Chief Executive Officer - The Enchanted Forest

BTA; Pitlochry; On-site; GBP 61,000 - 74,000; Part time

Job summary

A leading cultural charity in Scotland is seeking a Chief Executive Officer to guide its flagship event into its next chapter. The successful candidate will be responsible for strategic planning, financial oversight, and building key community relationships. Ideal candidates will possess extensive senior leadership experience in the creative or cultural sectors and a strong commitment to community benefit. This role offers a unique opportunity to influence an iconic event that contributes significantly to the local economy.

Benefits

Opportunity to lead a celebrated cultural experience

Engagement with a vibrant community

Flexible working conditions

Qualifications

• Proven senior leadership experience in a creative or cultural sector.
• Ability to lead organizations through development and change.
• Strong relationship-builder with emotional intelligence.

Responsibilities

• Lead the strategic direction of the charity and ensure its sustainability.
• Build relationships with partners, funders, and the community.
• Oversee the community grant-giving program to benefit local organizations.

Skills

Senior leadership experience

Creative and cultural sector experience

Strong communication skills

High emotional intelligence

Commercial acumen

Job description

The Enchanted Forest

Chief Executive Officer

£61,000-£74,000

Home-based with travel as and when required

0.6FTE - Part Time and Permanent (Full Time considered)

About The Enchanted Forest:

The Enchanted Forest Community Trust (EFCT) is the charity behind Scotland’s longest-running and most successful sound and light show—an award-winning immersive experience that draws approximately 85,000 visitors each year and contributes around £10 million annually to the Highland Perthshire economy. The Trust’s purpose is to transport and delight audiences while celebrating the remarkable natural beauty of Faskally Woods and ensuring the event remains welcoming, inclusive, and accessible to all.

Now approaching its 25th anniversary, The Enchanted Forest has grown from a pioneering creative idea into one of Scotland’s most iconic cultural events. Supported by over 100 seasonal staff, local suppliers and businesses, and a strong community ethos, the event has welcomed nearly one million visitors since its inception. Importantly, proceeds from the show are reinvested back into Highland Perthshire, with the Trust awarding grants to local charities and community groups every year.

Values

• Community – From the team that pulls the event together and the dedicated partners, to the volunteers and visitors – it is one big community. Everyone is important, and everyone is appreciated.
• Respect – Caring about customers, the environment, their team and the local community – treating each group with the respect they deserve.
• Quality – When customers buy The Enchanted Forest tickets, they are guaranteed excellence. They know their experience is going to be the best. And with each event, they are striving to enhance that further.
• Creativity – Innovation, art, spectacle, wonder – The Enchanted Forest is breathtaking. They don’t just want to get it right; they want their customers to be in awe and leave inspired.

The Role of CEO

In 2026, as EFCT celebrates its milestone 25th event and welcomes its 1,000,000th visitor, the organisation is looking to the future and seeking a visionary Chief Executive to lead its next chapter.

The new CEO will work in close partnership with the Board of Trustees to steer the long-term strategic direction of the charity, ensuring the continued success, sustainability and creative evolution of its flagship event. They will safeguard the Trust’s financial health, uphold best-practice governance, and provide strong, values-led leadership to the operations, creative, and production teams. As the public ambassador for EFCT, the CEO will build and nurture key relationships with partners, funders, local authorities, media, and the wider community—protecting the reputation of the event and amplifying its impact.

The CEO will also oversee the Trust’s community grant-giving programme, ensuring that the surplus generated by the event continues to benefit organisations across Highland Perthshire in meaningful and impactful ways. With responsibility for strategic planning, financial management, operational delivery, risk oversight and compliance, they will ensure that the Trust continues to operate transparently, ethically, and sustainably.

Candidate Profile

Candidates will bring proven senior leadership experience, ideally gained in a creative, cultural, events, charity or tourism environment. They will have successfully led organisations through development and change, managed complex operational programmes, and implemented financially sound, future-focused strategies. A strong communicator and relationship-builder, they will demonstrate high emotional intelligence, commercial acumen, and an ability to inspire multidisciplinary teams. Importantly, they will share a genuine passion for the mission, community benefit, and unique magic that The Enchanted Forest brings to Highland Perthshire every year.

This is a rare opportunity to lead one of Scotland’s most celebrated cultural experiences at a pivotal moment in its history. The next Chief Executive will inherit a thriving, values-driven organisation and play a defining role in shaping its next decade—ensuring the event continues to evolve creatively while delivering real and lasting benefit to the local community.

How to Apply

Please email us at [e-mail] to request an information pack and job description. You are advised to get in touch well in advance of the closing date to give us time to consider your application and pre‑interview the strongest applicants.

Closing Date

Friday 16th January 2026

Interview Date

W/C 26th January 2026

This search is being conducted exclusively for Enchanted Forest by BTA (Bruce Tait Associates). Our leadership team have all worked extensively in and with the voluntary sector and academia and we use this experience to match organisations and individuals to create great appointments.