our movement.

Salary advertised is for UK-based candidates. Our salary philosophy ensures consistency across locations where Mary’s Meals operates.

Our Benefits:

• 34 days annual leave (pro-rated for part time working patterns) including bank holidays, increasing by 1 day each completed calendar year, to a maximum of 39 days (+ option to buy another week)
• Flexible working
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Life assurance
• Pension

To apply:

If you are inspired to join our movement and our vision, mission and values resonate with you, we would love to hear from you. To apply, please submit your CV along with a short covering note (no more than one page) outlining why you are a strong fit for this role and why you would like to work for Mary’s Meals International.

Senior Finance Manager - JD

 Closing date for applications is Sunday 5th April 2026

We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.

Applicant Privacy Statement

CEO

• Salary for FTE: £62,000 - £75,000 dependant on experience
• 38 hours a week over 5 days (flexibility for right candidate)
• Home-based with travel for events and meetings

Reporting into the Board of Trustees, we are seeking an inspirational CEO for the PDA Society, who can lead with humility and curiosity, empowering and supporting our staff along the journey. They will be responsible for the day-to-day management of the charity and its staff and volunteers, and will oversee the development of our training products, research and support services, whilst ensuring sustainable growth in impact and income.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join a trusted enterprise within the PDA community with a strong mission and a committed, values driven team. The successful candidate will be passionate about improving the lives of PDAers and their families. You will be energetic, creative and bring new ideas for enhancing the charity’s reputation, through nurturing existing relationships and developing new ones to achieve the charities goals. Our ideal candidate will have lived experience of autism, PDA or other neurodivergence although this is not essential.

Closing date for applications: Midnight on 22nd April 2026

Interviews with Trustees:  April / May 2026