Welfare benefit advisor jobs in walton on thames, surrey

In the UK, in areas of disadvantage, up to 40% of children do not reach a good level of development by the age of 5. Our client’s vision is of a society that cherishes children’s development in the early years, where every child can thrive and achieve their full potential.

Using a collective impact approach, the organisation is driving and supporting collaboration between funders, the public, private and the voluntary sector to improve outcomes in the early years. Listening to the voice, and harnessing the power of parents, carers and families in local communities is central to the change that Thrive and Five seeks to make.

In just four years, our client’s work is making a difference, with positive progress of children who’ve had the benefit of the charity’s pilot programme.  The impact of our work was recognised in Parliament as the Secretary for State delivered the Best Start in Life Strategy and the charity was  invited to share our public/voluntary sector partnership model at the Government’ Summit to launch the Civil Society Covenant. The Department for Education is interested to see how our approach aligns with their mission to help 75% of children reach a Good Level of Development by 2028. 

Director 

North East, working in person in Teesside three days a week 

Up to £85,000, dependent on experience

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced leader, with a passion for giving children the best possible start and with a strong belief in the power of communities. The role will work both locally and nationally, as part of the wider team. 

The Director will manage our client’s existing programme in Redcar and Cleveland with a talented and committed team (10 staff). They will also develop and manage the new programme in Middlesbrough, currently in Discovery phase, and recruit a staff team of 8- 10 people, with support from the charity’s central team.  Once set up, the Director will lead the following across both areas: 

• Building relationships and networks in the areas, across the public, voluntary and private sector 

• Leading the team to support delivery of the charity's local early years strategy in the areas

• Leading the delivery of a portfolio of complementary workstreams, continuously refining and strengthening the work so that we make the greatest possible positive difference to local children and families 

• Working closely with local partners and the national team to ensure that data and learning is captured and fed into strategic thinking and our national model 

Supported by our central team, the Director will enable local stakeholders to collectively support parents and children under 5, to improve outcomes in the early years and particularly improve levels of school readiness. Crucial to this work will be engaging with and empowering local parents who are the key to successful delivery of the initiative.

This is an exciting opportunity for an impact focussed leader, who brings: 

• Experience of working at a senior level with public sector and/or voluntary organisations involved in the delivery of services and support to families with children under 5 

• A track record of implementing concurrent and complex workstreams effectively, with proven project management and evaluation skills 

• Experience at leading and developing staff teams

• Experience of building networks of solid relationships with a wide range of stakeholders

You will relish the opportunity to deliver a model that ensures strength in communities, achieves long term sustainability and aims to achieve long-term systemic improvements in early childhood development. 

We are committed to inclusion in all aspects of our work and our new Director will have the ability to collaborate effectively with people from diverse backgrounds and cultures and nurture differing views. They will work sensitively with the changing needs of our communities and be comfortable talking about the importance of inclusion to a range of audiences. 

Recruitment Timetable

Closing date:  Sunday 31st August 2025 

Initial interviews with Prospectus: 5-12th September 2025 

Panel interviews with our client: w/c 15th September 2025 

Queries 

If you have any queries or wish to have an informal discussion about the opportunity, please contact our retained advisors Anna Gardet or Erica Ritchie with a copy of your CV.

Location: London and one other location TBC - Hybrid working

Salary: Grade 7 - £53,781 per annum

Closing date: Sunday 31st August 2025 at 11.30 pm

Full time - 37.5 hours per week 

Please note that this role is being advertised as Senior Solicitor but on appointment the job title will be Managing Solicitor.

Join Shelter as a Senior Solicitor, in our mission to drive systemic change and fight for Justice.

If you are a dedicated Solicitor with specialist knowledge in housing and homelessness law, and a strong commitment to addressing the housing crisis we welcome you to apply for this role.

At a time when the housing emergency continues to deepen, your experience could help transform lives and challenge the systems that perpetuate injustice. Come and play a central role in our mission as a Senior Solicitor to lead a team to defend the right to a safe and secure home.

Working with Shelter means being part of a passionate team that believes a safe home is a fundamental right. Here, your legal skills don’t just change lives—they shape a fairer housing system.

About the role 

You will ensure you and your team will deliver high quality legal services and manage our Legal Aid Contract, with your main focus being on your own caseload and to manage and supervise the legal teams who are advocating for clients with housing issues, as well as bringing about systemic change. You will be dealing with personnel issues, providing professional support and supervision to your team, including but not limited to, independent file reviews (IFRs), time recording and good case management, as well as carrying your own caseload of housing litigation.

Contributing to the strategic direction of Shelter legal services nationally will be an important aspect of the role too, as will taking the lead on delivering strategic change aligned to Shelter’s strategy and ensuring Legal aid contract requirements and performance targets are met.

You will be able to identify test case opportunities to address systemic bad practice and so achieve change for a greater number of people and will work closely with the Head of Legal Services, the Hub Management Team and teams within Communications, Policy and Campaigns and Business Development. As a key member of the management team, you will also get to play your part in the management of our offices, including attending management team meetings and collaborating with other teams.

About you

You will be an experienced housing solicitor, court advocate, carrying your own caseload as well as managing and supervising others. You will have a minimum of 4 years post qualification legal practice experience, have supervisor status and have substantial knowledge of housing and homelessness law. You are able to carry out research and policy analysis in the areas of housing, homeless and welfare law, produce reports and presentations.

Benefits

We offer a wide range of benefits, including 30 days of annual leave, enhanced family friendly policies, pension and interest free travel loans. Our employees also have access to a tenancy deposit loan, payroll giving, cycle to work scheme and an employee assistance programme.

About the team

Our legal Teams (Managing Solicitors, Solicitors, Legal Advisors and Trainees) are based throughout the England hubs, we are currently based in London, Plymouth, Dorset, Bristol, Norwich, Birmingham, Manchester, Merseyside, Lancashire, Sheffield and Newcastle.

Our teams are enthusiastic, driven and champions for fighting the housing injustice.  Our teams whilst generating an income also address the housing crisis.

About Shelter

Home is a human right. It’s our foundation and where we thrive. Yet everyday millions of people are being devastated by the housing emergency.

We exist to defend the right to a safe home. Because home is everything.

We need ambitious, passionate people to join us. This is your chance to play a part in the fundamental change we are striving to achieve.

Our enemy is the social injustice at the core of the escalating housing emergency. To win this fight, we must be representative of the people we are here to help and those who support our movement. In all our people decisions, we take pride in being inclusive, equitable and transparent. We are committed to combating racism both within and outside Shelter. We welcome you on our journey to becoming truly anti-racist.

How to apply

Please submit your CV with a supporting statement with responses to the 'About You' points 1-5 outlined in the job description of no more than 1000 words total. Please provide specific examples following the STAR format and ensure you demonstrate how you address the behaviour below throughout your responses:

• We prioritise diversity and have an inclusive and open mindset

CVs without an accompanying supporting statement will not be considered.

Safeguarding Statement

Safeguarding is everyone's business. Shelter is committed to protecting the health, wellbeing and human rights of those we support, and enabling them to live free from harm, abuse and neglect. All our staff will be expected to observe professional standards of behaviour and conduct their work in line with our Safeguarding Policies.

Recruitment Agencies

Shelter does not accept unsolicited CVs from external recruitment agencies nor accept the fees associated with them.

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People – Principal Gift Manager
Location: Options for role to be site-based (Buckinghamshire or East Yorkshire), hybrid or home-based contract with regular UK travel for donor meetings and team events.
Salary: £60,000 per annum.
Contract: Permanent, full-time hours. 

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People, whose mission is to see a time when no deaf person feels alone, is seeking a Principal Gifts Manager responsible for identifying, cultivating and stewarding high-value donors to the charity giving £100,000 plus.

Hearing Dogs for Deaf People has been creating life-changing partnerships between hearing dogs and deaf recipients since 1982. As well as acting as an ear to their partners and alerting them to sounds, the charity’s clever and expertly trained dogs help deaf people to live life with confidence and independence, whilst providing love, companionship and emotional support.

Following on from a strategic review, the charity is now looking to build a new Income Generation Directorate, to enable them to transform many more lives across the UK. This role will be critical to help Hearing Dogs reach their goals to significantly grow and diversify income.

Reporting to the Head of Philanthropy, the post-holder will work closely with senior leaders, trustees and senior stakeholders to solicit high value gifts, typically of six and seven figures, and to build and deepen long-term relationships between donors and the charity. You will be responsible for developing and managing a portfolio of potential and current principal-level donors, as well as delivering exceptional stewardship journeys that demonstrate the impact and value of donor support.

The successful candidate will have a proven track record in securing major gifts at the six-figure level or above, ideally in a principal or transformational giving context. You will be skilled at building and maintaining strong, long-term relationships with high-net-worth individuals, as well as be experienced at developing and delivering complex donor strategies and bespoke giving propositions. Finally, it is important that you are a collaborative team player with strong project management and communication skills.

This is an exceptional opportunity to play a leading role in scaling transformational philanthropy at a charity which is changing people’s lives every day, where you have the flexibility of working remotely or spending time at Hearing Dogs’ stunning bases in Buckinghamshire or Yorkshire, with friendly and passionate staff and their four-legged friends.

If you want to lead the pack and help deaf people live well with hearing loss Please download our Candidate Pack for further information [PDF], which includes details on how to apply.

Closing date: Monday 1st September, 9.00 am. 

We want a world where no one dies from hunger. Life-threatening hunger is predictable, preventable and treatable. Join Action Against Hunger and together we will stop it in its tracks.

Action Against Hunger is an optimistic, inspiring place to work. We want passionate and dedicated people to help build a better world. We’re a creative team made up of people with a wide range of talents, styles and expertise. But we are united in our relentless dedication to end world hunger. No challenge is too big. With you we can do it. Join us.

We are looking for a senior solicitor who is passionate about working for an international humanitarian organisation and who shares the values of Action Against Hunger and the wider sector.

Working with the Chief Executive and the Executive Committee of Directors, you will act as Company Secretary and as head of a small Legal and Governance team. This will involve providing high quality advice on legal, risk, compliance and governance matters across the UK organisation and progressing strategic priorities to ensure first class management of these areas. 

You will respond to a broad range of legal queries and develop robust policies and procedures to advise on compliance with legal, regulatory and donor requirements, voluntary standards and best practice.  You will be confident in working independently to provide high quality advice, drafting and reviewing contracts, preparing and delivering training, working with the Board of Trustees and instructing external counsel where appropriate. You will also work closely with the Executive Committee and the Board Audit, Risk and Compliance Committee to support reporting and management of risks across the organisation.

This is an exciting opportunity for a senior solicitor who is looking to build experience in the NGO sector and work in a broad, challenging and interesting role as part of a dynamic team. We would love to hear from you if you’re interested in joining us. For more detailed information on the role – and to see whether you have the necessary experience - please download the attached pdf Job description.

Closing Date: 8-Sep-2025 23:30

Interview Date: We intend to hold first round interviews on 17 & 18 September and second round interviews to be held on 22 & 24 September (or alternative dates can be arranged if needed).

Please read the following carefully before making your application: then all you need to do is send your CV and write a supporting statement explaining why you want the job and how your skills and experience make you the right person for the role and where you saw this vacancy.

• As a UK based position, candidates must have the right to work in the UK
• We welcome applications from all sections of the community and we encourage as broad a range of candidates as possible. If you need any additional support to help you through this process, please let us know (contact details in the job pack)
• Due to the high volume of applications we receive, we will only contact shortlisted candidates, within two weeks of the closing date Unfortunately, we cannot provide individual feedback
• If you experience any technical difficulties in submitting your application, please contact the charityjob helpdesk