Philanthropy Manager

RSPCA; Greater Manchester; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 55,000; Full time

Job summary

RSPCA seeks a Philanthropy Manager to drive fundraising in the North West, developing relationships with high-value donors and foundations and supporting the capital campaign. The role involves regional travel to meetings, site visits, and events, with both home-based and in-person duties as needed.

You will nurture donor engagement, craft compelling proposals, and coordinate with the Philanthropy Lead to meet income targets while building sustainable income streams for future campaigns.

Qualifications

• Experience in building and retaining relationships with philanthropic donors and trusts.
• Proven ability to develop and communicate fundraising plans and proposals.
• Ability to travel within the North West and attend meetings in person as required.

Responsibilities

• Develop relationships with philanthropic individuals, Trusts & Foundations and other high-value prospects in the North West.
• Secure gifts in the region of £5,000–£100,000 to support the capital campaign and ongoing income.
• Lead and participate in cultivation and stewardship events with stakeholders and donor networks.
• Prepare targeted funding proposals and coordinate with internal teams to achieve income targets.
• Maintain a strong donor pipeline and forecast income accurately across donor journeys.
• Collaborate with colleagues to craft compelling cases for support and capture impact stories.

Skills

Relationship building

Donor stewardship

CRM experience

Storytelling

Influencing & negotiation

Fundraising / business development

Tools

CRM software

Job description

Do you want to create a better world for animals? At the RSPCA, we believe all animals deserve kindness and respect. We work for the benefit of every animal – as well as pets, that includes farmed animals, wildlife, and animals used in science. Choose a career with us and make a difference for every kind.

We are looking for a new Philanthropy Manager to join our team.

• Working hours: 35 hours, which can be worked flexibly across Monday - Friday.
• Contract: 3 year fixed term contract, with the potential to go permanent.
• Home based: For this role, we require the post holder to be based in the North West of England. The majority of the work is carried out in the region, so the successful candidate must be able to attend meetings and other work activities in person as required. You will also work from home and will travel to the London office and occasionally the Horsham office, as required. You will also be required to travel to events and meetings with key stakeholders as and when necessary.

The RSPCA aims to work with partners to transform animal welfare in the North, including building a new regional animal welfare centre. Following a comprehensive fundraising feasibility study, we have identified significant untapped potential and high-value prospects within our existing and expanding networks in the North of England.

As Philanthropy Manager, you will be a key member of the Philanthropy team, reporting into the Philanthropy Lead. You will be responsible for developing relationships with philanthropic individuals, Trust & Foundations and other high value prospects, with the focus on securing gifts in the region of £5,000 - £100,000.

This is an incredible opportunity for you to use your experience and creativity to develop innovative new approaches to philanthropy fundraising at the RSPCA, supporting the delivery of our capital campaign in the North West and helping to deliver our ambitious plans for the future.

You will play a key role in supporting the delivery of our capital campaign in the North West, while also developing a sustainable pipeline of philanthropic income for the future.

What a day might look like for you

Here is a short summary of what a typical day might look like for a Philanthropy Manager; for a full insight please refer to the attached job description.

As Philanthropy Manager, you will ensure regular and appropriate levels of communication to build donors' understanding and appreciation of the RSPCA's work and our impact on the future of animal welfare.

You will work with the Resource Hub to prepare and present targeted funding proposals to achieve or exceed annual income targets and you will play a key role in developing and delivering cultivation and stewardship events and activities alongside our Special Events Manager.

You will maintain a strong and active pipeline of prospects, ensuring opportunities are effectively managed through the donor journey and that income is accurately forecast and reported.

You will work closely with colleagues across the RSPCA to identify opportunities, develop compelling cases for support and gather the information and impact stories needed to engage prospective donors.

What will help you succeed in this role:

To succeed in this role, you should have a real passion for animal welfare and a desire to make a positive difference to the lives of animals.

You do not have to be a philanthropy fundraiser; you could have a background and experience in other areas of fundraising, marketing or communications, business development or relationship management.

What matters most is your ability to build trusted relationships, identify opportunities and confidently ask people to support something they care about.

Our Philanthropy Manager should have:

• Experience of successfully retaining and building relationships.
• The ability to identify opportunities and developing these into successful outcomes, ideally including securing income or financial support.
• A proven ability to create and communicate plans at all levels, facilitating understanding and winning support for delivery.
• A proven ability to communicate well, both verbally and in writing, with strong storytelling skills, along with influencing, negotiating and relationship building skills.
• Experience of working with CRM systems, a variety of IT software and hardware systems.
• A proactive and creative approach, with the ability to identify new opportunities and innovative approaches.

Successful candidates for certain RSPCA roles will need to undergo a Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check.

Applicants must have the legal right to work in the UK as we are unable to sponsor visas.

Final note from us & good luck with your application!

This will be a 2 stage interview process, with the first stage interviews taking place remotely on the 5th of October. Second stage interviews will be held in person on the 12th of October.

We want to ensure we do all we can to give you a positive candidate experience through our recruitment. Whilst we do try to give feedback where we can, sometimes due to receiving high levels of applications, this may not always be possible.

Our vision is a world where all animals are respected and treated with kindness and compassion. Our purpose is to inspire everyone to create a better world for animals. We are building the future of a diverse Society, and our priority is to support animal welfare by finding people from all backgrounds who are committed to our purpose. For this reason we actively encourage a wide diversity of applications - in particular from members of minority ethnic groups, and people with disabilities - as these candidates are currently under-represented at the RSPCA. Your transferable skills & lived experiences could make you a valuable addition to our RSPCA Family!

We're here to support you and encourage you to let us know if you need any adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process. Please feel free to contact us at [e-mail] or 0300 123 0685 so we can ensure the process works for you.