Unit event services lead jobs in Cardiff, wales
Purpose
Horatio’s Garden is a nationwide charity creating and nurturing beautifully designed gardens in NHS’s spinal injury centres.
The Patient Experience Manager will be instrumental in supporting patients and families use of the garden.
Along with the Head Gardener, you will be responsible for the smooth running of a thriving, vibrant garden ensuring the patient and their family are appropriately supported throughout their time in the spinal unit.
This role requires you to manage a team of volunteers and work closely with the Head Gardener who maintains the horticultural standard of the garden and delivers therapeutic horticulture sessions. You will be managed by the National Patient Experience Lead.
You will be responsible for developing and maintaining relationships with clinical and non-clinical NHS staff, corporate sponsors, funders, the Fundraising team, the Communications team and the National Patient Experience Manager.
The gardens have been beautifully designed and maintained, and the role of the garden needs to reflect an appropriate environment for patients and their families at all stages of their stay. From the initial welcome, to ensuring the contact and relationship is consistent with activities to suit their needs.
You will be responsible for developing and delivering social activities, supported by the charity’s National Patient Experience Manager and in collaboration with the wider Spinal Injuries team in Cardiff. These activities will mainly need to be held at the weekend or in the afternoons which are critical times in the garden when most patients are available and often have friends and family to visit. Currently the Events programme includes seasonal celebrations and social and craft activities. External facilitators also deliver workshops and live music performances.
This is a fantastic opportunity for a confident, proactive individual who is efficient, well organised and has outstanding communication and relationship building skills. You will need to be adaptable and friendly and confident working with a wide range of people including people with spinal injuries and their families, NHS staff, volunteers and many different teams within the charity.
Main Duties and Responsibilities
People with spinal injuries
· Develop relationships with patients and families to ensure the best experience for them in the garden at every stage of their stay
· Maintain a consistent social and arts activity programme appropriate for the current patient group, liaising with the National Patient Experience Manager and managing the volunteers accordingly
· Organise a programme of seasonal events, reflecting the needs of patients
· Work with the Impact Manager to monitor patient experience and the impact of the garden
· Ensure the garden is managed to allow the correct balance to be in place to benefit both patients and external parties (major donors, trusts, corporate groups and other visitors)
NHS staff
· Develop and maintain productive and collaborative relationships with NHS clinical teams and voluntary services
Volunteers
· Recruitment and training of new volunteers
· Manage the team of volunteers to ensure the smooth running of the garden with patient experience at its core
Fundraising and Communications
· Work with fundraising managers, Head Gardener and volunteers to develop opportunities to generate income in the garden through friends, corporate friends and third-party fundraising
· Support corporate sponsor events and fundraising opportunities
· Represent the garden and charity at key events
· Promote the local social media accounts and provide regular updates for content
· Interviews with press/media as required
Administrative
· Ensure all administrative tasks associated with the role are monitored, completed and maintained
· Manage the garden budget along with the Head Gardener
· Collate and bank donations and manage petty cash
· Assist with ensuring the garden room is kept clean and tidy at all times
· Collate data showing usage in the garden and volunteer hours
Safeguarding
· Comply with all safeguarding policies and report any concerns to the Safeguarding Lead immediately
· This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check
Assist the Patient Experience Lead with any other tasks as required.
It should be noted that the list above is intended to give an overall view of the position and should be taken as guidance only.
Please see the full Person Specification in the Job Description attached.
Essential
- Flexible and able to work to suit patient requirements
Closing date: 5th February 23.30
The first round of interviews will take place on the 18th February
The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
Job Title: Regional Fundraising Area Manager
Location: Home Based covering the North of England, with frequent travel around the region and the UK including our London office and Teenage Cancer Trust units.
You will be required to attend fundraising events which may take place in the evenings and/or weekends and may occasionally be in areas with limited public transport options therefore we ask that applicants have access to a vehicle and a valid UK driving licence.
Hours: 35 hours per week
Contract type: Permanent
Salary: £46,979 per annum
What we do: We help young people through cancer
How we work: We’re Determined, United, Spirited and Kind
What we’re looking for:
- Someone with strong knowledge of Community Fundraising.
- A strategic leader with a proven ability to grow income and inspire teams.
- Someone with experience of leading, inspiring and managing a regional dispersed fundraising team to deliver and grow income.
- Someone with experience of leading projects that drives efficiency and continuous improvement of fundraising activities.
How to apply:
You’ll need to register on our portal, complete a short application form and answer questions about your skills and experience in relation to the role.
Key dates:
Applications by 07 February 2026, 1st stage interviews on 17 February 2026 online and 2nd Stage interviews on 25 February 2026 (location to be decided).
We’re here to give every young person facing cancer the best care and support.



The client requests no contact from agencies or media sales.
The Organisation
Family Fund is the UK’s largest charity supporting low-income families raising disabled or seriously ill children and young people.
We help thousands of families every year with essential grants, services and practical support. But we do much more than that. We champion families’ voices, challenge inequality and help shape the conversation on disability, childhood illness and disadvantage.
The Role
This is an exciting opportunity to shape how Family Fund connects with people across the UK. As a newly created role, it offers real scope to define and develop the function, while playing a central role in strengthening the organisation’s voice and influence.
We are looking for a bold, creative Group Director of External Affairs to join our Senior Leadership Team. At a time when families need us more than ever, you will raise Family Fund’s national profile and influence, positioning the organisation as a trusted, evidence led voice on childhood disability, serious illness and the broader challenges facing low-income families. You will build and sustain strong relationships with policymakers, funders, and the public ensuring the organisation secures the visibility, support, and resources needed to drive lasting change for the families we serve.
You will lead an energetic, specialist team spanning communications, media, public affairs, partnerships and research, bringing these areas together through a joined up external engagement strategy that delivers real impact.
Some key responsibilities include:
- Lead our communications, media, public affairs, partnerships and research teams
- Raise Family Fund’s profile as a trusted national voice
- Build strong relationships with policymakers, media, funders and partners
- Help drive real change for families through influence and insight
Who we’re looking for
We are looking for an experienced leader who loves the power of communication, influence and connection.
Key attributes will include:
- Senior experience in external affairs, communications or public affairs
- A strong track record of influencing policy and engaging senior stakeholders
- Experience leading teams and working at senior level
- A warm, confident communication style and great relationship skills
- A real passion for Family Fund’s mission and social justice
This is an exciting, high impact role with the chance to make a genuine difference to families across the UK.
Candidate Briefing Pack
For comprehensive information about Family Fund, the role responsibilities and the person we are looking for, please download the Candidate Briefing Pack.
How to Apply
If you would like to apply for this fantastic opportunity, please provide the following with your application:
- An up-to-date CV
- A supporting statement of no more than 2 sides of A4, outlining your experience, motivations and suitability for the role.
All applications are being handled by our recruitment partner, Russam. All applications should be uploaded via the Russam website.
If you have any difficulty uploading your application or if you would like to have an informal and confidential discussion about the role, please contact Melissa Baxter - Managing Partner, Charities at Russam.
Closing date for applications: Monday 2nd February 2026
Initial interviews with Russam: 17th and 18th February 2026
Interviews with Family Fund: 4th, 5th and 6th March 2026
Flexibility will be provided if needed - do let us know as soon as possible if you are unavailable on these dates.
We commit to inclusion, equality and diversity and we welcome applications from all parts of the community. Family Fund is a Disability Confident Leader. We will invite to interview all disabled applicants who meet the requirements for the role. If you have a disability, and are happy to let us know, please highlight this in your covering letter. We have also signed the Armed Forces Covenant, and we welcome applications from the Armed Forces Community.