Researcher Jobs in City Of London, London

The LSO Development department is looking for a knowledgeable and self-motivated individual to join our team as Trusts & Foundations Officer at an exciting time in the LSO’s history. Reporting to the Trusts & Foundations Manager, the role will primarily work within the Trusts and Foundations team to establish and maintain relationships with grant-giving bodies to help meet and grow income targets. These grants support a range of LSO activities, including projects within our pioneering learning and engagement programme, LSO Discovery; our exciting artistic season at the Barbican Centre; international tours; new commissions for the LSO and recordings produced by our record label LSO Live.
 

About you

Experience in fundraising from trusts, foundations and other grant-giving bodies is essential for this role, alongside strong communication skills, high attention to detail and a passion for creating concise and compelling written copy.  An interest in orchestral/classical music is desirable.

The Trusts & Foundations Officer will also support the wider fundraising of the Department, helping to steward current and potential supporters at concerts, special events, and LSO Discovery projects taking place across east London.
 
For more detailed information about this role's responsibilities please see the attached application pack.

We are looking for someone with demonstrable experience in:

·       Writing compelling applications and reports to grant-giving bodies, as well as knowledge of fundraising through trusts and foundations (at least twelve months of experience).

·       Researching potential new funding opportunities with an understanding of cultivation and stewardship processes

·       Ideally relevant some event management experience. 

The capabilities and characteristics we are looking for:

·      Strong writing and verbal communication skills, with the ability to collate detailed information and present it concisely and compellingly.

·       High attention to detail in both written communications and database processes.

·       Outstanding editing and proofreading skills.

·       Ability to prioritise and manage a busy workload, and to consistently meet deadlines.

·       Self-motivated, with strong organisational skills.
·      Ability to work with a team effectively, integrate with the whole development department and engage with a variety of colleagues across the organisation and stakeholders.

·       Professional discretion.

·       An interest in classical music and promoting accessible opportunities for all to engage in music. 

·       Willingness to attend events outside of normal working hours.

To apply for the role, please include a completed application form and your CV. Please note that only completed applications will be considered.

Additionally, we kindly ask all applicants to fill out the equal opportunities form.

The British Asian Trust is one of the most exciting and innovative charities working in South Asia. They were founded in 2007 by His Majesty King Charles III and a group of British Asian business leaders to tackle widespread poverty, inequality and injustice in South Asia. In recent years they have experienced substantial growth, with income increasing from £1m to £22m.

An estimated 172 million children in India are considered ‘at-risk’ from various forms of harm and exploitation. Children are made vulnerable by a complex network of interconnecting factors such as high levels of poverty, gender inequality, unsafe migration, cultural norms and poor implementation of schemes and laws. The Child Opportunity Fund’s goal is to create more safe spaces to ensure that millions of children can live their lives to the fullest potential. To achieve this, they are aiming to raise $25m which will be matched by the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation, totalling a $50m fund.

We are looking for an exceptional philanthropic fundraising leader, with experience of leading an appeal and first-hand programme management skills, to undertake a one year maternity cover as the Interim Head of Child Opportunity Appeal. The postholder will be responsible for overseeing the appeal, working collaboratively with the team to reach their significant fundraising targets across HNWIs, trusts, institutional funders and corporate partners.

This is an incredible opportunity to join a dynamic team that is creating a lasting impact that will enable future generations to not only survive, but also thrive.

About the role

As Interim Head of Child Opportunity Appeal, you will:

• accelerate and coordinate fundraising for the Child Opportunity Appeal across a diversified range of high value income streams in the UK, India, Dubai and globally;
• drive and implement the fundraising strategy, ensuring KPIs are monitored and met;
• coordinate internal working groups as well as external senior volunteers to ensure a consistent and aligned approach to fundraising and new donor engagement;
• produce effective prospect research and robust donor pipelines to secure major donations at the 6 and 7-figure level from HNWIs, corporates, trusts, foundations and institutional funders;
• ensure all donors and partners receive first-class stewardship and relationship management, working closely with in-country, programmes and communications colleagues to produce compelling proposals, reports and updates;
• support the CEO to manage the partnership with the Children’s Investment Fund Foundation;
• develop and deliver strong engagement opportunities and leverage cultivation event and project visit opportunities;
• contribute to financial planning and reporting, and develop processes and systems for effective fundraising and stewardship.

About you

Ideal skills and experience:

• Demonstrable experience of operating in a senior philanthropic leadership role with a strategic mindset and high levels of ambition
• Exceptional project/programme management skills
• Experience of running a significant philanthropic appeal/campaign, or playing a senior role in the delivery of a large project in a complex organisation
• Experience of implementing a fundraising strategy and successfully meeting KPIs and targets
• Strong track record in securing high value gifts from warm and cold donors and partners, including demonstrable ability to independently manage the fundraising process from research/identification to closing the ask
• Exceptional communication and networking skills with the confidence to engage stakeholders of all levels (SMT, Trustees, senior volunteers, donors, partners and colleagues)
• Strong team leadership skills with a supportive and motivating approach to rally colleagues across the organisation to deliver on the Appeal
• Ability to be both strategic and operational
• Ambitious, a natural-analyser, trustworthy, calm and proactive

Employee benefits

• 25 days annual leave (pro rata) plus bank holidays and 3 days between Christmas and New Years
• 5% employer contribution pension
• Cycle to work scheme
• Access to a well being platform

The salary is in line with the BITC job framework - minimum of £22,770 per annum regional and £25,875 per annum London office based. 

The location is flexible - across the UK - homebased or based out of a BITC office with a hybrid approach.

The responsibilities include: 

• Undertaking project management, including coordinating the team
• Tracking, monitoring and evaluating engagement with our inclusion campaigns via internal systems including Salesforce and Power BI
• Supporting the team with primary research, literature reviews of secondary sources and analysis of numerical data
• Developing content such as toolkits, factsheets, blogs, slide decks, case studies and other knowledge-based content to support businesses to engage with and implement campaign asks
• Managing internal and external stakeholder relationships
• Managing the Employment and Skills Twitter channels, posting content and driving engagement
• Using your own initiative to anticipate and vary the effort needed to meet internal and external deadlines
• Supporting on all aspects of delivering events, including occasional presenting

The successful candidate must be willing to undertake some travel within the UK, up to once a month.

Closing date - Sunday 19 May 2024 at midnight 

Interviews on Tuesday 28 May 2024 

Job overview

British Somali Community Centre is a refugee women-led charity with a 30-year history of delivering much needed services in education, family support, advocacy, and health programmes to the community.

We are seeking a dynamic, proactive, part-time Development and Operations Manager to oversee, grow and develop our organisation to continue to serve our community as we deal with an increase in demand for our services post pandemic and with the rise in the Cost-of-Living crisis.

Duties:

- Lead on organisational development, business, and strategy planning.

- Oversee strategic monitoring and reporting, internal audits, costing and business growth opportunities.

- Ensure policies and processes are in place, relevant and regularly reviewed and updated.

- Support the development and operations of projects and processes within the charity.

- Develop and deliver a research plan to identify the most promising prospective donors for BSCC’s programme priorities.

- Work collaboratively with senior management to develop and submit high value funding bids to meet fundraising targets.

- Secure long-term financing for programs by writing and applying for funding from a diverse range of funding streams.

- Develop the organisation to the vision of the board of trustees.

- Prepare updates, papers, and reports for trustee meetings, funding partners, and wherever else applicable.

Requirements -

- Bachelor's degree

- Experience in non-profit fundraising and writing successful business plans and strategies.

- Experience of leading on prospect management, taking the initiative, identifying, and reaching out to new trusts and foundations supporters.

- Experience in developing and managing high-quality relationships with trusts and foundations and/or high-net-worth individuals.

- Excellent organisational skills and attention to detail.

- Ability to prioritize multiple tasks and meet deadlines.

- Strong writing, editing, and proofreading skills.

- Demonstrated ability to think strategically and to achieve results in a fast-paced, team-oriented environment.

- Excellent interpersonal skills.

- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite including Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.

This is an exciting opportunity for to join our small, friendly team. If you are a motivated individual with a passion for community-focused organisations, we would love to hear from you. Apply now!

Job Types: Part-time, Fixed term contract

Contract length: 12 months

Pay: From £35,000.00 per year

Benefits:

· 25 days holiday (pro-rata for part-time role), plus bank holidays and the Christmas week.

· Excellent staff development and training opportunities.

· Job satisfaction from making a real difference on a small team for a charity integral to the local community.

Schedule:

· Flexitime

Work Location: In person

Note: This is an exciting new role, and we expect it will evolve over time. This job description is not intended to establish a total definition of the job, but an outline of the duties. The details above are neither exclusive nor exhaustive and the post holder may be required to carry out additional tasks from time to time, to enable the organisation to carry out its work efficiently.

Press and Media Relations Officer

The Press and Media Relations Officer represents the work of SCIE, acting as the point of contact for members of the press and other media representatives. The post holder is responsible for maintaining the profile and reputation of the charity and helping to achieve our influencing objectives with policymakers and leaders in the social care sector. Responsibilities include disseminating information to members of the press and other media to raise awareness of SCIE’s policy positions, research findings and improvement programmes. The post holder will help shape and deliver media influencing plans that support SCIE’s influencing objectives and use a variety of channels to achieve these objectives, including both traditional and social media. 

About us

The Social Care Institute for Excellence (SCIE) is a national charity with a clear vision of a society where care and support maximise people’s choices, removes social inequality, and enables people to live fulfilling, safe and healthy lives. To achieve this we research, evidence, share and support the implementation of best practice. We use this evidence and experience to shape policy and outcomes, and to raise awareness of the importance of social care and social work for creating a fair and equal society. Everything we do is informed by people with experience of care and support.

At the SCIE, we are driven by our values:

· Progressive – always learning and developing.

· Inclusive – working together for equality, diversity, and fairness.

· Credible – evidence-based, robust, and reliable.

· Transparent – open and honest.

General responsibilities: 

• Have fun and challenge yourself at work, model the charity’s values and abide by our policies and practices. 

• Embrace diversity and share in our commitment to equality of opportunity and to eliminating discrimination. 

• Work flexibly and positively contributing to good team working and the delivery of the SCIE’s objectives through matrix working. 

• Show a clear commitment to working with people with lived experience in a sensitive and non-judgmental way to facilitate positive working relationships. 

• Other tasks as may be required, commensurate with the level of the post 

Please see the Job Description as an attachement for further detail

Background

Medact supports the health community to work together towards a world in which everyone can truly achieve and exercise their human right to health. We cover some of the most pressing national and global threats to health and wellbeing including: institutional racism; climate change; human rights abuses; violent conflict; and rising inequality.

We’re a member-led organisation, and our members are made up of a range of people who work in health including nurses, doctors, midwives, and clinical researchers. We believe the health community has huge potential to drive progressive social change—work with us to help make that a reality!

About the role

Medact’s Movement Organiser will work alongside our Campaign Leads and Head of Movement Building to grow our movement, developing groups of healthcare workers into confident campaigners who can make a visible difference in the struggle for health justice and peace. The successful candidate will spend approximately 80% of their time with one of our campaigners, and 20% participating in cross-organisational work. The ideal candidate will have an interest in, or experience of organising or campaigning around, issues related to economic justice or the climate crisis. 

About you

This is a skilled role, but you don’t need to have worked for an NGO or be a professional organiser to be right for it. You might have organised in your workplace or local community to take action on issues that you care about. Or, you might be a health worker who has seen the impact of injustices such as a poor environment, immigration or counter-terror policies,  low income or precarious housing on your patients, and wants to challenge decision-makers and hold them to account. 

You’ll have a strong understanding of power and how to work with others to create pressure for change. You need to be a great communicator, able to build trusting relationships with Medact members, partner organisations and community groups. You’ll have an understanding of how digital communications compliment organising and campaigning. Upskilling and empowering our movement is a fundamental part of this role, so you’ll need the ability to deliver training and workshops through an anti-oppressive lens.

Key dates

Applications close at 9am, Monday 10th June

Interviews will take place w/c 24th June

If needed, second interviews will be on w/c 1st July

The opportunity

University of the Arts London (UAL) is looking for an Event Manager to join our Development Events Team on a fixed term basis, covering a period of maternity leave. 

Supported by an Events Officer, you will lead on the end-to-end planning and delivery of key events to support UAL’s first major fundraising campaign, launching this Autumn. Recently this has included a programme of bespoke cultivation events such as exhibition tours and Meet The Artist discussions, and annual flagship stewardship events such as the Scholars’ Celebration. 

You will have the opportunity to help shape our future programming, working closely with the Head of Events to design creative and engaging events that expand our networks, delivering UAL’s strategic priorities and reflecting our world-leading credentials.

More broadly, you will be an advocate for best practice in event management at UAL, advising colleagues across the University as required. In this capacity, the team has recently taken on the project management of UAL’s Graduation ceremonies and all-staff Summer Party, the latter of which will be led by the Event Manager.

About you

This is an important role for a creative individual with experience of delivering cultivation and stewardship events for donor audiences. 

With a passion for arts and culture, you will have excellent attention to detail and the ability to ensure an exceptional experience for all stakeholders and the efficient delivery of UAL events.

We are UAL

University of the Arts London (UAL) offers an extensive range of courses in art, design, fashion, communication and performing arts. We are a collegiate University spread across London with six Colleges, four Institutes and five Research Centres. UAL also has two subsidiary companies, delivering specialist activities – UAL Short Courses Ltd, and UAL Arts Temps Ltd.

We’re made up of all types of people, coming together in London, the world’s creative capital. We are designers, artists, performers, thinkers, researchers and makers. Our students, staff and graduates form a global network of creatives, entrepreneurs and leaders. Together, our ideas change the world. Because the world needs creativity.

We are ranked highly across the board. We are ranked first for specialist art and design, second in the world for Art and Design in the 2023 QS World University Rankings (for the fifth year in a row), ranked fifth in sustainability and two of our colleges were rated in the top three fashion schools in the world.

To apply please click the apply button.

Closing date: 23:55, 15th May 2024.

Our culture

UAL is committed to creating diverse and inclusive environments for all staff and students to work and learn – a university where we can be ourselves and reach our full potential. We offer a range of family friendly, inclusive employment policies, flexible working arrangements and Staff Support Networks. We welcome applicants from diverse backgrounds, including race, disability, age, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, religion and belief, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, and caring responsibility.

You’ll be responsible, alongside our Head of Content, for producing our world-class lessons, with help from a supportive, collaborative team and a wealth of journalistic expertise from across The Economist Group. You will be a creative teacher, or ex-teacher, who is excited to turn the biggest issues in the news into engaging lessons for 10- to 16-year olds. You’ll research global topics and consider the best angles and innovative activities to produce a lesson every week. These lessons will build children’s essential skills and knowledge about the news through discussion-based activities. The activities will be inventive and varied and beyond your “usual” lesson planning. For example, they might involve students using QR codes to engage with unique multimedia content, a class debate in the style of a courtroom, or a bespoke game with prizes and challenges.

OPPORTUNITIES WE CAN OFFER YOU

● Real impact: the educational content you create will be used by thousands of teachers globally, reaching hundreds of thousands of young people

● Growth and development: grow your skills and responsibility as the organisation grows and takes on bigger challenges. We invest in training and development and will support you to build the skills and experience as you need, for example, working with you to find expert mentors within The Economist Group

● A friendly, driven and highly-effective team: we are deeply committed to being an inspiring, happy place to work, where we learn and achieve things that matter together. We work collaboratively and supportively, with the freedom to use our own judgement and be creative

● Flexible working: our core hours are from 10am to 4pm with a minimum of two days spent in the office each week

● Other benefits: Economist Group benefits include a great central-London office (The Adelphi Building near Charing Cross), private medical insurance, a cycle to work scheme and more

RESPONSIBILITIES

Create Topical Talk classroom resources for children (60%)

● Research and pitch lesson plans that cover the most important facts, arguments, perspectives and questions

● Write, edit and proofread teaching resources. Your core responsibility will be to create a weekly, 1-hour “Headlines” lesson

● Collaborate with journalists at The Economist to ensure all work is of the highest quality

● Work with our Graphic Designer on the look and feel of the content

● Manage diaries, build rapport and communicate effectively to ensure deadlines are met

● Seek out and conduct interviews with topic experts

● Work with the Head of Content to monitor and evaluate the success of lessons

Design resources for one-off current affairs workshops/events for children (20%)

● Create one-off student workshops and events, from the idea-generation stage to writing, proofreading, delivery and evaluation

● Create lesson and website content for the annual Topical Talk Festival, where students join online discussions about the news

Teach lessons, facilitate student discussions and train teachers (20%)

● Facilitate online discussions during Topical Talk Festivals between young people on the Topical Talk Student Hub

● Visit schools to observe, and occasionally teach, Topical Talk lessons

● Deliver inspiring workshops to young people aged 10 to 18

● Occasionally deliver training to teachers to help support the use of resources

This role will involve some travel. It also involves working with young people, so you will need to have an enhanced DBS check (which The Foundation will organise).

REQUIRED ATTRIBUTES AND EXPERIENCE

You are…

● Passionate about current affairs – you want to help young people to understand the news

● An excellent writer and communicator – you can communicate complex ideas to beginners in a clear and engaging way

● Creative – you can plan innovative lessons which effectively develop students’ critical-thinking and communication skills through discussions about the news

● Meticulous in your work – you have exceptional attention to detail and time management

● Collaborative – you are happy to work as part of a team to ensure the best results

● A great problem-solver – you can manage the needs of different audiences and stakeholders

● Driven and action-oriented – you are able to work in a self-directed way and take practical steps to achieve your goals

You have…

● Qualified Teacher Status (or equivalent) – you have at least two years of experience teaching primary or secondary students and an up-to-date knowledge of educational research and developments

● Experience of creating inspiring classroom resources, both collaboratively and independently

● Experience of building relationships and managing colleagues to secure what’s needed from them

You might have…

● Experience of creating and editing video and/or other multi-media content

● Experience of educational content creation outside of the classroom

We’re particularly keen for you to apply if you are from a community under-represented in the charity sector or have lived experience of facing extra barriers because of your background.

If you require any adjustments for your interview, just let us know.

The Head of Scotland and Northern Ireland is responsible for leading our vision to end the need for food banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland. Scotland currently leads the way in having a rights-based, progressive agenda to ending the need for food banks, but there is much to do to ensure political intentions become a reality. This role directs Trussell Trust’s policy and public affairs work in Scotland and Northern Ireland, leads our Scotland and Northern Ireland department as they support our network of food banks and works strategically with key partners to tackle the underlying reasons why people need to come to food banks.  

Based in Scotland or Northern Ireland, with travel around the UK as necessary

Role responsibilities 

• Lead the delivery of the Trussell Trust strategy for ending the need for food banks in Scotland and Northern Ireland, working to embed the Changing Communities, Changing Minds and Changing Policy programmes across the network, including through providing strategic support for the effective delivery of the Pathfinder, FI and organising programmes in Scotland and Northern Ireland. 

• Work with key partners to direct Trussell Trust’s policy and public affairs and work with the Scottish government and local authorities across Scotland. 

• Facilitate the sharing of learning from Scotland to help shape our long-term policy and public affairs work in Northern Ireland. 

• Lead the Scotland and Northern Ireland department to ensure the safe and effective operations of the food bank network. 

• Work with our Head of Strategic Church Engagement to deliver a church engagement strategy that will mobilise the church in Scotland and Northern Ireland to work to end the need for food banks. 

• Work with the Policy, Research and Impact, and Network Programmes and Innovation directorates to ensure effective cross-departmental working on policy and research opportunities, strategic priorities, church engagement, external partnerships and impact reporting. 

Person Specification 

Technical skills and minimum knowledge: 

• Senior level experience of leading delivery programmes nationally and locally. 

• Senior level experience of directing policy and public affairs programme nationally and locally, and representing the Trussell Trust to senior government representatives, national stakeholders and the media. 

• Expertise of significantly growing and managing services, project and programmes to drive change; leading, motivating and inspiring teams; leading culture change; able to manage multiple projects, identifying conflicting demands and establishing clear priorities in order to meet agreed objectives. 

• An effective communicator, verbally and in writing. Diplomatic and with the interpersonal skills required by the role. 

• Ensure that due regard is given to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion within all objectives that report into this department. 

Behaviours and competencies: 

• Demonstrate a commitment to the values of the Trussell Trust. 

• Demonstrates empathy for people from disadvantaged, marginalised or socially- excluded backgrounds. 

• Comfortable working in a fast-paced and high-performing organisation, combining problem-solving with collaborative interpersonal skills. 

• Effective communication skills; diplomatic; effectively builds rapport with individuals and groups; presents information accessibly and in a format appropriate to the audience. 

• Role model inclusive behaviour and leadership. 

About The Role
Closing date: 20th May
Contract: This is a fixed term contract opportunity for 12 months.
 
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are
interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
 
Can you harness the power of stories to improve life for people with dementia and those around them?

Our magazine, Dementia together, helps people affected by dementia to feel less isolated and better able to make decisions. We also inspire readers and listeners to be a force for change by campaigning, fundraising and more – people act on the real-life stories and ideas that we share.

You’ll work with the Magazine Editor to plan and create content that reflects the full range of people’s experiences of dementia, being true to their voices while also fulfilling the Society’s aims. You’ll speak with a great range of people in this role – people with a dementia diagnosis, their carers, friends and relatives, supporters, volunteers, activists, researchers, and colleagues across our teams as well as representatives from other organisations.
 
You’ll help make content available online and elsewhere, producing a podcast and enabling colleagues to draw on our content and material in other ways too.
We never stop improving what we do and how we do it. One example is our focus on finding new ways to involve people with lived experience of dementia in planning and creating content.

This is a homeworking role, but you may be required to travel to attend some meetings and team-days, so you must reside in the UK, have the correct right to work documents to work in the UK and be comfortable/willing to travel to our flagship offices (London or Birmingham) if/when required.
 
Alzheimer's Society has recently been named on the Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2023! We have achieved excellent scores for workplace happiness, pride, and job satisfaction. This is a fantastic achievement and we're incredibly proud as this is a fantastic indication of how far we’ve travelled over the past few years.

About you

- Strong writing and interviewing skills.
- Verbal and written communication skills to liaise with a diverse range of stakeholders.
- Extensive journalism or publishing/editorial experience.
- Ability to create user-centred content with various channels in mind, using good news sense and working to house guidelines.
- Ability to learn, adapt and share knowledge, while handling competing demands and delivering to deadline.
- Be committed to equality, diversity and inclusion, and to championing the diverse needs of people affected by dementia.

About Alzheimer's Society
At Alzheimer's Society, we believe passionately that life doesn't end when dementia begins. We are here for anyone affected by dementia, and we do everything we can to keep people with dementia connected to their lives and the people who matter most.

Everything we do is shaped by people affected by dementia. Their knowledge and experience are critical to bringing about real-world solutions. From choosing the most promising research through to telling their stories to raise awareness; they are the heart of this organisation.

Your new company
This amazing and leading charity is made up of people with dementia, carers, trusted experts, campaigners, researchers, and clinicians. They are the UK's largest collective force of people with unparalleled knowledge and over 40 years of experience addressing the biggest challenges facing people living with dementia.

Key responsibilities:

• Developing and maintaining exceptional and credible relationships.
• Dealing with any concerns or complaints.
• Managing all correspondence in/out of the Director's office.
• Responsible for sourcing and co-ordinating briefings and data.
• Responsible for the delivery and coordination of events and development activities for the director's leadership team and the wider directorate.
• Responsible for providing support to the Director on both organisational and directorate-wide projects,
• Responsible for coordinating recruitment for senior roles (Executive Leadership Team, Senior Leadership Team, Head's of, Board)
• Manage the processing of payments of any contracts/services.
• Working in collaboration with Business Managers, other Executive Assistants and Associate Directors, Personal Assistants.
   

What you'll need to succeed
 

• Networking and making contact - The most essential things the EA will do for our Director of People are the… "Can you just find… can you just ask…. Can you just grab x person?" We are looking for a confident person, who's not shy about contacting the people they need, and chasing up actions.
• Some experience of HR - The Director of People gets 60-80+ emails a day, so you need to be able to spot the urgent things they need to see, and - with a bit of guidance - what can be delegated to other people.
• Able to manage EA basics standing on their head! (Not literally) but standard practice like, managing an inbox, perfectly organised diary, travel, expenses, invoices and more!
   

What you'll get in return

• Salary: £38,500
• Hybrid: Home-based with occasional travel
• Duration: 3-months temp role with a potential permanent opportunity
• Office Location: Fenchurch Street
• Interviews: Week commencing 13th May
• Start date: Monday 20th May
   

What you need to do now
If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV, or call us now.
If this job isn't quite right for you, but you are looking for a new position, please contact us for a confidential discussion about your career.

Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited acts as an employment agency for permanent recruitment and employment business for the supply of temporary workers. By applying for this job you accept the T&C's, Privacy Policy and Disclaimers which can be found on our website.

Prospectus has been appointed as an approved supplier for the London and Southern Universities Purchasing Consortium (LUPC/SUPC), which includes over 100 organisations in just London alone. As a result of this, we anticipate an uplift in the amount of exciting temporary opportunities we will have available to offer candidates in the higher education space.    

We recruit for varied permanent and temporary opportunities in the higher education space and with over 60 years of recruitment experience in the higher education and non-profit sector, we've been the go-to partner for many renowned universities in London.
 
We are currently looking to increase our pool of higher education academic candidates who are interested in registering for future opportunities. Candidates will have had previous experience in academic roles within Higher Education (e.g. Lecturer, Teaching Fellow, Researcher etc.)   
 
Please note that due to the current climate for temporary and permanent work across the HE sector, we are initially looking to engage with potential candidates and carry out registrations online with those that demonstrate suitable experience.             

Given the unprecedented volume of interest in our roles, consultants are unable to support with general job search advice or specific enquiries before application. Instead, please do either register your CV on our website or submit your CV for any roles that interest you to ensure that your application is reviewed in line with the position. Should you be successfully longlisted, or we are able to assist in your job search we will be in contact to discuss next steps.

As a specialist Recruitment Practice, we are committed to building inclusive and diverse organisations, and welcome applications from all sections of the community. We invest in your journey as a candidate and are committed to supporting you in your application.

The Task Ahead: Finance Manager

As The Difference moves from its early start-up phase into the delivery of our 2025-30 strategy, our programmes and sector-influencing work are expanding to reach more schools and to deepen our impact. Alongside this growth, our team - and the operational function which supports them - is also growing.

As Finance Manager, you will be a key member of the Finance & Operations team. You will hold end-to-end responsibility for the finance function, from reconciliations to budgeting. You will decide where and how our existing processes could be improved, as well as developing new systems that will underpin our work as a larger and more established charity. You will be supported by the Director of People, Finance & Operations, as well as our external auditors.

The Difference is still a small and growing charity. This means that our work is fast-paced, our roles are broad, and there is a culture of being reactive and flexible, as the needs of the organisation evolve. If this sounds exciting rather than daunting, then this could be the role and team for you!

Areas of Responsibility

The Difference is looking for a Finance Manager to lead our finance function in the following ways:

• Oversee our internal bookkeeping, payment, and accounting processes, and improve these systems ongoingly.

• Lead on budgeting and forecasting across the organisation, supporting teams to predict income and expenditure and make sound financial decisions.

• Lead on the production of management accounting information, including internal monthly management accounts, quarterly reports for Trustees, and financial reports for investors.

• Lead on The Difference’s audit process, with external auditors.

• Work with the Development & Impact Manager to update fundraising pipelines, and ensure the availability of high quality income projections for Trustees.

• Support accurate budgeting and reporting for grant funding, including tracking spend of restricted funds.

• Support business planning by working with teams to model potential future work - e.g. costs of expansion of an existing programme; modelling potential new programmes.

Person Specification

Essential – We are looking for the following skills, aptitude and experience; though you may be stronger in some areas than others:

• Values – Your experience evidences shared values with The Difference (see below) and a personal commitment to our mission to improve life outcomes for vulnerable people.

• Finance experience, operational and strategic – Experience across all areas of finance, from accurate invoicing, payments and record-keeping, through to setting and managing budgets, financial modelling and forecasting, and working with external accountants or auditors.

• Finance process development – Experience of developing finance systems; the ability to recognise how processes could be continuously improved, and enact this improvement.

• Leadership of self and others – Confident in identifying skills or information gaps within your team, and drawing on the expertise of others to address these gaps. Able to show how you've continually grown your own skills and those of your team members so that together you can efficiently cover workload and plan ahead.

• Proactive problem-solving – Ability to thrive in a fast-paced start-up environment and to problem-solve: from rolling sleeves up and diving into detail to working collaboratively to build capacity.

Desired – You are more likely to be successful in your application if you have one or more of the following additional experiences: 

• Accounting qualification and experience - Some form of accounting qualification and post-qualification experience.

• Early-stage charity/social enterprise experience – You may have specific experience growing charities or businesses for social good at the early or start-up phase.

• Experience of charity finances – You may have worked for or supported other charities, and have experience of working with philanthropic grants, charity accounting, and governance.

• Insight into schools – You may have experience working in the education sector, whether that’s through working for a business or charities that partnered with schools, or through working in a school yourself. 

Why Work for The Difference?

Schooling isn’t working for the children who need it most. Every week in England 109 children – equivalent to three full classrooms – are permanently excluded. This is just the tip of the iceberg. Since the pandemic, school suspensions have risen significantly, as has persistent absenteeism. 1 in 5 children are missing more than 10% of their time in school. Children who are excluded or persistently absent are much more likely to already be experiencing vulnerability or disadvantage. They are more likely to live in poverty, have additional learning needs, suffer mental health challenges, or experience a lack of safety outside school. Certain ethnicities are also disproportionately affected, notably Gypsy Roma Traveller and black Caribbean children. 

Exclusion and high rates of absence can have a dramatic effect on life chances. These young people are more likely to drop out of education or employment, become vulnerable to long-term mental ill health, or be at risk of criminal exploitation. The Difference believes that children and young people deserve better and that the education system has to change.

Our Organisation 

The Difference is a young education charity, founded to change the story on lost learning.  By 2030, we want rates of exclusion and absence to be falling nationally and for schools to be better equipped to support all children, including those who may be vulnerable. The Difference was born out of a year of research into school exclusions with think-tank IPPR. This research identified a lack of inclusion expertise in schools and proposed a new leadership development programme to fill this gap. In 2018, Difference founder Kiran hired the team who took this idea from concept to reality, beginning work with our first schools.

The Difference is now a 22-strong team delivering multiple school leadership programmes, alongside a growing research and policy arm. The team is supported by our Youth Advisory Board, made up of young people who have experienced exclusion and who provide their expertise and insights on how school inclusion work should be done. This work is needed more than ever. Effects of COVID-19, coupled with the spiralling cost of living, have substantially increased levels of vulnerability. Schools serving excluded pupils face under-funding. The Difference has had excellent early impact but there is work ahead to capture this, share learning with schools and policy-makers, and grow our capacity to lower exclusions across England.

Our Values

• High Expectations - We are ambitious for excellence from young people, colleagues and ourselves.  We don’t believe in writing off someone’s potential because of their identity or experience of crisis. 

• Strong Relationships - We prioritise genuine relationships over transactional interactions, and know that this requires deliberate relational practice. We see colleagues and partners as people first and their roles second; and know this greater trust allows us to take more risks, gain more feedback and have greater impact.

• Internalised Locus of Control - We work hard to reframe difficult situations to discover what we have within our power in terms of solutions. We take it upon ourselves to walk towards challenges and can take a high level of ownership and agency in our work/

• Pragmatism - We believe leadership means recognising current limitations and striving for improvements within and beyond them.  We develop consensus and chart new ways forward, challenging false and extreme positions like “zero exclusions” or “no excuses”.

• Scientific approach - We take a diagnostic approach to unpicking causes of problems. We are loud and proud of our failures, recognising failing fast and often is key to finding the best solutions. We test solutions and are willing to use data and feedback to make adjustments and choose new directions. 

• Not Squeamish about Structural Inequality - We believe patterns of inequality can and should be disrupted. We strive to be clear-eyed about these inequalities, and both the individual practice and system-changes required to address them. We push ourselves to overcome awkwardness in talking about this; and begin by acknowledging our own biases and blind spots.

• Asset-based - We work hard to avoid deficit thinking and aim to start with what’s strong, not what’s wrong. We are careful not to frame our colleagues and stakeholders - particularly young people and families – as victims but instead to recognise their agency.

• Wise selves - To both enjoy work and do their best, we want to make decisions and work with others in our “wise” - or regulated - selves. We also want to bring our compassionate self to those we work with, externally and internally, to support one another through challenging times. 

How To Apply 

To apply, please complete all sections of the application form by midnight on Sunday 19th May.

First round interviews will be held during the week beginning 27th May, over video call. Please indicate if you would not be available to attend an interview during this week.

If successful in this stage, second round interviews (including a task to be completed the same day) will take place on the week beginning 3rd June, at our office in Bethnal Green. 

We are committed to building a diverse team and strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups in the charity sector such as people from black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ people, people with disabilities, people with experience in the care system, non-graduates and first-in-family graduates. 

As part of our commitment to fairer recruitment, all applications will be assessed with names and any protected characteristics redacted.

Recommended Reading 

If you’d like to understand more about The Difference and what we are trying to achieve, we would recommend the following:

• The research which underpins our organisation.

• Our latest Impact Report, sharing our work in 2023

Tommy’s believes that pregnancy complications and baby loss should not be seen as ‘bad luck’. Through their four research centres, specialist antenatal care clinics, pregnancy information services and campaigning work, they support people who refuse to accept that a baby’s death is ‘just one of those things’.

The Partnerships Manager will manage a portfolio of commercial and fundraising accounts totalling c.£250k, as well as some new business development. The portfolio includes a £60k per annum CRM relationship with Plum & Ashby, focused around the Wave of Light candle campaign for Baby Loss Awareness week, with lots of influencer and comms engagement. The new business element will support the Senior Partnerships Manager and the Head of Corporate in their new strategy for increased brand, strategic and coty partnerships.

Key responsibilities:

• Account manage and build strong relationships with corporate partners at a 5-figure+ level
• Create and deliver high quality account management and stewardship plans for your accounts
• Build strong relationships with all key stakeholders internally and externally
• Take a proactive role in developing and nurturing a pipeline of new opportunities

Essential criteria:

• Experience of fundraising in a charity setting – ideally in corporate partnerships, although we’d also be open to transferable skills from trusts, major donors or community fundraising
• Successfully managing funder relationships at a 5-figure+ level
• Experience owning and delivering upon a fundraising target and KPIs
• Takes initiative, results driven, proactive, empathetic and collaborative qualities