Trusts & Foundations Lead

Job Purpose

Your legacy will be a tangible impact on slowing down climate change, helping nature recover and creating social impact by developing funding relationships that support our woodland projects and organisational development more broadly.

You will join a fast-growing organisation that started in 2019 with four volunteers and has grown to a staff team of nineteen (with more recruitment in the pipeline for 2024), over 1,000 volunteers and ownership of nearly 600 acres of land that will grow woodlands of over 160,000 trees.

We are looking for an experienced trusts and foundations fundraising professional with exceptional grant writing & management skills. You will help take ANT to our next level of impact by identifying funding opportunities and by inspiring funders to join our ambitious plans for effecting change.
 

The role

We have recently updated our Fundraising Strategy to help meet our exciting plans on growth. Fundraising goals are focused on a specific target around the establishment of Lower Chew Forest, medium term unrestricted buffers to plug potential funding gaps and a longer term goal of unrestricted funding to make the organisation more independent, sustainable and resilient. There will be also be an opportunity to support more specific areas of our existing woodland projects such as our green skills workshops and potentially, the acquisition of new woodland.

Our work with trusts & foundations to date has been limited but successful. We believe there is a real opportunity for developing relationships with funders with aligned goals. In particular we see opportunities in the following areas:

• biodiversity

• flood mitigation & chemical run off

• connecting people to the environment, especially marginalised communities

• innovation and pioneering new ways of working

• alternative forms of farming

• green economy skills building

• children & young people

• funders focused on the Avon area

• partnerships 

We are looking for an individual who has a shared passion for our work. You will inspire funders of the benefits of our model for affecting tangible change in the fight against the climate crisis.

Main responsibilities

• Work with the Head of Engagement, Communications and Fundraising to review our current trusts & foundations offerings & processes. Develop a set of recommendations for improvements, with the potential to overhaul the proposition and shape it in your own vision

• Working towards funding goals as laid out in our update Fundraising Strategy, consult the Lower Chew Forest project lead to identify and package up specific funding opportunities

• Identify areas of our work that might be of interest to funders supplying unrestricted income

• Work with relevant staff to develop strong cases for support and case studies, both at a organisational and individual project level

• Coordinate with the Impact & Knowledge Lead to gather supporting impact data

• Research potential funders and build a working pipeline of applications and calendar of activities. Track progress and gather feedback.

• Write persuasive and impactful grant proposals. Use storytelling techniques to bring the scale and ambition of our projects to life 

• Develop and nurture relationships with key funders

• Provide timely reporting for funders to a high standard, including updates and end of grant reports

• There is the opportunity to work with the Head of Engagement, Communications & Fundraising on wider fundraising initiatives, for example our project-based crowdfunder - if this is of interest

• Contribute to statutory grant applications for large project-based funding

• Other duties and opportunities as required