Senior researcher jobs in Edinburgh

• 16 hours per week (part time)
• £35,000.a. pro rata (Actual salary £15,135) plus 6% pension contribution
• Remote

Job Summary:

Rape Crisis England & Wales is the national membership and accreditation body for a network of Rape Crisis Centres that provide specialist support for survivors of sexual violence and abuse. We work to promote the needs and rights of survivors and campaign for an end to all forms of sexual violence, abuse and exploitation.  

Our Fundraising and Development Officer will support our daily fundraising operations. In this role, you will be responsible for coordinating contractor relationships, managing administrative tasks, supporting our governance arrangements, collating data and ensuring smooth communication across departments. You will play a key role in optimising processes, handling logistics, and assisting in the delivery of operational initiatives.

Key Responsibilities:

The overall purpose of this role is to provide administrative and operational support across the fundraising department. You will work closely with the Head of Fundraising and Development to support donor recognition and stewardship, fundraising finance processes, and collate data for reporting against KPIs.

The key responsibilities of this role include:

Donor recognition and supporter care

• Thank Challenge event and one-off donors promptly, warmly, and accurately, within agreed turnaround times, tailoring acknowledgements by gift size, channel, and giving history.

• Administer donor recognition processes, including welcome journeys for new regular givers, milestone and anniversary acknowledgements, and recognition of mid-level and repeat donors.

• Respond to supporter enquiries by email, phone, and post in a professional and sensitive manner, escalating complex matters as appropriate.

• Handle sensitive gifts, such as in memory donations, with care and discretion.

• Support the stewardship of challenge event participants and community fundraisers, including fundraising materials, sponsorship processing, and thanking.

Individual giving and donation processing

• Record donations accurately and regularly on Salesforce, ensuring each gift is coded correctly by source, campaign, and restriction.

• Process payroll giving donations

• Maintain the Mailchimp donor database including uploading new donors

• Carry out regular reconciliations of donation income with Finance colleagues, investigating and resolving discrepancies.

• Administer regular giving, including setting up, amending, and cancelling regular gifts, and monitoring failed payments.

• Support the delivery of individual giving campaigns and appeals, with donation handling, data segmentation, and post campaign administration.

• Assist in processing and acknowledging occasional one-off donations received across all channels and platforms, including online giving platforms, direct debits, standing orders, cheques, and bank transfers.

Gift Aid

• Maintain complete and compliant Gift Aid declaration records for all eligible donors.

• Prepare and submit regular Gift Aid claims to HMRC, ensuring claims are accurate, maximised, and submitted on schedule.

• Keep an audit trail of claims and declarations in line with HMRC requirements, and support any related audit or compliance activity.

• Identify opportunities to increase Gift Aid uptake across giving channels.

Data and compliance

• Maintain accurate, up to date supporter records on the fundraising database, including contact details, communication preferences, and consent.

• Ensure all supporter data is handled in line with UK GDPR, the Fundraising Regulator's Code of Fundraising Practice, and RCEW policies.

• Run routine data hygiene tasks such as deduplication, returned mail processing, and preference updates.

• Produce simple reports on income and supporter activity to support team planning and reporting to funders and the Board.

General fundraising support

• Monitor and respond to email correspondence in the fundraising inbox

• Provide administrative support across the fundraising function as required, including trusts and foundations, corporate partnerships, and events.

• Maintain fundraising records, templates, and process documentation so that key tasks are well documented and consistent.

• Research potential donors and funding opportunities to support the organisation’s goals.

• Provide administrative support during grant application processes, including compiling documents and tracking deadlines.

• Coordinate logistics for fundraising events, including venue booking, catering, and invitations.

• Contribute to a positive, collaborative team culture and take part in team meetings and organisational activity.

• Undertake other reasonable duties consistent with the level of the role.

The post holder is expected to work collaboratively with internal teams and external stakeholders to promote the aims and values of Rape Crisis England & Wales. Therefore, this list is indicative only, not exhaustive. It is intended to reflect a range of duties the post-holder will be expected to perform but additional duties commensurate with the role may be required. The job description will be reviewed from time to time and may change in light of experience and changing circumstances, in consultation with the post-holder. We ask all employees to uphold our organisational values, support our mission and purpose, and to maintain respectful and collaborative relationships with colleagues at all levels of the organisation.

Person Specification

· A relevant qualification in Fundraising or a related field would be desirable.

· Proven experience in a fundraising role, ideally within a corporate, nonprofit, or government environment.

· Experience with fundraising activities such as donor relations, and materials preparation

· Strong ability to coordinate multiple tasks simultaneously, ensuring deadlines are met and operations run smoothly.

· Detail-oriented with excellent time management and prioritisation skills.

· Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to prepare reports, presentations, and donor correspondence.

· Ability to communicate effectively with senior leadership, team members, external stakeholders, and donors.

· Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint)

· Familiarity with donor management platforms (e.g., JustGiving)

· Experience with Salesforce would be beneficial

· Ability to approach challenges with a proactive and solutions-oriented mindset and make decisions based on data, policies, and best practices.

*Shortlisting will be based on the candidates’ ability to demonstrate the criteria in bold.

Personal Attributes:

• Results-oriented with a passion for making a difference and working proactively.
• Collaborative and able to build strong internal and external relationships.
• Adaptable, innovative, and comfortable with change.
• Excellent organisational, problem-solving and decision-making abilities

 Eligibility

Applicants must have the right to work in the UK. Evidence of this will be required prior to appointment.

 Additional Information

Please note: We reserve the right to close this vacancy early should we receive a sufficient number of applications. We therefore encourage interested candidates to apply as soon as possible.

Due to the volume of applications received, only candidates selected for interview will be contacted.