Head of Principal Donors

Cherie Blair Foundation for Women; City of Westminster; Hybrid; GBP 50,000 - 70,000; Full time

Job summary

A leading charity is looking for a Head of Principal Donors to drive fundraising initiatives and manage high-level donor relationships. This full-time role offers the opportunity to work closely with senior leadership to expand the Foundation's philanthropy strategy. The ideal candidate will have a strong background in fundraising and relationship management, committed to promoting women's economic empowerment.

Benefits

28 days of annual leave

£1,000 annual training budget

Supportive and collaborative culture

Qualifications

• Proven track record of securing six or seven figure donations.
• Experience in developing and delivering philanthropy strategies.
• Comfortable working with high-profile individuals.

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the philanthropy programme.
• Develop strategy for income growth from high-net-worth supporters.
• Oversee donor stewardship and cultivation.

Skills

Relationship Management

Fundraising

Communication

Job description

Join us! We’re recruiting a Head of Principal Donors

Play a vital role in stewarding the Foundation’s network of supporters and driving our fundraising.

Job details

Location

London – hybrid (2 days a week in office)

Working hours

Full time

Contract

Permanent

July 7, 2025

We’re looking for an exceptional relationship manager who is committed to women’s economic empowerment to join our team as Head of Principal Donors .

DISCLAIMER : Applications without a covering letter will not be considered. All applicants must have the full legal right to work in the UK as the Foundation does not offer sponsorship at this time.

About the role

As Head of Principal Donors, you’ll lead and manage our philanthropy programme, working closely with the our senior leadership team, CEO, and Founder to personally cultivate and steward the Foundation’s principal donors. This includes overseeing our recently formed Accelerate Circle – a select group of visionary philanthropists who help drive our fundraising through their networks.

In this role you will:

• Develop and deliver the Foundation’s philanthropy strategy, playing an active leadership role in the successful delivery of income growth from UHNWI and HNWIs
• Manage relationships with our Accelerate Circle of patrons and deliver a solicitation strategy to expand membership and grow our community of donors and supporters
• Provide exceptional stewardship to existing donors and cultivate new donors
• Work closely with our founder and their office to design, plan and deliver high-ROI engagement such as income-generating dinners or paid speeches
• Develop annual plans and budgets, along with longer term income forecasts
• Work proactively with our Communications and Programmes teams to identify and create funded or high-return opportunities to gain visibility in key markets
• Lead on financial reporting for philanthropy income

Our ideal candidate is:

• Experienced in cultivating and stewarding high-net-worth individual donors – with a proven track record of securing six or seven figure donations
• Capable of developing and delivering a successful philanthropy strategy
• Comfortable and experienced working with high profile individuals and senior volunteers including managing development boards, giving circles or other forms of peer-to-peer fundraising approaches
• Excellent at managing relationships and able to successfully influence people at all levels with clear and persuasive communication
• A fantastic package of 28 days of annual leave (which includes three that must be taken during the festive break).
• An organisation that values you. As a smaller organisation, we value everyone’s individual perspective and voice and all team members are able to contribute to our strategic planning.
• Professional development, with career growth built into each staff member’s annual plan and a wide range of skills-building and learning opportunities provided. Each staff member has an annual £1,000 training budget.
• A positive, supportive and collaborative culture and leadership style. We encourage teamwork and open and honest communication, while maintaining a friendly and relaxed atmosphere where everyone can thrive.
• A focus on personal wellbeing and happiness, with regular team-building activities and line manager meetings that support your personal and professional growth.
• Covering letter addressing relevant experience for the role (one A4 page maximum). When writing your cover letter, please refer to the job description, focussing on the essential and desirable criteria.
• Current CV (two A4 pages maximum).

All applicants should have the legal right to work in the UK prior to applying.

Applications will be reviewed and interviews will be scheduled on a rolling basis.

We’re an equal opportunity employer

The Foundation is an equal opportunity employer and actively encourages candidates of all backgrounds to apply for this position. Please let us know if you have any access requirements that you would like us to be aware of during this process.

For information purposes, we request that you complete the Equality Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) monitoring form when you submit your application. This is not mandatory but supports the Foundation with its EDI goals and objectives. All information is private, and we abide by stringent GDPR and data processing management systems. The link is available here:https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LG35KF5

Due to the large number of applications we receive, please note that you will only be contacted should we wish to invite you to interview.

Thank you for your interest in the Cherie Blair Foundation for Women. We look forward to receiving your application.