Major gift officer jobs in cardiff, wales
You will be joining us at a time that holds the greatest potential for fundraising in our history, following the launch of the UK Government’s Delivery Plan for ME and initial findings of the DecodeME genetics study (co-led by Action for ME) in Summer 2025.
Building on our charity’s already established level of support from major donors, you will provide exceptional relationship management to existing donors alongside growing our network of high value supporters.
Working closely with the CEO, alongside managing a portfolio of donors and prospects ensuring excellent stewardship, you will support our Breakthrough-ME Group (a group of high net worth and highly networked individuals). There is an established level of support from major donors at Action for ME so this is a role that will require exceptional relationship management to retain our current valued supporters while growing this crucial area of fundraising.
This would be an ideal role for an experienced philanthropy professional seeking to work for a small but ambitious charity, helping us to achieve our mission to improve the lives of all people affected by ME – better meeting their needs today while taking action to secure change for tomorrow.
Key duties
Major Donor Fundraising
• Successfully develop and implement the philanthropy strategy to secure and maximise funds from high value individuals for Action for ME achieving annual income of £250k+
• Set plans and budgets which will deliver income through major gift fundraising and philanthropic giving through family trusts and foundations, including quarterly forecasting.
• Manage a portfolio of prospects and donors at the £5k to £100k level, to develop and maintain strong and long-standing partnerships
• Work closely with the Director of Fundraising and Development and other colleagues to ensure that plans and activities for fundraising from high value individuals are integrated into the overall fundraising strategy and plan for significant growth.
• Be responsible for our Breakthrough-ME Group with high quality proposition development. Contribution to Group fundraising activities with a specific focus on ensuring their networks support pipeline growth for future fundraising.
• Lead the delivery of our biennial fundraising gala dinner, maximising income and new opportunities from attendees.
• Develop engaging and inspiring opportunities to steward and cultivate support creating a calendar of activities including events, presentations, approaches, networking and meetings.
• Utilise the CRM database (Raisers Edge) to provide the data required to strategise your approach to philanthropy, monitor progress and provide a high-quality donor experience.
• Ensure utilisation of insight & data, producing management information data to inform planning and strategy development.
• With the Director of Fundraising & Development, create inspiring cases for support and resulting propositions with clear budgets and outcomes.
• Create adequate systems and processes to support the major donor programme.
• Undertake and manage research into prospects and major donors, preparing for approaches and presentations and briefing senior leadership and trustees for donor meetings and events.
• Develop and maintain relationships with donors, a wide range of staff and volunteers from trustee level down.
• Provide regular feedback and internal reporting to line management.
• Work with other fundraisers to ensure that all fundraising opportunities and leads are followed up – particularly in corporate, community and trust fundraising.
• Work with Trustees, the Chief Executive and members of the Leadership Team to develop relationships with major donors.
• Self-administrate including managing your own diary and meetings, keeping accurate and up to date records of activity
• Occasional travel to London, Bristol & events
Other duties
• To positively promote the work and activities of Action for M.E. at all times.
• To contribute to the team’s overall, ongoing and annual planning and budgeting.
• To undertake any other reasonable activity in line with the responsibilities of the post as requested by the Director of Fundraising and Development, Chief Executive or any other senior Action for ME management.
• Act as an advocate for the Charity and its work.
• To work in accordance with Action for ME’s values of collaboration, equity and empathy.
Our mission is to improve the lives of people affected by ME. Better meeting their needs today while taking action to secure change for tomorrow.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Partnerships Manager
Location: Fully Remote
Salary: £27,992 per annum
Vacancy Type: Permanent, Full Time
Closing Date: 24th September 2025
We have an exciting opportunity for a Partnerships Manager to join our team and grow income from high-net-worth individuals and corporate supporters. You will identify, engage, and steward prospects to secure funding, while developing and implementing long-term relationship and stewardship plans.
You’ll be joining a passionate, fun, and target-driven team in a motivating environment, with the chance to make a real impact on the services we provide.
Key responsibilities include:
- Researching and identifying potential major donors, determining appropriate stewardship pathways, and involving Trustees or staff as needed.
- Implementing stewardship plans for major donors to secure five-figure gifts and above.
- Developing and supporting external fundraising committees to raise funds for local Forward Trust services.
- Researching and approaching potential corporate supporters, cultivating relationships, and securing funding.
- Collaborating across the organisation to develop engagement packages, partnership proposals, and progress reports.
- Managing the Fundraising Officer, providing support, motivation, and guidance.
- Representing Forward Trust at meetings, networking events, and conferences.
- Supporting the Head of Fundraising to develop strategies to maximise income from high-net-worth individuals and corporates.
- Ensuring data in the CRM is accurate, compliant with GDPR, and used effectively to inform fundraising activities.
- Managing and reporting on income and expenditure budgets, liaising with Finance, and contributing to reports for Senior Management and Trustees.
- Collaborating with other fundraising team members and participating in team meetings, supervision, and training.
What We’re Looking For
Essential Skills & Experience:
- Proven track record of major donor fundraising, securing five-figure sums and managing effective stewardship pathways.
- Proven experience in identifying, managing, and growing corporate supporter accounts of at least five figures.
- Experience managing at least one member of staff.
- Skilled at managing high-level relationships internally (Trustees) and externally (high-net-worth individuals).
- Experience managing budgets related to your area of work.
- Proficient in using a CRM or other database to manage contacts.
- Understanding of GDPR principles and their impact on fundraising.
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to explain complex issues clearly and compellingly.
- Strong attention to detail and ability to understand departmental income and expenditure projections.
- Willingness to attend fundraising events, which may be out-of-hours or away from home.
About Us
We are The Forward Trust, the social enterprise with charitable status that empowers people to break the often-interlinked cycles of crime and addiction to move forward with their lives. For more than 25 years we have been working with people to build positive and productive lives, whatever their past. We believe that anyone is capable of lasting change. Our services have supported thousands of people to make positive changes and build productive lives with a job, family, friends and a sense of community.
We are committed to our cause and the work we carry out as a charity. Equally the wellbeing and the employees who work for us are also important. Joining us an employee, we will offer you the following benefits:
- Flexible working
- Training and development opportunities
- Simply Health Cashback Scheme (optional)
- Season Ticket Loan Scheme
- Cycle to work scheme
- Crisis Loan Scheme
- Electric Car Scheme
- 3 x Wellbeing Days (pro rata'd for part time employees)
- Access to Blue Light Card
- 25 days (rising to 30 with length of service) Annual Leave plus Bank Holidays
- Contributory Pension Scheme – Employer matched contributions of up to 6% in the first two years’ service and up to 9% thereafter
- Death in Service Payment (2x annual salary)
- Critical Illness Insurance (subject to qualifying criteria)
To Apply
If you feel you are a suitable candidate and would like to work for the Forward Trust, please click apply to be redirected to their website to complete your application.
Reports to:
Director of Philanthropy and Communications
Direct reports:
None
Location:
Flexible, with monthly co-working days in London and additional stakeholder meetings as required.
Salary:
£30,000 - £33,600 depending on experience
Hours
Full time; 37 hours a week
We are happy to consider requests for flexible or part time working
Contract
Permanent
About Now Teach
Now Teach is at a pivotal time in its strategic journey, following a hugely successful media and bridging fundraising campaign that has raised over £3m in new income for 2024-2026 and achieved 32 media mentions (15 national) and 2.5m PR views. We are now seeking to significantly grow our donor base and fundraised income and therefore are looking to recruit to this new role. We are seeking someone who can support the Director of Philanthropy and Communications to deliver our strategy to increase income through the recruitment of new donors and enable and deliver work with our current funders (primarily individuals and trusts). You’ll be the person to ensure they have an amazing experience as supporters of Now Teach.
ABOUT THE ROLE
Role overview
This role will be varied and offer lots of opportunities to get stuck into managing relationships with high value donors. Both the CEO, and the Director of Fundraising and Communications will work to steward the relationships with our donors in person, while this role will lead on delivering high-quality preparation, proposals, reporting, and data management that underpin donor relationships. You will also contribute to building connections across teams and aligning fundraising activities with Now Teach’s wider strategy.
You’ll deliver exciting and engaging communications and events which inspire our donors to continue to support our cause, as well as be responsible for maintaining accurate records and reporting so we can give supporters a great sense of the impact their donations make. This role will work on a combination of externally facing and internal projects and tasks and will be a great way to advance your career in fundraising.
In this role you will…
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Create and maintain a stewardship calendar of content, reports, and events to engage our donors, ensuring alignment with organisational priorities.
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Write and produce proposals and applications for funding from major donors and trusts, in collaboration with programme and recruitment teams, championing user-centred thinking by representing participant and school impact in fundraising materials.
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Write and produce reports with in-depth detail of what we have achieved as a result of the funding from our donors
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Create an engaging termly supporter newsletter, sharing insights across the organisation to drive stronger engagement.
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Manage and own the fundraising database, ensuring accuracy, compliance, and supporting colleagues to use data effectively.
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Collaborate with the finance team to ensure accurate reporting of gifts
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Ensure compliance with fundraising legislation, charity law and data protection legislation like GDPR
PERSON SPECFICIATION
Who you are (qualities/values)
We are looking for someone who is passionate about raising crucial funds to ensure that Now Teachers, schools, partners, and the wider education system can realise the full potential of career changers in education.
You'll have an eye for detail and be able to deliver written communications to the highest standard, including working with our communications teams to develop and deliver engaging case studies and proposals for support. You’ll be happy working to deadlines, and spotting and responding creatively to opportunities that arise. You’ll be able to build strong external and internal relationships and enjoy the challenge of raising money to support our amazing work.
What you’ll need to succeed in this role (experience/qualifications etc)
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Some experience of working in charities, ideally in education, and/ or in fundraising
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Excellent communication and interpersonal skills
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An ability to manage your own workload, prioritise tasks, multi-task and stay organised.
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An ability to understand and assist with financial reporting
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Knowledge of fundraising legislation and best practices
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An ability to work collaboratively with different teams and stakeholders
Don’t meet every requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every qualification. At Now Teach we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your experience doesn’t align perfectly, we encourage you to apply anyway.
Working at Now Teach
Our people join and stay because they value Now Teach’s flexibility, close-knit team culture and social purpose. 43% of employees at all levels of the organisation work part time or with compressed hours and everyone works flexibly, with time off in lieu as part of our standard working practices.
We are a small, collaborative and supportive team of nearly 20 people. We are non-hierarchical, with 100% of our people believing their line managers listen and value their opinions and people of all levels getting stuck in. We set clear expectations and celebrate the successes of teams and individuals. 100% of our team are proud to work at Now Teach, 94% find Now Teach considerate of their wellbeing and 100% feel like they are treated with respect at work.
Our culture is central to us encouraging and supporting people into teaching. Without our positive, honest, and flexible approach we wouldn’t be able to adapt to meet the needs of Now Teachers. We have been named as one of Escape the City’s Top 100 Employers in 2021 and 2022 and have been recognised as a Working Mums’ Top Employer and at the Working Dads Employer Awards. We have won awards for our Culture, Flexible Working and Excellence in Public Service.
In return
As well as flexible working and a great culture, we offer a wide range of benefits including 25 days annual leave per year (plus bank holidays), an additional 3 days for Winter closure (25th Dec-1st January), a pension scheme with a generous 11% employer contribution, a rewards platform with employee discounts and access to an Employee Assistance Programme.
Working arrangements
Full time/part time role, flexible working patterns possible. Now Teach are supported to work flexibly at co-working spaces or at home as needed with monthly working days in London. You will be required to cover your own travel expenses to London.
Our Values
At Now Teach, our values shape the way we work every day. We are looking for someone who shares these values and will help us live them in how we work with colleagues, donors and partners:
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Focus on who matters most – putting participants, schools and partners at the heart of our decisions.
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Drive impact through expertise – sharing knowledge and learning to strengthen our work.
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Make change happen – adapting and persevering in the face of challenges.
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Build connections that amplify – working together and with others to achieve more than we could alone.
Application Process
Timeline:
Applications close on 10th October
First stage interviews will take place w/c 13th October [online]
Second stage interviews will take place before the end of October [in person]
To apply, please complete our online application form where you will be asked to upload a Cover Letter (no more than 1 side of A4) and CV (no more than 2 sides of A4).
Your Cover Letter should include why you are attracted to the role, why you are motivated to work at Now Teach and what you can bring to the team.
If you have any difficulty with accessing the application form, need any additional support or require reasonable adjustments to the application process, please contact us.
Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
Now Teach strives to be a workplace that is diverse, equitable and inclusive where we can ALL be ourselves. We encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, ethnicities, ages, gender identities, stages of life and those with hidden or visible disabilities.
We are committed to providing reasonable adjustments throughout our recruitment process and we’ll endeavor to be as accommodating as possible. If you would like to discuss specific requirements, please contact us and ask to speak to the Operations Team.
All applicants must have an existing Right to Work in the UK.
Safe Recruitment Procedure
Now Teach are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. To meet this responsibility, we follow a rigorous selection process, and all successful candidates will be subject to a basic Disclosure and Barring Service check.