Fundraising engagement lead jobs in Edinburgh

Team: Research & Engagement (Philanthropy & Partnerships) 

Location: Homebased 

Work pattern: 35 hours per week, Monday to Friday 

Salary: Up to £38,918.33 per annum 

Contract: Permanent

We are the UK’s largest cat welfare charity. All over the country, our enthusiastic employees, volunteers, and supporters are using their kindness and expertise to make life better for millions of cats and the people who care for them. 

Will you join us and make life better for cats? 

Responsibilities of our Proposition Writer: 

• The Proposition Writer is a key communications role within the Philanthropy and Partnerships Research and Engagement team. You will work closely with colleagues across the organisation to bring our work to life, translating complex programmes and strategic priorities into compelling, donor focused narratives and materials.
• Through the development of bespoke propositions, investment cases, impact reporting and supporting assets, you will help connect donors and partners to the change their support can make, inspiring confidence, commitment and long-term investment in Cats Protection’s mission ultimately helping to improve cat welfare.

About the Research and Engagement team: 

• We sit within the Marketing & Income Generation directorate. 

• The Research and Engagement team sits within Philanthropy and Partnerships and brings together prospect research, communications and events to ensure a coordinated, insight-led and supporter-centred approach supporting fundraisers to grow pipelines, build meaningful relationships, and maximise long-term income for Cats Protection.

What we are looking for in our Proposition Writer: 

• Experience of developing clear, persuasive cases for support, working with internal colleagues to translate complex programmes or strategic priorities into compelling, fundable propositions
• Experience of producing high quality proposals and supporting materials for high value audiences, including Major Donors, philanthropic trusts and foundations, and/or corporate partners.
• Experience of working collaboratively across team
• Experience of delivering high quality written work with minimal supervisio
• Experience of managing a busy workload with competing prioritie
• Confidence working with senior internal stakeholders, contributing effectively to discussions around priorities, messaging and narrative development.

What we can offer you: 

• range of health benefits 

• 26 days’ annual leave plus bank holidays, increasing with length of service. 

• Salary Finance, which empowers you to take control of your financial wellbeing. 

• and much more, which you can learn about

Interested? Here’s how to apply: 

Application closing date: 28th June 2026 

Virtual interview date: 13th, 14th & 16th July 2026

Applications may close before the deadline, so please apply early to avoid disappointment. Please note, applications received after the closing date may not be responded to. 

If successful, your recruitment journey will include: 

1. Anonymised application form 

2. Virtual interview via Microsoft Teams 

Please note, the process may change slightly dependent on application numbers. We will inform you of any relevant changes. 

About NEON 

NEON is a not-for-profit organisation committed to accelerating social movements. We build capacity and infrastructure to accelerate the transition to a new economy. We work across a wide range of progressive issues including climate, housing, healthcare, and migration and we support over 1,000 organisers across the UK working towards political, environmental, and social justice. Our theory of change is rooted in understanding both the strategies, stories, and structures required to sustain a movement. Short term, this results in improved movement infrastructure, skills, and connections; long term, it leads to robust relationships and movement alliances capable of systemic change. 

Context

NEON’s People & Operations Hub makes sure all our internal systems run smoothly and that our team is happy, high-performing and cared for. The People & Operations Hub brings together people, culture, operations, fundraising and finance, and plays a key role in making sure NEON is both high impact and a joyful place to work, at the heart of this is ensuring our values of respect, generosity and solidarity and anti-oppression principles are embedded into all internal practices.

As part of this, we’re currently looking for someone to support us for a defined period of time to review and refresh some of our core operational and compliance areas, and support us with discrete ops tasks as they arise. This includes reviewing, updating and embedding key systems and processes so that they are clear, usable and consistently followed across NEON. Alongside this, we want to create a NEON-wide handbook, so that we have a simple accessible place where people can find everything they need to know about how we do things at NEON. We also want to strengthen our guidance around event safety, both online and in-person, so staff feel comfortable and supported when planning and delivering work. It’s crucial for us that this work is developed in collaboration with the People & Operations Hub as well as the wider team. 

Who we’re looking for

We’re looking for someone who is comfortable moving across operational and compliance work. Someone who has a solid understanding and experience in delivering high-level health and safety, data protection, IT and systems work, and other operational aspects of running an organisation, and can turn that into something practical, usable and genuinely helpful for our team. Someone who is self-motivated, comfortable working independently, and able to take ownership of pieces of work from start to finish

We’d love someone who has experience working closely in or within people and operations teams in small- medium sized not-for profits or charities, and who knows how to take complex or messy systems and make them simpler, clearer and easier to embed in day-to-day practice. We’re looking for someone aligned with our values of respect, generosity and solidarity and is well-versed in including anti-oppression principles into operational work. Someone who is motivated by working in a values-led organisation where decisions factor in culture, trust and care as well as the technical elements.

This person should be confident reviewing and improving systems and understands and is experienced in working closely with other people to do this, whether that’s with the Director of People and Operations to receive direction or troubleshoot, working alongside our Ops Assistant to put things into practice and draw on their organisational expertise, or engaging the wider team to elicit their ideas and challenges, and incorporate them into improvements. Similarly someone who is able to work with external support we have in place around IT, HR and data protection and translate their recommendations into practical action.

They’ll need to be able to hit the ground running and pick up discrete pieces of work, working thoughtfully and collaboratively with a team that’s juggling lots of different priorities. Aside from improving key pieces of work, the other core part of the role is bringing people with them, which will involve coaching and mentoring skills, a learning and development approach, and helping others feel confident taking on and owning this work.

Above all, we’re looking for someone who understands how to make organisations compliant and well-run in a way that feels proportionate, caring, and realistic for a team of our size. Someone who can embed these pieces of work, without overcomplicating things, and who can foster a sense of shared ownership. We’re also looking for someone who really cares about how operational work is truly embedded and put into practice across organisations, who thinks carefully about what happens after their involvement or support ends and knows how to build internal capability so work doesn’t stay dependent on them.

Key deliverables

By the end of the service period, the following outputs will have been delivered and fully embedded into NEON’s ways of working:

IT and systems

The freelancer will complete a high-level review of NEON’s current IT systems, identify key risks and gaps, and produce a set of recommendations. 

Outputs will include working with the People & Operations Hub to lead implementation and embedding of agreed improvements across tools and ways of working, including an improved GDrive structure, Google Workspace and IT security improvements and an IT and phones policy.

Data protection

The freelancer will complete a high-level review and strengthening of NEON’s GDPR and data protection approach.

Outputs will include updated core policies (GDPR policy, privacy notice, retention policy) and practical guidance to support consistent implementation across the organisation. It also includes delivery of staff training and further strengthening of our “Data Champions”.

Event processes

The freelancer will assess our current event-related practices (online and in-person).

Outputs will include clear, practical recommendations, strengthened guidance for managing event safety and risk in practice and staff training and support.

Health and safety

A review and update of NEON’s health and safety approach will be completed to ensure policies and processes are clear, practical and consistently applied.

Outputs will include an updated H&S policy, incident reporting process, risk assessment templates, and a simple event safety framework with guidance and checklists. It also includes delivering staff training and embedding of H&S practice across the organisation, including clarification of roles and responsibilities.

AI policy and guidance

The freelancer will research and develop NEON’s approach to AI use across the organisation, considering best practice, risks, opportunities, and the impact of AI on staff and NEON’s work. It should also include thoughtful consideration of the harms and ethical concerns associated with AI.

Outputs will include engagement with staff to understand current use and concerns, alongside the creation of clear and practical AI guidance and an organisational AI policy to support safe, thoughtful and consistent use of AI tools across NEON.

NEON Handbook

A NEON-wide handbook will be created, bringing together key processes, guidance and signposting to essential organisational information in one accessible place.

The handbook will be co-developed with staff and People & Operations Hub members to ensure it reflects day-to-day practice and is maintainable internally after completion.

Day-to-day operations support

The freelancer will provide additional operational capacity to support the Hub with emerging priorities, and time-sensitive pieces of work that arise during the contract period.

Outputs may include support with operational problem-solving and decision making, maintaining processes and procedures, providing subject knowledge expertise, maintaining documentation and other discrete operational tasks agreed with the Director of People and Operations.

A key part of this work will be ensuring that all outputs and improvements are properly embedded within the People & Ops Hub and the wider organisation. This includes creating clear documentation, guidance, training and handover processes so that NEON staff can confidently hold and maintain this work after the consultancy ends.

Timescales and fee schedule

The freelancer will be appointed and ready to engage from the end of July/ start of August 2026. We expect this work to be completed across two-three days per week for up to six months, ideally finished by the end of January or February 2027 (depending on start date). There may be a possibility of extension if other relevant and discrete projects arise and in agreement with the Director of People and Operations.

Call out information required

Interested freelancers are asked to provide the following information in response to this call out:

1. Brief career history and details of relevant assignments undertaken (this could be in the form of a CV)

2. A statement not exceeding 800 words on your proposed approach to the deliverables, including:

   1. Your technical and subject matter expertise

   2. Your personal style and approach to working with others

   3. How you will embed our values of respect, generosity and solidarity and anti-oppression principles into the deliverables

3. Your day rate, indicating whether VAT is payable (please note our indicative day rate that is aligned with our internal budget is £375)

4. A clear commitment to undertake the work within the timeframe set out above

5. Two testimonials from suitable clients or professional partners

The deadline for submissions is Sunday 28th June 11.59pm

Please find email address for submission of applications on our website.

We may wish to discuss submissions with you on Monday 6th July or Wednesday 8th July 2026. We will inform you if this is the case.

For any further information or clarification prior to submission, contact us at our website.

The National Youth Agency is looking for a Business Development Manager

Business Development Manager
Contract: 12-month fixed term (Maternity leave cover)
Hours: Full-time - 37 hours per week
Salary: £43,054 per annum (dependent on experience and qualifications)
Location: Home-based in England with occasional travel for meetings, workshops, and team activities. Head Office is in Leicester.

What we do

As the national body for youth work, the NYA has a dual function. We are the professional statutory and regulatory body (PSRB) responsible for qualifications, quality standards, and safeguarding for youth work and services in England. In line with our charity mission and aims, we also champion youth work through research, advocacy, campaigns, and programmes.

We work in partnership and believe in collaborative leadership, listening to youth workers and the youth work sector so that we can understand their needs and respond to the challenges they face. We are ambitious for youth work and for young people and integrate youth voice and influence across our work

About the Role

We are looking for an entrepreneurial and proactive Business Development Manager to develop relationships and opportunities with new clients, drive income generation and to grow the reach of the charity.

This role leads on securing new business opportunities across tenders, grants, consultancy, training, and government contracts, managing the process from initial research through to submission and handover. It focuses on building and maintaining relationships with partners across the public, voluntary, and private sectors, while promoting the NYA’s services and quality framework.

Key Responsibilities

As a Business Development Manager, you will:

• Seeking and attracting new opportunities for the NYA to work with public sector, voluntary sector, and private sector partners.
• Identifying and assessing prospects across tenders, grants, commercial proposals and government frameworks/contracts.
• Developing win themes, evidence, pricing assumptions (where applicable) and coordinating with internal and external stakeholders to develop bids.
• Managing clarifications, presentations/interviews and negotiation stages with commissioners/funders/clients.
• Keeping pipeline and plans up to date and reporting progress/risks against targets.
• Developing relationships with and maintaining existing relationships with clients and funders.
• Taking bids through to close including final agreements and contract sign off.
• Promoting NYA products, resources, consultancy services and training offer.
• Delivering market research, developing business strategies and pitches, managing projects, and identifying new business opportunities.
• Working as part of the wider Business Development Team to achieve income targets
• Working with our youth work specialists and Programmes and Research teams and reporting to the Head of Business Development.

Why Work for NYA?

• NYA operates as a people-focused organisation, prioritising the well-being and needs of its employees.
• NYA offers an exceptional flexible working approach which encourages our team to balance professional responsibilities with their personal life.
• A remote based team, spread across England, fostering inclusivity and diverse talent. Despite geographical distances between team members, NYA maintains a highly motivated and connected team through the optimisation of digital tools.
• NYA is committed to supporting the continual personal and professional development of our team and helping them achieve their ambitions.
• We provide 25 days leave plus 8 days, life assurance scheme, 5% employer pension contribution and a comprehensive Employee Assistance Programme via Spectrum.life with unlimited specialist support available to all NYA employees.

Closing date: 5pm Friday 26th June 2026
Please note: we reserve the right to close this vacancy early
Interviews: Week commencing 6th July 2026 (subject to change)

Interested?

If you would like to find out more, please click the apply button. You will be directed to our website to complete your application for this position.

The National Youth Agency is an equal opportunities employer. 

At NYA our inclusive culture means that we embrace individual differences and understand that we need a diverse team to achieve our organisations mission.

We wish to recruit candidates from all backgrounds to ensure our team reflects the rich diversity of the communities we serve. We encourage applications from anyone regardless of disability, ethnicity, heritage, gender, sexuality, religion, socio-economic background and political beliefs but we particularly welcome applications from global majority candidates and those from other minoritised ethnic groups in the UK as they are currently underrepresented in our team.

Please note: We use AI detector software, so applications or CV’s with high levels of AI generated content may be disregarded. We understand that AI tools can offer support to candidates who have learning differences, which is why we will accept applications with some AI assistance.

No agencies please.