Senior major donor officer jobs
Job Type: Full time
Contract Type: Permanent
Salary: £55,000 – £60,000 per annum
Scope and purpose
To implement MEI’s business development strategy, helping us secure sustained income to deliver our priorities and fulfil our mission to improve lives through maths education. This includes managing bid processes for major funding, working with senior leadership and business leads to write costed proposals, identifying tender and other funding opportunities, reviewing and finalising funding agreements, and working with the Director for Strategic Communications and Partnerships to nurture relationships and bring new opportunities to fruition.
Main duties and responsibilities
Support all aspects of MEI’s business development and fundraising activity.
Funding opportunities and competitor environment
- Scope external funding opportunities, reviewing these against MEI’s mission, objectives and key criteria.
- Report to MEI’s Senior Leadership Team and Board on the pipeline of new and potential opportunities and produce business cases for new ventures for MEI’s SLT/Board.
- Undertake research into donors, sponsors and other funders, reviewing suitability and conducting due diligence.
- Work with the Director for Strategic Communications and Partnerships to develop relationships and opportunities towards formal agreement.
- Provide advice and guidance to colleagues involved in developing new business, including how to model costs and pricing, and shaping and writing effective proposals.
- Build intelligence about the competitive landscape, identifying competitors, assessing potential threats and maintaining an up-to-date register for SLT and the Board.
Tenders, bids and proposals
- Manage a diverse set of funding opportunities and proposals on the go at any single time, ranging from conference sponsorships to grant applications, project bids, corporate partnerships and government programme bids.
- Participate in pre-market engagement for large tenders, clarifying funder expectations and requirements, guiding senior leadership decisions about priorities and bidding criteria.
- For competitive tenders, manage the process from tender launch to bid submission with input from business and operational leads, including: tender clarification; costs and budget; proposal writing, review and sign off; compliance requirements; and supporting documentation.
- Co-ordinate post-award processes through to contract signature, in line with Grant Manager responsibilities and in liaison with SLT and trustees, legal partners, finance and other partners/teams.
- Participate in post-tender feedback reviews and share learning across the team, using lessons learned to undertake revision and improvements.
Sponsor and donor management
- Support the account management and stewardship of donors and sponsors, liaising with appropriate teams, ensuring that objectives of donors and sponsors are fully met.
- Directly manage relationships with lead representatives of annual conference sponsor and exhibiting organisations, ensuring their objectives are met, arrangements are handled smoothly, and risks and issues are managed effectively.
Systems, records and reporting
- Shape the configuration and use of MEI’s CRM system and other internal systems for effective business development and fundraising.
- Ensure contact records are up to date, accurate and compliant.
- Produce regular reports for SLT and Board on progress in business development and fundraising, including conversion rates, KPIs, and risks.
- Contribute to MEI’s culture of evidence-driven decision-making, providing high quality evidence and intelligence which supports business strategy.
General leadership and management
- Work with trustees, SLT and business teams to ensure that business development and fundraising activity is coherent and aligned with broader strategy and delivery.
- Support the development of commercial skills, competencies and approaches across MEI.
- Undertake other duties assigned by the Director for Strategic Communications and Partnerships and keep them up to date through accurate and regular updates.
Key Relationships
- Director for Strategic Communications and Partnerships
- Chief Operating Officer
- Chief Learning Officer
- Financial Controller
- Business and Central Services Manager
Person Specification
Essential
- Demonstrable experience of fundraising across multiple income streams
- Strong track record of writing bids and securing grant and other funding
- Knowledge and experience of public sector procurement
- Excellent writing skills for bids and fundraising communication
- Ability to manage multiple priorities and work autonomously
- Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build relationships across MEI and with external funders
Desirable
- Experience in the education or charitable sector
- Track record of securing large government contracts
- Experience collaborating with product development or programme design teams
- Familiarity with MEI’s mission and the education landscape
Personal Attributes, Values and Behaviours
- This is a list of personal attributes which are important for the role but also should encapsulate behaviours required to meet the MEI values of equity, credibility, commitment and service.
- Communicates with clarity and respect
- Commitment and ability to work with all stakeholders to deliver exceptional service
- Actively seeks to work collaboratively when required to achieve the highest service standards
- Self-motivated with a strong work ethic, proactive attitude, and commitment to continuous learning and skill development
- Supportive and collaborative, able to guide and motivate others to deliver high-quality work
- Exceptional interpersonal skills, with the ability to build trust and foster positive, collaborative relationships with colleagues and stakeholders
- Highly organised, able to manage multiple tasks and adapt to changing priorities
- Dynamic, enthusiastic, and positive, bringing energy and a can-do attitude to the role
Additional Information
This role will involve some travel and occasional overnight stays away from home.
REF-227 227
Location: Contracted to our Peterborough office with the flexibility for hybrid working
Contract Type: 12-month fixed term contract – maternity cover
Full time: 37.5 hours per week
Salary: £36,000 - £42,000 depending on experience
Benefits: We want all our employees to feel valued and engaged and are committed to offering a positive working culture along with a good work-life balance. As well as ensuring we pay our employees fairly, we offer the following benefits: Flexible working, Generous annual leave, Private Medical Insurance, including dental and optical, Pension Scheme, Sick Pay, Death in Service, Employee Assistance Programme, Bike Loan Scheme, Cycle2Work Scheme, Eyecare, Discount Portal.
Closing date: Sunday 29 March 2026
Telephone interviews will be held week commencing 30 March and in-person interviews will be held in Peterborough week commencing 6 April 2026
No agencies please
Be a part of an energetic and vibrant team who are driven by the desire to improve the lives of people living with kidney disease. Our vision is the day when everyone lives free from kidney disease.
This is an exciting opportunity for anyone who thrives in a fast paced, ambitious environment. We want to prevent kidney disease from becoming a public health emergency and find better treatments for kidney patients sooner.
We are looking for a talented philanthropy manager who will be responsible for a portfolio of prospects and donors to build long lasting and highly engaged relationships. Working closely with the head of philanthropy and the major appeals manager you will play a key role in growing our income from major donors over the next 3-5 years by building a pipeline of new and existing donors and securing five and six-figure gifts.
This external facing role will manage our mid to high value prospects and donors and you will build personal relationships though understanding donor motivations, delivering tailored funding proposals and communications, and creating a bespoke donor journey with the aim of increasing their giving and connection to the cause.
We operate a hybrid, flexible working style and regular weekly office attendance is encouraged. The role is contracted to our Peterborough office. You will also be required to regularly attend external meetings and events.
If you are interested in the position, please complete the online application form and submit together with your CV.
We are committed to providing equal opportunities for everyone and encourage applications from all sections of the community.
About Kidney Research UK:
Kidney Research UK is the leading charity in the UK focused on funding research into the prevention, treatment and management of kidney disease. Our vision is the day when everyone lives free from kidney disease and for more than 60 years the research, we fund has been making an impact. But kidney disease is increasing as are the factors contributing to it, such as diabetes, cardiovascular disease and obesity, making our work more essential than ever.
At Kidney Research UK we work with clinicians and scientists across the UK, funding and facilitating research into all areas of kidney disease. We collaborate with partners across the public, private and third sectors to prevent kidney disease and drive innovation to transform treatments.
Over the last ten years we have invested more than £71 million into research. We lobby governments and decision makers to change policy and practice to ensure that the estimated 7.2 million people living with all stages of kidney disease in the UK have access to the most effective care and treatment, and to make kidney disease a priority.
Most importantly, we also work closely with patients, ensuring their voice is heard and is at the centre of everything we do, from deciding which research to invest in to how we plan our priorities and our work across the charity.
Those patient contributions are vital, always helping us and our partners to understand what life is like with kidney disease, always ensuring we see the patient behind the treatment and always reminding us that behind every statistic and every number is a person – the patients and the carers who inspire our mission and push us forward to make a difference and change the future of kidney disease.
You may have experience of the following: Philanthropy Manager, Partnerships Manager, Head of Philanthropy, Head of Partnerships, Fundraiser, Senior Fundraising Officer, Fundraising Manager, Head of Fundraising, Major Gifts, Corporate Partnerships, Business Development Manager, Charity, Charities, Third Sector, NFP, Not for Profit, etc.
REF-227 011
Purpose of the post
The Financial Planning & Analysis Manager will support the Associate Director of Finance to provide insightful analysis of financial trends and oversee the recoverability of funds.
They will coordinate the month-end process and work with Finance Business Partners to coordinate the quarterly forecast and the 2026/27 budget.
They will also act as Finance Business Partner to a number of teams, working closely with Budget Holders and external partners to provide effective management of resources and risk, and monitoring of quarterly partner reporting.
Main responsibilities
Financial Planning & Analysis element of role (60%):
- Coordination of month-end process: overseeing the month-end checklist and coordination of FBPs; production of monthly management accounts using JET reports
- Coordination of quarterly forecasting and annual budgeting across cost centres and funds: preparation of forecasting templates; coordination of FBPs; upload and review of forecast onto finance system
- Coordination of long-term (high level) forecasting across all cost centres and funds to end of current Core Funding cycle
- Oversee the cost recovery process of new and existing funds (overhead recovery and monitoring of funding gaps)
Finance Business Partnering element of role (40%):
- Work with Budget Holders to manage financial performance, forecasts, and budgeting including understanding financial opportunities and risk for the area of business partnership.
- Provide donor reporting and analysis as required to funders of specific programmes.
- Consolidation of quarterly partner reporting
Experience
- CCAB qualified with a minimum of 5 years practical experience in financial analysis or business partnering roles
Desirable
- Experience of fund management
- Experience of Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central
- Experience of JET reports
- Experience in the academic or scientific research sector
- Experience working with UKRI and/or Research Councils
- Experience of funding under Full Economic Costing (FEC) model
- Experience of managing stakeholder relationships within an academic or not-for-profit environment
Skills
- Excellent quantitative skills, use of Excel and finance systems
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively and confidently with people at all levels.
- Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to handle sensitive issues positively
- Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities in a fast-paced environment and to working in an agile, flexible and pragmatic way
- Ability to quickly learn and adapt to new environments
- Ability to lead and work as part of a team
- Ability to work autonomously and make decisions without supervision
- Ability to process complex information and present targeted messages to different audiences.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Starting Salary: £31,312 - £33,815 (including London weighting)
Location: Romero House, London
Hybrid working with a minimum of 40% of your time in the London head Office
Job Profile
We are looking for an Advocacy Assistant who is keen to contribute to the work of CAFOD’s advocacy work, especially our work in Parliament. You will work closely with the policy and campaigns teams in contributing to bringing about long-term change for the poorest and most marginalised. The post will be responsible for monitoring key issues in Parliament and supporting work with the CAFOD All-Party Parliamentary Group. It provides direct support to the Director of Advocacy and Communications and ensures our advocacy and development education grants programme is well administered. You will be interested in advocacy work and have had some experience in campaigns, policy or parliamentary work, maybe gained in a voluntary capacity. You’ll be very well organised, with an eye for detail and completing tasks on time.
Key Responsibilities
Providing focused and valuable administrative support
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Developing and amending online and offline systems for teams or the Group
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Support the teams on events, activities and projects
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Supporting and Coordinating Supporter mailings
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Collate relevant annual reporting information including the ECOSOC reporting.
Parliamentary Monitoring
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To track Parliamentary activity, statements, questions and circulate these to relevant stakeholders within CAFOD
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To support organising Parliamentary events and APPG meetings
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To work with other NGO’s and coalitions on Parliamentary activity
Grant Processing
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To administer the advocacy and development education grants liaising with prospective and successful grantees as appropriate.
Communications Support
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Act as a first point of contact for any external enquiries, passing on requests to others as appropriate, and ensuring that the Supporter Relations Team have up to date information
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Supporting the campaigns and policy team’s communications, mainly internal, and where appropriate, through CAFOD’s external website, social media tools
Financial Support
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Monitoring expenditures and budgets
Person Specification
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Understanding CAFOD: I understand, demonstrate and actively support CAFOD’s vision, mission and values and what we aim to achieve
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Managing ourselves: I recognise what needs to be done and take action to deal with it
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Working with others: I help others in the team and across CAFOD to achieve their goals
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Communicating: I actively listen to others; I keep colleagues informed of developments that may affect them
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Managing resources: I am clear about available resources and how they can be best used. I am careful in the use of resources, including other people’s time
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Achieving results: I have a clear sense of priorities. I keep focused on the work to be done.
Job-specific Competencies
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Experience in administration and budgets in an office environment with good knowledge of IT systems
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Good communication skills, written and verbal.
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Understanding of the UK Parliament is helpful but not essential.
CAFOD is a welcoming and supportive place to work and is committed to a safe and inclusive working culture where all are respected. CAFOD will make reasonable adjustments at every stage of the recruitment process to ensure candidates with disabilities or individual needs are fully supported.
Safeguarding for Children and Vulnerable Adults
CAFOD recognises the personal dignity and rights of children and vulnerable adults, towards whom it has a special responsibility and a duty of care and respect. CAFOD, and all its staff and volunteers, undertake to do all in our power to create a safe environment for children, young people and vulnerable adults and to prevent their physical, sexual or emotional abuse. CAFOD is committed to acting at all times in the best interests of children and vulnerable adults, seeing these interests as paramount. Any candidate offered a job with CAFOD will be expected to adhere to CAFOD’s Safeguarding policy and sign CAFOD’s Code of Behaviour as an appendix to their contract of employment and agree to conduct themselves in accordance with the provisions of these documents.
All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references, and appropriate screening checks can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks. CAFOD also participates in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of, and consent to, these recruitment procedures.
Come and join us and help make a real difference in the lives of the world’s poorest communities.
CAFOD is an equal opportunities employer. Recruitment and selection procedures reflect our commitment to safeguarding children and vulnerable adults
CAFOD is the official Catholic aid agency for England and Wales tackling poverty and injustice across the world.
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.