2 PA to the strategic director jobs

Location: Hybrid: home-based with weekly attendance at the London office, plus additional days as required for meetings, board meetings or events

Salary: £35,200 per annum rising to £38,100 after 1 year of service

Responsible to: CEO

Contract type: Full Time (37 hours per week), Permanent

Closing date: 18th September, Midday

Who we are

Futures for All (formerly Speakers for Schools) is a UK charity founded in 2010 to tackle educational and social mobility inequality, connecting state-educated young people with inspirational speakers and high-quality work experience. Since its founding, the charity has supported almost two million young people, working with a national network of schools, colleges and employer partners to level the playing field for young people who are educated in the state sector, with those that attend the best fee-paying schools. Having grown from its original speaker programme into a broader work experience offer, the charity is now the largest provider of work experience in the UK, with ambitious plans to ensure all young people have access to the workplace, whilst at school.

Role Summary

This is a genuine opportunity to contribute first-hand to the strategic running of a national charity, with close visibility of how the organisation is led and governed. You will be trusted with sensitive information, exposed to strategic decision-making, and given the chance to shape how the CEO's office and the wider senior leadership team (SLT) operate day to day.

Beyond the traditional diary, travel and correspondence duties, you will play an active part in the mechanics of governance and decision-making- supporting board meetings, tracking actions to completion, and ensuring that what lands on the CEO's desk is accurate, well-presented and ready to act on. You will also work closely with the newly appointed Project Management Office (PMO) Lead, helping ensure that updates on risks, issues and KPI tracking reach the CEO promptly and in a digestible form, so that the CEO's time and attention are focused where they are needed most. It is an ideal role for an experienced EA or Personal Assistant who wants more ownership, more variety, and closer involvement in the strategic life of an organisation than a traditional support role typically offers.

This role offers direct exposure to the strategic and governance rhythm of the organisation- from board papers to senior stakeholder meetings- for someone who wants their EA experience to build towards broader organisational and governance expertise.

Key Duties / Responsibilities

Supporting the CEO:

• Proactively manage the CEO's diary, resolving clashes and prioritising competing demands on their time in line with organisational priorities.
• Act as a first point of contact for the CEO, screening and triaging correspondence, calls and requests, and responding or redirecting where appropriate.
• Build strong working relationships with the CEO's key internal and external contacts, acting as a trusted and professional representative of their office.

Diary, Travel & Logistics:

• Coordinate complex diaries across multiple stakeholders, both internal and external, including scheduling and rearranging meetings at short notice.
• Book and manage travel, accommodation and venues, including researching options, managing costs, and having contingency plans in place.
• Prepare itineraries and briefing packs ahead of trips, meetings and events, ensuring the CEO is fully prepared.
• Process expenses and invoices relating to the CEO's activity in line with company policy.

Meetings, Minutes & Action Tracking:

• Attend meetings chaired by or involving the CEO to take accurate, concise minutes and notes, distinguishing decisions from discussion.
• Maintain a live action log across meetings, proactively chasing owners and reporting progress back to the CEO so nothing is missed.
• Organise logistics for meetings and away days, including rooms, catering, materials and technology.
• Work closely with the Project Management Office (PMO) Lead to ensure that risk, issue and KPI updates are routed to the CEO promptly and in a clear, digestible format, helping the CEO focus attention where it is most needed.
• Liaise with the PMO Lead on scheduling and papers for any meetings that bring project or programme updates to the CEO, ensuring consistency with the wider action and decision tracking maintained for the CEO's office.

Board & Governance Support:

• Support the coordination of board and committee meetings, including scheduling, collating and distributing papers to agreed deadlines.
• Take and produce minutes for board and committee meetings, working closely with the CEO (and Chair/Company Secretary, where applicable) on accuracy and follow-up.
• Maintain a board actions and decisions tracker, and support the CEO in preparing for board cycles.
• Maintain confidentiality and good document control over board papers, minutes and related governance records.

Document & Presentation Production:

• Produce first drafts of documents, reports, briefings and PowerPoint presentations for the CEO to review, amend and finalise.
• Format and polish documents and slide decks to a professional, consistent, on-brand standard.
• Review documents and correspondence prepared by others before they reach the CEO, checking for accuracy, clarity, tone and fitness for purpose, and flagging any concerns.

Support to the Senior Leadership Team:

• Provide reasonable and proportionate admin support to other members of the SLT, prioritised in agreement with the CEO.
• Minute meetings with senior internal and external stakeholders on behalf of SLT members, as required.
• Assist with occasional diary, travel or document support for the SLT where this does not conflict with the needs of the CEO.

Office & General:

• Maintain efficient filing, contact and information systems for the CEO's office.
• Handle sensitive and confidential information with discretion and sound judgement at all times.
• Undertake other duties reasonably commensurate with the role, as required by the CEO.

Skills / Experience / Knowledge:

Essential:

• Significant experience as an EA, PA or senior administrator supporting a CEO, director or other senior executive.
• Experience taking minutes and tracking actions for senior-level or board/committee meetings.
• Excellent written English, with the ability to draft clear, well-structured documents, correspondence and presentations.
• Expert in using common business software/ applications such as Microsoft Office Word, PowerPoint, Excel and Outlook.
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple, competing priorities under time pressure.
• Sound judgement and discretion when handling confidential or sensitive information.
• A proactive, solutions-focused approach, comfortable using initiative rather than waiting to be asked.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with the confidence and professionalism to liaise with senior stakeholders, board members and external contacts.
• Flexibility to travel to, and work from, the London office on a regular (weekly) basis, with occasional flexibility around hours for travel, events or board meetings.

Desirable:

• Experience supporting board or governance processes (e.g. in a charity, membership body, or regulated organisation).
• A relevant qualification (e.g. in business administration or executive PA practice), though experience will be weighted more heavily than formal qualification.
• Confident and effective use of AI tools (e.g. Microsoft Copilot, ChatGPT, Claude) to support drafting, summarising and formatting work- for example, producing first-draft documents, presentations or minutes for review, while applying good judgement on accuracy, confidentiality and when human review and rewriting is needed.
• Experience providing ad hoc support across a wider senior team, not just a single executive.

Behaviours and Style:

• Calm and unflappable under pressure, with good humour and resilience.
• Trustworthy and discreet, with a strong sense of confidentiality.
• A genuine interest in the wider organisation and how it operates, not just the transactional tasks of the role.
• Collaborative- happy to support colleagues across the SLT while keeping the CEO's priorities front and centre.

Diversity at our core

Futures For All is committed to an inclusive and accessible recruitment process and encouraging equality and diversity among our workforces. We acknowledge that some candidates may require additional support to overcome barriers experienced during the application process. If you require any reasonable adjustments to support your application or interview, please reach out to us.

The Application Process:

Please apply as soon as possible by clicking the 'apply for this job' button in the top right-hand corner of the job advert. Once clicked, you will be asked to complete your application by submitting your CV and a cover letter. The cover letter is an opportunity for you to share the skills and knowledge you have to be successful in this role. Appointees are subject to a DBS check. You must have the right to work in the UK to apply.

The deadline to submit your application is the 18th September 2026, Midday.

Futures For All is committed to safeguarding the young people we work with and expects all staff members to share this commitment. Appointees are subject to a DBS check. Having a criminal record will not automatically exclude applicants. You are also required to have the Right to Work in the UK for this role.

Annual Leave

Staff receive 25 days annual leave, increasing incrementally after 2, 3 and 5 years of service to a maximum of 28 days. This is in addition to bank holidays and gifted leave between Christmas and New Year.

Futures For All Values

PASSION: We are committed to levelling the playing field for young people across the UK, creating social mobility and tackling disadvantages.

AGILITY: We challenge our ideas of what is possible in order to better meet the needs of those we support. We are human, make mistakes, learn, evolve and adapt.

INTEGRITY: We act with empathy and bring our authentic selves to work every day. We value and respect the talent, time and intentions of those we work with.

COLLABORATION: We are one team with one mission and only by working together can we deliver better outcomes for young people. We support each other unconditionally and feel motivation in shared success as well as individual progress.

DIVERSITY:  We know it takes people with different ideas, strengths, identities, interests, and cultural backgrounds to make our organisation succeed. We encourage constructive debate and critical friendship.