Head of Fundraising (Major Gifts)

Head of Fundraising - Major Gifts

Hours: 37.5 per week. Flexibility will be considered working a minimum of 30 hours per week (0.8 full time equivalent). Salary and holiday will be adjusted accordingly.

Location: Hybrid / Wonderseekers HQ, Eastleigh with regular attendance at Winchester Science Centre, Winchester. For the right person we’re willing to consider flexible working whereby the postholder could work up to two days per week from home. This would operate on a flexible basis dependant on deadlines, internal and external meetings etc and it is likely that during the initial probationary period the post-holder will be required to work primarily onsite in Eastleigh/Winchester.

Work pattern: Weekdays, exact work pattern flexible and can be discussed at interview

Salary: £40,000 - £45,000 per annum dependent on experience (equivalent to £32,000-£36,000 based on 0.8 FTE)

Contract: Permanent

Line manager: Director of Fundraising, Fundraising Team

Responsible for: Trusts & Foundations (T&F) Managers and freelance T&F Fundraisers

Holiday: 25 days per annum plus bank holidays. Option to buy/sell some leave and gain additional days for continuous service after four years. The post holder is not expected to work bank and public holidays.

Benefits: Cash health scheme, life assurance, buy/sell annual leave, long service holiday bonus, café and shop discount, free tickets to WSC and partner attractions, family friendly leave, wellbeing policy, mental health first aiders, cycle to work scheme, financial loans, flexible IT, casual dress, staff events, free parking, pension contribution, inflationary pay rise, flu vaccines and more.

Application deadline and interviews: If you see yourself as our Head of Major Gifts, we would urge you to apply at your earliest convenience. We’re looking to fill this role as soon as possible (subject to your notice period when we’ll be patiently waiting for you to start). We’ll be in touch swiftly to arrange an interview if your application sparks our interest!

The Role

To deliver on our new strategy and exciting capital and activity Masterplan, Wonderseekers is growing its Fundraising Team. The Head of Major Gifts is a pivotal new role within this team: working closely with the Director of Fundraising and managing a small team of experienced Trusts & Foundations (T&F) fundraisers, to achieve an initial target of circa £3.5 million within the next two years.

Accomplished at assimilating and interpreting complex information to craft compelling, high-level funding proposals, the post holder will lead and coordinate project fundraising campaigns to achieve the individual project targets, ensuring the highest quality of funding approach and donor stewardship across the Major Gifts Team.

In addition to managing and supporting the in-house T&F Managers and freelance T&F fundraisers to secure five and six figure grants, the post holder will develop and manage their own portfolio of major T&Fs and high net worth individual (HNWI) donors contributing circa £1 million towards the overall initial target. Working with the Director of Fundraising, they will play a lead role in establishing a strong and loyal major donor base of organisations and HNWI for the Charity in anticipation of future funding needs.

The post holder will have impeccable interpersonal and presentation skills and be comfortable representing the Charity and engaging with senior internal and external stakeholders at the highest level.

This is an exciting opportunity for a senior fundraiser to become an influential member of the Charity’s Leadership Team. Following achievement of the initial target, the Head of Major Gifts will play a strategic role in designing and implementing future fundraising campaigns (for “business as usual” and special projects) to support the Charity’s strategic plan and maximise its social impact.

Key Responsibilities

• Support the Charity to achieve its strategic goals by generating the fundraising income required to deliver core activity and development works
• Be an active member of the organisation’s Leadership Team, attending strategic planning sessions to keep abreast of the Charity’s future projects pipeline, identify funding opportunities and help colleagues to understand and support the fundraising process
• Deputise for the Director of Fundraising as required
• Lead and coordinate agreed fundraising campaigns, including developing project cases for support, researching/building funding pipelines and writing cultivation and stewardship plans
• Manage a personal portfolio of T&Fs and HNWIs, conducting research, developing and implementing bespoke cultivation plans, preparing and delivering high-level funding proposals and providing exceptional stewardship
• Manage and support the Major Gift Team, coordinating the team’s fundraising activity, ensuring that approaches, applications and stewardship are in line with fundraising regulations, the Charity’s Fundraising Promise, are of a consistently high quality and provide regular progress reports to the Director of Fundraising
• Work with the Director of Fundraising, other members of the Senior Leadership Team, Trustees and the Charity’s Volunteer Leaders to develop and grow a HNWI funding pipeline, conducting contact mapping and other research, producing briefing notes, working with senior stakeholders to develop and implement cultivation plans and organising information / cultivation events
• Work with the Head of Impact & Learning to plan and deliver project impact reports for funders

Person Specification:

Experience and Knowledge

• Experienced T&F fundraiser with a good working knowledge of the sector
• Experience of managing and cultivating T&F and HNWI prospects#
• Experience of securing and managing six and seven figure grants
• Expert bid writer
• Knowledge of logic / theory of change models, social impact and how to measure it
• Experienced people manager
• Experience of business planning and managing a budget
• Experience of working with senior internal / external stakeholders
• Knowledge of charity financial governance and gift management processes
• Knowledge of Donorfy or other fundraising CRM is desirable

Skills and Abilities

• Exceptional written communication skills with the ability to write clear, concise, accurate and persuasive funding applications
• Confident presenter / orator with the ability to pitch to an audience of senior stakeholders
• Ability to assimilate, analyse and interpret complex information
• Ability to review and critically analyse others’ work
• Systematic and tenacious researcher
• Excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to build strong internal and external stakeholder relationships
• Good budgeting and data analysis skills
• Strategic thinker and goal-oriented with the ability to work efficiently to manage the funding pipeline, achieve targets and contribute to the achievement of strategic goals
• Proficient in Office 365

Ready to Apply?

When you are ready to apply, please submit your application through our recruitment portal

No recruitment agencies, thank you.

You will be asked to submit your contact details and answer a few questions so we can get to know you. Please keep your responses concise, this is your opportunity to really stand out. After answering these questions, please upload your cover letter and CV.

If you have any other questions or wish to arrange an informal phone call prior to applying, please do not hesitate to get in touch.

Need information in a different format or would like to apply in an alternative way? Just get in touch.