Partnerships Manager

The Vacancy

Salary: £50,919 - £52,259
Location: London, United Kingdom
Team: Resource Mobilisation
Line Manager: Head of Resource Mobilisation
Line Reports: Partnerships Funding Advisor x 2 and Partnerships Engagement Officer
Hours: 35 hours per week
Contract: Permanent
Grade: 2A

Closing date: 29 March 2026

Overview

We are looking for an entrepreneurial and proactive Partnerships Manager with a strong instinct for business development and a track record of turning opportunities into significant funding partnerships. You will be energised by identifying new prospects, opening doors and building relationships with trusts, foundations and corporate partners. Creative and strategic in your approach, you will be comfortable shaping compelling propositions and developing confident high seven figure funding asks that resonate with large philanthropic donors.

You will also be a mature, thoughtful and kind manager who can lead and develop a high performing team. We are looking for someone who can set ambitious targets, encourage initiative and create an environment where colleagues feel trusted, motivated and able to grow, while playing a central role in expanding and diversifying a major global funding portfolio.

JOB PURPOSE

The Partnerships Manager will be a key position within the fundraising team, managing key private donors and co-leading on developing and implementing a new business strategy focused on significantly increasing trust and foundation and corporate funders.

They will also be working with SLT members to put together strategic seven and eight figure grants and strategic plans to engage large global donors to support Start Network programming.

The Resource Mobilisation team works collaboratively with those in programmes to manage internal and external relationships, adopting a coordinated approach when it comes to donor management and reporting.

The Partnerships Manager, together with the Head of Resource Mobilisation, will set and deliver a strategy that maximises trust and foundation and corporate funding and set a clear path to bring in new donors and increase income substantially over the coming three years. Currently the funding portfolio you will be managing is over £30 million from 13+ global donors. This means this role is personally responsible for engaging and retaining 60% of our donors.

This role will set a strategy to increase income according to targets, maximise donors plus retain all key strategic donors through robust engagement plans. Beyond this, the person in post will line manage three with scope for growth in 2026.

Additionally, across  and beyond they will lead on the development of an employee engagement offering with our corporates and corporate foundations in order to create a new avenue of unrestricted funding.

Beyond this, we expect this role to lead on behalf of the resource mobilisation team key global events, particularly Skoll / Marmalade and Shift the Power. In collaboration with the Institutional Funding Manager they will also plan our activities for London and NY Climate Weeks. They will set the plans and strategy for the organization to engage with these events and work with Directors, CEO, Heads of, and coordinate cross-organisational plans for this together with our Head of Advocacy and Influence.

Finally, this role will act as a key point of contact for the communications and advocacy teams and will need to make sure donor requirements and visibility will be taken into account across teams, projects and strategies.

KEY ACCOUNTABILITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES

Increase new business from trusts and foundations and corporate funders

• Lead on the development of an innovative strategy together with the Head of Resource Mobilisation and Director of Business Development to identify and drive new business from trusts and foundations and corporates.
• Responsible for growing our funding from new geographical areas (focus on US and Asia) and sectors (Insurance) – and set a plan that will enable the diversification of our funding portfolio.
• Oversee the development and implementation of an employee engagement offer in order to create a new avenue of unrestricted income and boost the…