20 Officer volunteer roles in Charing Cross, Greater London

Volunteer Fundraising & Grants Officer Coordinator

Organisation: Universe of Life Organization (ULO)

Location: Remote / Home-based

Commitment: Approximately 5–8 hours per week

Type: Volunteer role – unpaid

Duration: Ideally 6–12 months, subject to mutual agreement

About Universe of Life Organization (ULO)

Universe of Life Organization (ULO) is a humanitarian and community-focused organisation founded in Cameroon in 2017. Our mission is to serve humanity with love, dignity and solidarity.

ULO works to support vulnerable communities, particularly women, children and families facing hardship. We are developing initiatives to strengthen community resilience, improve opportunities for vulnerable women and children, and build sustainable partnerships to support our mission.

We are seeking a committed and proactive volunteer to coordinate our fundraising and grant development activities as we strengthen our organisational capacity and work towards expanding our impact.

Role overview

The Volunteer Fundraising & Grants Officer Coordinator will help develop and coordinate ULO’s fundraising strategy, identify suitable funding opportunities, build relationships with potential donors and partners, and support the preparation and submission of high-quality grant applications.

This is an opportunity for someone with fundraising, grant-writing, partnership development or relevant transferable experience to contribute to the growth and sustainability of a developing humanitarian organisation.

The successful candidate will work closely with ULO’s Founder and President and relevant volunteers to develop a structured and sustainable approach to fundraising.

Key responsibilities

1. Fundraising strategy and coordination

- Help develop and implement ULO’s fundraising and grant acquisition strategy.

- Establish fundraising priorities, targets and an action plan.

- Coordinate fundraising activities and monitor progress against agreed objectives.

- Recommend practical approaches to diversify ULO’s funding sources.

2. Researching grants and funding opportunities

- Identify suitable grants, trusts, foundations, corporate donors and institutional funding programmes.

- Research eligibility criteria, application deadlines, funding priorities and submission requirements.

- Maintain an organised funding opportunities database and grant application calendar.

- Assess funding opportunities against ULO’s programmes, capacity and eligibility.

3. Grant writing and applications

- Support the preparation of compelling funding proposals and grant applications.

- Help develop project summaries, budgets, funding requests and supporting documents.

- Coordinate the collection of information required for applications.

- Monitor submitted applications and follow up appropriately with funders.

4. Donor relations and partnerships

- Identify and approach potential donors, foundations, companies and strategic partners.

- Draft professional introductory emails, letters of enquiry and partnership proposals.

- Help build and maintain positive relationships with prospective funders.

- Explore opportunities for corporate social responsibility partnerships and collaborative projects.

5. Fundraising systems and reporting

- Develop practical systems to track prospects, contacts, applications, outcomes and deadlines.

- Provide regular progress updates to ULO leadership.

- Help identify lessons from successful and unsuccessful funding applications.

- Support transparent, accountable and responsible fundraising practices.

6. Team coordination

- Coordinate agreed fundraising tasks with other volunteers where appropriate.

- Help establish clear priorities, responsibilities and deadlines.

- Share knowledge and contribute to the development of ULO’s fundraising capacity.

Essential skills and experience

We welcome applications from candidates who can demonstrate some or all of the following:

- Experience in fundraising, grant writing, business development, partnerships, donor relations or a related field.

- Strong research, writing and communication skills.

- Ability to identify suitable funding opportunities and assess eligibility requirements.

- Confidence in communicating professionally with potential funders and partners.

- Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage several deadlines.

- Initiative, reliability and the ability to work independently in a remote volunteer role.

- A genuine interest in humanitarian work, community development and social impact.

Experience working with charities, NGOs, community organisations, foundations or international development programmes would be an advantage.

We also welcome applicants with transferable experience in research, commercial partnerships, project development or institutional funding who are motivated to apply their skills to the nonprofit sector.

What we are looking for

We are particularly interested in someone who can combine strategic thinking with practical action: identifying opportunities, contacting prospective funders, developing relationships and helping ULO progress from funding research to actual grant applications.

The successful candidate should be comfortable working with an organisation that is developing its fundraising systems and should be willing to contribute ideas, establish processes and help build capacity over time.

What we offer

- The opportunity to contribute to a humanitarian mission supporting vulnerable women and children.

- Meaningful responsibility in developing ULO’s fundraising and grant acquisition activities.

- Opportunities to develop experience in grant writing, donor engagement, partnership development and fundraising coordination.

- Collaboration with an international-minded team working towards sustainable community impact.

- Recognition of your contribution and the opportunity to make a practical difference.

Please note: This is an unpaid voluntary position. The role does not guarantee funding, employment or future remuneration.

Time commitment

Approximately 5–8 hours per week, with flexibility by agreement. We are looking for someone who can make a consistent contribution and ideally commit for 6–12 months.

How to apply

Please submit your CV and a short cover letter explaining your relevant experience, your interest in ULO’s mission, and how you would approach developing fundraising and grant opportunities for a growing organisation.

If you have relevant experience, please include examples of grant applications, fundraising initiatives, donor engagement or partnerships you have supported, together with any outcomes you can share.

We welcome applications from people with diverse professional backgrounds who share our commitment to dignity, solidarity and positive social change.