National head of operations jobs

Drive quality, lead change and make a lasting difference! 

About Us

Carers Trust Heart of England exists to improve the lives of family carers and the people they care for. We provide information, advice, and a wide range of practical and emotional support to unpaid carers and people with care and support needs. Our work is rooted in compassion, partnership, and a commitment to high-quality, person-centred services.

Our Regulated Activities and Contract Scope

The Care Services Manager will have responsibility across our regulated and associated services, which currently include:

•  Domiciliary care (personal care in people's homes)

  •  Short Breaks and Emergency Respite (including sleep-in provision)

  •  Dementia Wraparound Support

  •  Day Break Day Services (currently unregulated)

We hold contracts and funding arrangements across several commissioners and funders. The postholder will be responsible for ensuring that care and support is delivered in accordance with all relevant contractual and funding requirements.

The Role

The Care Services Manager will hold personal CQC accountability for the quality, safety, and compliance of our regulated services. While this is fundamentally a strategic leadership and governance role, our regulated services are currently at an important stage of development. As such, we are looking for someone who is equally comfortable providing visible, hands-on operational delivery when needed.

Initially, the successful candidate will spend time working closely with the day-to-day operation of the service, building strong relationships with Care Support Workers and the people we support, strengthening systems and processes, and ensuring consistently high standards of care.

This is an opportunity to play a key role in embedding best practice and supporting the continued growth and improvement of the service. As the service develops, the emphasis of the role will increasingly shift towards strategic leadership, quality assurance, governance, service improvement and future development.

The successful candidate will be able to recognise what the service needs at any given time and adapt their approach accordingly, remaining visible and involved operationally where appropriate, while driving long-term quality, compliance and continuous improvement.

What We Offer

• Competitive salary

• Starting annual leave entitlement of 25 days, increasing with service to a maximum of 30 days (and Bank Holidays),             plus your 'birtholiday'

• Pension contribution scheme

• Benefits platform offering flexible high street savings and discounts on top brands

• Employee Assistance Programme and wellbeing platform

• Ongoing training and development opportunities

• A supportive, values-led organisation that makes a real difference to carers’ lives and the people they care for

Key Responsibilities

1. Leading and Managing the Service

• Hold CQC registration and personal accountability for the quality, safety and compliance of all regulated care activities delivered by the organisation.

• Provide day-to-day operational leadership of the care service(s), being genuinely present and accessible to care support workers, coordinators, and senior staff, particularly in the early period of the role.

• Line manages the coordination and care team, providing regular supervision, clear direction, and honest feedback.

• Be willing to get involved in operational problem-solving when needed, covering gaps in coordination, stepping in on complex cases, supporting the team through difficult periods, while also working to build the capacity that, over time, reduces the need for this.

• Build and sustain a team culture where staff feel supported, valued, and clear about what is expected of them.

• Manage performance and conduct fairly and consistently, with appropriate HR support.

2. Quality, Compliance and Safeguarding

• Ensure the service always operates in compliance with the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and CQC Fundamental Standards.

• Maintain continuous inspection readiness under the CQC Single Assessment Framework, understanding that ratings can be updated at any point, not just following a scheduled visit.

• Act as a named safeguarding lead, recognising, reporting, managing, and recording safeguarding concerns across all regulated services.

• Lead a meaningful quality assurance programme, involving audits, spot checks, care plan reviews, complaint analysis, and use findings to drive improvements.

• Submit CQC notifications accurately and on time and ensure the Statement of Purpose and all governance documentation accurately reflects what the service does.

• Monitor care quality through ECM data, visit records, staff feedback and regular engagement with service users and their families, remaining closely connected to the day-to-day service delivery to identify and address emerging issues before they escalate.

• Ensure care and support delivery across all services remains within the scope of relevant contractual and funding arrangements, and that any changes to the service scope, volume or specification are identified and escalated appropriately.

3. Care Planning and Service User Relationships

• Ensure every service user has a current, person-centred care plan that reflects their needs, preferences and risks.

• Oversee and contribute to care assessments and reviews, including involvement in complex cases, multi-agency reviews and situations where a senior presence is needed.

• Build and maintain positive relationships with service users, their families, and carers, being accessible, responsive, and honest whether managing concerns or recognising success.

• Ensure that the service user experience and what it actually feels like to be supported by our service is at the centre of how quality is assessed, monitored and improved.

4. Safe Recruitment, Staffing and Workforce

• Ensure all staff are recruited safely and in line with statutory and regulatory requirements, with appropriate DBS checks, references, right-to-work verification, and safer recruitment processes completed before delivering regulated care.

• Manage all aspects of the Skilled Worker visa sponsorship process, including sponsorship applications, compliance monitoring, record keeping, and reporting requirements in line with Home Office regulations.

• Lead on workforce development, identifying training needs, commissioning training, maintaining records, and ensuring all staff are competent for the care they deliver.

• Ensure a regular and effective programme of one-to-one meetings, supervision, probation reviews and annual appraisals is maintained across the service, addressing performance, development, wellbeing, and any concerns in a timely manner.

• Support, and where appropriate, lead HR processes, including investigations, disciplinary, performance management, grievance, and absence management meetings, working closely with HR to ensure a fair, consistent and legally compliant approach.

• Ensure the on-call and lone working frameworks are in place, understood by all staff and working in practice.

• Participate in the senior management on-call rota, providing advice, support and decision making in response to serious incidents, safeguarding concerns, deaths, and any other urgent operational matters requiring immediate senior attention.

• Participation in a shared on-call rota, including evenings/over-night and weekends, and bank holidays where scheduled.

5. Working with Senior Leadership

• Work closely with the Head of Operations (Deputy CEO) reporting on service performance, escalating concerns, contributing to strategic decisions, and supporting the organisation's broader development.

• Contribute to commissioner relationships and contract management, including monitoring reporting, quality submissions and attendance at review meetings.

• Play an active part in shaping how the service develops, bringing operational knowledge and professional judgement to decisions about what the service does, how it is structured and where it grows.

• Demonstrate the confidence to communicate honestly, raise difficult issues and challenge constructively in the best interests of the service and the people we support.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Qualifications

· Level 5 Diploma in Leadership and Management for Adult Care or actively working toward it with a clear and realistic            completion plan.

· Enhanced DBS with adults' barred list or willingness to apply immediately.

· Full UK driving licence and access to own vehicle.

Knowledge

· Strong working knowledge of the CQC Single Assessment Framework how evidence is gathered, what quality                      statements are assessed against, and what continuous inspection readiness means in practice.

· Comprehensive knowledge of the Health and Social Care Act 2008 and CQC Fundamental Standards.

· Knowledge of safeguarding adults' legislation and local procedures.

· Knowledge of the Mental Capacity Act 2005 and how it applies in domiciliary and community care

· Working knowledge of Working Time Regulations and how this practically applies to care rotas and on-call                            arrangements.

· Understanding of contractual compliance in a multi-contract or multi-funder care environment, and the implications of            changes to service scope or volume.

Experience

· Proven experience as a Registered Manager (or equivalent senior care management role) in a CQC-regulated                      domiciliary or community care service.

· Experience of being hands-on in a care management role, understanding when direct operational involvement is                  needed.

· Experience of managing safeguarding, making referrals, managing investigations, recording outcomes, and learning            from them.

· Experience of directly supervising and developing a care team including coordinators, senior carers, and care                        support workers.

· Experience of managing quality across a regulated service, completing audits, spot checks, care plan reviews and                complaint handling.

· Experience of CQC compliance and notifications, including operating under the Single Assessment Framework.

· Experience of managing across multiple service lines or contracts simultaneously, ensuring compliance with each                  commissioner or funder’s specific requirements.

Skills & Abilities

· Able to assess service performance, recognise what is working well, identify challenges and confidently                                  communicate these in a clear and constructive way.

· Willingness and flexibility to be hands-on when required, and confident enough to step back appropriately as the                  service develops.

· Excellent written communication skills, being able to write clearly, accurately, and professionally for a variety of                      audiences (CQC, commissioners and families).

· Excellent verbal communication skills, being able to speak in a clear, honest, and approachable way with care                      workers, service users, families, CQC inspectors and senior colleagues.

· Strong decision-making skills when under pressure, including in safeguarding, serious incidents and out-of-hours                  situations.

· Competent in care management systems — including rostering, ECM, and digital care planning.

Personal Qualities

· Shows the self-awareness, honesty and professional courage to recognise what is working, what is not, and what                  needs to change.

· Demonstrates resilience and calm judgement, remaining focused and clear when faced with challenging or complex              situations or organisational difficulties.

· A caring and compassionate leader with a genuine commitment to making a positive difference to the people we                    support.

· Accountable and takes ownership of outcomes.

· Adaptable and confident working at different levels, recognising when to move between strategic thinking to                          operational problem-solving.

· Collaborative and approachable, with the ability to build positive working relationships and work effectively with                      people at all levels of the organisation.

· Curious and improvement-focused, with a willingness to ask questions, explore new approaches and learn from                    experience.

This is a significant and rewarding opportunity to make a real difference in supporting our ambition for nature’s protection and recovery across Birmingham and the Black Country. The post holder will help support the collection, collation, and digitisation of ecological data relating to species, sites and habitats across our landscape. Your work will be critical to the success of EcoRecord – the region’s Environmental Records Centre - and aid in the protection of local wildlife of great value to people, and communities in our region.

As a wildlife charity serving a heavily urbanised area, a major element of our work is to provide ecological evidence and related information, that supports the designation of wildlife sites and informs the protection of nature in the face of urban development.

You will work within EcoRecord to deliver high quality data products and services to a range of customers and users. EcoRecord is part of a network of Local Environmental Records Centres across the UK and provides information services to a wide range of users such as local authorities, statutory agencies, ecological consultants, national and local recording schemes, and others.

The post of Biodiversity Data and Evidence Officer is a central and varied role within EcoRecord, that will include making use of GIS mapping and specialised databases to analyse and digitise ecological data. The role will also include promoting high quality biological recording activities, supporting specialist recording groups, and engaging with volunteers, including through our social media channels. You will assist with key aspects of the day-to-day operation of the records centre, including the maintenance, management, and development of core data sets and analytic processes.

Key Responsibilities

• Assist with the development and growth of EcoRecord’s data infrastructure by supporting the collection, collation and computerisation of ecological and other relevant data (primarily species, sites and habitats data), through the competent use of Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and, though not exclusively, Recorder 6.
• Contribute to the improvement of data management systems and processes.
• Contribute to the delivery of projects that deliver nature’s recovery across Birmingham and the Black Country.
• Assist with the adoption and development of practices and tools that improve the efficiency of data management and data availability.
• Assist with data analysis and the production of high-quality data products and services.
• Be an advocate for and help to promote high quality biological recording in Birmingham and the Black Country.
• Assist in supporting specialist species interest groups and the wider volunteer recording networks throughout Birmingham and the Black Country and with enabling the development and formation of new interest groups.
• Assist and support surveys and local recording initiatives, including the City Nature Challenge.
• Contribute to EcoRecord’s and the Wildlife Trust’s online presence through producing content for social media and website etc. in collaboration with colleagues including the Trust’s Communication Department.
• Assist in the recruitment and supervision of volunteers in a range of activities, namely surveying and data entry.

About You

The successful applicant will be very well organised, highly motivated, collaborative, have a high level of attention to detail, and be used to prioritising a complex workload. You will have good ecological knowledge, and the confidence and ambition to affect conservation outcomes through the provision of high-quality ecological evidence. Above all, you will be driven by a commitment to see nature’s recovery across Birmingham and the Black Country’s urban landscape.

What We Offer

• A chance to make a real impact in local communities and the natural environment 
• A supportive and inclusive team culture 
• Flexible working arrangements 
• Opportunities for professional development 

The Senior Seafood Program Manager works closely with our funder and implementation partner,

Humanity United, acting as a strategic thought partner to advance our shared goals. The role will hold overall responsibility for management of the portf

olio including program and strategy development, budgeting, monitoring and reporting and grant-making.

The role holder will represent the Freedom Fund at high level sectoral events; engaging with a wide range of stakeholders related to the program, building connections that advance our shared priorities.

This role is a fixed term contract, aligned to our next phase of funding partnership with Humanity United for the Asia Pacific seafood program.  The position is expected to commence in September 2026 and continue through to December 2028, with the possibility of an extension.

Interview process: 2 stage interview process: week commencing  14th August 2026
Please see the job description for all details.

Job Title: Digital Communications Officer

Responsible to: Senior Communications & Engagement Manager

Salary: £29,706 – £31,908 per annum 

Location: Head Office, 5 Trinity Street, London, SE1 1DB 

Hours of work: Full time - 35 hours per week (Minimum two days per week in the London office). Occasional weekend and evening work with time off in lieu (some domestic and international travel may be required) 

The package also includes: 

• 8% employer pension contribution

• 25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays and additional discretionary leave during the Christmas period 

• Season Ticket Loan 

About USPG 

USPG is the Anglican mission agency that partners churches and communities worldwide in God’s mission to enliven faith, strengthen relationships, unlock potential and champion justice. You can find out more about our work by visiting our website.

About the Role 

Reporting to the Senior Communications & Engagement Manager as part of a highly functioning and creative team, this vital role will work across all media and channels to raise the profile of USPG and its partners and their work: 

• Oversee the day-to-day running of our website and social media channels. 

• Liaise with colleagues and partners to gather information and use it to create engaging collateral which informs, inspires, and sometimes challenges. 

• Support the digital growth of USPG through SEO and Analytics

• Monthly digital and media reporting

About You  

You are an organised and digitally aware communications professional. You can take complex subjects and communicate about them in simple and effective ways that speak to specific audiences. You understand the importance of reporting on website and social media performance to understand USPG’s audience and to adjust and improve. You are comfortable working in a small and creative team and are confident speaking to the wider organisation. You can juggle numerous projects and deadlines at one time.

You will demonstrate considerable cross-cultural awareness and an ability to communicate in a way that is sensitive and appropriate. You demonstrate an aptitude for collaborative teamwork and the ability to work independently on your initiative. It is expected that the postholder will be inspired by the work of USPG and in agreement with its Christian ethos and that they will be comfortable writing in a way which reflects this.

This is an ideal opportunity for someone looking for an exciting and varied role within charity communications or a communications/marketing professional who wants to move into the charity sector. However, if you don’t necessarily fall into these categories, but have the right skills for this role, please get in touch.

How to apply: 

Please complete the application form and equal opportunities form and email us as indicated.
 

Closing Date: Wednesday 12 August 2026 by 9am.

Interview Date: Wednesday 19 August 2026 in London.

The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB) is partnering with Robertson Bell on a retained basis to recruit a Director of Finance on a permanent basis. This is a rare opportunity to join a globally influential organisation at a pivotal point in its growth, leading the transformation of the finance function whilst helping drive the organisation's ambitious mission to eliminate avoidable sight loss worldwide.

This is far more than a traditional Finance Director role. The successful candidate will inherit a finance function ready for transformation, with the full backing of an ambitious Senior Leadership Team committed to investing in modern systems, stronger processes and strategic financial leadership. It is an exceptional opportunity for an ambitious finance leader looking to make their first move into a Director position, whilst remaining close to the operational detail and leading meaningful organisational change.

The role

• Partner with the Deputy CEO and Senior Leadership Team to shape the organisation's financial strategy and support the delivery of its ambitious three-year strategic plan.
• Lead the transformation of the finance function, moving from manual, spreadsheet-led reporting to streamlined systems, efficient processes and insightful business partnering.
• Oversee budgeting, forecasting and financial planning, including scenario modelling to support significant organisational growth and major international funding opportunities.
• Deliver high-quality management reporting for the Executive Team, Finance & Audit Committee, Board of Trustees and major international funders.
• Lead the production of statutory accounts, oversee the annual audit process and ensure full compliance with Charity Commission, Companies House and tax requirements.
• Develop robust financial controls, policies and governance frameworks that support a growing international charity.
• Manage treasury activities, cashflow and foreign currency exposure across an increasingly global operation.
• Build strong relationships with budget holders across the organisation, embedding a proactive and commercially minded finance business partnering culture.
• Lead, develop and mentor a small finance team, fostering a collaborative and high-performing environment.
• Play a key leadership role in organisational decision-making, helping ensure finance is viewed as an enabling function that supports innovation and impact.

The organisation

The International Agency for the Prevention of Blindness is the only global alliance dedicated to eliminating the world's avoidable vision crisis. Representing NGOs, professional associations, hospitals, academic institutions, corporations and philanthropies, IAPB works to influence policy, mobilise investment and strengthen health systems across the world.

The organisation has experienced significant growth in recent years, expanding to over 50 staff and securing substantial new investment to support its ambitious global agenda. This includes convening the inaugural Global Summit for Eye Health in November 2026, bringing together heads of government, multilateral organisations and major funders to accelerate progress towards ending avoidable sight loss for the 1.1 billion people currently living without access to the eye care they need.

With strong leadership, genuine investment in organisational development and a culture built around being ambitious, collaborative, inclusive and strategic, IAPB offers an outstanding opportunity to shape both the finance function and the future direction of the organisation.

Essential criteria

• Fully qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent).
• Experience working within an international charity.
• Strong understanding of charity finance, including restricted funding, grant reporting and Charity SORP.
• Demonstrable experience producing high-quality financial reporting, budgeting and statutory accounts.
• Experience improving financial systems, controls and reporting processes.
• Proven ability to build effective relationships with senior stakeholders, trustees and non-finance colleagues.
• Strong leadership skills, with experience developing and supporting finance teams.
• Commercial mindset with the ability to translate financial information into strategic insight.
• Excellent communication skills, with confidence presenting complex financial information to a range of audiences.

Apply now

This is a permanent, full-time position with a salary of £87,000 based on a hybrid working model requiring one day per week in the London office, typically on Tuesdays.

The role offers an excellent benefits package, including a 10% employer pension contribution, 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays, flexible working, enhanced family leave policies and an Employee Assistance Programme.

About us

Carers UK’s vision is to create a society that recognises, values and supports carers. As the leading national charity for unpaid carers, we exist to make life better for carers, however caring affects them. Our support, advice, information and campaigning work are now needed more than ever, as unpaid carers are providing more and more care, adversely impacting on their own health and wellbeing.

About the role

We recognise the value of social media in communicating with all our audiences; whether unpaid carers or their friends and families, employers, politicians, service providers, supporters and all those people who may become a carer for a partner, family member, friend or neighbour and will need information, support, and to know that there are people working to make their lives better.

This role works with colleagues across the organisation, including our senior management team - but also in partnership with external organisations and agencies - with targets set for engagement (and other indicators of the success of our campaigns). We're working on multiple campaigns simultaneously; whether that's Carers Week, campaigns to influence changes to the law to better support carers, encouraging unpaid carers to join us as members, updating on activities in the devolved nations or getting people to fundraise for Carers UK. And we use a mix of owned, earned and paid communications to drive engagement in a challenging and crowded environment in order to get our messages to cut through. It's a busy, but varied role, in a supportive and collaborative team.

About you

Working within the communications and marketing team, you'll be confident in managing our social media accounts (we have many), ensuring we're using platforms to get our messages out to both wide and targeted audiences with engaging and timely content.

You'll be happy using tools for social listening, interacting with our audiences and building our reach. You'll be familiar with key metrics for social engagement and will be reporting back to colleagues and other stakeholders - and using this data to constantly improve our communications.

You'll be skilled in writing longer form content for our members' magazine, Caring, proof reading articles, posting content on our websites, creating graphics and making sure our content is engaging, audience focused and dynamic. Oh, and you probably know your way around an emoji set and are not scared of a well timed pun. Plus you'll have a great eye for detail and be confident in your ability to prioritise (and sometimes reprioritise) your workload as needed.

We're a small but effective communications team and pride ourselves on getting stuck in and supporting each other when we need to deliver big on fast moving projects, so you'll need be able to juggle lots of demands while recognising the importance of always hitting deadlines.

Diversity and inclusion

Carers UK is committed to becoming a diverse and truly inclusive organisation; fostering an environment and working culture that celebrates and promotes diversity and inclusion.  We strive to create a workplace where our colleagues and volunteers can truly be themselves and feel like they belong and constantly seek to ensure all voices are heard.

To embrace this culture of diversity, our employee and volunteer recruitment should reflect our stakeholders and the society that we serve and support, regardless of age, race, gender, sexual orientation, physical abilities, disabilities or religious practices. We value individual diversity and are actively building diverse teams here at Carers UK and value our colleagues from a wide range of backgrounds.

As a membership charity for carers, we particularly seek employees and volunteers with a real understanding of the issues faced by carers. Reasonable adjustments can be made to the process and role, dependent on the needs of the applicant.

We are proud to be an Employers for Carers member. We have signed the Menopause Workplace Pledge and achieved the Disability Confident Employer accreditation. We aim to offer interviews to those who have a disability covered under the definition outlined in the Equality Act 2010 and who meet the minimum criteria for the role. The minimum criteria can be found under the Essential section of the Person Specification of the recruitment pack. Please let us know if your application is being made under the Disability Confident Scheme. You are not required to share the nature of your disability or long term health condition. You will need to state in your email application that you are making your application under the Disability Confident Scheme as you consider yourself to be disabled, or as having a disability. If you meet the minimum criteria then you will be offered an interview.

At Carers UK we want our application process to be as accessible as possible. If you need any adjustments to apply please contact us to discuss.  

The closing date for applications is 5pm, Tuesday 18 August.

Carers UK anonymises all applications prior to shortlisting.

Carers UK reserves the right to appoint at any stage, should an outstanding candidate emerge.

Carers UK are actively interviewing as we receive applications.

Carers UK may carry out online and social media checks before a formal offer is made.

Astra Foundation is seeking a Foundation Director; a dynamic, seasoned and strategic leader with a background in philanthropy who is motivated by their mission to combat loneliness in young adults, empower youth to reach their full potential, and reduce plastic pollution, primarily in the UK and France. This is an exciting opportunity to lead a young foundation and support the next phase of its evolution, building on strong foundations to further steward support for their priority areas and civil society partners. The ideal candidate will be collaborative, with a willingness to handle all aspects of the Foundation’s work, from high-level strategy and external relations to day-to-day administration.

We are looking for a Delivery Partner Manager to develop and manage AllChild’s partnership of voluntary and community organisations in Hastings, ensuring excellent quality specialist support which drives positive outcomes for children, young people and their families.

Across the UK, millions of children and young people are growing up in poverty, facing complex social and emotional challenges. AllChild works within local systems and communities to identify and support young people most at risk of poor social, emotional and academic outcomes. Through our two‑year Impact Programme, we work with schools and local partners to build coordinated, place‑based support around children and families.

This role has a focus on establishing AllChild in a new region. You will be responsible for building strong, trusted relationships across the local community, developing deep knowledge of the local landscape, and embedding AllChild within existing networks and partnerships.

For further information and details on how to apply, please visit our website via the apply button.

Closing date: 28 August 2026.

We recognise that candidates may use AI tools to support research and check grammar. However, we ask that all supporting statements and application responses reflect your own thoughts and experiences. Over-reliance on AI may limit our ability to assess your individual skills, critical thinking, and personal approach, which are important parts of our selection process.

Job Purpose

Sequence ME & Long Covid is one of the most ambitious whole-genome sequencing studies ever undertaken into ME and Long Covid, co-led by Action for ME. Building on the success of DecodeME, this proposed £20 million study will use large-scale, long-read whole-genome sequencing to analyse the entire genetic code of 9,000 people with ME and 9,000 people with Long Covid - making it the world's largest 'long-read' whole-genome sequencing study of any disease.

Current funding supports project mobilisation, partnership development, and the development of the Long Covid arm of the study, including agreeing case definitions and gathering expressions of interest from people with Long Covid. Phase 2 has recently been confirmed, backed by £4.75m from the UK government and a further £174,414 from the WE&ME Foundation, and will focus on sequencing 6,000 ME/CFS samples previously collected through DecodeME using Oxford Nanopore's long-read sequencing technology, running alongside Phase 1.

You will play a pivotal role supporting the Sequence ME & Long Covid project in several different ways. Working closely with the project's management team and other team members, you will help ensure the smooth day-to-day running of this landmark study, providing administrative support to the various people and partners involved in delivering it.

As a self-starter, you will manage a range of tasks including meeting scheduling, taking meeting minutes, preparing governance documents, event administration, and broader project support - no two days will be the same.

You will need to maintain a high level of confidentiality at all times, particularly when supporting governance meetings and handling sensitive project documentation.

As a team player, you will provide comprehensive, confidential and organised administrative support, developing a deep understanding of the project and building strong, effective working relationships with colleagues, researchers and external partners.

Remote working at home can be challenging for some and works incredibly well for others. You will need to be able to work independently, use your own initiative, and remain proactive in maintaining good levels of communication with colleagues.

Key Duties

• Help monitor inboxes and respond to routine project enquiries in a timely and sensitive manner, escalating more complex matters as appropriate
• Assist the project's management team and other team members with meeting scheduling and diary coordination
• Take accurate minutes at project, management and other project-related meetings, and follow up and track resulting actions to completion
• Prepare, format and proof-read governance documents and papers
• Maintain and update project databases including the Teams channel, ensuring documents are saved correctly, other management information/recording systems to ensure accurate and timely record-keeping. Help with the tracking of expressions of interest from potential study participants.
• Provide administrative support for project events - from planning and logistics through to on-the-day support
• Help prepare presentations, slide decks and briefing materials for internal meetings, funders, partners and participant-facing communications
• Support the drafting, formatting and coordination of project communications, such as updates for partners, funders or the wider ME and Long Covid community
• Support coordination between internal teams and external partners, including research and funding partners
• Maintain project files and documentation in line with agreed communication operating procedures with internal and external partners ensuring information is well organised, up to date and easy for the team to access
• Maintain confidentiality at all times and in line with relevant policies and procedures, ensuring compliance with GDPR and that all data consent processes have been followed in relation to data protection
• Positively promote the work of the Sequence ME & Long Covid project and Action for ME at all times
• Undertake any other reasonable activity in line with the responsibilities of the post, as requested by the CEO, Business Development & Partnerships Manager, Senior Research Manager or the project's Management Team

Person Specification

Essential skills and experience

• Organisational skills - Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple tasks across a fast-moving research project, with attention to detail and accuracy maintained under pressure
• Communication - Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to interact effectively with diverse audiences including researchers, funders and people affected by ME and Long Covid
• IT literacy - Proficient with common office software, including Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Outlook, Teams, PowerPoint), and able to quickly learn relevant project management, database or communications systems as needed
• Problem-solving - A creative and solution-focused mindset to address challenges and find innovative ways to improve processes
• Adaptability - Capable of managing changing priorities, working flexibly, and adapting to the needs of a fast-paced, ambitious research programme
• Initiative - A proactive approach, with the ability to work independently and take initiative, while also following clear instructions when given
• Teamwork - A collaborative team player with a proven ability to work effectively as part of a team, including a remote-working team spanning multiple partners and stakeholders
• Interest in the sector - A genuine interest in health research, the Third Sector, and a desire to take action to improve the lives of people with ME and Long Covid
• Experience - Demonstrable ability to be an effective administrator, ideally within a charity, research, or project environment. Experience supporting governance processes, events, or communications would be an advantage but is not essential

Desirable skills and experience

• Experience providing administrative support for scientific or research-related projects
• Experience writing and communicating with non-specialist or general audiences

QCCA has served Camden’s communities for more than 40 years.

Today we support more than 3,000 local residents every year through:

• Youth Services
• Older People’s Services
• Advice & Advocacy
• Family Support
• Two successful children’s nurseries
• Community facilities
• Health and wellbeing programmes
• Employment and skills initiatives

With an annual income approaching £2 million, multiple community sites and exciting plans for further growth, we’re investing in a modern finance function that supports excellent decision-making and long-term sustainability.

Why This Role Is Different

This isn’t a traditional Finance Manager role.

Yes, you’ll oversee management accounts, budgets and audit preparation.

But you’ll also have the opportunity to:

• Transform our finance systems.
• Lead our migration from QuickBooks to Xero.
• Introduce smarter digital processes.
• Improve financial reporting.
• Build dashboards that help managers make better decisions.
• Work directly with the Chief Executive and Board of Trustees.
• Influence organisational strategy.
• Help shape the future of one of Camden’s leading community charities.

You’ll have the freedom to improve how we work—not simply maintain existing processes.

What You’ll Be Doing

You’ll provide strategic financial leadership while leading the modernisation of QCCA’s finance systems.

Working closely with our Chief Executive and Senior Management Team, you’ll:

• Lead the migration from QuickBooks to Xero (or an agreed cloud accounting platform).
• Produce insightful monthly management accounts and financial reports.
• Develop budgets, forecasts and financial models.
• Present financial information to Trustees and senior managers.
• Improve financial systems, controls and reporting.
• Introduce automation and digital workflows.
• Support commercial income generation and grant-funded projects.
• Lead the annual audit process.
• Line manage and develop our Finance Assistants.
• Help build a finance function fit for the future.

Who We’re Looking For

We’re looking for someone who enjoys making organisations better.

You’ll probably have experience of:

• Charity finance.
• Management accounting.
• Budgeting and forecasting.
• Audit preparation.
• Financial controls.
• Cloud accounting systems (Xero experience is highly desirable).
• Leading change and improving systems.
• Supporting non-finance managers.
• Working collaboratively with senior leaders and Trustees.

Most importantly, you’ll be someone who enjoys solving problems, embracing technology and helping organisations grow.