Major donor officer jobs in Manchester

This year marks 10 years since Makan was established as an independent organisation providing transformative education to strengthen the movement for Palestinian liberation. It is a pivotal moment for a new Director to lead the organisation, as Palestinians continue to face the ongoing genocide, dispossession, and unprecedented repression. The need for transformative education on Palestine has never been greater.

At Makan, we have seen this reflected in the extraordinary growth of our programmes. Over the last three years, demand for our educational workshops has risen by 300% and in 2025 alone we worked with over 3,500 people across the globe – with artists, trade unions, students, educators, journalists, community organisers, and human rights networks, people whose voices shape public understanding of Palestine. Through our trainings, educational resources, and long term partnerships, we help people deepen their understanding of how settler colonialism, apartheid and displacement shapes the lives of Palestinians, and how these forces connect to broader global struggles for freedom and justice.

We are looking for an experienced Director/Co-directors to drive the organisation forward at this critical moment for our work. You’ll provide leadership and direction in delivering Makan’s strategic vision and objectives, furthering the charity’s programmes and communications; and overseeing its organisational growth and development, in line with its values and ethos.

You will be responsible for the overall impact, performance and collaborative culture of Makan; confident in representing the charity to a variety of stakeholders, including partners, media, major donors and other supporters; and able to provide effective support to the Board to ensure the organisation has the infrastructure, governance and resources in place to secure long term sustainable funding, develop the resilience of the charity, and deliver high-quality, impactful educational programmes.

For a full job description, please review the Makan Director appointment brief.

For nearly 20 years, Lively Minds has been proving that parents are the sleeping giants of early childhood development. With strong evidence and a national scale proof point in Ghana, we have shown that parent powered approaches delivered through government systems can transform children's lives at scale.

We are now at a pivotal moment. We have the evidence, the model and the momentum, and we need the funding, profile and influence to match our ambition. This is a rare opportunity to lead income generation and external voice for an award winning NGO entering an exciting new phase of growth. You will lead our fundraising strategy and direct engagement with Funders ensuring that we maximise all funding opportunities as we continue our strategic evolution. You will also shape a compelling external narrative that will help position Lively Minds as the definitive partner for governments strengthening their early childhood development systems.

If you are an exceptional fundraiser and communicator who is equally comfortable in a strategic conversation and writing a winning proposal, we would love to hear from you.

Read the full advert and apply below. Closing date: 3rd September 2026.

About Lively Minds

Lively Minds is an award-winning NGO with nearly 20 years of experience designing, testing and scaling early childhood development (ECD) solutions across the Global South. Our core idea is simple but radical: parents are the sleeping giants of ECD. Governments and donors have long overlooked parents, assuming that poverty and low literacy make them unable or unwilling to support their childrenʼs development. We have spent two decades proving otherwise. With RCT-backed evidence and a national-scale proof point in Ghana, we have demonstrated that parent-powered approaches, delivered through government systems, can achieve meaningful child development outcomes at scale.

Our 2026–2028 strategy marks a pivotal shift. Having demonstrated what is possible, we are now helping pioneer an innovative model of country-led sustainable scale. Rather than delivering programmes ourselves, we provide lean, time-limited technical advisory support to governments to help them integrate parent-powered ECD into their own systems, budgets and institutions. We are currently working with the governments of Ghana, Uganda, Oromia state (Ethiopia) and The Gambia in 2026, growing to six or more country engagements by 2028. Our ambition is to catalyse a sector-wide shift, positioning Lively Minds as the definitive partner for governments seeking to strengthen their ECD systems.

Our scale strategy rests on three interdependent pillars: fixed-term Technical Advisory partnerships with governments; the development of a modular radio model simple and affordable enough for governments to adopt and fund independently; and an advocacy and sector influence agenda designed to make parent-powered ECD the norm globally.

Purpose of the Role

Lively Minds is at a critical inflection point. We have the evidence, the model and the momentum. We now need the funding, profile and sector influence to match our ambition. The Director of Fundraising and Communications is a priority hire, created to provide the dedicated, experienced leadership that this moment demands.

The Director will own and drive Lively Mindsʼ income generation, building new funder relationships, managing and deepening existing ones, and ensuring the organisation has the pipeline, discipline and quality of engagement to meet and exceed its fundraising targets. Working in close partnership with the Founding CEO, who retains ownership of a small number of long-standing strategic relationships, the Director will take primary responsibility for securing the funding that makes the 2026–2028 strategy deliverable, and that opens the door to greater scale beyond it. We need to raise approximately £3.4m over the next 3 years to deliver our strategy. But our ambition is to exceed that target so we can support additional governments.

Alongside fundraising, the Director will provide strategic leadership to Lively Mindsʼ communications and advocacy work, ensuring that the organisationʼs external voice is compelling and that we are building credibility in the spaces where funding decisions are made. The Director will lead and provide strategic coherence to a small but outward-facing team, including Head of Partnerships and Advocacy Lead who are active on the international stage. Lively Minds is committed to thought-leadership and active external engagement, but equally committed to ensuring that communications resource is deployed with discipline and rigour. The Director will set a clear strategic filter for where the organisation shows up, what it publishes and who it engages: prioritising focus and quality over volume, and always asking whether external activity is building the relationships and reputation that ultimately drive income and/or systems change.

Lively Minds is a dispersed, remote organisation. The Directorʼs team the Advocacy Lead, Development Manager and Communications Officer - are internationally distributed. The ability to lead, develop and maintain high standards across a dispersed team is essential. The role requires regular travel to international conferences and events.

Key Responsibilities

Fundraising Strategy & Income Generation

• Own and deliver the multi-year fundraising strategy with clear priorities, targets, income streams and a disciplined pipeline to support the 2026–2028 strategy and future scale
• Steward existing funder relationships, turning strong partnerships into long-term supporters, advocates and connectors to new funding opportunities.
• Lead the shift towards Big Bet and catalytic funding, personally cultivating and negotiating high-value, multi-year partnerships and positioning Lively Minds for system-level scale
• Maintain a high standard of fundraising quality, pipeline management and forecasting, while coaching the team to produce compelling, sophisticated fundraising materials
•  Build and continuously strengthen a diverse funding pipeline, identifying emerging opportunities, new funding markets and strategic partnerships that reduce concentration risk and support long-term financial sustainability

Communications, Brand & Advocacy

• Own and deliver Lively Mindsʼ communications and marketing strategy, balancing visibility and sector influence with the need to strengthen fundraising and systems-change objectives
• Partner closely with the CEO to shape and steward a coherent external narrative, brand and messaging framework across all audiences and channels
• Oversee high-quality core communications and fundraising materials, including cases for support, pitch decks, website content, proposals and donor reports
• Provide strategic communications expertise to Advocacy, Partnerships and MEL, ensuring evidence and learning are translated into compelling narratives and consistent external messaging
• Lead efforts to strengthen Lively Mindsʼ profile and thought leadership in the ECD sector, identifying opportunities for strategic media, events, publications and external platforms that reinforce its positioning and influence

Organizational Leadership&TeamDevelopment

 

• Contribute actively to SMT and organisational strategy, bringing funder intelligence, external perspective and communications expertise to strategic decision-making.
• Work closely with Finance and MEL to align fundraising targets, forecasting, budgets and evidence, ensuring proposals are credible, accurately costed and evidence-led
• Act as the organisationʼs communications subject matter expert, providing guidance and challenge to ensure high-quality, consistent external communications
• Lead and develop the Advocacy Lead, Development Manager and Communications Officer, fostering a team culture of quality, accountability, strategic clarity and continuous improvement
• Build strong cross-organisational collaboration, ensuring teams understand how fundraising, communications, advocacy and evidence work together to advance Lively Mindsʼ strategic priorities

Person Specification

Essential Experience & Skills

• 10+ years of significant senior-level fundraising experience within international development, education, philanthropy or a comparable sector
• Proven track record of securing major grants from foundations, institutional donors and high-net-worth individuals, alongside demonstrated experience securing or meaningfully progressing large-scale, catalytic funding from Big Bet philanthropy programmes such as the Audacious Project, Skoll Foundation or comparable funders. A strong understanding of what these funders look for and how to position an organisation compellingly within their processes is essential
• Exceptional fundraising writing skills, with the ability to personally develop compelling cases for support, funding proposals, award applications and pitch decks tailored to sophisticated impact funders. This is a hands-on role requiring both strong writing capability and the ability to coach others to consistently produce high-quality fundraising content
• Experienced in developing and owning a marketing and communications strategy, with a strong understanding of how to balance organisational visibility, thought leadership and sector influence with coherence, strategic focus and income generation
• Demonstrated ability to work closely with a Founding CEO to shape and steward the organisationʼs external narrative and brand. Comfortable working in a founder-led environment, providing expertise and constructive challenge while ensuring the organisation maintains a clear, consistent and coherent external voice

Desirable Experience

• Experienced fundraising for a technical advisory, systems change or government-facing organisation
• Knowledge of the ECD, education or early childhood sector and its funding landscape
• Familiarity with the Big Bang Philanthropy network or equivalent impact-focused funder communities
• Experience working alongside advocacy and partnerships teams, providing communications expertise and strategic coherence to their external activity
• Familiarity with the funding landscape for organisations operating in Sub-Saharan Africa
• Experience working remotely across multiple countries and effectively collaborating with cross-cultural teams

Behaviours & Ways of Working

• A doer, equally comfortable in strategic conversations and writing a funding proposal
• Sets a high bar for quality and clarity in all external communications and holds it consistently
• Builds a strong, trust-based partnership with the Founding CEO, provides honest challenge and operates effectively within a founder-led dynamic without losing their own voice or judgement
• Collaborative and cross-organisational. Invests in strong relationships with programme, MEL and finance colleagues, understanding that the best fundraising is grounded in organisational reality
• Calm and focused under pressure - able to manage competing priorities and maintain quality when the stakes are high

What We Offer

• Competitive salary commensurate with experience
• 25 days annual leave
• Health insurance
• Pension contribution
• Generous learning and development budget
• Flexible, remote working

Application Instruction

Interested candidates are encouraged to read the Job Description carefully before applying to ensure they understand the role and meet the required criteria.

To apply, please complete the pre-screening questions and submit your updated CV

PLEASE NOTE - Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.

Timeline

Closing Date: 3rd September 2026

Our Stance

Lively Minds operates a strict Safeguarding Policy and is committed to ensuring the safety and well-being of children and vulnerable people. As part of our recruitment process, the suitability of successful candidates will be verified through appropriate background checks including professional references and police checks.

Lively Minds is fully committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and to providing equal opportunities throughout our recruitment process. We want this commitment to be reflected in the diversity of the people who work for us, and we welcome applications from people of all backgrounds, identities, experiences and perspectives.

We are committed to ensuring that recruitment decisions are based on merit, skills, experience and suitability for the role, and that all candidates are treated fairly and with respect throughout the recruitment process.

This is an exciting opportunity to join Cause4’s Development Team as a Development Manager, supporting a varied portfolio of charities and social purpose organisations with fundraising, strategy and organisational development.

This opportunity provides a fantastic opportunity for someone to work as part of a passionate and hard working team to hone their consultancy skills to fast track into more senior positions within the organisation.

The role offers the chance to work across multiple sectors including arts, heritage, education, health, sport and community organisations, helping clients to develop fundraising strategies, secure funding and build sustainable income streams. Alongside client work, you will play an active role within the wider Cause4 Development Team, contributing to research, organisational planning, training delivery and business development activity.

This position offers broad exposure across a wide range of organisations, fundraising disciplines and consultancy projects, making it an excellent opportunity for someone looking to accelerate their career within the charity or consultancy sectors.

THE OPPORTUNITY WHO THIS ROLE MAY SUIT

• This role could particularly suit: Someone looking to step into their first consultancy or Development Manager role.
• A fundraiser wanting broader experience across multiple organisations and income streams. Someone currently working in the charity, arts, education or cultural sectors looking to transition into consultancy.
• An ambitious individual seeking a fast-paced role with clear progression and development opportunities.
• An existing manager looking to build their consultancy skills to fast track into more senior positions in the sector.

MAIN RESPONSIBILITIES

Fundraising & Client Support

• Supporting a portfolio of clients with fundraising strategy development and delivery.
• Writing compelling funding applications, Cases for Support and donor-facing materials.
• Supporting funding approaches to Trusts & Foundations, statutory funders, corporates and individual donors.
• Conducting research into prospective funders, partners and opportunities.
• Supporting the development and delivery of fundraising events and engagement activities. Building positive relationships with clients, funders and wider stakeholders.
• Supporting the delivery of fundraising training and wider Cause4 programmes.

Research & Consultancy

• Producing high-quality research, reports and briefing papers.
• Supporting the development of programme ideas, evaluation frameworks and measurable outcomes.
• Contributing strategic thinking to fundraising campaigns and organisational development projects.
• Supporting wider consultancy and innovation work across the organisation.

Team & Organisational Development

• Contributing to Cause4’s business development and growth activity.
• Sharing knowledge, expertise and fundraising insight across the team.
• Supporting the wider strategic and operational needs of the organisation.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Cause4 is a fast-paced consultancy environment offering significant opportunities for learning and career development.

Skills & Experience

We are particularly interested in candidates who are ambitious, adaptable and keen to grow within a consultancy environment. You may already have experience in fundraising, charity operations, programme delivery, arts administration, partnerships, research or strategy work.

We are looking for:

• Strong written communication skills and the ability to produce compelling, engaging and high-quality written material.
• Strong research and analytical skills with excellent attention to detail.
• Ability to interpret and synthesise large and complex amounts of information and data from a range of sources.
• Experience within a charity, fundraising, arts, education or consultancy environment.
• An interest in fundraising, philanthropy and organisational development.
• The ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines effectively.
• Confidence working with a range of stakeholders and building professional relationships.
• Strategic thinking, creative and problem-solving skills. Strong organisational and coordination skills.
• Confidence using Microsoft Office applications including Word, Excel and PowerPoint.
• Experience using online platforms such as Zoom or Teams.
• Alignment with our company values.

Experience across fundraising or income generation is desirable, but we are equally interested in candidates with strong transferable skills and the ambition to develop into a client-facing consultancy role.

HOW TO APPLY

Please send your CV together with either: a Cover Letter (maximum two pages), or a Cover Video (maximum three minutes) to Ben Wilson, Director of Development and Enterprise.

The deadline for applying is 5pm on Tuesday 1 September 2026.

Please also include a completed Equal Opportunities Form downloadable from the Cause4 website.

050 Partnerships Manager

Reporting to: Fundraising Lead
Hours: Full Time (35 hours per week)
Key Relationships: Products Manager, Stewardship Manager, Fundraising Lead, Director of Development, CEO, COO, Trustees, External Partners
Location: Remote Working, with national travel requirements for meetings, events and collaboration.

Overall Purpose

The Partnerships and Philanthropy Manager will both raise money to support the sustainability of NHS Charities Together and contribute to supporting NHS Charities to increase their income.
The focus of the role is on developing and leading partnerships with corporates and philanthropy.

Overall Objectives

• To generate income across a portfolio of corporate partnerships and charitable trusts and foundations
• To support NHS charities to raise income from partnerships
• Work flexibly as part of a Development Team, supporting the range of fundraising and income generation that the team targets.

Key Responsibilities

The main duties and responsibilities of the role holder are as outlined below:

Partnership Development & Delivery

• Manage the range of existing partnerships across corporate and philanthropic audiences, creating and implementing bespoke solicitation and stewardship plans, generating income for the organisation or NHS Charities
• Translate our work into compelling and bespoke cases for support, making relevant and appropriate asks and soliciting multi-year strategic partnerships
• Identifyand develop new partnership opportunities whichbenefitour organisation or NHS Charities
• Develop opportunities for and deliver sponsorship income for our activity and events

Collaboration & Sector Support

• Work collaboratively with member NHS Charities to understand their fundraising needs, challenges, and opportunities.
• Build strong relationships with key stakeholders across the sector, supporting them to understand the most appropriate role for partnership-based fundraising
• Share learning and best practice from partnership relationships to inform future developments and sector growth.
• Contribute to supporting NHS Charities to raise their income, providing advice and guidance 1:1 and through supporting the delivery of member events
• Where required support the delivery of paid for consulting support to NHS charities on fundraising
• Keep abreast of trends in fundraising within and beyond the health sector.

Leadership & Financial Management

• Establish clear objectives, KPIs, and evaluation frameworks for all partnerships
• Monitor the performance and financial return of our partnerships work, producing regular reports and insights to inform decision-making.
• Provide effective line management to team members, ensuring they have clear objectives, professional development, and deliver high performance.
• Manage budgets as required, monitoring income and expenditure to ensure targets and forecasts are met, and reporting any variances promptly.
• Produce regular performance and income reports and insights to inform strategy and continuous improvement.
• Contribute to the effective running of the team, and participate in relevant training and team meetings.
• Ensure donor records are kept up to date on the fundraising database, and ensure our CRM records of key relationships are maintained
• Ensure all appropriate due diligence is undertaken and necessary gift agreements are in place.
• Ensure that all fundraising activity complies with the Fundraising Regulator’s Code of Fundraising Practice and relevant legislation.

Cross-Team Collaboration & Stakeholder Management

• Liaise with teams across the organisation to collaborate on member facing activity and ensuring our product offers fit with our member segmentation approaches.
• Support the team on other fundraising activity, for example around events, or in the cultivation and recruitment of individual donors

Competencies

Teamwork – ‘One charity’, working within and across teams

• Collaborates across teams, ensuring our activity is aligned with our wider support of members.

Building trust and respect – listen, feedback and learn

• Models our values through their work, seeking to support colleagues and understand their perspectives.
• Proactive, and adaptable to support the wider work of the organisation as required.

Responsibility – owning your part in our success

• Demonstrates commitment to delivering exceptional partnerships.
• Takes responsibility for developing and leading successful relationships which generate income.

Professionalism – creating an environment to achieve success

• Takes a learning approach to ensure we continually improve.
• Upholds the highest standards of integrity, ethics, and transparency, ensuring we always work within the Fundraising Code.

Stakeholder focus – understanding the needs of our key stakeholders and audiences

• Passionate about supporting NHS charities and helping them to increase their income.
• Seeks to understand the needs of NHS charities, shaping our support to maximise our impact in supporting them to raise income.
• Ensures our own fundraising does not compete with members.

Acumen – Sound decision-making

• Adapts and shapes partnerships based on learning to deliver success.
• Identifies and shapes member support around what is most effective.

Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Fundraising Qualification, Chartered Institute of Fundraising, or equivalent
• Significant experience of fundraising, and the role and theory of fundraising through partnerships and/or philanthropic relationships
• Experience of securing significant partnerships of at least 5 figures from corporate partners, individuals or family foundations and managing relationships with major supporters
• Knowledge of the current philanthropy and High Net Worth Individual and/or corporate landscape and insight into future trends
• Excellent project management skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities and stakeholders.
• Creative thinker with a commercial mindset
• Collaborative working style with excellent stakeholder management skills
• Experience managing and developing team members.
• Influencing skills, with experience of working across teams or partner organisations.
• Experience of database management and using a fundraising CRM system
• An excellent communicator, in person and in written work
• Experience working within an NHS charity or large health-related fundraising environment.
• Experience in building credibility with senior external stakeholders and managing relationships with diplomacy
• Experience managing external relationships with suppliers

Other duties

• Visibly live NHS Charities Togethers values, including our commitment to diversity and inclusion.
• Carrying out the duties of postin accordance withNHS Charities Togethers policies and procedures on Health and Safety and take responsibility for ensuring personal health and safety.
• Working flexibly, prioritising workload, and working effectively as part of a team. Demonstrating an ability to work calmly and effectively when under pressure of tight deadlines, to deliver work on time and to a high standard.
• Adhere to relevant legislation, best practice, policies, and processes including, but not limited to charity law, the fundraising regulator, GDPR and professional codes and standards.

This is not meant to be an exhaustive list of duties. The need for flexibility is required, and the post holder is expected to carry out any other related duties that are within the employee’s skills and abilities whenever reasonably instructed.