Senior special events manager jobs in Birmingham

At Special Olympics GB, we're changing the way people think about intellectual disability.

Every day, our athletes challenge expectations, inspire communities and demonstrate what's possible when people are given the opportunity to thrive.

Corporate and commercial partnerships are fundamental to making that happen. They enable us not only to generate sustainable income, but to create opportunities for our athletes through volunteering, employment, leadership, education, inclusion and powerful brand collaborations.

As we build towards the Special Olympics World Summer Games in Chile and continue to grow our national movement, we're looking for an exceptional partnership professional to lead and evolve this work.

This isn't a traditional charity partnerships role. We're looking for someone who combines exceptional stewardship with commercial curiosity, entrepreneurial thinking and creativity. Someone who enjoys spotting opportunities, challenging conventional approaches and designing partnerships that create genuine shared value.

You'll inherit an exciting portfolio of national partners (Coca-Cola Europacific Partners, Toyota GB, Fuller’s pubs, Ocean Outdoor, Mitsubishi Electric UK and others), lead a small but ambitious team, and work alongside the Director of Development to shape the future of one of the UK's most exciting purpose-led partnership programmes.

Thank you for your interest in joining the Institute of Health Visiting (iHV), the UK’s leading professional body for health visiting.

This is a rare and exciting opportunity to join a growing, forward-looking organisation at a pivotal time. With a strong and expanding membership, iHV is working to strengthen the health visiting workforce and shape the future of child and family health across the UK.

As Policy Manager, you will play a key role in influencing national policy across priority areas including early years, prevention, public health, child protection and workforce. Your work will directly support iHV’s mission to improve outcomes and reduce inequalities for babies, children, families and communities and spread excellence in health visiting.

Working closely with our clinical team, members and partners, you will develop evidence-based policy positions and help ensure frontline expertise informs decision-making at the highest levels.

You will be joining a collaborative, passionate team in a fast-paced environment where no two days are the same – and where your work will make a real and lasting difference. For full information, please view our recruitment pack. 

Key responsibilities:

• Lead the co-development of evidence-based policy positions with iHV’s clinical team, members and partners.
• Monitor policy developments and identify opportunities to influence change.
• Produce high-quality briefings, consultation responses and reports.
• Build relationships with stakeholders across government, charities and the health sector.
• Gather, synthesise and apply frontline insight to inform policy development – including the production of iHV’s high-profile ‘State of Health Visiting’ survey and report.
• Work closely with the Systems and Digital Manager, applying digital and data expertise to leverage digital tools and emerging technologies (including AI) to strengthen evidence-gathering, inform policy development, and improve organisational effectiveness.
• Support delivery of policy elements of iHV projects and organisational priorities.
• Represent iHV at meetings and contribute to sector discussions.

About you:

We are looking for the following essential skills and experience:

• Strong understanding of UK policy-making processes and child and family health/ early years policy – ideally informed by experience working within or closely with government or public sector organisations.
• Exceptional writing skills, with a proven ability to produce authoritative, high impact briefings, reports and policy documents that are clear, persuasive and tailored to diverse audiences.
• Highly developed analytical skills, with the ability to interpret complex information and evidence from multiple sources and translate this into clear, practical and actionable policy recommendations.
• Ability to collate, synthesise and critically assess diverse sources of insight, including frontline practitioner perspectives, quantitative and qualitative data, to inform robust policy development.
• Experience developing or contributing to evidence-based policy outputs (e.g. briefings, reports, consultation responses).
• Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work effectively and collaboratively with a wide range of stakeholders and partners.
• Strong organisational and project management skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities, coordinate inputs and deliver work to deadlines.
• Confident verbal communication skills, with the ability to contribute effectively to meetings, events and external discussions, presenting complex ideas clearly.

Lead the operations, governance and compliance that enable Solving Kids' Cancer UK to deliver its mission and impact for children and families affected by neuroblastoma. Reporting to the Chief Executive, you will play a critical role in ensuring the charity operates effectively, compliantly and sustainably.

This broad and varied leadership role spans governance, risk, HR, IT, data protection and organisational operations, supporting delivery of the charity's strategy through robust systems, policies and processes. Acting as Company Secretary, you will work closely with the CEO and Board of Trustees, providing advice on governance, regulatory requirements and best practice. As a member of the Leadership Team, you will oversee key operational functions, lead cross-organisational projects and deputise for the CEO where required.

Who are we looking for?

We are looking for a strategic, highly organised and values-driven leader with strong experience in charity operations, governance and compliance. You will have a track record of ensuring organisations are well run, compliant and effectively managed, with the ability to oversee multiple operational areas and support strong governance and decision-making at Board level.

You will be comfortable working across a broad remit, including governance, risk, HR, IT and data protection, and confident providing clear, practical advice to senior leaders and trustees.

Person specification

Key requirements include:

• Significant senior-level experience in operations, governance or compliance within a charity or similar environment. 
• Strong understanding of charity governance and regulation, with experience supporting boards and senior leadership. 
• Experience overseeing organisational functions such as HR, IT, data protection or risk. 
• Proven ability to manage multiple priorities and lead cross-organisational work effectively. 
• Strong judgement, integrity and the ability to handle sensitive matters with discretion. 

See our Recruitment Pack for the full role description and specification and for information about Solving Kids' Cancer UK. 

This is an opportunity to make a significant contribution at the heart of a small, ambitious charity where strong operations are a vital enabler of impact for children and families.

Location: Home-based, within easy reach of London, with regular travel to the London office and occasional UK-wide travel.

First-stage interview: Thursday 6 August 

Second-stage interview: Thursday 13 August