National support manager jobs in Manchester

Doing Good Recruitment is proud to be partnering with Cornerstone Place on the appointment of a Project Delivery Manager.

At Cornerstone Place, we are seeking an exceptional Project Delivery Manager to join our high‑performing, mission‑driven team at a pivotal moment in our journey. This role will play a critical part in delivering our Impact First Social Housing® projects, creating safe, stable homes for people who need them most, keeping the assets in the hands of the impact makers.

The position is offered on a permanent basis, with flexible remote working and regular national travel to project sites across England.

Who We Are

Cornerstone Place is a multi‑award‑winning social enterprise with a bold ambition to create 100,000 high‑quality social homes by 2034. We exist because the current system is failing too many people: over a million households are waiting for social housing, the country spends £2.2 billion every year on poor‑quality temporary accommodation including, tragically, for over 175,000 children, and families are growing up without stability or security.

We are not a developer seeking margin. We deliver 100% social housing, 0% profit, working with local authorities, registered providers and charities to ensure homes remain in long‑term community ownership. As we enter our next phase of growth, this role will be instrumental in turning bold ambition into lived reality for thousands of people.

The Role

Working closely with our Co‑Founders and partners, you will help deliver complex projects to the highest standards, contribute to the evolution of our systems and processes, and ensure every decision is grounded in impact, quality and long‑term social value. You will translate strategy into delivery, confront challenges honestly, and help drive forward an organisation recognised as one of the UK’s most influential social enterprises; named on the NatWest SE100 list for two years running, with our Co-Founders honoured on the SE100 Pioneers list as leaders shaping the future of the sector.

Day to day, you will take ownership of multiple live projects at varying stages, from pre‑application engagement and support through the planning process, to end‑to‑end delivery, working closely with clients, design teams and professional consultants throughout. You will be responsible for managing consultants, budgets, programmes, on‑site delivery, safety compliance, stakeholder communication, team coordination, and clear reporting to senior leaders and clients.

About You

You will bring accomplished project management skills, experience in housing or construction environments, and a proven ability to lead partners and manage stakeholders with confidence. Highly organised and detail‑driven, you combine strong problem‑solving, decision‑making, communication and negotiation skills with a track record of delivery. You will also be comfortable working across multiple IT systems and curious about how AI can enhance project management, streamline processes and strengthen outcomes. While not essential, MRICS accreditation or a BSc in Construction Management would be beneficial.

We are deliberately open about who this role could be for. You may be an experienced professional with strong sector credibility, ready to apply your expertise where it can have generational impact. Or you may be earlier in your career, with the capability, values and drive to grow quickly in a mission‑led environment. What matters most is your commitment to excellence, your comfort with responsibility, and your belief that housing is one of the defining social challenges of our time and that you want to be part of solving it.

Our Commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

Cornerstone Place is committed to equitable and inclusive recruitment. We actively welcome applications from all sections of the community, regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexuality or socio‑economic background. We recognise that no candidate meets every criterion, and we encourage applications from those who meet most requirements and are motivated by our mission

How To Apply

We are partnering with Doing Good Recruitment on this campaign. Please click Apply to access the job pack and full details via their website.

Overview of the Role:  We are recruiting a South East Senior Programme Officer for the National Education Nature Park to:

· Lead the National Education Nature Park programme across South East England, increasing participation in schools and education settings

· Manage and support a regional Programme Officer, including performance, development and wellbeing

· Build strong partnerships with schools, colleges, local authorities, NGOs and environmental networks

· Deliver a regional engagement strategy aligned with national KPIs on biodiversity, climate education and wellbeing

· Be a passionate advocate for nature-based learning, sustainability, biodiversity gain and green skills for children and young people

· Manage a regional budget, travel planning and reporting, ensuring compliance and audit requirements

· Facilitate workshops, training and events for educators, children and young people

· Provide expert guidance on outdoor learning, horticulture, biodiversity and environmental education resources

To work for the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is to join a thriving charity, whose mission is to be there for everyone on their lifelong adventure with gardening. Everything we do is built on the transformational power of gardening – and the benefits it brings to people, places and our planet.

And we couldn’t do this without our people. We’re proud of the knowledge, enthusiasm and ideas that each one of our team members brings. From working across our social media channels, to volunteering in the RHS Gardens, from serving customers in our garden centres to running national marketing campaigns, we believe that every member of the RHS team should have the opportunity to make a difference.  Our careers portal here provides a comprehensive overview of what we offer, the teams that work at the RHS and our great benefits.

Location: Home-based within the South East region, with regular travel across the region, or opportuntiy to be based at RHS Wisley.

Contract: 12 month Fixed Term Contract (maternity cover) to 31st July 2027

Safeguarding and Inclusion

The RHS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk and expects all personnel to share in this commitment. We are an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.

We're looking for a Support Worker to join our Support and Advocacy team.

Working as part of our multi-disciplinary team, Our Support Worker provides casework support for male, trans and non-binary sex workers, which could include areas like homelessness, sexual health, mental health, substance use and chemsex. As a creative charity, Our Support Worker will also support delivery of our creative sessions and creative projects. This is an opportunity to specialise and take a leading role developing an element of Support and Advocacy, such as outreach, sexual health or mental health.

Location: Manchester City Centre

Working pattern: 4 days per week (30 hours)

Salary: £31,537 FTE - £25,230 Actual

Application deadline: 12 noon Friday 5th June

The Big Chalk Partnership is made up of more than 150 organisations with a common vision of creating nature-rich chalk and limestone landscapes that benefit all of us.

The Protected Landscapes Partnership and Defra are supporting our Partnership to catalyse progress towards the UK’s nature commitments across these special landscapes through the multi-million pound Big Chalk Nature Recovery Fund. The Nature Recovery Fund Officer will administer and develop the systems and processes underpinning our grant-making.

The Big Chalk programme is hosted by the National Landscapes Association, which represents the UK’s National Landscapes (Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty). The Association is a charity and non-profit membership organisation. The team advocates, communicates and fosters collaborative action which supports National Landscapes to be as effective as possible, championing their interests with governments and delivering national projects.

We welcome applicants from a broad range of backgrounds – the most important thing is that you are motivated to work collaboratively with Big Chalk’s partners to benefit nature to the greatest extent possible, helping ensure our grant-making is both effective and compliant.

With significant experience of administering and developing grant making systems, processes and ways of working in the environmental or social sectors, you’ll bring a collaborative mindset and be skilled at building positive relationships with new colleagues, our partners and funders.

You’ll have applied experience of working with partners across the grant-making lifecycle and using grant management software to enable related operations. You’ll possess strong organisational and data management skills and be able to develop and communicate insights.

If this sounds like the opportunity for you, then we’d love to hear from you. 

The purpose of the role is to utilise effective and efficient administrative and fundraising skills to assist in delivering both financial and non-financial targets which will provide a gateway to all fundraising activity across Maggie’s. 

As Centre Fundraiser, you will assist the Centre Fundraising Manager to implement the fundraising strategy to deliver income targets through proactive donor recruitment and excellent donor care.  

This includes supporting and retaining existing supporters and researching new key relationships with individuals as well as partnerships with local businesses, groups and associations.  

You will represent the work, vision and purpose of Maggie’s whilst supporting the delivery of local and central fundraising initiatives and campaigns. This includes presentations, face to face, telephone and written communications.  

There will be a requirement to work irregular hours as well as frequent local travel. 

Please note that interviews will take place on Friday 12th June in Maggie's Manchester.

About the Giving Directorate and Net Zero Carbon Programme
The Church of England ministers to every community in England, and our mission and ministry is sustained and expanded through a culture of generous giving.

The Giving Directorate plays a vital role in equipping dioceses, parishes, and clergy with the tools and confidence to encourage generosity. Through strategic leadership, innovative resources, and collaborative partnerships, we aim to inspire giving that enables the Church to flourish in every community. We lead major funded projects that strengthen giving across the Church, ensuring that generosity is central to mission and ministry.

The Giving Directorate has four teams: Innovation & Insight (leading on innovations, the parish share project, data analysis and marketing); Parish Giving Scheme (giving mechanisms and technology); NZC Fundraising (including policy, philanthropy and gifts in wills) and Learning & Development (delivering training, mentoring, and equipping clergy and diocesan giving advisors, national and regional conferences, and developing online learning resources for parishes).
You will sit within the Net Zero Carbon Fundraising team which leads the strategy to coordinate and support the plans being developed by our dioceses, churches, cathedrals, schools, and departments to secure the significant additional funding needed to decarbonise the Church of England.

What you'll be doing
Legacies have historically played a transformative role for the Church of England - sustaining parish ministry, helping deliver the 30,000+ community projects run by parishes every year, conserving historic buildings and enabling important work for the future, including Net Zero Carbon projects. There is significant untapped potential for legacy giving to make an even bigger difference to our work, but awareness is uneven, and local church leaders often lack the training and resources to talk confidently about gifts in wills.

As the Gifts in Wills Manager, you will lead an ambitious new legacy programme to significantly expand the support and resources available for all parts of the Church of England to effectively encourage legacy giving. This will include creating new legacy giving resources that can be used by parishes, cathedrals and Dioceses as well as new training for local parish volunteers, clergy and senior leaders.

Gifts in wills have the potential for significantly enhancing the work of the church in caring for God's creation, being the culmination of a person's lifetime of commitment and care for the church and God's creation. The role will include specifically looking to develop NZC cases for support as a way to encourage gifts in wills, through linking the ongoing and perpetual care of God's creation with the long term impact of gifts in wills.
Through your work you will create a culture shift where legacy giving is demystified to become a natural part of Christian discipleship. The increased number and generosity of legacy gifts pledged and received will make a long-lasting impact on the financial ability of parishes, cathedrals, and dioceses to fund their ministry and social impact in the communities they serve.

Key Relationships: Head of Net Zero Carbon Fundraising, Deputy Director (Learning and Development), Regional Giving Advisors, Head of Resources & Insights, Diocesan Giving Advisors, NCIs Legal Team, Farewill, Christian Aid.

This is a fixed-term contract role for three years, and interviews will take place on 08 June 2026.

About Action Tutoring
At Action Tutoring, we believe every child should be given the opportunity to succeed in school. But in the UK today, young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are less likely to 

achieve the grades they need to progress in life. This isn't because they are any less able; they have less access to the tools to help them reach their potential. 

We don't think this is fair. We know tutoring is an effective way of improving academic attainment and so we harness the power of volunteer tutors to bridge the gap and ensure this help can be accessed by every pupil who needs it, not just those who can afford it. 

We specifically help pupils facing socio-economic disadvantage and who are at risk of leaving primary or secondary school without reaching national standards in their exams. We work in partnership with schools in different cities and regions across the UK, delivering weekly tutoring in English or maths to those pupils who need it most. 

About the opportunity

We are looking for a strong candidate with formal teaching qualifications and experience teaching core National Curriculum subjects to join our established Impact and Quality department as Curriculum and Quality Manager. This role has oversight for ensuring the creation and delivery of high-quality, tailored tutoring resources for pupils and tutors, and managing the quality assurance processes within our organisation. This role includes line managing a team composed of two Curriculum Leads. You will also work closely with colleagues in the Marketing and Communications Department to provide matrix project leadership for the delivery of Initial Tutor Training. 

To achieve this, we are looking for a candidate with experience teaching either English or maths (or equivalent) with a willingness to quickly understand the curriculum requirements in the other subject. You will have a strong understanding of how to set the standard for excellent tutor training and tutor quality assurance, using your educational expertise to shape effective training and quality assurance frameworks that enable tutors of varying experience levels to flourish. The position would suit someone who loves working in education, values pedagogical best practice, and thrives when balancing creative curriculum and quality development with operational realities. 

Comprehensive induction and training will be provided. Action Tutoring is committed to providing development opportunities for its staff, and as a growing charity there are plenty of opportunities to take on new areas of responsibility.

Deadline: Sunday, 21st June 2026
Interviews: Monday, 29th June 2026
Contract and hours: Full-time permanent contract. A full working week is 37.5 hours.
Location: This role can be remote (UK based), with occasional travel required. Our London office address is: 8-10, Fivefields, Grosvenor Gardens, London SW1W 0DH

Main responsibilities

• Project Management: Project manage the delivery of Action Tutoring’s tutor and pupil resources to a high standard and in line with agreed budgets, ensuring that they are relevant to the curriculum, engaging to use and allow for progress to be monitored. Work with the Head of Impact & Quality to set assessment questions to measure pupil progress.
• Quality Assurance & Insights: Manage the spot check process. Carry out detailed observations of online tutoring sessions, producing feedback to individuals flagged for observation by the programme team. Set annual Key Performance Indicators and produce termly insights into quality assurance, tracking impact over time. Produce an annual quality assurance report. 
• People & Matrix Management: Line manage the Curriculum Leads for English and maths, managing their work flow and projects goals. Provide matrix project leadership to Tutor Journey Coordinators for the delivery of Initial Tutor Training. 
• Training & support: Lead the annual review of Tutor Training updates, coordinating changes and/or commissioning new modules as required for quality and those proposed by the safeguarding and Tutor Journey teams. 

Essential Qualifications and Experience

We are looking for someone who is/has:

• Educated to degree level with formal teaching qualifications and experience teaching core national curriculum subjects.
• Strong subject knowledge in either English or maths; with a proven willingness and ability to quickly grasp the curriculum and exam specification requirements of the other subject.
• Right to work in the UK.

You will likely be more successful in this role if you:

• Are able to work independently and use initiative in a range of situations; confident to suggest and implement changes to drive improvements.
• Have effective time management skills and are comfortable working autonomously.
• Have strong project management skills; able to see through longer term projects to completion to meet deadlines; able to work under pressure to ensure targets are met.
• Have experience of line management or matrix project leadership with the ability to manage workflows, set project goals, and support team development.
• Are creative; able to come up with ideas to take forward Action Tutoring’s resources and training in new and engaging ways whilst also taking account of pedagogical best practice.
• Have a pragmatic, solution-focussed approach; able to balance competing organisational demands and adapt priorities in a fast-paced environment. 
• Have strong verbal and written communication skills and ability to undertake public speaking. You will need to be able to adapt your communication style to different audiences and uphold Action Tutoring’s high standards of professionalism.
• Are computer literate, competent using Google, Microsoft, and Canva. 
• Are committed to ensuring young people from all backgrounds reach a meaningful level of academic attainment. The Curriculum and Quality Manager will be critical to championing our mission to the team and external audiences, conveying to others the importance of our high quality delivery.

Join us at a pivotal moment for the education sector.

ISBL has launched an exciting new initiative – the Centre for Education Operational Excellence – to strengthen how schools and trusts operate and deliver impact. We are seeking a highly organised, proactive and relationship-focused Events and Partnerships Coordinator to support the delivery and growth of our national conference, regional events, and online programmes.

About ISBL

ISBL is the professional body for school business leaders, supporting the sector through membership, professional development, research, and events. With a strong national reach, we play a key role in improving operational practice across education.

The Centre for Education Operational Excellence

The Centre builds on our expertise, bringing together practical solutions, research, and collaboration to support operational excellence across schools and trusts.

About the Role

We are looking for a highly organised, proactive and relationship-focused Events and Partnerships Coordinator to support the delivery and growth of ISBL’s national conference, specialist regional events, and online event programmes.

This is a varied and fast-paced role combining event delivery, stakeholder engagement, and partnership coordination. You will play a key role in ensuring our events run seamlessly while also supporting the development of meaningful partnerships that enhance the experience for our members and stakeholders.

You will be at the heart of our events programme, supporting everything from logistics and speaker coordination to exhibitor management and sponsor delivery, helping us create impactful, high-quality professional development experiences for school business leaders.

To be successful in the role, you will be an experienced coordinator with excellent customer service and telephone manner; you must have strong organisational and planning skills with the ability to work under pressure and to deadlines, as well as the ability to think outside the box and demonstrate creative flair and work well as part of a team.

Full role details are available in the attached job description.

Elrha is a global organisation that finds solutions to complex humanitarian problems through research and innovation. 

We are looking to recruit a Research & Innovation Manager (Collaborative Partnerships) to join our Programmes team on a fixed-term basis. This is an exciting opportunity for a technically-minded professional with a passion for health research and developing collaborative research and innovation initiatives. You will be leading the scoping, co-design and coordination of the Humanitarian Health and Climate Collaborative Learning Partnerships (HHCC) and supporting the mortality estimation work. 

In this role you will provide senior oversight of multi-stakeholder partnerships, ensuring high-quality co-design, collective learning and positive partner engagement, acting as the primary operational contact for implementation partners. Contribute to the development and positioning of Elrha’s partnership frameworks and approaches under the leadership of the Head of Humanitarian Futures.

Your application will need to demonstrate: 

• Experience managing complex, multi-year research and innovation partnerships, including coordinating delivery, supporting capacity strengthening and knowledge exchange, managing risk, and ensuring high-quality outputs. 
• Strong understanding of research methods and evidence generation in humanitarian or global health contexts, with the ability to assess research quality and translate findings into practical policy or operational guidance. 
• Knowledge of localisation, equitable partnerships, and ethical research practice, including safeguarding, diversity, and inclusion considerations. 
• Excellent relationship management and stakeholder engagement skills, including experience working with donors and representing programmes externally. 
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to produce accessible outputs for technical and non-technical audiences. 
• A postgraduate qualification in public health, international development, non-communicable diseases, or another relevant field, or equivalent professional experience. 

If you want to be part of an organisation that creates positive change in the humanitarian sector, then join us and we’ll give you every opportunity to succeed.

We offer: 

• Remote working as standard – staff can access office bases in London, Cardiff, Edinburgh and Manchester if required/ appropriate. We expect staff to attend team meetings and away days in person as required. 
• As standard we work 35 hours per week. We are also happy to discuss flexible working patterns and many of our staff work non-standard working hours. 
• Our benefits include minimum 5% employer pension contribution (3% employee contribution), life cover, organisational sick pay, family friendly pay and leave schemes; 26-day basic annual leave entitlement with incremental increase depending on length of service, opportunities for learning and development, a comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) and retail discounts platform. 
• Please read through the Information for Candidates document for further information about working at Elrha including information about Our Values, Strategy, Benefits and Salaries. 

Note for applicants: 

• Candidates must have the independent right to work in UK, and be resident in the UK, at the time of appointment as we are unable to support visa sponsorship for this role. 
• Please read through the job description for a detailed list of requirements and ensure you complete the personal statement to explain how you feel you meet the requirements of the role and why you feel this is next career move for you. Applications without this information will not be shortlisted. 
• Elrha is an independent subsidiary of SCUK and benefits from some SCUK systems and processes. 
• We reserve the right to close the advert early should we receive a very high volume of applications. 
• We do not use recruitment agencies. 

Closing date:3rd of June 

Interview dates:16th and 17th of June 

This is an exciting opportunity to join a thriving national charity, as part of a high-performing, ambitious Business Development team. You will use a wide range of commercial and interpersonal skills to develop the way our services support children, young people and families. The core area of your work will be working with teams of Barnardo's colleagues to produce compelling proposals to commissioners and partners. As such, you'll be able to demonstrate:

∙ Strong organisational skills

∙ Attention to detail

∙ The ability to elicit and articulate great ideas

∙ Strong written and spoken communication.

You will need to be a good writer, communicating ideas effectively on paper with an ability to analyse large volumes of information to develop clear and compelling responses to tenders. It is critical that you can build strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders to support the development of proposals and service design. You will manage all aspects of proposals and tenders, leading the development and delivery of bids, working to deadlines, ensuring that we present strong business cases and bids that underpin successful outcomes. In addition, there will be the opportunity to help us develop new services and innovations in priority growth areas, monitor market intelligence, assess commercial and contract risks and work alongside operational colleagues in Children's Services.

Your project management skills may have been developed in any sector, and may need further development, but your commitment to the work we do will be demonstrated by your enthusiasm and ability to learn. In Business Development we are a supportive team, with stimulating and challenging work and extensive opportunities to learn and to help Barnardo's transform the lives of the UK's most vulnerable children.

This is a full-time role (36.25 hours per week) within Business Development. The role will operate on a 'Work from Anywhere' basis, meaning that you can work both from home and/or from an office 'hub that's nearest to where you live. Some travel may be required.

Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.

Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.

Please note previous applicants need not apply. 

Pay & Reward Framework

We know that our colleagues go above and beyond in delivering our vital work, driven by their passion and commitment to Barnardo's values.  We also know that we can only realise our ambitions and achieve better outcomes for more children, thanks to the talent, hard work and creativity of our people. 

For all these reasons, we are committed to a new approach to pay and reward, to ensure it is fair, attractive and progressive, which was rolled out in April 2023. This is a positive change for the charity, and a part of our People & Culture Strategy. It will assist us in supporting colleagues to belong, thrive and grow in their colleague journey at Barnardo's and in time will offer clear routes of progression for colleagues in both their career and their pay. 

Whilst the full pay band and salary range is advertised, our approach to starting salaries is to appoint between the minimum to mid-point of the pay band – this ensures that pay steps are available to reward our colleagues annually based on their contribution to excellence and alignment to our values and behaviours.  More details on Barnardo's pay framework can be found upon application. 

Benefits

Workplace Offer: What it means for you

Our hybrid working initiative is based on trust, flexibility and empowerment. We understand our workplace offer means different things to different people, and we encourage those conversations. This may mean working at one of our stores, services, working at home, in the community, at one of our Collaboration Hubs or depending on the role any combination of these. Please read through the advert carefully to understand the remits of hybrid working that will be specific to the role.

• Barnardo's believe in creating equality of opportunity in the workplace and supporting people to manage their work-life balance; we are therefore open to offering flexible working arrangements.
• Annual Leave entitlement for full-time colleagues is 26 days per annum, increasing to 27 days per annum, after 3 years Barnardo's service, 29 days per annum, after 5 years Barnardo's service and 30 days per annum, after 7 years Barnardo's service. Those working less than full time are entitled to the same level of holiday pro rata
• The ability to buy up to another 5 days annual leave via our Buy Your Leave scheme
• A host of family friendly leave options including company Maternity Paternity and Adoption pay; together with all family additional leave options
• Service related sick pay from day 1
• Access to a Group Personal Pension with a matched 4% or 6% contribution from Barnardo's. Ability to pay via salary sacrifice to garner both tax and NI savings on your own contribution
• Death in service cover of 4x annual earnings for all staff contributing to our Group Personal Pension
• Cycle2work scheme
• Interest free season ticket loans
• Discounts and cashback from at high street shops including major supermarkets, cinemas, gyms, leisure/theme parks, holidays and much more via our Benefit Portal
• 20% discount at Barnardo's stores
• Opportunity to purchase a health cash plan to claim towards dental, glasses, therapy etc
• Free access to round the clock employee assistance program for advice and support
• Access to Barnardo's Learning and Development offer

*T&C's apply based on contract

About Barnardo's

We are committed to being an inclusive employer and cultivating a culture where everyone can belong and thrive through inclusion and connectivity. We want our workforce to be reflective of the communities we work with, and for equality, diversity and inclusion to be embedded in everything we do. We are a Disability Confident Leader, are progressing our ambition to be an anti-racist organisation with Anti-Racism Commitments and actions in place and have networks for colleagues who are disabled, LGBT+, Black and Minoritised Ethnic and Women. We particularly encourage applications from Black and Minoritised Ethnic and/or disabled candidates who are currently underrepresented in our workforce. For disabled applicants, we offer reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

The Navigators is a Christian discipleshp charity working across the UK. We are seeking an organised and proactive Events Executive to provide maternity cover and lead the delivery of our key external events, including the National Conference and launch of our Alongside course.

The role involves co-ordinating event logistics, managing budgets, working closely with internal teams and helping ensure events are used effectively to engage people with our work and support the growth of a movment of 'Alongsiders'.

We offer a friendly and supportive team to work with, the opportunity to take responsibility for two high profile events based on solid foundations from previous successes and a competitive remuneration package.

We would ideally like to have a candidate working fully or hybrid from the Southampton Office. However we are willing to consider applications from exceptional candidates who would only be able to take the post working fully remotely from within the UK with the ability to travel to events. 

The attached candidate pack contains more details about our work, the role and the person description for this post.

Please note that there is an occupational requirement for the post holder to be a practicing Christian.

What does it take to lead the national voice for special schools at a time of real change?

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) – National Association of Special Schools (NASS)

National – home-based, with regular travel across England and Wales, particularly London

£90,000–£110,000 per annum

Full-time, permanent.

About NASS 

The National Association of Special Schools (NASS) is the membership association for special schools in England and Wales. We bring together independent special schools, non-maintained special schools, special academies, maintained special schools and multi-academy trusts with specialist provision.

We exist to inform, support and represent our members, helping specialist schools improve outcomes for children and young people with SEND and secure the place of specialist provision within the wider education system. NASS is known for being accessible, responsive and personal, combining national influence with practical support that members value as timely, human and trustworthy.

This is a pivotal moment for the organisation. In February this year, the Department for Education published a major white paper on SEND reform which will require NASS to both influence national policy on behalf of our members and children and young people, as well as support them to navigate the changes. Our new CEO will need to review our strategy while building on our strong platform and momentum to further deepen our influence and strengthen our internal capacity.

As our next Chief Executive, you will:

• Strategy & Impact: Lead NASS through a period of policy and structural change, ensuring the organisation remains clear on purpose, responsive to members and influential in the SEND landscape.
• Governance & Finance: Work closely with the Board of Trustees to provide strong governance, prudent financial stewardship, robust risk management and clear strategic oversight.
• Operational Leadership: Provide confident leadership to a small, remote team, strengthening collaboration, accountability, resilience and a positive, high-trust culture.
• Income Generation: Oversee budgeting, planning and reporting while developing thoughtful opportunities to diversify income through membership, partnerships, events and related activity.
• Community & Partnerships: Build and sustain trusted relationships with government, parliament, regulators, sector bodies and member schools, ensuring NASS remains relevant and well connected.
• Member Services: Protect and enhance the practical offer to members, from briefings and special interest groups to conferences, webinars, training and peer-to-peer learning.
• Brand & Profile: Act as a credible public ambassador for NASS, helping to modernise communications and broaden the organisation’s voice beyond a founder-shaped model.
• Future Growth: Shape a distributed leadership profile and support a more varied, accessible and engaging approach to membership, advocacy and communications.
• A seasoned senior leader with experience in a charity, membership body, education or public sector setting, and a clear track record of leading through change.
• A strong strategic thinker, able to absorb complex information quickly and translate it into clear, practical direction.
• A confident communicator with the gravitas to represent NASS with members, staff, trustees, MPs, peers, media and national partners.
• A politically astute relationship-builder, comfortable navigating a complex and fast-moving external environment.
• Experienced in governance, with a sound understanding of working with boards or trustees and supporting effective decision-making.
• Numerate and commercially minded, with experience of budgets, financial planning, income generation or partnership development.
• Credible, approachable and resilient, with the emotional intelligence to lead well in a high-profile, remote and sometimes uncertain context.
• Direct SEND experience would be a significant advantage, alongside understanding of specialist education or similarly complex stakeholder environments.

Why NASS?

• This is a chance to lead a respected, member-led organisation with a strong national reputation and a clear public purpose.
• You will help shape the future of specialist education at a time when SEND reform is high on the agenda.
• NASS has a loyal, experienced and collegiate remote staff team, supported by an active Board of Trustees.
• The organisation offers a genuinely influential platform, with strong connections across the sector and with government.

Application

For full details of the role including how to apply, please download the full appointment brief. For an informal and confidential conversation about this position, please contact Jenny Hills at Harris Hill via apply button with times to speak and (optional but appreciated) a CV or professional profile which will be treated with the strictest confidence.

Closing date for applications: 9am, Monday 8th June 2026

As leading charity recruitment specialists and a certified B Corp, Harris Hill is committed to high and ever-improving standards of equitable and inclusive recruitment. We actively welcome applications from all sections of the community regardless of age, disability, gender, race, religion, sexuality and other protected characteristics.

At Bluesci, we believe that everyone deserves good mental health and wellbeing. Our staff and volunteers, many of whom have experienced our services, collaborate with individuals and their communities to help them achieve their aspirations and wellness.  

Bluesci operates across the borough of Trafford from four Wellbeing Centres, offering arts, cultural and volunteering opportunities, social prescribing, talking therapies, and group support. We partner with Greater Manchester Mental Health NHS Trust (GMMH) to deliver Trafford Living Well Neighbourhood mental health Service and with Trafford Libraries to co-deliver library services from two of our centres. Bluesci at Night offers a safe, welcoming space for people 365 nights a year, and we also provide Smoking Cessation Support.  

We’re currently recruiting for Wellbeing Practitioners, across our centres, including full and part time positions

Bluesci is an inclusive employer, and we welcome applications from people from diverse backgrounds. Our approach is grounded in evidence-based practice, including the Five Ways to Wellbeing, recovery-focused models, and social prescribing. We are looking for people who can work alongside individuals using these approaches in a practical, compassionate way, supporting them to build on their strengths, improve their wellbeing, and connect with their communities.

What We Offer:

· 33 days holiday a year, including public holidays

· A supportive, values-driven team

· Flexible working arrangements

· Ongoing training and development

· Opportunities to shape innovative mental wellbeing support

The National Lottery Community Fund – Climate Action Fund Decision Panel Appointments

Climate Action Fund- Food Systems - Expert Panel Member Role Specification

Term of Appointment: Three Years

Time Commitment - 9 Days per year

The National Lottery Community Fund (The Fund) wishes to recruit an external member for the Climate Action Fund Decision Panel. The Chair of the UK Funding Committee (UKFC) accordingly invites applications for the position of external member of The National Lottery Community Fund’s Climate Action Fund Decision Panel.

Background

The Fund is the largest funder of community activity in the UK. It launched the Climate Action Fund in 2019 as a long-term commitment to support communities across the UK to act on climate change and involve more people in positive environmental action. Since its launch the Climate Action Fund has awarded over £182m to communities across the UK. This includes over 175 larger projects, predominantly delivered through partnership approaches and over 440 small grants that were delivered through Together for Our Planet, a funding programme in support of COP26. The programme has always had a test and learn ethos and each strand of funding has built on learning to date.

In January 2026 the Climate Action Fund launched a new strand of funding - Food Systems, focusing on strengthening food systems across the UK, while reducing food insecurity for people and communities, without harming the planet. It will achieve this through supporting partnerships that can deliver long term solutions and transformational systems change. Funding will enable large and long term interventions with the capacity and time to deliver progress against their intended aims and ambitions. We will support agroecological approaches which work with nature to create resilient, sustainable and equitable food systems. Projects can apply for a minimum of £2.5 million over three years, and we expect to fund up to ten projects in the first year. More information about funding aims and criteria can be found in Annex A (attached).

Through the Climate Action Fund we support projects based in all four countries of the UK and a combination of place based, cross country, regional, national and UK wide.

Role Specification

The Climate Action Fund is seeking a subject matter expert in food systems, who will complement our existing panel and support our work across the UK. They will have an understanding of the holistic aims we seek to address in supporting long term solutions that will have benefits for both climate, environment and nature, and to people and communities.

The Climate Action Fund Decision Panel has delegated authority from the UK Funding Committee (UKFC) to make funding decisions on Climate Action Fund Programmes.

The purpose of the Climate Action Fund Decision Panel is to make funding decisions, review the performance of the Climate Action Fund portfolio, and make recommendations where appropriate to UKFC. Funding decisions shall be taken in the context of the UKFC Delegation and shall undertake its duties within the framework of overall National Lottery Community Fund policy and procedures.

 Person Specification

Knowledge, skills and experience

• Comprehensive knowledge and understanding of the food system across the UK, with a particular focus on agroecology and long term, systemic ways to strengthen our food system and reduce food insecurity for people and communities.
• The ability and skill to contribute effectively to the development of this strand of funding and wider work of The Fund in relation to food systems, with a strong track record of achievement in this area. 
• Ability to work on a Panel with excellent interpersonal, team working, communication and representational skills.
• The ability to engage and influence in relationships with stakeholders to ensure the Fund is well represented and externally impactful.
• Personal and operational integrity, the ability to work with people from different backgrounds, and a commitment to improving equity, diversity and inclusion.
• Clear understanding and commitment to building strong and connected communities, that reflect the whole of the UK.
• Ability to deliver operational transformation and culture improvement in a large organisation.
• A strong commitment to engaging communities across the UK, and factoring UK-wide perspectives into all decision making. 

Interview details:

• Date: Interviews will take place in early July with appointments confirmed by the end of July.
• Format: Online

How to apply:

Upload your CV in word format and write a supporting statement with a maximum of 1000 words. Your supporting statement should explain how your skills and experience meet the essential and desirable criteria below.

Essential Criteria 

• An advocate and ambassador for The Fund and a demonstrable commitment to its mission and purpose. 
• Understanding and experience at a senior level of community organisations and track record in creating an environment where communities are connected and supported. 
• Experience of systems change work and how that translates to community centred funding.
• Experience and understanding of food systems, particularly in alignment with our funding aims and the conditions required to influence and shape long term solutions that start with communities.
• Experience of influencing or shaping food systems policy from a community perspective. 
• A demonstrable commitment to and experience in equity and equitable practices.
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills. 

Desirable Criteria  

• An understanding of funding, philanthropy or public sector systems. 

If you are excited about the opportunity to help communities drive lasting change, we would be delighted to hear from you.

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion  

Communities in the UK come in all shapes and sizes. National Lottery funding is for everyone – therefore, we are committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and we work hard to ensure our funding reaches where it is needed.  

We also believe our people should represent the communities, organisations and individuals we work with. That’s why The National Lottery Community Fund is committed to being an inclusive employer and a great place to work. We recognise and celebrate the fact that our people come from diverse backgrounds. We positively welcome applications from people from ethnic minority backgrounds, people with disabilities or longstanding health conditions, people who are LGBTQ+, and people from different socio-economic and educational backgrounds, as well as people of all ages. 

As a Disability Confident Employer, we take a proactive approach in making reasonable adjustments, if needed, throughout the recruitment process and during employment. (This can be related to a physical and mental health condition.)