Prospect research assistant jobs in bristol
JOB PROFILE
JOB TITLE: Lead Trusts & Grants Officer
RESPONSIBLE TO: Senior Trusts & Grants Manager
HOURS OF WORK: Full time 35 hours per week
LOCATION: Home working/ Hybrid
DURATION: Permanent
SALARY / GRADE: £32,330
KEY WORKING RELATIONSHIPS
• Senior Trusts & Grants Manager
• Trusts & Grants Officer
• Director of Fundraising, Marketing & Communications
• Chief Operating Officer
• Senior Leadership & Service Managers
• Grant making trusts and foundations
• Major Donors
PURPOSE OF THE ROLE
The Lead Trusts & Grants Officer is responsible for developing and delivering income from mid-value grant making funders, notably trusts and foundations. The role involves managing a dedicated pipeline of opportunities, writing and submitting compelling applications, and stewarding funder relationships. This position works closely with service teams to understand project needs and create accurate budgets and impactful funding proposals. This role will also provide direct line management to the Trusts & Grants Officer, supporting their professional development and ensuring the team's overall success in meeting fundraising targets.
MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Fundraising and Grants Management
• Pipeline Management: Lead on prospecting, developing and managing the mid-value trusts and grants pipeline, focusing on bids around £20,000 - £70,000, including multiyear grants, ensuring a consistent flow of opportunities to meet team income targets. Developing the skills and ability to manage higher value and more complex strategic bids.
• Application Writing: Develop and submit compelling, high-quality grant applications and proposals for mid-value funders, working closely with service teams, ensuring accurate budgets and income against Adoption UK’s strategic priorities.
• Stewardship: Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with a portfolio of new and existing mid-value funders, providing timely and impactful reports to secure renewed funding, and developing relationships with key external contacts through excellent communication.
• Reporting: Oversee the accurate tracking of all applications, reports, and communications using team tracking methods, and the CRM database, providing regular progress updates to the Senior Trusts & Grants Manager.
• Collaboration: Work closely with the Senior Trusts & Grants Manager, the Trusts & Grants Officer, and service teams, to align fundraising activities with the organisation’s strategic priorities and annual income targets.
• Undertake other duties and projects as directed by the Senior Trusts & Grants Manager and Director of Fundraising, Marketing and Communications.
Team Management and Development
• Line Management: Provide line management and support to the Trusts & Grants Officer, including regular one-to-ones, appraisals, and professional development.
• Training and Mentoring: Guide the Trusts & Grants Officer on best practices for researching, writing, budgets, and stewarding of small-value grants.
Personal specification
Knowledge and experience
• Track record of successfully securing individual grant awards typically ranging between £10,000 and £50,000. (E)
• Knowledge of fundraising sector with specialist knowledge of grant making trusts and foundations, or similar grant/bid-writing experience (E)
• Experience in writing persuasive proposal documents and bids (E)
• Experience in developing and implementing fundraising policies and process to deliver strategic goals (E)
• Experience in supporting service teams to deliver complex projects on time and to budget (E)
• Experience in successfully stewarding multiple stakeholders including grant managers and major donors (D)
Qualifications and Education
• Graduate level or equivalent significant professional experience in fundraising/bid
Skills and abilities
• Ability to make decisions within area of responsibility, based on defined frameworks, policies, and procedures and/or based on knowledge of regulations and best practice (E)
• Shows good professional judgement (E)
• Can successfully operate matrix management of complex projects at a national level (E)
• Delivers high quality work with minimal supervision and direction (E)
• Able to communicate clearly and engage with stakeholders at all levels (E)
• Is successful in securing positive external relationships with stakeholders and supporters (E)
• Demonstrates personal credibility (E)
• Demonstrates experience and ability in impact reporting (D)
• Ability to research the sector to identify the best prospects (D)
• Has the capacity to deal with complex issues and is good at problem solving (D)
• An exceptional administrator with excellent organisational and writing skills (E)
• Self-starter, used to working to deadlines and delivering against KPIs (D)
Accountability
• Shows previous experience of achievement of income targets (E)
• Shows previous experience of excellent funder or similar relationship stewardship (E)
• Able to contribute to the development of income growth strategy and strategic goals (D)
Behaviours
• Takes pride in Adoption UK and promotes its values and mission in all interactions with external stakeholders.
• Demonstrates commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion in all aspects of role at all times.
• Contributes to an open and honest culture
• Encourages challenge and creativity, transparency and consistency.
• Leads by example.
• Offers outstanding service to members.
• Promotes cross-functional team working, sharing skills and knowledge
• Communicates clearly, seeking clarity when unclear and valuing the opinion of others.
• Values the opinion of others. Treating colleagues and other stakeholders with respect.
• Takes pride in own development, committed to achieving high standards and agreed objectives.
Adoption UK is the leading charity for adopted and care experienced people and adoptive families.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
About the opportunity
As Assurance Assistant, you'll be part of our Finance & Assurance directorate, working within a team committed to being the Society's single point of truth. This is an excellent development opportunity for someone interested in building a career in assurance, risk management, or business continuity within a mission-driven environment.
You'll support the delivery of internal audit engagements, risk management activities, and business continuity arrangements that help the Society operate with confidence and integrity. Working alongside the Assurance Data & Insights Specialist, you'll help monitor recommendations, track progress, and support the team's administrative processes. This is a role where attention to detail meets meaningful impact, where your contribution helps protect the charity's ability to fund groundbreaking research and provide vital support to people facing dementia.
You'll be involved in a diverse set of activities. From contributing to audit projects and supporting risk assessments to helping improve team processes and staying aware of sector best practices. It's a varied position that offers genuine learning and development opportunities in a supportive, collaborative environment.
About you:
You're someone with a genuine interest in assurance, risk, or resilience activities who's keen to develop your understanding and build a career in this field. You have strong digital skills, clear communication abilities, and a willingness to learn. You're organised, detail-oriented, and excited about the prospect of working in a role where professionalism and continuous improvement are valued.
You'll have:
- Interest and understanding of assurance, risk, or resilience activities.
- Interest in developing a career pathway in assurance, risk, or resilience.
- Strong digital skills with enthusiasm for developing further.
- Clear, effective, and concise communication abilities.
- Ability to build positive working relationships across teams.
- High standards of personal conduct and integrity.
- Initiative and comfort working both independently and collaboratively.
- Critical thinking skills to identify ways to work more effectively.
- Commitment to your own development and that of others.
What you’ll focus on:
- Supporting the delivery of internal audit and risk management arrangements that reflect the organisation's risk profile.
- Contributing to internal audit engagements in line with the internal audit plan.
- Supporting risk management and business continuity tasks as required.
- Monitoring data, updates, and tracking recommendations to support team processes.
- Helping improve team ways of working to continuously enhance efficiency and effectiveness.
- Staying aware of key sector updates and best practices in assurance, risk management, and counter fraud.
- Carrying out administrative tasks to support the wider team's effectiveness.
Most importantly, you're someone who's passionate about making a difference and want to be part of a team working towards a world where dementia no longer devastates lives.
Important Dates
The deadline for applications is 23:59 on Sunday 9th November.
Interviews will take place 25th/26th November.
About Alzheimer's Society
Dementia is the UK’s biggest killer. One in three people born in the UK today will develop dementia in their lifetime.
At Alzheimer’s Society, we’re the UK’s leading dementia charity and the only one to tackle all aspects of dementia by giving help and hope to people living with dementia today and in the future. We give vital support to people facing the most frightening times of their lives, while also funding groundbreaking research and campaigning to make dementia the priority it should be.
Together with our supporters, we’re working towards a world where dementia no longer devastates lives.
Our values make sure that our focus is clear for the challenges and opportunities ahead and remind us of what we all stand for.
Our commitment to Equity, Diversity, Inclusion & Belonging
We need to ensure the voices around our table better reflect and understand the communities we exist to serve. We strongly encourage individuals to apply who have a disability, impairment or health condition or individuals who identify as Black, Asian or from another minority ethnic background, as these groups are currently under-represented at Alzheimer's Society.
We want everyone we work with, as a colleague, volunteer, supporter, or someone we support, to feel included and that they belong at Alzheimer's Society.
Our Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Strategy here along with our internal employee forum and Employee Lived Experience network groups help us promote inclusion and belonging, becoming an engaged and inclusive organisation for all our people.
Our hiring process
During your recruitment process we want to make sure that you bring your whole self and can be at your best. We are working hard to ensure our recruitment process is as inclusive as possible, so please do inform us of your experience and anything you think we could do better by completing our candidate survey when you apply. Please also contact Alzheimer’s Society Talent Acquisition Team via [email protected] for application support or any adjustments you might need.
To ensure fairness and consistency to select the best candidate for this role, all our applications are anonymised up until an interview has been confirmed. We recognise the benefits of AI, but if you're considering using it to submit your application, we encourage you to reflect on the value it truly adds. AI tools often lack the personal touch and authenticity that set candidates apart. We want to hear your unique perspective, experiences, and skills, so we encourage you to showcase them in your own voice.
We try to avoid closing roles early where possible, however if we receive a high volume of applications, we may close earlier than the advertised closing date. Should this occur, we will aim to provide you with at least 48 hours' notice.
We are committed to safer recruitment and ensuring the welfare of those we work with, due to the nature of some of our roles, we might need to carry out a DBS check at the relevant level.
Giving back to you
Our employees work hard every day to make a true difference in people's lives. We are proud to support them with a range of benefits, recognition and many options for working agilely, all contributing to a strong work life balance. We also have various learning programmes to support you in your development and help you grow to realise your potential and shape a career with Alzheimer's Society.
You can also visit our Working for Us pages, which give you more information about what it’s like to be an employee at the Society.