4 Programme manager jobs in Bradford, West Yorkshire

The role

We're recruiting for a Programme Logistics Manager to join our Programme Operations team and help strengthen the systems that support Mary's Meals' school feeding programmes around the world.

Working closely with Programme Affiliates, Programme Partners and colleagues across Mary's Meals International, you'll provide technical oversight and support across key areas including inventory, fleet, facilities and supplier management, helping to ensure our logistics systems and processes are effective, efficient and sustainable.

You'll also drive continuous improvement, share best practice and support alignment with our school feeding model and programme operations strategy. At the heart of this role is a commitment to quality, stewardship and simplicity, helping us deliver our mission as effectively as possible.

Key priorities:

• Shape practical logistics policies, processes and tools that support our global programmes.
• Use performance data and insights to identify opportunities, manage risk and support informed decision-making.
• Support country teams to build capability, confidence and consistently high standards.
• Foster collaboration between procurement and logistics colleagues to improve programme delivery.
• Champion safe, efficient and cost-effective fleet management, including vehicle tracking and telematics.
• Strengthen supplier relationships, contract management and performance monitoring.
• Enhance facilities, warehousing and distribution practices across our supply chain.
• Contribute to programme planning, audits, growth initiatives and operational strategy.

About you:

We're looking for a Programme Logistics Manager who combines strong logistics expertise with a collaborative, solutions-focused approach and a genuine passion for our mission. You’ll bring:  

• Significant experience in logistics and/or operations within an international organisation.
• A strong understanding of logistics systems, processes and performance management.
• Excellent communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work effectively across cultures.
• Experience using data and insights to monitor performance and drive improvements.
• Strong organisational skills, attention to detail and the ability to balance competing priorities.
• A proactive, adaptable and results-focused approach.
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to turn insight into action.
• Proficiency in MS Office and data analysis tools.
• A genuine commitment to Mary's Meals' mission and values.
• Experience leading or coordinating teams, particularly in decentralised or geographically dispersed environments would be beneficial but not essential.

About us:  

Mary’s Meals is a global movement supported by people from all walks of life and from all faiths and none. We are focused on one goal – that every child receives a nutritious daily meal in a place of education. Today, more than 3 million children receive Mary’s Meals in some of the world’s poorest communities.  

We are a values-driven organisation that believes in the innate goodness of people, respects the dignity of every human being and family life, and values good stewardship of the resources entrusted to us. In line with our values, we are fully committed to a culture of safeguarding.

Mary’s Meals is committed to preventing any form of unwanted behaviour at work, and we expect all members of the Mary’s Meals family to share this commitment and act in the best interests of the communities we serve. Our safer recruitment practices ensure that only those committed to our high standards join our movement.

We are happy for you to work remotely and flexibly, in a way that best supports your work-life balance. We have an office in Glasgow for those who would like to work from here occasionally or on a regular basis. Some travel to Glasgow, will likely be required as part of this role.

We believe in the innate goodness and dignity of every person. In line with this, Mary’s Meals is an equal opportunity employer and is committed to creating an inclusive and welcoming environment. All applicants will be considered fairly and on merit, without discrimination of any kind. 

Our Benefits:

• 34 days annual leave (pro-rated for part time working patterns) including bank holidays, increasing by 1 day each completed calendar year, to a maximum of 39 days (+ option to buy another week)
• Flexible working
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Life assurance
• Pension

Farm Discovery Programme Manager

Salary: £40,170 | Home-based | 35 hours per week | Permanent

This is a varied senior role combining programme leadership, team and contract management, quality assurance, safeguarding, data and financial oversight, partnership development and programme improvement.

You’ll ensure our Farm Discovery team has the clarity, support and resources they need to deliver consistently high-quality educational experiences for children from disadvantaged communities. You’ll also use data, feedback and evaluation to improve the programme, develop partnerships and contribute to its future growth and development.

We’re looking for someone who:

• Has a strong track record in programme management and leading complex delivery
• Is outstanding at enabling and leading educators and dispersed teams
• Understands the primary education context in England
• Can build strong relationships with schools, farmers, funders and partners
• Has experience of quality, safeguarding, health and safety and risk management
• Is confident using data, managing budgets and improving systems and processes
• Can communicate effectively and work collaboratively across an organisation
• Shares our commitment to creating meaningful opportunities for children experiencing disadvantage

The role is home-based, with regular travel across England and North Wales, including overnight stays, an essential part of the role. Reasonable travel and accommodation expenses are covered.

Hours: 35 hours per week, with flexible working arrangements considered, including slightly reduced or compressed hours for the right candidate.

Closing date: Thursday 8 October 2026, midday.
CVs not accepted for this role. Please see our website for more information.

We are looking for experienced social workers to help take the Weekenders programme into its next chapter. You will join a small, ambitious charity and play a central role in growing a relational, child-focused programme across England.

THE OPPORTUNITY 

• Salary: starting from £40,000, subject to experience

• Hours: full time, 37.5 hours per week

• Location: home-based within England, with regular team co-working and travel

• Contracts: one permanent post and two 18-month fixed-term posts

• Flexibility: occasional evening or weekend delivery, usually around once per month

• Travel: across England, including occasional overnight stays; reasonable expenses are covered

ABOUT NOW FOSTER

Now Foster brings together social work, service design, lived experience and innovation to transform fostering in England. Our vision is to bring many more wonderful people into fostering so that more children and young people can experience stable, meaningful relationships with caring adults.

We are a small team with big ambitions. We value creativity, collaboration, learning and continuous improvement, and we work with partners who share our determination to do better for children and families.

ABOUT WEEKENDERS 

Weekenders is our flagship programme. We recruit and support weekend foster carers – known as Weekenders – who build regular, long-term relationships with children and young people supported by local authorities. It is about showing up, making a difference and becoming an adult a young person can count on.

The programme is entering an exciting period of growth. We are expanding our partnerships with Regional Care Cooperatives, Fostering Hubs and local authorities across England, currently including London, the South West, North West and North East.

THE ROLE – Lead delivery, develop people and stay close to practice

As a Weekenders Programme Manager, you will turn our ambition into consistently excellent delivery. You will lead the day-to-day support of applicants across an agreed portfolio of areas, making sure prospective Weekenders receive a warm, responsive and motivational experience and that our partners can rely on us to deliver what we have agreed.

This is a people-management and delivery role with a strong connection to practice. You will line-manage Journey Guides, manage a network of independent social workers (ISWs), lead our prep group training and undertake some intro chats yourself.

The role does not carry a statutory caseload. It does carry real responsibility for safeguarding, practice quality, operational oversight and relationships across a growing, geographically distributed programme.

Delivery Leadership: Lead programme delivery

• Take day-to-day responsibility for Weekenders delivery across an agreed portfolio of Fostering Hubs and local authority partners.

• Turn partnership agreements and local processes into clear applicant journeys, with roles, handovers and timescales understood by everyone involved.

• Plan capacity across Journey Guides, ISWs, prep group training and your own direct work so that delivery keeps pace with demand.

• Monitor applicant progress, identify delays or risks early and work with colleagues and partners to find practical solutions.

• Maintain a consistent Now Foster experience across regions while adapting thoughtfully to local contexts.

People Management: Manage and develop Journey Guides

• Provide reflective one-to-one and group supervision, clear objectives and timely feedback.

• Allocate work fairly, monitor workloads and create the structure needed for responsive applicant support.

• Coach Journey Guides in relationship-based, strengths-based and motivational conversations, using observation, role play and practice review where helpful.

• Support sound judgement, safe practice and professional boundaries, addressing performance or wellbeing concerns early and constructively.

• Build a connected team culture in which people share learning, ask for help and take ownership.

Practice Oversight: Manage ISWs and assure practice quality

• Build and maintain a reliable pool of qualified, registered ISWs to undertake initial home visits and teach on prep group training days.

• Coordinate ISW recruitment, onboarding, availability, allocation and briefing in line with our safer recruitment and practice arrangements.

• Set clear expectations for the quality, timeliness and tone of home visits, written outputs, training and feedback.

• Review quality, provide constructive feedback and address concerns promptly, while forecasting capacity and arranging cover.

Training: Plan, staff and lead prep group training

• Own the planning and delivery of prep group training across programme areas, including schedules, venues or online delivery, materials, communications and staffing.

• Facilitate and teach on prep groups, modelling inclusive, relational and reflective practice.

• Brief and support ISW co-facilitators so sessions are coherent, well-paced and grounded in the realities of fostering.

• Make sure applicants can reflect meaningfully on children's needs, safer caring, trauma-informed care, cultural matching and working with fostering services.

• Ensure observations and training feedback are recorded sensitively and on time, and use feedback to strengthen future delivery.

Relationships: Stay close to applicants and partners

• Undertake some intro chats, particularly where additional experience, judgement or continuity is needed.

• Step into complex applicant situations or difficult conversations without taking over work appropriately held by Journey Guides.

• Develop trusted operational relationships with Fostering Hubs, Regional Care Cooperatives, local authority fostering teams and other partners.

• Work through differences or blockages constructively, combining persistence with curiosity about other people's pressures and perspectives.

Programme Addurance: Safeguarding, quality and improvement

• Promote a strong safeguarding culture and ensure concerns are recognised, recorded and escalated appropriately.

• Maintain accurate, timely records and use pipeline data, feedback and practice observations to understand performance and improve delivery.

• Contribute to the development of tools, guidance, communications and digital workflows as Weekenders grows.

WHO WE'RE LOOKING FOR – Experience, judgement and a strongly relational approach

Essential

You will need a recognised social work qualification and current registration with Social Work England. Beyond that, we are looking for someone who can combine strong practice judgement with people leadership and operational oversight.

You will thrive in this role if you have

• People-management experience – line-managing, supervising or developing staff, including giving feedback and supporting performance and wellbeing.

• Operational leadership – experience leading a service, programme or complex workflow with multiple people, deadlines and handovers.

• Children's services experience – in fostering, children's social care or a closely related setting, with a sound understanding of safeguarding and professional accountability.

• Training confidence – experience planning and delivering engaging adult learning, workshops or group training.

• Partnership skills – experience building productive relationships across organisational boundaries and working through operational challenges.

• A relational approach – able to hold warm, purposeful and appropriately challenging conversations with people from a wide range of backgrounds.

• Strong organisation and judgement – able to prioritise, delegate, manage dependencies and recognise what needs closer oversight or escalation.

• Digital and data confidence – comfortable using CRM and workflow systems, interpreting delivery information and turning insight into action.

The way you work matters

• Children first – you keep children's needs, relationships and long-term outcomes at the centre of decisions.

• Warm and reflective – you build genuine relationships, remain curious about your own impact and welcome feedback.

• Courageous and accountable – you name concerns, make decisions, follow through and own mistakes.

• Collaborative – you share learning generously while maintaining clear accountability.

• Adaptable – you are comfortable in a small, ambitious organisation where roles and systems continue to evolve.

Bonus points for

• Lived experience of the care system.

• Training or experience in motivational interviewing, systemic practice, coaching or another relational approach.

• Experience of foster carer recruitment, initial visits, assessment, prep groups, panel or post-approval support.

• Experience commissioning, coordinating or quality-assuring ISWs, associates or other independent practitioners.

• A practice educator, adult-teaching or training qualification, or substantial equivalent experience.

• Experience scaling a service across regions or working with a dispersed team and multiple delivery partners.

• Project, budget, contract, risk or resource-management experience.

• Experience of co-production, service design or continuous improvement.

WHAT IS IN IT FOR YOU

Joining Now Foster means being part of something different. We are small, ambitious and innovative, and you will have genuine influence over how Weekenders grows. You will stay close to practice and impact without carrying a statutory caseload.

You will join a supportive, collaborative team that cares about doing excellent work in a sustainable and humane way. We work a 37.5-hour week and trust people to manage their time with balance. The programme sometimes requires evening work, weekend training days or travel, and we flex working time around those commitments.

• Salary from £40,000.

• 28 days of annual leave plus bank holidays.

• Home-based working with regular co-working and team days.

• Travel and reasonable work expenses covered in line with Now Foster policy.

• The tools and technology you need to work effectively.

• Workplace pension scheme

• The opportunity to help build a bold, lasting and more relational approach to fostering.
   

We know strong candidates do not always meet every desirable criterion. If the purpose of the role excites you and your experience gives you a strong foundation for the essentials, we encourage you to apply.

RECRUITMENT PROCESS – Key dates and how to apply

• Applications close – Sunday 20 September 2026 at 23:30
• First-round interviews – Online planned for Monday 28 and Tuesday 29 September 2026
• Role play – For candidates progressing to the second round, before the second interview. 30 mins, completed online with one of our Weekenders.
• Second-round interviews– In person planned for Tuesday 6 and Wednesday 7 October 2026 (reasonable travel expenses covered)

Early application is encouraged. We may close the advert before 20 September if we receive a sufficient number of strong applications.

HOW TO APPLY

Please apply through the Charity Jobs listing by the closing date. Candidates invited to interview will receive further information about the format and preparation in advance.

You must have the right to work in the UK. Appointment is subject to current registration with Social Work England, a satisfactory Enhanced DBS check and our other safer recruitment requirements.

We recognise that candidates may use generative AI tools to support their application. This is acceptable, but your application must remain an authentic reflection of your own experience and motivation. Please tell us if and how you used AI as part of preparing it.

As a small charity unfortunately we do not have capacity to respond to unsuccessful candidates or offer feedback at the application stage. Please assume you have been unsuccessful on this occasion if you do not hear from us before the interview dates.

OUR COMMITMENT TO EQUALITY 

Now Foster is committed to being an equal opportunities employer. We celebrate diversity and actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds, identities and experiences. Recruitment decisions are made using fair, objective and transparent criteria, and we will make reasonable adjustments so the process is accessible.

If you want to help grow a pioneering programme, develop a thoughtful team and create more lasting relationships for children and young people, we would love to hear from you.