Senior Philanthropy Officer

South West Community Chaplaincy; Southampton; Hybrid; GBP 40,000 - 56,000; Full time

Job summary

Southampton Hospitals Charity seeks a Senior Philanthropy Officer to secure philanthropic income from major donors, manage a portfolio capable of five-figure gifts, and cultivate long-term relationships across the hospital.

You will work with clinicians and senior leaders to identify opportunities, build compelling asks, and steward donors while growing multi-year support and delivering against income targets.

Qualifications

• Proven experience securing philanthropic income from individual major donors at five-figure level or above.
• Experience in a charity, NHS charity or not-for-profit organisation.
• Proven track record managing fundraising portfolios and delivering income against targets.
• Experience building credibility with senior stakeholders and cross-functional teams.
• Experience producing funding proposals, cases for support and impact reports.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of individual major donors and prospects, delivering against income targets.
• Identify and cultivate new major donor prospects with tailored engagement strategies.
• Build trusted relationships with clinicians and hospital leaders to identify opportunities.
• Plan donor meetings with leadership to make asks and steward gifts.
• Grow the major donor pipeline and multi-year support.

Skills

Major donor relations

Fundraising targets

CRM systems

Proposal writing

Stakeholder management

Project management

Tools

CRM systems

Job description

Role description

The Senior Philanthropy Officer will play a key role in delivering ambitious income growth, with a clear focus on securing philanthropic support from high-level individual major donors.

Managing a portfolio of prospects capable of making five-figure gifts and above, the postholder will cultivate, develop and steward long-term relationships as well as identify and secure new opportunities.

Building trusted relationships across the hospital will be central to the role. The postholder will work closely with clinicians and senior hospital leaders to identify fundraising opportunities, develop compelling cases for support and involve the right stakeholders in cultivating, asking and thanking major donors.

We are looking for a self-motivated and proactive Senior Philanthropy Officer who thrives on building strong, long-lasting relationships. You will be curious and able to identify opportunities to strengthen relationships and demonstrate resilience when working towards ambitious fundraising goals. You will convey a genuine passion for Southampton Hospitals Charity and feel confident sharing our vision and impact with others.

Main Responsibilities

• Manage, grow and steward a portfolio of individual major donors and prospects capable of making five-figure gifts and above, delivering against agreed income targets.
• Identify and cultivate new major donor prospects, developing tailored engagement and solicitation strategies aligned to charity priorities and donors’ interests and aspirations.
• Build credibility and trusted relationships with clinicians, senior hospital leaders and stakeholders across the hospital to identify philanthropic opportunities and develop compelling asks and stewardship reports.
• Work with senior hospital stakeholders and the charity’s leadership team to plan and deliver donor meetings and approaches, supporting them to make asks and personally asking for gifts where appropriate.
• Grow the major donor pipeline, focusing on increasing multi-year support and progressing relationships from initial engagement through to giving and long-term stewardship.
• Support the Director of Income Generation and Marketing with the delivery of donor stewardship and cultivation events.
• Work closely with colleagues across hospital engagement, community fundraising and grants to ensure joined-up planning and delivery.
• Maintain accurate records of donor engagement, pipeline activity and income forecasting using the CRM system.
• Monitor trends in philanthropy and major giving, adapting approaches in response to changes in the external funding environment.
• Act as a professional ambassador for Southampton Hospitals Charity, representing the organisation with credibility and building understanding of the value and impact of philanthropy across the hospital.

Person Specification

Knowledge and Experience

• Proven experience of securing philanthropic income from individual major donors at the five-figure level or above.
• Experience working within a charity, NHS charity or not-for-profit organisation.
• Demonstrable success in managing and developing relationships with individual major donors and prospective supporters.
• Experience of building credibility and trusted relationships with senior stakeholders, and working collaboratively with subject specialists to shape fundraising opportunities.
• Experience of producing high-quality funding proposals, cases for support and impact reports.
• Track record of managing fundraising portfolios and delivering income against targets.

Skills

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to explain complex clinical projects clearly and compellingly to non-specialist donors.
• Strong relationship-building skills, with confidence and diplomacy when engaging clinicians, senior stakeholders and major donors.
• Ability to ask for significant gifts and to support senior stakeholders in making effective approaches to donors.
• Outstanding organisational and time-management skills, with the ability to manage competing priorities and balance internal and external relationship-building.
• High attention to detail and strong project management capability.
• Confident use of CRM systems and fundraising databases.

Personal Qualities

• Self-motivated, proactive and able to work effectively on own initiative.
• Collaborative and relationship-led, with a strong team ethos.
• Professional, reliable and highly organised.
• Sound judgement, discretion and sensitivity when working with senior stakeholders and prospective donors.
• Resilient and adaptable.
• Passionate about improving patient outcomes and supporting NHS staff.