Programme officer jobs in Birmingham, west midlands

1. Background

Osman Consulting Ltd supports the design, coordination, and implementation of humanitarian and development programmes across multiple regions, with a primary focus on Asia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, and Latin America

The organisation delivers a diverse portfolio of interventions spanning emergency response, seasonal, education (including back-to-school initiatives), food security and livelihoods (including zero hunger programming), and other humanitarian priorities. Osman Consulting works through a partnership-based approach, collaborating closely with local implementing partners to ensure contextually appropriate, responsive, and sustainable programme delivery.

2. Purpose of the Role

The Senior Programmes Officer (Maternity Cover) is responsible for supporting the effective coordination, delivery, and development of a multi-country humanitarian programme portfolio. The role ensures continuity of programme implementation during the maternity cover period by maintaining strong partner relationships, overseeing programme progress, and supporting high-quality proposal development and reporting.

The post holder will act as a key focal point for communication with implementing partners and internal teams, ensuring that programme activities remain on track, compliant, and responsive to evolving needs. The role also contributes to organisational growth through proposal development, donor engagement, and strengthening partnerships.

3.Terms of Reference

• Duty Station: Solihull, B90 4BG, United Kingdom (Hybrid)
• Reporting to: Programmes Manager
• Line Management: Provides technical guidance and oversight to field partners and may support the supervision of interns
• Contract Type: Fixed-term maternity cover contract (12 months), subject to organisational requirements
• Full time/Part time: Full Time
• Travel: International travel may be required depending on programme and organisational needs.

4. Scope of Work and Key Responsibilities

Programme Coordination and Partner Management

• Maintain regular communication with implementing partners across multiple countries
• Coordinate programme activities to ensure timely and effective delivery
• Support negotiation and alignment with field teams and partners on implementation priorities
• Build and maintain strong working relationships with partners and stakeholders

Proposal Development, Business Development and Donor Engagement

• Lead the development of project proposals, concept notes, and budgets
• Contribute to business development efforts, including drafting marketing materials and supporting donor engagement
• Develop marketing and programme-related materials to support fundraising and visibility
• Build and maintain relationships with donors and external stakeholders

Programme Monitoring, Reporting and Compliance

• Review narrative and financial reports from partners for quality and accuracy
• Track programme deliverables, milestones, and deadlines across projects
• Maintain programme trackers, dashboards, and internal monitoring tools
• Liaise with Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) teams to support programme tracking and learning
• Ensure documentation and data are organised, accurate, and up to date

Financial Coordination

• Coordinate closely with the finance team on budgets, forecasts, and expenditure tracking
• Review partner budgets and support financial planning processes
• Ensure alignment between programme delivery and financial requirements

Design, Communications and Knowledge Products

• Develop visual and written materials including presentations, one-pagers, capability statements, and reports
• Support media and communications outputs using design tools such as Canva and Adobe Creative Suite
• Contribute to internal and external communications materials to enhance programme visibility
• Support media-related activities, including content development and basic media training where required

Capacity Building and Team Support

• Provide training and guidance to implementing partners on project requirements and standard operating procedures (SOPs)
• Develop and refine internal documents such as SOPs and guidance materials
• Support onboarding, training, and supervision of interns
• Provide support to colleagues across programme activities as required

Systems, Learning and Operational Support

• Maintain and update programme databases and information systems
• Support feedback collection processes, including surveys and learning inputs
• Contribute to problem-solving and continuous improvement across programmes
• Participate in calls across multiple time zones and undertake occasional travel as required

Procurement and supply chain support

• Support review of procurement requests, specifications, delivery schedules, and procurement documentation for completeness before onward processing.
• Track status of procurement packages, purchase actions, vendor communications, and delivery milestones and flag bottlenecks for management attention.
• Coordinate with the Operations and Logistics Officer in the field on shipment status, local sourcing issues, warehousing constraints, and asset receipt confirmation.

Operational risk management

• Identify operational bottlenecks relating to procurement timing, delivery sequencing, documentation gaps, or service support readiness.
• Provide timely updates to the Programmes Manager on issues requiring escalation or re-prioritisation.

5. Qualifications and Experience

• Degree or equivalent experience in international development, humanitarian studies, or a related field
• Minimum of 3 years of relevant experience in programme coordination, project management, or humanitarian/development settings
• Proven experience in proposal development, including budget preparation
• Strong experience working with implementing partners and managing multi-country programmes
• Experience reviewing narrative and financial reports and ensuring donor compliance
• Familiarity with working alongside finance and monitoring and evaluation (M&E) teams

6. Core Competencies

• Strong organisational and coordination skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with fluency in English required; Arabic is desirable
• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities
• Experience developing presentations, reports, and programme materials
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (especially Excel, Word, and PowerPoint); experience with tools such as Canva or Adobe
• Ability to work independently, take initiative and coordinate across multiple time zones in a fast-paced environment

7. Compliance, Safeguarding and Ethics

The post holder is expected to uphold Osman Consulting Ltd policies, donor requirements, humanitarian principles, and all applicable national and international regulations.

The role requires full compliance with safeguarding standards, including Prevention of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment (PSEAH), child safeguarding, confidentiality, and data protection requirements.

The post holder must promote accountability, inclusion, and non-discrimination in all aspects of their work, ensuring respectful engagement with all stakeholders.

Any concerns relating to fraud, corruption, conflicts of interest, safeguarding incidents, or security risks must be reported promptly through the appropriate channels.

Overview of the Role:  We are recruiting a South East Senior Programme Officer for the National Education Nature Park to:

· Lead the National Education Nature Park programme across South East England, increasing participation in schools and education settings

· Manage and support a regional Programme Officer, including performance, development and wellbeing

· Build strong partnerships with schools, colleges, local authorities, NGOs and environmental networks

· Deliver a regional engagement strategy aligned with national KPIs on biodiversity, climate education and wellbeing

· Be a passionate advocate for nature-based learning, sustainability, biodiversity gain and green skills for children and young people

· Manage a regional budget, travel planning and reporting, ensuring compliance and audit requirements

· Facilitate workshops, training and events for educators, children and young people

· Provide expert guidance on outdoor learning, horticulture, biodiversity and environmental education resources

To work for the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS) is to join a thriving charity, whose mission is to be there for everyone on their lifelong adventure with gardening. Everything we do is built on the transformational power of gardening – and the benefits it brings to people, places and our planet.

And we couldn’t do this without our people. We’re proud of the knowledge, enthusiasm and ideas that each one of our team members brings. From working across our social media channels, to volunteering in the RHS Gardens, from serving customers in our garden centres to running national marketing campaigns, we believe that every member of the RHS team should have the opportunity to make a difference.  Our careers portal here provides a comprehensive overview of what we offer, the teams that work at the RHS and our great benefits.

Location: Home-based within the South East region, with regular travel across the region, or opportuntiy to be based at RHS Wisley.

Contract: 12 month Fixed Term Contract (maternity cover) to 31st July 2027

Safeguarding and Inclusion

The RHS is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk and expects all personnel to share in this commitment. We are an inclusive employer and welcome applicants from all backgrounds.