Trust fundraiser jobs in Milton keynes, england

Calibre Audio is a national charity providing accessible audiobooks to people who are unable to read print due to visual impairment, dyslexia, or other conditions. Through a digital-first service and diverse library, the charity enables children and adults to experience the joy and lifelong benefits of reading, while increasingly delivering impact across literacy, education, wellbeing and social inclusion.

Fundraising at Calibre Audio is entering an exciting new phase of development. The charity has recently appointed its first Director of Fundraising & Communications, bringing fundraising, communications and brand together under a newly created leadership role. With a refreshed organisational narrative, ambitious plans for growth and a renewed focus on increasing income and profile, fundraising is becoming an increasingly important driver of Calibre Audio’s future impact.

Trusts and foundations are a key part of this growth strategy. Historically, income has been generated through a combination of loyal funders and a high volume of smaller grants. The organisation is now seeking to build a more strategic trusts programme focused on stronger stewardship, deeper funder relationships, larger grants and long-term partnerships. There is significant untapped potential, including opportunities to re-engage previous funders, develop new relationships and secure support for a range of compelling programmes spanning literacy, education, disability, wellbeing and community impact.

The Senior Trusts Fundraiser will lead this work, partnering closely with the Director to shape and deliver the next phase of trusts fundraising at Calibre Audio. This is a role with genuine scope to influence strategy, develop new opportunities and make a visible contribution to organisational growth. It would suit an ambitious trusts fundraiser who enjoys relationship building as much as writing applications and is motivated by the opportunity to help build something.

As Senior Trusts Fundraiser, you will:

• Develop and implement a strategic trusts and foundations fundraising programme aligned with organisational priorities
• Identify, research and cultivate new funding opportunities, with a focus on larger and multi-year grants
• Build and manage a strong pipeline of prospective trusts and foundations
• Develop compelling, high-quality funding applications, proposals and report
• Secure significant income from a portfolio of trusts and foundations
• Build and strengthen long-term relationships with funders through excellent stewardship and engagement
• Reactivate and develop relationships with previous funders and supporters
• Work closely with colleagues across the organisation to gather impact data and develop compelling cases for support
• Act as a key ambassador for Calibre Audio with funders and external stakeholders

Essential skills and experience:

• Proven track record of securing five-figure grants from trusts and foundations
• Strong relationship-building and stakeholder engagement skills
• Excellent written communication skills, with the ability to develop persuasive and compelling funding applications
• Strong prospect research and pipeline development skills
• Experience identifying, developing and securing new funding opportunities
• Excellent verbal communication skills and confidence engaging with external stakeholders
• A proactive and entrepreneurial approach, with the ability to spot opportunities and drive activity forward
• Strong organisational skills and the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines

Desirable, but not essential:

• Experience securing six-figure and/or multi-year grants
• Knowledge of the disability, literacy, education or wellbeing sectors
• Experience using Beacon CRM
• Experience contributing to fundraising strategy

Calibre Audio are also keen to hear from ambitious early-career fundraisers. Whilst a track record of securing trusts funding is essential, we are more interested in your potential, approach and attributes than the size of grants you have secured to date. If you bring strong relationship-building skills, initiative and an entrepreneurial mindset, this role offers an exceptional opportunity to work closely with an experienced fundraising leader, benefit from coaching and mentoring, and play a key role in shaping a growing trusts programme.

Employee benefits include

• 30 days annual leave plus bank holidays and an additional Calibre Christmas closure day
• Matched pension contributions up to 5% of salary
• Medical Cash Plan (Hive Insurance Bronze Package)
• Life Assurance cover of 2 x salary
• Employee Assistance Programme 
• Reward Gateway, offering discounts and savings across hundreds of retailers
• Free on-site parking

As a key member of the Trusts & Grants team, The Trusts & Grants Fundraiser will work closely with the Trusts & Grants Manager to raise funds from a portfolio of charitable trusts in accordance with Child Bereavement UK’s budgets and targets.

Initiative, creativity, excellent organization and writing skills are required, together with the ability to develop persuasive proposals and nurture effective relationships with key stakeholders across Child Bereavement UK and externally.

This role comes at a particularly important time for CBUK when the charity is looking to evolve and grow services, diversify into new areas, and raise significant funds for ongoing work. The Trusts & Grants Team are a vital part of the charity’s expansion into new areas, and the post-holder will have the opportunity to work with frontline staff to develop new projects and bids.

Main Responsibilities

Leadership

• Create timely and compelling bespoke proposals and applications to charitable and corporate trusts, Lotteries and Government bodies.
• Develop and deliver to donor care plans to provide excellent supporter care to trust funders; aim to involve supporters in the achievement of the Child Bereavement UK mission and maximise the value and longevity of their support – providing accurate and informative reports and invitations to project visits and events where appropriate.
• Support in the development of new case for support and project documents; work with front-line staff to develop new bids and budgets.
• Keep up to date with Child Bereavement UK’s work, key priorities and future plans to effectively match with supporters’ interests and identify opportunities for support.
• Contribute to the Trusts and Grants annual business planning process as well as monthly planning and budget reforecasting.
• Undertake rigorous identification of prospective grant funders and detailed research into strong leads (through desktop research and face to face/virtual networking).
• Work closely with colleagues in other areas of fundraising and other departments across the charity, as well as volunteers and supporters to build strong working relationships and maximise cross selling opportunities.
• Ensure the effective management of all relevant information, including maintaining accurate information for prospects and donors on the charity’s database (Sales Force).
• Utilise a range of internal work and planning tools to ensure bids are of a good quality, relationships are maintained, and internal stakeholders are included in any decisions.
• Develop personal knowledge of trust fundraising, including completing relevant training and regularly reviewing relevant press and publications from relevant organisations.

Person Specification

Essential

• Educated to GCSE level or equivalent
• Trust fundraising experience
• Managing a varied workload
• Verbal and written communication with internal and external contacts
• Proven track-record of managing funder relationships with positive outcomes
• Outstanding written and verbal communication skills
• Excellent numeracy and analytical skills
• Strong interpersonal skills
• Ability to prioritise, work under pressure and to deadlines whilst maintaining excellent attention to detail
• Able to take responsibility for own work, consistently achieving and delivering to high standards, on time.
• Strong organizational skills
• Strong working knowledge of MS Office, in particular Word and Excel. Good numeracy skills

Desirable

• Experience of generating funds through government contracts
• Stakeholder relationship management
• Using Sales Force or another CRM database
• Experience of account management in the third sector
• Experience managing relationships with large-scale funders, including, but not limited to, the National Lottery, local government bodies, the NHS, Children in Need etc
• Research skills
• Relationship management

Benefits

• 25 days’ holiday plus bank holidays (pro rata if applicable) with increase for long service.
• TOIL for our hours work.
• Contributory pension scheme.
• Company sick pay.
• Employee Assistance Programme.
• Life assurance.
• Training loans.
• Enhanced family friendly policies.

Recruitment Timetable

Application deadline: 16th June 2026 at midnight

We reserve the right to close the vacancy early if we receive a high number of applications for the role before the closing date.

Please refer to our recruitment pack for further details on the interview process.