Partnership development officer jobs

Our Senior Trusts & Foundations Manager is primarily responsible for managing and generating income from our Trusts & Foundations portfolio (including Corporate Foundations). They identify new prospects, write compelling and persuasive proposals to secure significant gifts, actively develop relationships with key internal and external stakeholders and provide brilliant stewardship.

We are looking for someone who has a sound understanding of T&F fundraising. You’ll have a strong track record of nurturing relationships, securing multi-year and five-figure+ gifts, and a genuine passion for youth development. You are a creative problem solver with the ability to work independently and take ownership of projects – ensuring they run smoothly and effectively.

Life is a national charity committed to delivering high‑quality, compassionate and person‑centred support to people facing crisis. Guided by our values of Humanity, Solidarity, Community, Charity and the Common Good, we work across multiple sites to provide safe, effective and life‑changing services.

The Role

We are seeking an exceptional Director of Quality Improvement and Compliance to join our Senior Leadership Team at an exciting time of organisational development.

Reporting directly to the CEO, this is a senior, influential role with strategic responsibility for quality, safeguarding, compliance, estates and continuous improvement across our national portfolio of services.

You will provide visible, values‑led leadership, ensuring that everything we do is safe, effective, person‑centred, financially sustainable and fully compliant with regulatory requirements. This role has a real opportunity to shape the future of Life – and to positively impact the lives of hundreds of people we support.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership on quality improvement, compliance and continuous improvement across supported housing, estates and services
• Hold senior accountability for safeguarding governance, complaints and assurance frameworks
• Lead audit, inspection and review activity, ensuring consistently high standards and strong regulatory outcomes
• Embed a culture of quality, learning and improvement across multi‑site services
• Oversee property compliance, health & safety and estates management, ensuring safe and welcoming environments
• Use data, insight and digital systems to drive performance, manage risk and support innovation
• Act as the organisation’s senior lead with regulators, inspectors and professional bodies
• Work collaboratively with fellow Directors to deliver a joined‑up, high‑quality client journey
• Develop, coach and inspire senior leaders, fostering a high‑performing, values‑driven culture

About You

You will be a credible, values‑led leader with a strong background in regulated services and a passion for quality and safeguarding.

Essential experience and qualifications include:

• Senior leadership experience within supported housing, homelessness or a closely related regulated sector
• Proven success leading multi‑site services and senior operational leaders
• Strong track record in quality improvement, safeguarding, compliance and inspection readiness
• Sound financial and commercial awareness, including managing significant budgets and resources
• Lean Six Sigma qualification
• Level 5 Safeguarding qualification
• Health & Safety qualification (IOSH Managing Safely or equivalent)

You will also bring:

• Strategic thinking with the ability to translate vision into practical delivery
• A collaborative, visible and approachable leadership style
• Integrity, humility and purpose in how you lead
• A commitment to co‑production, continuous learning and innovation
• Strong communication, influencing and relationship‑building skills

Information about the role: 

For further information, please see the attached job description on our website. 

Salary: £50,285 per annum

Hours: 32 hours per week

Location: Home Based with travel across sites in the UK

Benefits:  

At Life we are passionate about providing our employees with a supportive and engaging environment. As well as ongoing development and training, we offer our:  

• Generous holiday allowance, starting at 25 days per year, plus 8 Bank Holidays (pro rata for part time hours) 
• Birthday Leave  (applicable after 1 years service)
• Additional annual leave for long term service    
• Company Pension Scheme  
• Signed member of the Menopause Workplace Pledge 

Safeguarding and Equality:   

Life is committed to protecting all staff, volunteers and service users from harm of any kind. Life expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment through our code of conduct.   

We are committed to ensuring diversity and equality within our organisation by encouraging applications from all backgrounds.  

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks. Life takes its obligation to protect the rights of children and vulnerable people very seriously; therefore, the successful candidate for this post will be also subject to extensive background checking, including an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check (DBS) which is paid for by the Charity.  

Liberty is seeking an ambitious, values‑driven fundraiser to oversee and deliver our trust and foundation, legacy, and major giving fundraising. As the Fundraising Manager for Philanthropy, this role requires proven experience of building, sustaining and growing significant income from philanthropic sources.

Liberty is a small organisation, which punches above its weight. The Fundraising Manager will combine strong leadership with hands on day-to-day delivery. As a key member of the Management Team, the role will oversee a talented team comprising a Philanthropy Officer and two Grants Officers. You will combine strategic oversight with hands‑on delivery, shaping compelling funding propositions and building strong, lasting relationships with funders and supporters. Working closely with colleagues across the organisation, you will ensure our complex and multifaceted work is translated into inspirational cases for support that resonate with funders.

This is a critical role in a vital organisation. Success will see the maintenance and development of a diverse range of income generation streams, and Liberty being better able to achieve its mission of challenging injustice, defending freedom and campaigning to make sure everyone in the UK is treated fairly.

You will have a strong commitment to Liberty’s anti-oppression values and strategy.

Liberty fully embraces flexible working and is committed to employee development. We aim to encourage people from all backgrounds to work with us and are particularly interested in hearing from people from minority backgrounds and all socio-economic sections of society. Liberty supports hybrid working, with a minimum of two days per week in the Westminster office.

The deadline for applications is 9am Monday 2 March 2026

Applications received after this deadline will not be considered.

Please be aware that we do not accept CVs for this role. All applicants must complete the application form to apply.

First round interviews will be held online on Tuesday 17th March

Second round interview will be held in person on Tuesday 24th March

For more information and details on how to apply, please visit our website.

Campaigns Lead
Hours: 35 hours per week, permanent, subject to a probationary period
Salary: £34,434 to £36,363 – NJC Scale Points 23 to 25
Based: Working from home, with regular meetings across Greater Manchester; occasional travel to other cities.

BHA is a leading health and social care charity that works to challenge health inequalities and support individuals, families & communities to improve their health & well-being.  We offer a range of unique services delivered at local, regional, and national level in the areas of health promotion, community health education and engaging and involving communities in health and social care decision making.

The Campaigns Lead is responsible for creating and coordinating health campaigns across BHA.The role will support all our projects, and our core team, with their campaign work, collecting meaningful data about the work of BHA, raising the profile of these issues and ensuring that the voices of our service users are heard far and wide.

The successful applicant should bring a proven track record in developing and delivering health awareness campaigns or public health communications. You should have strong experience creating engaging content for digital platforms and social media, and a commitment to working with marginalised communities, particularly Ethnic Minority communities and LGBTQ+ people.

We are looking for someone who can use data and evaluation to measure effectiveness, and who has experience of stakeholder engagement and partnership working in the VCSE sector.The post holder will have the following essential criteria:

• Experience of developing and delivering health awareness campaigns or public health communications
• Experience of creating engaging content for digital platforms and social media
• Experience of working with marginalised communities, particularly Ethnic Minority communities and/or LGBTQ+ people
• Experience of using data and evaluation to measure effectiveness and inform decision-making
• Experience of stakeholder engagement and partnership working in the VCSE sector or similar
• Commitment to BHA's values and ethos
• Willingness to occasionally work unsociable hours, including the occasional overnight stay

Benefits of working with BHA:

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays pro rata
• Birthday leave
• Employee Assistant programme (includes income protection)
• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay
• Cycle to work scheme
• Enhanced occupational sick pay
• Flexible working

If you would like to discuss this role, please contact Aydin Djemal to arrange an informal telephone discussion.You can apply by completing the Application Form on our website and submitting it in line with the instructions provided.Your application must detail how you meet the points asked for in the person specification.  

CVs will not be accepted, and applicants must have the right to work in the UK at the time of appointment. We are not able to offer visa sponsorship.

We carry out right to work checks fairly and without discrimination.Appointment is subject to a Basic DBS check. We only request information we’re legally entitled to and assess it in line with the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and DBS filtering rule.

The closing date for applications is 2 March 2026

Interviews will be held on Interviews w/c 09 March 2026

Reasonable adjustment
We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace that values equality, diversity, and inclusion.  We welcome applications that represent the rich diversity of the communities we serve.  As a disability confident employer, we actively work to remove any barriers. Therefore, if you have a disability and have any particular requirements to enable you to participate in the application process, please email us at any stage.

The Head of HR is a new role for the organisation. Over the last few years, the organisation and our staff team have grown significantly. To enable us to achieve our mission to give all young people a home, it is crucial that we make a significant shift in our HR and people plans so that staff and managers have all the support they need to succeed in these challenging times. To do so, we need to make a strategic shift with our HR capacity, improve our people systems, and make NHYC a great place to work for our 70+ strong staff team. You will work closely with the Chief Operating Officer to develop and implement NHYC’s People strategy for 2025-2030, taking on a varied role around key areas of organisational development and HR operations. You will need to build strong and trusting relationships with staff from across the organisation and act as a key advisor to the Executive Team.

We are happy to consider candidates taking their first step into leadership and we will consider exceptional part time candidates to ensure we find the right person or people for the role. We particularly welcome candidates from Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities as these are overrepresented communities in our services and yet underrepresented within our leadership.

• Permanent, full-time role in our Leadership Team (part-time considered)
• Salary: £46,800 (salary scale £46,800-£52,000)
• Deadline to apply: 9am, Wednesday 11 February 2026

SUDC UK is a national charity dedicated to funding research, raising awareness and supporting families affected by Sudden Unexplained Death in Childhood (SUDC). Our team is passionate, warm, friendly and impact-driven.

SUDC is the sudden and unexpected death of a child aged 1-18 years where the cause of death remains unexplained despite a thorough investigation. 40 children are affected every year in the UK, more than young child deaths due to traffic accidents, fires or drowning and comparable to 1-2 seemingly healthy children dying every fortnight, often going to sleep and never waking up. 

As a specialist charity, SUDC UK informs, empowers and advocates for families when their child dies suddenly and unexpectedly. We operate nationally and have expertise in SUDC, bereavement support, the child death process, genetic investigation, SUDC research and medical screening.Founded by three bereaved parents, we have deep understanding of the impact of SUDC and loved children, and their families, are at the heart of all we do.

The purpose of this role is to lead and deliver our income generation and marketing strategy, growing sustainable income streams while increasing our profile, reach and impact. This dynamic and rewarding role blends strategic leadership with hands-on delivery, including first-line management of a small team.

About African Rainbow Family

African Rainbow Family (ARF) is a UK-based, lived-experience-led grassroots organisation working with and for LGBTIQ+ refugees and people seeking asylum of African heritage and the Global Majority.

ARF was founded in 2014 in response to the criminalisation and persecution of LGBTIQ+ people across parts of Africa and the Commonwealth. The organisation provides advocacy, peer support, advice, training and counselling, while campaigning locally, nationally and internationally to challenge injustice and promote equality and human rights.

ARF operates from its head office in Manchester and has centres in Leeds, Birmingham, London and Swansea.

About the Role

The Operations Manager role is a new and senior position within African Rainbow Family and will play a key role in supporting the organisation’s strategic and operational development.

The postholder will be responsible for overseeing the day-to-day running of the organisation, managing staff and volunteers, ensuring effective service delivery and leading on income generation and funding applications.

The role works closely with the Chief Executive Officer, Trustees, staff, volunteers and external stakeholders to ensure ARF operates effectively, sustainably and in line with its values and objectives.

Key Responsibilities

The postholder will be responsible for:

• Managing the day-to-day operations of African Rainbow Family, ensuring efficient and effective organisational delivery

• Line managing staff and volunteers, including recruitment, induction, supervision and performance management

• Overseeing service delivery across all ARF centres to ensure consistency, quality and compliance with funder requirements

• Managing organisational budgets and monitoring expenditure against agreed targets

• Leading on income generation, including researching funding opportunities and writing grant and funding applications

• Developing, reviewing and implementing organisational policies, procedures and systems

• Ensuring compliance with governance, safeguarding, health and safety and regulatory requirements

• Building and maintaining relationships with funders, partners, commissioners and key stakeholders

• Supporting strategic planning and reporting to the CEO and Board of Trustees

Person Specification

Essential

• Minimum of two years’ experience in an operations, project or organisational management role

• Proven experience of managing staff and volunteers

• Experience of managing budgets and financial reporting

• Demonstrable experience of researching and writing successful grant or funding applications

• Knowledge of charity governance, compliance and operational processes

• Strong organisational, communication and leadership skills

• Ability to work independently and manage competing priorities

Desirable

• Experience working within the charity or voluntary sector

• Experience working with LGBTIQ+ refugees or people seeking asylum

• Knowledge of asylum, immigration or human rights policy

• Experience using databases or CRM systems (e.g. Salesforce)

• Experience in advocacy, campaigning or media work

Benefits

• 28 days annual leave including Bank Holidays

• NEST pension scheme

• Flexible working arrangements

• Birthday leave and two wellbeing (duvet) days per year

• Cost-of-living support

• Paid sick leave after six months’ service

• Training, development and progression opportunities

• Salary review and employee reward scheme

• Free on-site parking

• Accredited Living Wage Employer

Equality, Diversity and Safeguarding

African Rainbow Family is committed to equality, diversity and inclusion and welcomes applications from people with lived experience of the asylum system, LGBTIQ+ people and individuals from Black and Global Majority backgrounds.

This role is subject to a Genuine Occupational Requirement and is therefore open only to applicants who identify as lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender or intersex.

The post is subject to an enhanced DBS check. ARF is committed to safeguarding and to providing reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

Our Second Home is the UK’s youth movement of young people with refugee backgrounds. Since 2018, we have supported over 750 young people from 53 countries to build community, develop leadership skills, and flourish into adulthood in the place they now call home.

Our work begins with transformational residential experiences, where young people form friendships, grow in confidence, and experience belonging – often for the first time since arriving in the UK. From there, many go on to take part in our Leadership Training Programme and local Youth Hubs in London and Bristol, before returning as peer leaders themselves. This cycle of engagement, growth and leadership is at the heart of our theory of change.

We are now entering a pivotal phase of our development, delivering a new 2025–2028 strategy focused on sustainable growth, deeper impact, and long-term resilience. Fundraising is central to this ambition.

The role (Read the recruitment pack for more information)

We are recruiting a Fundraising Manager to act as the organisation’s operational lead for income generation. This is a part-time role (18–24 hours per week) with significant flexibility, ideal for someone who is organised, thoughtful, and motivated by building something meaningful.

The Fundraising Manager will manage and coordinate income across five strands: trusts and foundations, major donors, corporate foundations, individual and digital giving, and statutory funding. While the role has a strong trusts and foundations focus, it offers real scope to build skills and experience across a broad fundraising portfolio.

Working closely with the CEO, a highly experienced freelance Bid Writer, and the wider team, you will be responsible for developing funding pipelines, producing high-quality proposals and applications, stewarding funder relationships, and translating programme impact into compelling narratives. You will also play a key role in donor communications, reporting, CRM management, and supporting campaigns and events.

This is a hands-on role for someone who enjoys balancing writing, relationship-building, planning and delivery – and who values doing fundraising with integrity and care.

About you

We are looking for someone with experience in fundraising (particularly trusts and foundations) or strong transferable skills such as persuasive writing, project management, or stakeholder engagement. You will be comfortable managing multiple deadlines, maintaining an organised pipeline, and working independently while staying closely connected to a small team.

You will bring strong written and verbal communication skills, attention to detail, and the ability to build warm, professional relationships with funders and supporters. Experience using a CRM system is important, as is an understanding of – or willingness to learn about – the UK voluntary sector funding landscape.

Above all, we are looking for someone who aligns with our values: putting young people at the centre, acting with rather than for, creating opportunities for leadership, and building a culture of freedom, respect and acceptance. We warmly welcome applications from people with lived experience of the asylum system.

This is a role for someone who wants their fundraising work to be closely connected to real people, real programmes, and real change – and who is excited to help shape the next chapter of a growing, values-led organisation.

The Role

As Wilder Learning Manager, you’ll lead a small, passionate team delivering inspiring outdoor learning and engagement programmes that connect schools, educators and young people with nature across Sussex. You’ll oversee the delivery and ongoing development of high‑quality accredited training, INSETs, school sessions and advice that supports schools to improve their grounds for nature and outdoor learning.

You’ll be an enthusiastic and confident leader, able to step into delivery when needed, and excited by innovation, collaboration and partnership working. Bringing experience of managing people, you’ll foster a positive, supportive and inclusive culture, encouraging creativity, continuous improvement and professional development.

This varied role combines leadership, project management and hands‑on involvement, playing a key part in ensuring our learning offer inspires and empowers educators and young people to connect with, care for and benefit from nature across Sussex’s land and marine environments.

A valid drivers licence is required for this role.

This role is subject to an Enhanced DBS with Barred List check

The Person

You will be a professional, values-led leader who enjoys supporting others to do their best work. You’ll bring a positive, practical and reflective approach; enabling you to navigate complexity, manage competing demands and support decision-making. You’ll be comfortable building trust, having honest conversations, and creating space for others to grow; balancing encouragement with clear expectations.

You’ll be organised and reflective, able to manage your time and priorities while remaining approachable and supportive. You’ll share Sussex Wildlife Trust’s commitment to inclusion and safeguarding, and reflect our values in your practice.  You’ll demonstrate a personal passion for wildlife, outdoor learning and the benefits nature connection for young people in Sussex, which will underpin everything you do.

We have an exciting opportunity for an experienced Head of Communications to come and join our team providing maternity cover until January 2027 during a period of organisational growth.

Location – This role is mainly working from home with one day a week in our London office (usually a Monday). Occasional travel to our other programme sites (currently Stoke-On-Trent, Redcar, Middlesbrough and Scotland) will also be required.

Salary – Circa £60,000

Employment Type – Fixed term until January 2027, 35 hours per week

Team – Communications team

About you

We are looking for someone who can demonstrate the following:

· Strong experience in strategic communications, ideally within a start-up, growing, complex or place-based organisation.

· Experience setting up and embedding communications functions, including establishing foundations and building approaches as priorities evolve.

· Significant experience in people leadership, including developing others and building a strong, collaborative working culture.

· Experience influencing senior stakeholders and working with an SLT, including supporting government policy, media, funding and influence related activity.

· Strong content, storytelling and copywriting expertise and the ability to communicate a clear organisational narrative.

About the role

The responsibilities of this role include:

· Overseeing and ensuring the delivery of national and local communications strategies and plans, including national content activity and priority local campaigns and stakeholder engagement.

· Leading the set-up and embedding of new place-based communications functions.

· Leading and overseeing the planning and delivery of Thrive at Five’s 2026 Impact Report, communications relating to evaluations and learning, and our fifth-year anniversary, working closely with evaluation and fundraising colleagues.

· Maintaining and strengthening relationships with key national and local stakeholders in line with our communications strategy and goals.

· Providing professional and operational leadership and coaching to the wider Communications team to ensure they deliver to a high standard.

About us

Thrive at Five is a national charity focused on giving every child the best possible start in life. We know the foundations for life and learning are built in the earliest years, from pregnancy to five. By working alongside families, communities and local partners, we help build stronger, more connected support for parents, so more children get what they need to thrive and reach a good level of development by age five.

Thrive at Five is a relatively young organisation but with an already strong national and political profile, having been called out in Parliament for our ways of working in Stoke-on-Trent and invited to be interviewed at the 2025 Civil Society Summit by the Secretary of State for Education. We have grown rapidly in our first four years, with a growing team of nearly 40 across the country. 2026 will be a year of further growth and milestones for the charity as we celebrate our fifth-year anniversary and expand into our third and fourth regions. This will involve recruiting for a new teams, establishing our programmes and beginning to co-design and implement our work in partnership with communities.

About our benefits

· Pension contributions – We will contribute 3% and you can contribute 5% towards your pension through NEST.

· Hybrid working with one anchor day a week in our central London office near to Victoria train station, coach station and underground.

· 25 annual leave days per year plus bank holidays.

· In addition to your laptop and phone provided by us, you can also receive a £100 contribution towards your home-working set up.

· £100 contribution towards your professional body membership

Please note that as this role is subject to a successful Basic Level Disclosure check through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). If you have any unspent convictions, but wish to apply for this role, please advise us in your application. The successful candidate will also need to provide satisfactory references and current right to work in the UK.

To apply for this role, please submit your cover letter and CV by following the Apply Now button. Applications will be reviewed and shortlisted as they are received. While the closing date is midnight on Wednesday, 18 February 2026, we may close the vacancy earlier if a suitable candidate is identified.

About our team:

Fun runs, sky diving, fetes, sponsorship, donations, supporter relationships…we fundraising folk love to prove the difference we make. 

We’re small enough to be a close-knit team where you can see the difference your projects make to the care we give every day, yet big and ambitious enough for you to grow and explore new fundraising events and techniques, as well as support you with training, opportunities and fantastic wellness benefits.

About the role:

We’re on the lookout for a passionate and personable experienced fundraiser to become a valued part of our close-knit team.

Reporting to the Community, Corporate and Events Lead, this role supports our ambition to generate income through community fundraising, corporate partnerships, and a wide range of events. You will proactively manage projects and build strong relationships with individuals, businesses and community groups, while also line-managing two enthusiastic team members.

Alongside maximising opportunities with our existing supporters, you will play a key role in developing and nurturing new ideas, partnerships and activities. Your work will help to grow this vital income stream and ensure we continue to connect meaningfully with the communities and organisations that champion Princess Alice Hospice.

About you:

For you the supporter is key, whether they’re a running in a marathon, holding a tea party, or a corporate partnership taking part in an international sponsored bike ride.

You’ll be enthusiastic, highly organised, and able to multitask effectively. With strong verbal and written communication skills, you’ll also have some experience in charity fundraising, particularly community fundraising—whether voluntary or paid. Strong in administrative tasks, you’ll be confident in managing multiple responsibilities while maintaining attention to detail. Above all, you’ll be passionate about community fundraising and building meaningful connections to support a great cause. 

If you love building relationships, inspiring generosity, and making a real impact, we’d love to meet you!

As well as our competitive salary package and the opportunity of joining an organisation where you will be able to make a difference, we offer a range of great benefits, which include:

• 27 days’ annual leave, plus recognised public holidays – rising to 29 days after 5 years’ service and 33 days after 10 years’ service (pro rata for part time)
• Training support and development opportunities
• Free onsite parking
• Subsidised meals at onsite canteen
• Employee Assistance Programme – promoting staff wellbeing
• Access to Blue Light Card discount
• Access to Pension Scheme
• In – house laundry of uniforms, plus excellent changing facilities (with showers)
• Wellbeing - We provide a programme of activities, opportunities and guidance to inspire and support our employees to live a healthy life, at home and at work

Join us in creating meaningful change while working alongside a supportive and dedicated group of like-minded individuals who truly care about the cause.

Let’s make a difference together.

About Us:Princess Alice Hospice is a charity supporting people in life, death and grief. We’re dedicated to working closely with individuals, communities and organisations in the London Boroughs of Kingston and Richmond and large parts of Surrey, to ensure more people receive the support they need. 

About the role

Are you a strategic communications professional who can lead a team and shape an organisation’s external profile? 

We are looking for a Communications Manager to lead and develop Equation’s communications function. This is a strategic role focused on building our brand and external profile, managing a talented team, and ensuring all parts of the organisation have the communications support they need. 

You will line manage a team of four, including two Coordinators, a Project Worker and a Freelance Resource Worker. Your role is to provide strategic direction, set targets and quality assure outputs – not to do the day-to-day delivery yourself. You will develop and implement our communications strategy, support other workstreams with their communications needs, and work with colleagues including our new Corporate Partnerships Manager to ensure consistent, high-quality messaging. 

This role also has an important sector leadership element. You will chair the DSVA Communications Group, working with communications colleagues from partner organisations across Nottinghamshire to coordinate joint campaigns and messaging. 

You do not need to have worked in the domestic abuse sector before, but you do need to be an experienced communications professional who can think strategically, manage people well and maintain high standards across everything we put out. 

We’re looking for someone who:

• Has experience of managing a team 

• Has developed and implemented communications strategies 

• Has managed brand and external profile for an organisation 

• Understands digital communications including social media, websites and email marketing 

• Can set targets, prioritise and quality assure work 

• Has strong written and verbal communication skills 

• Is committed to ending domestic abuse 

Experience of working across the charity sector, partnership communications, or the DSVA sector is desirable but not essential. 

How to apply

• Applications can be made via our recruitment portal. 
• CVs cannot be accepted. 

Closing date

• 9am on 2nd March 2026.
• Interviews will be held on Friday 13th March 2026.

Location

•  Hybrid working with 2 days in our Nottingham office

Salary:

• £31,484.01 pa FTE.  Actual salary for part time hours £25,527.58

Hours:

• Permanent, part-time 30 hours per week

Safeguarding

Equation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment and to work in accordance with our safeguarding policies and procedures.

The successful candidate will be subject to safer recruitment checks including an Enhanced DBS check, satisfactory references covering the past five years, and completion of our safeguarding disclosure questionnaire.

This post involves regulated activity with children and vulnerable adults.

Equation operates a zero-tolerance approach to any form of abuse, discrimination, bullying, harassment or exploitation. We are dedicated to creating a safe environment where everyone we work with feels protected and able to speak up if they have concerns.

Longer working lives and ongoing economic transitions are reshaping careers: how we start them, and how we move through them. But too many people remain paid in low-paid, low-quality work – with damaging consequences for them personally, and our economy as a whole. We’re seeking a senior, policy-oriented research leader to help us and our partners generate insights that enable more people to move into and progress through better work.

You’ll have a proven track record in scoping and securing funding for research and influencing activity, with significant autonomy to lead your own programme at L&W. You’ll be supported by committed researchers and managers whom you will coach, lead, and develop—alongside a peer group of Deputy Directors working across other key pillars. We welcome quantitative expertise, but most important are the skills to design and deliver high-quality, impactful research programmes.

You’ll join an organisation with a national reputation for driving policy change—and a friendly, highly capable, delivery-focused team. 

Location: Hybrid working: 40-60% in an L&W office. Our offices for this role are currently in Leicester and London, but if you are based elsewhere, please contact us to talk about how the role could work for you.

Team:Research and Development

Salary:£64,450 -£77,880 per annum (pro rata), dependent on experience and location

Duration:Permanent

Working hours:0.8 to 1 FTE, with flexible working supported (e.g. condensed hours, flexible start and finish times)

Main Purpose

The Deputy Director, Policy and Research (Better Work and Progression) will have overall ownership of the ‘Better Work’ pillar of our strategic plan at L&W: overseeing all projects and activity in this area and generating new work (including developing project ideas and securing funding).

While there is significant scope to shape the ongoing programme of research and impact work, we anticipate that key areas of focus in this area going forward will be: understanding & better supporting career change; understanding and improving policy to increase employer investment in skills; high quality and fair access apprenticeships and technical education; understanding how to better support progression from low pay.

They will be a senior leader for the organization – helping to continuously shape our strategy and the plans we are implementing to deliver it.

Duties and Responsibilities

Leadership and management

• Intellectual leadership of the Better Work pillar: developing and owning policy positions, messages, theory of change and research priorities, and supporting the wider team to feed into and understand them
• Line management of senior and mid-level staff
• Act as a senior leader at L&W – including taking on specific organization-level responsibilities where appropriate

Income

• Write and/or co-ordinate responses to reactive research and evaluation tenders in the areas of employment, better work and progression
• Develop pro-active proposals that will drive change in your area, and respond to the interests of funders and partners
• Build relationships with current and potential funders and research partners

Impact

• Act as an external expert on the issues of better work and progression: writing press quotes, articles and blogs;speaking on platforms
• Building relationships with practitioners, policymakers and partners to improve our insights, and get our recommendations implemented
• Develop appropriate means of tracking impact towards our better work goals, and monitor against them. 

Delivery

• Deputy Director/Project Director-level oversight of projects being delivered in your and related areas: supporting project team to shape research plans, deliver sharp insights and manage funder relationships
• Quality Assurance of research proposals and outputs
• Use your research skills and experience to support the wider development of the Learning and Work team

Person Specification

Experience

Experience of developing, overseeing and delivering programmes of policy-relevant research at a high level - Essential

Experience of business development in a policy/research context: developing ideas, writing bids and building relationships with funders- Essential

Experience of building senior-level relationships with external stakeholders for impact and influence -Essential

Track record of delivering national and/or local policy change - Essential

Experience of senior organisational leadership as part of a team - Desirable 

Experience of responding to tenders- Desirable 

Skills

Advanced research skills (qualitative of quantitative) -Essential

Quantitative skills: experience of using key national research and administrative data sets to generate insights into the labour market -Desirable 

Clear and direct written communication style - Essential

Knowledge

Knowledge of, and commitment to, L&W’s charitable aims and purpose.- Essential

Demonstrable knowledge of employment and/or skills policy in the UK - Essential

Demonstrable knowledge in the specific areas of Better Work and/or progression -Desirable 

Learning and Work Institute works across the UK. Our work in Wales is led by a Cardiff based team, but all staff are required to follow the guidance set out in our Welsh language scheme when working in Wales.

An exciting opportunity to help turn a new national initiative into reality as it moves from planning into delivery. Over the next year, we will be launching a new, national Foundation Degree while building the foundations of a wider programme of work. In the initial phase, this role will focus on working locally with partners and participants in the South West to support recruitment, onboarding and preparation for launch, while also contributing to the wider programme build-out alongside a national team. As delivery begins, the role will transition into ongoing programme management across a cluster of South West delivery centres, leading high-quality delivery, participant experience and programme quality, and helping to build strong, sustainable centres over time.