Head of Philanthropy & Fundraising

Westcountry Rivers Trust; Stoke Climsland; Hybrid; GBP 41,000 - 49,000; Full time

Job summary

Westcountry Rivers Trust is seeking a Head of Philanthropy & Fundraising to drive core fundraising efforts. This permanent role involves developing strategies for securing additional funding, managing relationships with donors, and coordinating fundraising initiatives. The successful candidate will have a strong commitment to environmental issues and a proven track record in charity fundraising.

Benefits

25 days Annual Leave

9% Employer Pension

Flexible & Hybrid working

Life Assurance cover

Additional Leave for Christmas Closure

Qualifications

• 4+ years’ experience in charity fundraising.
• Knowledge of UK funding sources.
• Experience using CRM systems.

Responsibilities

• Set targets and strategy for securing core funding.
• Manage application processes and reporting.
• Coordinate fundraising events and campaigns.

Skills

Communication

Project Management

Networking

Fundraising

Interpersonal Skills

Tools

CRM Systems

Job description

Contract: Permanent but continuity depends on success of role.
Reports to: CEO
Grade: 5
Hours: Full time (37.5 hours)
Location: Westcountry Rivers Trust’s office is in Stoke Climsland and whilst we have adopted hybrid working there is an expectation to work from the office on a regular basis and to travel to sites across the delivery area.

Westcountry Rivers Trust is recruiting a Head of Philanthropy & Fundraising

This is a permanent contract after a successful 6 month probation period.

The starting salary for this role is £41,100 - £48,300 per annum (dependent on experience)

Benefits while working for Westcountry Rivers Trust

• 25 days Annual Leave per annum, with a reward for long service - an additional 1 day per year for each year worked over 5 years, up to a maximum of 30 days for employees serving 10 years continuous service.
• Additional Leave covering the Christmas Closure period.
• 9% Employer Pension, plus Life Assurance cover
• Flexible & Hybrid working

Apply by 5pm on Tuesday 17th June 2025 by CV and Covering Letter here

Interviews will be held in person at our offices in Stoke Climsland on 30th June or 1st July 2025

For queries about this role or the application process please contact [e-mail]

About the Westcountry Rivers Trust

Formed in 1994, the Trust was established to restore Westcountry rivers. Measures to protect rivers can help to save money for farmers, lower costs for water companies, boost tourism, reduce the need to dredge estuaries and even benefit human health.

Today the charity works with a wide range of stakeholders from landowners to local communities, businesses, farmers and water companies to restore and protect the rivers, lakes, estuaries and coastal areas for the benefit of people, wildlife and the local economy. There has never been a more important time to work on the rivers of the West Country as the impacts of climate emergency, and the ecological crisis is forcing society to invest in building catchment resilience.

Spurred by a shared love of rivers, the Westcountry Rivers Trust is very much a grassroots organisation, brought into existence from the bottom up. In the early 90s, a group of individuals, passionate – but concerned – about the waterways around them, began to stitch together their ambitions for restoring Westcountry rivers, laying the foundations for the Trust we know today.

Everything the Trust does is informed by the best available science. Their work is driven by an ‘ecosystems approach,’ considering the function of the entire catchment, not just the rivers that flow within them.

It was this new perspective – not to mention the hands-on and tireless approach to river restoration – that grabbed the attention of so many supporters and funders, and which lies behind the flourishing rivers trust movement. Since then, the Trust now has circa 75 employees with an annual turnover of c£3m running multi-annual projects spread across a wide range of funders.

The Trust has three main delivery teams and a support services team. Our employees work on delivery sites, from home, and from the office.

About the Role

We are seeking a highly organised, efficient and dynamic individual to take on a brand-new role co-ordinating and driving core fundraising for the Westcountry Rivers Trust, by building on the wave of interest in the plight of our Westcountry rivers. We have had considerable success with securing project funding over the last 30 years and have achieved rapid growth in delivery and impact as a result, but this only allows us to deliver what others want to fund and it is not always possible to get project funding to cover what we would like to achieve. Therefore, we need to increase core voluntary income for key activities such as maximising our education and engagement as well as supporting core functions and project development. The successful candidate has the support and opportunity to sculpt this approach into a significant part of the Trusts future.

You should ideally have excellent people, planning and project management skills, with a proven track record in core charity fundraising. You will also have a strong commitment to our mission and a good understanding of environmental issues. Due to the importance of this function, you will be reporting directly to the Chief Executive but will link into the Trust’s communications strategy and approach. If successful, we intend to grow and expand this role into a directorial position linked to our communication and advocacy work, depending on how significant this approach is compared to our current project grant and services work.

This is a moment to get involved with a dynamic and passionate grass roots charity at a crucial moment when river health and societal interest has never been greater. We need your help to build an entirely new fundraising opportunities for Westcountry Rivers Trust that allows us to engage and empower more people across the region protecting our rivers both now and in the future. In this role, you will have the opportunity to affect real, lasting impact not only on the potential of this charity to help rivers in the Westcountry, but to see real growth and development in key engagement work across the Trust.

Responsibilities

• Set out targets and a fundraising and voluntary income generation strategy for securing additional core, unrestricted funding for the Westcountry Rivers Trust from a range of sources including individual donations, legacies, philanthropic foundations, and corporate sponsorship. This includes working with the CEO and Trustees to set and track clear, mutually agreed Key Performance Indicators.
• Work with the CEO and communications team to build our case for support as part of our next five-year charity plan (2025 – 2030).
• Managing the administration of these funding awards including application forms, supplying bank details, grant agreements and reporting on outputs/outcomes as required
• Co-ordinate internal meetings to target fundraising and following up on actions.
• Devising and co-ordinating fundraising events/campaigns as per the fundraising and voluntary generation strategy. This includes the small but growing Westcountry Rivers Champions scheme (organisations and individuals giving £5k/yr for five years)
• Maintain the fundraising and voluntary income generation strategy and plan with strong links to communications.
• Take responsibility for managing a Customer Relationship Management (CRM) system across the organisation together with the IT Manager.
• Report on progress quarterly to the Leadership Team, and the board of Trustees as required.
• Ensure Westcountry Rivers Trust complies with the fundraising code for the UK.
• The role will be supported by an active board who have also committed to adding a new trustee to directly support this role, when needed and guided by you and your role.

Person specification

Knowledge and Experience

• Ambitious, dedicated, well-organised self-starter
• 4+ years’ experience relevant for the principal roles and responsibilities of this position
• Knowledge of sources of funding in the UK
• Experience of using CRM systems
• Proven communication, influencing and networking skills
• Excellent planning and project management skills
• Ability to work with uncertainty, plan adaptively and work at pace
• First rate interpersonal skills to liaise effectively with colleagues and clients and build effective cross-sector partnerships
• Evidence of working in cross-functional teams to achieve best possible outcomes
• Experience of submitting funding bids to tight deadlines
• A strong commitment to restoration of the water environment and a good understanding of environmental issues
• Enthusiasm, self-reliance, ambition, tact, discretion and charm
• The ability to translate technical and complex activities into language that non-technical specialists in funding organisations (and members of the public) can understand
• Some knowledge of charity law and best practice, particularly around fundraising guidelines
• Experience of effectively prioritising your workload

Skills and Competencies

• Passion for rivers and the environment and a want to enact change through empowering communities and driving investment though fundraising.
• Reliability and strong work ethic to ensure consistency in processes
• Open/Honest/Transparent, ensures challenges are articulated calmly, assertively and in a balanced manner
• Good awareness of and articulation with of the Trust’s strong team ethos
• Professional approach, seeking to provide a level-headed consistent tone and working environment
• Enthusiastic and collaborative, builds interest within the team to tackle problems.
• Ability to travel around rural area with limited public transport is advantageous
• The above are Essential criteria unless indicated as Desirable.
• Any offer will be subject to DBS and references check

Apply here