Programme operations associate jobs in edinburgh

At the heart of the 2027 programme is a paid, 12-month role within a leading foundation, trust, or social investment organisation. You’ll be employed full-time in a grant-making or related position with one of our dynamic host organisations across the UK. In this role, you’ll contribute directly to improving the communities your host serves while earning a salary of at least £25,000 (or £25,642 if based in London).

Alongside your placement, you’ll take part in an acclaimed development programme designed to build the knowledge, skills, and experience needed for a successful career in the funding sector. Through this, you’ll explore the challenges within grant-making and social investment, develop your leadership potential, and work alongside peers to imagine and create a more equitable and effective funding system. The programme supports you not only to thrive in your new role but also to grow into a future changemaker in the sector.

This unique blend of training, professional experience, and network-building will equip you to take the next step toward a decision-making role in a foundation, trust, or social investment organisation—helping to shape how resources are used to create lasting change in communities.

Why 2027 exists

Launched in 2017, 2027 was born out of a desire to shift power in the grant-making sector. It aims to bridge the gap between funders and the communities they serve—particularly by addressing the lack of people with lived experience of working-class communities in decision-making roles. 2027 helps change who is involved in making funding decisions and how those decisions are made.

The Job

In your placement, you could be:

• Managing parts of a grant portfolio
• Building relationships with community partners
• Making funding recommendations
• Preparing reports and updates for trustees
• Engaging with the funder’s broader organisation to inspire interest in community work
• Ensuring legal and compliance obligations are met
• Representing your host externally and bringing in outside learning

Each role will vary slightly depending on your host organisation. We’ll work with you to ensure a placement that aligns with your goals and development.

Who You’ll Work For
You’ll be matched with a respected host organisation—one of the UK’s leading foundations, trusts, or social investment organisations—based on your location preferences and interests. Previous hosts have included:

• BBC Children in Need
• National Lottery Community Fund
• Joseph Rowntree Foundation
• Sport England
• Better Society Capital
• City Bridge Trust
• NHS Charities Together

The Development Programme
As part of your role, you’ll participate in a comprehensive professional development programme led by sector experts. It includes:

• Residentials: Two in-person events for deep learning and peer connection.
• Masterclasses: Online, expert-led sessions exploring key sector topics.
• Peer Support Sessions: Monthly confidential spaces to reflect and share learning.
• Mentoring: Each Associate is paired with an experienced sector mentor.
• Self-Directed Learning: Curated content for reflection and growth between sessions.
• Peer Coaching: Training and monthly sessions to build coaching skills and mutual support.
• 360 Review + 1:1 Coaching: Holistic feedback and personalised coaching to support your development.
• 2027 Connect: A mix of events to connect with the wider 2027 community, including alumni, hosts, and mentors.

Career Progression
By the end of the programme, you’ll have built the experience, confidence, and insight to take on more senior or decision-making roles in the funding sector—playing a meaningful part in shaping how money is invested for social good.

Job description

• Job Title: 2027 Associate
• Salary: Minimum of £25,000 (£25,642 if based in London)
• Employer: One of our host foundations, trusts, or social investment organisations
• Location: Opportunities across England and Scotland (you’ll share your preferences)
• Hours: Typically 9am–5pm, with some flexibility
• Contract: 12-month fixed term, starting October 2025

*Foundations and trusts are grant-making charities that fund individuals, groups or organisations to run projects that benefit communities. Social investment organisations provide repayable finance to charities and enterprises working to create long-term social change.

The Ancient Tree Forum (ATF) is seeking a motivated and organised Technical and Engagement Officer to join our small, friendly and flexible team. This is an exciting opportunity to contribute to a charity dedicated to safeguarding the UK’s ancient and veteran trees, along with their wildlife, heritage and cultural values. 

This role is vital to achieving our strategic outcomes by providing expert technical advice, supporting and collaborating with the Technical Advisory Panel to develop authoritative guidance and publications. You will act as a key contact for public and stakeholder enquiries and contribute technical expertise to ATF’s communications across our website, newsletter, social media and press activity. 

You will engage with sector networks, collaborate with partners and support strategic messaging. This role will help strengthen the charity’s visibility and impact in ancient and veteran tree conservation and protection. 

Senior Research Advisor

We’re looking for a credible, strategic, and impact-driven individual to join the organisation at a pivotal moment for stroke research and improvement, in this remote working role.

Position: CE374 Senior Research Advisor

Location: Home-based, UK, Nationwide. However, occasional travel will be required as part of this role (may include team meetings or other work-related meetings)

Salary: Circa £60,000 per annum, negotiable depending on experience (inner London weighting £3,950 per annum or outer London weighting £2,275 per annum may be applied in accordance with where you live)

Hours: 35 hours per week

Contract: This is a 12 month fixed-term contract.

Benefits: 25 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays (this will increase with service up to 30 days, full time equivalent) cashback and discount scheme, employee assistance programme, learning and development, pension scheme, Life Assurance, Eye Care vouchers, Long Service Award, Tax-free childcare, Health Cash Plan, Working Pattern Agreement, flexible working opportunities available.

Closing Date: 7 July 2025. We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role.

Interview Date: 17 July 2025

Interviews will be held via video conferencing. Please let us know if this will present any challenges when you email your application.

The Role

Reporting to the Associate Director of Systems Engagement, the Senior Research Advisor will take the lead in translating the Association’s refreshed research strategy into action, shaping its implementation plan and designing the governance and delivery mechanisms needed to ensure its success. This includes evolving funding schemes, aligning internal systems and team capabilities, and scoping the future role in real-time quality improvement and implementation science.

This is a rare opportunity to influence a future-facing research and improvement agenda in a leading UK health charity. The Senior Research Advisor will act as a senior advisor and thought partner to the leadership team, bringing expertise in applied research, translational science, and funding strategy. You will play a central role in shaping credibility and influence as a system leader, ensuring the Association drives forward a culture of testing, learning, and scaling what works.

Key responsibilities will include:

• Leading the development of a robust implementation plan for the Association’s refreshed research strategy, including the structures, processes, and partnerships needed for successful delivery.
• Redesigning funding schemes to support translational research, implementation, and real-world outcomes.
• Strengthening research governance and embedding QI and research into organisational strategy.
• Providing senior-level insight and support for the research and health systems insight and engagement teams.
• Positioning the Association as a visible and credible actor in stroke research and improvement.

About You

You will have:

• A PhD and significant senior-level experience in health research leadership.
• Proven ability to develop research strategies and funding mechanisms that accelerate translation and implementation.
• Strong system leadership credentials, with a track record of influencing across sectors.
• Deep knowledge of stroke, cardiovascular disease or neuroscience.
• A confident and flexible approach to agile working, with the ability to thrive in fast-paced, evolving environments.

This is a home-based role with occasional travel required.

To fulfil the role, you must be a resident of the UK and have the right to work in the UK.

Please submit your CV, (including details of your current address), and a supporting statement of no more than two pages, demonstrating how you meet the person specification and what you bring to the role in terms of your skills and experience.

If you are applying under the Disability Confident scheme, please indicate this in your supporting statement.

Finding strength through support

The organisation is the only charity in the UK providing lifelong support for all stroke survivors and their families. Providing tailored support to tens of thousands of stroke survivors each year. This support includes one-to-one and group support, funding vital scientific research into stroke prevention, acute treatment, recovery and long-term care, and campaigning to secure the best care for everyone affected by stroke. 

They are here for stroke survivors and their loved ones, from the moment they enter the new and frightening post-stroke world, supporting them every step of the way as they find their strength and their way back to life.

It’s only thanks to the generosity of supporters and donors that they can provide vital support. 

The Association is driven by an ambition to improve the lives of everyone affected by stroke. This means they’re determined to create an equitable and inclusive workplace that benefits from the difference, and thrives on the diversity, of our people. Guided by an approach to solving inequity in stroke, the team are prioritising listening to, and learning from, lived experience across the charity.

The charity are working to improve the representation of this lived experience at all levels within the Association and are eager to recruit applicants from a variety of communities and backgrounds. We are keen to receive applications from people affected by stroke, people of colour, members of LGBT+ communities, and disabled people because these identities and experiences are underrepresented and would add enormous value to how the organisation work.

A Disability Confident employer, the organisation is making great progress focusing on flexible working, reasonable adjustments and access to work. The charity has a variety of staff network groups and are committed to continuously improving diversity and inclusion efforts. If you have questions, or access needs, we’re happy to discuss any support and adjustments we can make throughout the recruitment process so that you’re able to contribute your best in a way that meets your needs.

You may also have experience in areas such as Research, Researcher, Research Advisor, Senior Researcher, Senior Research Advisor,  Lead Researcher, Lead Research Advisor, Health Research, Health Researcher, Health Research Advisor, Senior Health Researcher, Senior Health Research Advisor. #INDNFP

PLEASE NOTE: This role is being advertised by NFP People on behalf of the organisation.

Position: Senior Events Fundraiser (Third Party Events)
Hours: Full-time (35 hours a week)
Contract: Permanent
Location: Office-based from one of our national offices (London, Cardiff, Belfast, or Edinburgh) with flexibility to work remotely
Salary: Starting from £33,044 per annum plus excellent benefits
Salary Band and Job Family: Band 2, Charity
*you’ll start at our entry point salary of £33,044 per annum, increasing to £35,109 after 6 months service and satisfactory performance and to £37,174 after a further 6 months.

About us

We make sure people living with MS are at the centre of everything we do. And it’s this commitment that unites us across the UK.

Our strategy is based on what people affected by MS have told us is important to them. It gives us a clear and determined focus.

Our work is based on the hopes and aspirations of our MS community. Together we campaign at all levels, fund ground-breaking research and provide award winning support and information.

Our people are our greatest asset and the key to our success. We offer a vibrant, progressive working environment where you'll be able to make a difference.

About this job

We’re looking for a Senior Events Fundraiser to join our Community, Events, and Retail Fundraising team, leading on the delivery of our third party events activities.

You’ll plan, develop, and promote a well-established portfolio of third party challenge events, working to achieve set income targets, while ensuring an outstanding supporter experience for our event participants.

You’ll also be responsible for developing our third party events portfolio; monitoring and evaluating products, as well as innovating, to create opportunities for future growth.  

Closing date for applications: 9:00 on Monday 14 July 2025

Interested?

PLEASE PRESS THE 'HOW TO APPLY' BUTTON FOR MORE INFORMATION.

Equal Opportunities 
We particularly welcome applications from people with disabilities and or from ethnic minority backgrounds.

We’d be grateful if you downloaded and completed the equality and diversity monitoring form and submit it with your application. 

Disability Confident Employer 
We’re a Disability Confident Employer and we’re committed to promoting equality and diversity.

You can ask for reasonable adjustments as part of both our recruitment and new starter on-boarding processes.

If you need any help or adjustments to apply for this role, please contact us. You can also ask for the application materials to be sent to you in a different format. Such as for them to be sent to you by email or in a larger word format.

More about our employee benefits:
We have a wide range of employee benefits including (but not limited to): 

Encouraging work life balance

• 38 days paid annual leave (including bank holidays), pro-rata for part-time
• More annual leave entitlement, based on length of employment
• Smart working options (with the opportunity to work remotely and find a smart working pattern that suits both you and us) 
• Flexible working options 

Caring for you and your family 

• Generous sick pay entitlement
• More sick pay entitlement, based on length of employment 
• Opportunity to buy and sell annual leave in each calendar year 
• Free access to a GP virtually 24 hours a day/7 days a week allowing you unlimited advice, reassurance and where appropriate diagnosis 
• Enhanced leave for new parents 
• Free access to a confidential 24 hours a day/7 days a week helpline service for both you and your family with a specialist range of support and information
• Special leave options (such as up to 5 days paid leave for domestic or personal emergencies a year)
• 10 days paid disability leave a year, pro-rata for part-time 
• 10 days paid carers’ leave a year, pro-rata for part-time 
• Cycle to work scheme 
• Death in service scheme
• New family-friendly benefits, including paid leave:
  • In the event of miscarriage or still birth 
  • To support fertility treatments
  • For antenatal appointments for both parents

Thinking about your finances 

• Enhanced salary sacrifice pension scheme
• Discounted season ticket loan and interest-free emergency loans
• Give as you earn to support other charities of your choice before tax
• New employee portal including lifestyle savings vouchers and personal wellbeing

Enriching your life at work

• Personalised development plans with a wide range of training courses and opportunities to source additional training options with your line manager
• Yearly internal apprenticeship opportunities
• New, modern offices that embrace working together both in-person and remotely 
• Various opportunities to influence how we internally operate (including surveys, and focus and committee groups) 
• Active and supportive internal employee networking groups for collaboration and peer support 
• 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering for MS Society activities during normal working hours (such as fundraising events, or campaigning in the local community) 
• 2 days paid leave a year for volunteering with other charities during normal

Safeguarding 
We’re committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of everyone who uses our services and we come into contact with.

This is regardless of Gender, Race, Disability, Sexual orientation, Religion or belief, Pregnancy, Gender reassignment.

We recognise our particular responsibility to make sure vulnerable adults and children are protected.

We have measures in place to protect everyone we come into contact with from abuse and maltreatment of all kinds.

Your right to work in the UK 
You must have the right to work in the UK to work in paid employment with us. You’ll need to share documents showing you’re eligible to work in the UK if we offer you employment.

You can find the UK visas and permits granting you the right to work in the UK on the UK Government website. We currently don’t have a Sponsor Licence agreement with the Home Office and aren’t able to support you with your visa applications.

No agencies please.