Operation director jobs in Edinburgh, scotland

Prospectus is delighted to be partnering with our client to recruit their next Chief Executive Officer.

The orgnisation is the UK's leading charity dedicated to improving the lives of people affected by Dravet Syndrome, a rare, severe and life-limiting neurological condition. Founded by parents in 2008, the charity has grown significantly and now supports hundreds of families across the UK through family support services, professional education, awareness raising and medical research.

As the charity enters its next phase of development, the organisation is seeking an ambitious and inspirational CEO to lead the organisation through its next stage of growth and impact.

Reporting to the Board of Trustees, you will provide strategic and operational leadership across the organisation, leading the delivery of the charity's future strategy while ensuring excellence in day-to-day operations. You will work closely with families, clinicians, researchers, industry partners, funders and policymakers, acting as a visible and credible ambassador for the charity across the sector.

This opportunity is ideally suited to a senior leader from a national charity or patient advocacy organisation who has successfully led organisational growth and transformation. You will bring experience of scaling services, income and organisational capacity, while retaining a strong understanding of hands-on leadership within a growing charity.

We are looking for a confident and influential leader with the presence and credibility to inspire supporters, stakeholders and partners, whether speaking at conferences, fundraising events or representing the charity nationally. Experience within a rare disease, neurological condition, disability, health or patient advocacy organisation would be highly advantageous, with direct rare disease experience particularly welcomed.

To be successful, you will bring:

• Significant senior leadership experience within a national charity, health or patient advocacy organisation.
• A proven track record of leading organisational growth and managing complexity through periods of change.
• Strong strategic and operational leadership skills, with the ability to balance long-term vision and day-to-day delivery.
• Outstanding relationship-building and stakeholder management capabilities.
• The confidence and presence to act as an engaging external ambassador and public spokesperson.
• A commitment to improving outcomes for individuals and families affected by complex health conditions.

This is a rare opportunity to lead a highly respected charity at an exciting time of progress and opportunity, including significant advances in rare disease research and treatment.
This role is home-based with regular UK travel and occasional international travel. Some evening and weekend work will be required.

At Prospectus we invest in your journey as a candidate and are committed to supporting you with your application. We welcome all candidates to apply, regardless of age, sex/gender, disability, race, religion, sexual orientation, marital status or pregnancy/maternity. If you have any disability and require reasonable adjustment/s to any part of the process, then please contact Catherine Bunting at Prospectus.

Recruitment timeline:
First round interviews (via Zoom) - Friday 18th September
Final round interviews (London) - Monday 28th September

Community Fundraiser – East Midlands

Are you ready to take on a new challenge with a leading charity making a real difference in brain tumour research?

Brain Tumour Research is an exciting, innovative, and ambitious charity. We are passionate about finding a cure for brain tumours through the establishment of dedicated Brain Tumour Research Centres of Excellence around the UK.

After a successful 2025, we’re building on our momentum and looking ahead with ambition. As our work continues to expand, so does our impact. We are now looking for passionate people to join us on the next stage of our journey!

It is a fantastic time to be joining us and we are keen to share this with likeminded and talented individuals. We currently have an opening for a Community Fundraiser – East Midlands, to join our Income Generation and Development team.

• Do you want to make a difference in one of the most innovative and exciting medical research fundraising charities in the UK?
• Are you able to provide friendly and professional support to fundraisers and supporters?   
• Do you have experience in supporting events or community activities?
• Do you live in our East Midlands region (Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Nottinghamshire or Rutland)?

Have you answered Yes to these questions?

Does this sound like the opportunity to really take the next step in your career?

Excited to learn more about this position? Then please take a read through our recruitment pack attached below. 

If you have the skills and ambition that we are looking for we are excited to receive your application.  We are really looking forward to welcoming a new member to our team!

We are asking for a CV as the first step but applicants may be asked to provide a targeted covering letter as part of the selection process.  Interviews will be conducted during the application window as appropriate, and will consist of a first interview via MS Teams, progressing, if successful to a face to face second interview, held at our offices in Milton Keynes.

We reserve the right to close the application window early and advise candidates to apply in good time to avoid disappointment.

Closing Date: 06th September 2026

We are looking for people who share our passion for finding a cure for brain tumours and who have the skills and experience to make a difference. We welcome applications from candidates of all backgrounds, cultures, genders, sexual orientations, abilities, and ages. We believe that diversity enriches our organisation and helps us achieve our mission. We are committed to providing an inclusive and supportive environment where everyone can be themselves and contribute to our vision.

About us

We are a long-established UK research institution with charitable status and accounting operations in both the UK and East Africa. With an annual turnover of over £1 million, our finances span two entities and a range of restricted and unrestricted funds, consolidated for reporting. We are looking for a qualified accountant to join us as a contractor in a part-time, ongoing capacity to strengthen the running of our finance function.

The role

Our accountant in the East Africa office handles the day-to-day transactions — raising invoices, recording expenses and paying supplier bills. You will work alongside them, providing the qualified oversight, payment control and monthly discipline that keep the finance function running well, and supporting their development along the way.

It is a varied role that combines hands-on accuracy with oversight and coaching. In practice, you will:

• Support, guide and coach our accountant so that accounting entries are made correctly and consistently, building their skills over time.

• Run payment preparation and approval process in the UK entity, approving payment runs for release by local signatories.

• Financial management of project funds: accounting, expense management, funds transfers and accurate financial reporting.

• Review monthly results and report, examining the Statement of Financial Activities and underlying entries, and tracking performance against budget.

• Own the budgeting process, maintaining and updating the existing annual budget and monitoring it each month, and reporting quarterly to funders.

• Run a reliable monthly close and provide cover for our accountant during leave or absence to keep the accounting running.

• Lead on risk, taking an active interest in risk assessment, management and internal financial controls, working with compliance officer for local regulatory compliance.

• Attend and co-ordinate the finance and development meeting, support Companies House and Charity Commissions returns and updates.

• Administrative support for grant applications and management of these.

Key requirements

• Qualified accountant (ACCA, CIMA, ACA or CIPFA), or a finalist with strong relevant experience.

• Right to work in the UK.

• Proficient in Xero, and either proficient in Joiin or a similar consolidation system such as Hyperion and able to learn it quickly. Familiarity with payment platforms (desirable).

• Sound understanding of payment controls, dual authorisation and segregation of duties.

• Experience of maintaining a budget and reviewing monthly performance against it.

• Detail-focused and hands-on, with the judgement to review, oversee and coach a colleague.

• Charity or non-profit experience is useful but not essential, including experience of managing project funds, expenses and reporting to funders.

What does success look like

In this role, success means:

• Accounting is accurate and correctly recorded across both entities.

• Monthly review and reporting is completed reliably and on time.

• The budget process is mastered and embedded in monthly reporting, with performance tracked against budget categories.

• Dual authorisation of key processes is operating successfully.

• Key processes in both entities are learnt, so you can cover for the East Africa accountant in the event of absence.

• The payment process is smooth, reviewed, and presented to the Director for second approval.

• Risk assessment is formalised and internal financial controls are maintained.

Who it suits

This role would suit an accountant who wants to broaden their range of experience, or an experienced accountant from the commercial or non-profit sector who now wishes to work part-time and contribute to the smooth running of a respected institution.

Our systems

We use Xero for our accounting and Joiin for consolidated reporting. Both are already implemented and stable. Proficiency in Joiin is ideal; otherwise, experience of a similar system and a readiness to learn this software quickly is an advantage.

How to apply

Please send your CV with a short covering note explaining your interest and how your experience fits the key requirements above. We will review applications on a rolling basis and may close early if we find the right candidate.

We can’t fix issues like poverty, inequality, health and climate change alone. We are fully conscious of the scale of the challenge that faces the country and the urgent need to respond. That’s why the School for Social Entrepreneurs exists, to empower and equip people with entrepreneurial ideas and solutions to grow the social economy. The social economy is a movement of organisations and enterprises that prioritise people and planet. Together, we are committed to tackling the greatest social and environmental challenges of our time.This is a new and exciting role at a significant time of growth for the School for Social Entrepreneurs. In the coming year. we are developing new programmes, working with leaders who are developing small community led social and environmental projects as well as leading larger charities and social businesses developing social investment and housing solutions.

We’re not a traditional funder. Our grants tend to be small, but they punch above their weight, helping social and environmental entrepreneurs take the next step to grow their organisations. Our grants run alongside learning programmes, challenging and supporting leaders. We’re innovative in how we do this, through both traditional and enterprise grants. We lead on Match Trading™, a grant that challenges leaders to grow their trading income, and we are working on further grants innovations.

You will work with our Grants Team, Project Co-ordinators and Assessment Lead to develop and support grant management across a range of programmes. Your role will be to lead on specific programmes, including supporting assessment, onboarding and grant management. You will ensure that grantees are fully supported to manage their grants and ensure that grant management is compliant, auditable, efficient, and timely. You will support the development of grant policies and processes, writing grant paperwork and documentation, overseeing payments, and reporting to the wider Programmes Team and others about our work.

You don’t need to have managed grants before, but you do need to have a good understanding of a wide range enterprises and charities, gained through experience of training, business consultancy or development support. You will have a good understanding of business models, legal structures and financial systems that social and environmental organisations and community run and owned businesses may use. You will need to understand social enterprise finances, be able to read accounts, budgets, cashflows and have a good knowledge of social enterprise income streams.

We need someone who understands how hard it is to start up and grow social and environmental enterprises and can support people from diverse backgrounds in managing their grant, finances and growing their business.

Are you up for the challenge?

Interviews: Friday 18th and Friday 25th September (online)

Remote (Surrey and surrounding areas) | 18 – 24 hours

£27,500 pro rata | Flexible working | Real impact

Are you kind, caring and professional – the sort of person who listens deeply, holds space for others, and wants to make a real difference?

At Jigsaw South East, we support children and young people who are facing or coping with the death of a loved one. We’re looking for a compassionate and confident Grief Support Worker to join our small, dedicated team.

In this role, you’ll:

• Support families one-to-one and in groups, both pre- and post-bereavement
• Hold meaningful (and sometimes tough) conversations with warmth and sensitivity
• Help children feel less alone in their grief, and families feel more connected
• Contribute to our PIECES group programme, helpline, and referral process

This isn’t just a job, it’s a chance to walk alongside people at one of the hardest points in their lives and offer light, steadiness and support.

We’re looking for someone who brings:

• A warm, person-centred approach
• Experience working with children and families
• Emotional resilience and a strong sense of purpose
• The ability to travel across Surrey and attend some evening/weekend sessions

We offer:

• Flexible working
• TOIL and supervision
• Ongoing training and personal growth
• A supportive, values-led team who genuinely care

If you believe in the power of kindness and want to help children feel seen, safe and supported, we’d love to hear from you.

View our recruitment pack for more information including a full job description and person specification: