Fundraising at the Sutton Trust
We are seeking a dynamic and confident Philanthropy Manager to join our high-performing fundraising team. The Sutton Trust is at an exciting point in our organisational journey, with a new Chairperson and ambitions to significantly grow our impact and fundraising as part of our 2030 strategy.
Over the past five years the impact of the Sutton Trust has increased, especially in our programme numbers, securing a relatively stable income of c.£6m over a number of years. In recent years this has grown to c.£7m, and our organisational strategy to 2030/31 will continue this fundraising trajectory to increase income to £12m. With a growing portfolio of philanthropic income from individuals – currently accounting for c.£1.2m – there is considerable enthusiasm and opportunity to build upon existing relationships and establish new ones in support of the work of The Sutton Trust.
The Role and the Team
The Philanthropy Manager will have responsibility for the management and development of a portfolio of existing donors, including our Fellowship scheme, cultivating a pipeline of individual supporters and prospects. You will be an experienced relationship fundraiser, confident in securing gifts from individuals through active prospecting and capitalising on existing relationships and connections to the Trust.
You will have excellent communication and persuasive skills, able to engage a variety of individual donors in person and in writing, with extensive experience of making the ask to new and committed donors. The postholder will have ingrained knowledge of how to cultivate meaningful relationships and deliver gold‑standard stewardship for an exceptional supporter experience. An essential part of this donor experience will be taking responsibility for creating and delivering donor events, such as drinks receptions, dinners, and programme visits.
We are looking for a fundraiser with an entrepreneurial mindset for income generation, able to confidently manage competing demands and priorities across a busy team. The postholder will also support legacy fundraising, curate online giving campaigns, and create opportunities to identify.
The role sits in the Philanthropy team of the Development Department and is managed by the Head of Philanthropy. The role will line manage one member of staff, the Philanthropy Assistant that will be recruited over this summer. You will work closely with colleagues across both the Development Department and the wider organisation.
Main duties
New Business
* Managing and growing the Trust’s Fellowship scheme through scoping, developing and securing new four‑ and five‑figure gifts from individual supporters, working closely with the Director of Development, Head of Philanthropy, and senior volunteers to secure and steward.
* Work with the Head of Philanthropy to identify and cultivate a prospect pool of potential donors at all levels, utilising the CRM, current low‑level donors, stakeholder network mapping through the Board and Trustees, and prospects research of philanthropists with an active interest in education/social mobility.
* Undertake prospect research across the spectrum of philanthropic income in collaboration with the Head of Philanthropy – including identification, due diligence, qualification, and creating briefings and outreach plans.
* Work with the Head of Alumni Engagement to proactively identify Sutton Trust alumni with the capacity and inclination to support our work, developing meaningful relationships, identifying relevant opportunities to deepen their connection to the Trust, and influencing alums to start and continue their giving journey.
* Work with the Head of Fundraising Operations and Head of Philanthropy to design, implement, and promote a low‑level online giving journey, including automated stewardship activation.
* Supporting the Head of Philanthropy to implement a compelling legacy campaign.
* Work with colleagues across the Development team to identify, qualify, cultivate and secure prospects, using resources effectively where there are links between corporates, individuals, and trusts & foundations.
Account Management and Development
* Manage and grow the Trust’s Fellowship major donor scheme, creating meaningful, mutually beneficial and long‑term relationships.
* Create meaningful and personalised donor plans for your portfolio, including reporting, regular written updates and in‑person meetings where appropriate.
* Working with the Director of Development and Head of Philanthropy to support the stewardship and management of the Board, and other major donors.
* Be accountable for achieving individual agreed income targets, looking for opportunities to grow funding and diversify philanthropic income.
* Support the Head of Philanthropy in developing high‑quality Fellowship and philanthropy collateral and communications.
* Take responsibility for all elements of event management for individual donors, including creating, planning and managing events that create meaningful experiences for donors. This may include drinks receptions, small private dinners, panel events, and programme visits.
Fundraising, Line Management, Finance and Reporting
* Effectively line manage and coach the Philanthropy Assistant, supporting their development as a fundraiser.
* Work with colleagues to deliver impactful events to cultivate prospects and steward partners, with a focus on experience for individual supporters and prospects.
* Act as an ambassador for the Trust with external audiences, delivering presentations and providing expertise as required.
* Work with colleagues across Development and Finance to ensure accurate forecasting, income tracking, donor record keeping, and reporting for philanthropic income.
* Working closely with colleagues, provide philanthropy fundraising expertise to increase awareness of viable funding opportunities and develop organisational understanding of best practice when working with individual supporters.
* Ensure you and your line report appropriately follow policies and procedures on due diligence, Salesforce and data management, account management, stewardship, and reporting.
* Stay up to date with philanthropy fundraising best practice, embedding it across the Philanthropy team’s work, and keep abreast of developments and opportunities within the wider fundraising space.
* Other duties as necessary from time to time.
Person Specification
We welcome applications from individuals who have experience in:
* Experience building and managing donor relationships with individuals giving four‑figures and above per annum in a philanthropy team or other fundraising capacity, and through structured giving schemes.
* Experience of all elements of the cultivation cycle, including prospect research via multiple sources, to develop a prospect pool of individual supporters.
* Experience of working with key senior colleagues across an organisation to secure major gifts and steward relationships, including making the ask for five‑figure gifts.
* Experience of managing meaningful donor events and experiences, from concept to delivery.
* First‑class interpersonal skills – a natural ambassador able to represent the Sutton Trust with gravitas and confidence in a range of settings.
* Excellent verbal and written communication, including the ability to write persuasive and engaging funding collateral, and to network with Sutton Trust stakeholders and donors to inspire and encourage giving.
* Experience of building or inputting into donor strategy and planning.
* Experience of managing line reports, including effective supervision, feedback and development.
* Experience of working with membership groups such as alumni, implementing online‑giving schemes and supporting legacy campaigns (desirable).
* Strong analytical skills.
* Knowledge and experience of the education and/or not‑for‑profit sector.
* Knowledge of the UK fundraising environment, including trends in philanthropy and the different giving mechanisms utilised by individual donors (donor‑advised funds, family foundations, etc).
* Experienced at using Salesforce or other fundraising CRM software to accurately record funding relationships.
We are also looking for an individual who:
* Sympathetic to the aims of the Trust and our mission to increase social mobility.
* High degree of initiative and the ability to take responsibility for a range of philanthropy fundraising activity.
* Strong communicator, skilled at persuading others through writing and conversation.
* Excellent attention to detail.
* Able to multi‑task and prioritise multiple funder relationships.
* Able to work independently and as part of a team.
* Is eligible to work in the UK.
Terms of Appointment
* Contract: Full‑time, Permanent.
* Salary: £42,025‑£48,000.
* Working location: Minimum of two office days per week. Our home‑working policy gives staff the option to work from home for up to 60% of the time, with approval from their line manager.
* Office location: The Sutton Trust, 9th Floor, Millbank Tower, 21‑24 Millbank, London, SW1P 4QP.
* Hours: The standard working hours are 9am to 5pm, Monday to Friday. This role is likely to also be required to attend events or meetings outside of normal working hours during weekday evenings and occasionally at weekends, in line with organisational policies.
Safeguarding statement
The Sutton Trust believes that a child, young person or vulnerable adult should never experience abuse of any kind. We all have a responsibility to promote the welfare of all children and young people and to keep them safe. Therefore all posts undergo a safer recruitment process, including but not limited to, disclosure of criminal records where necessary and eligibility to work in the UK. We have procedures in place to promote safeguarding and a safe culture at the Trust.
Contextual recruitment
The Trust is committed to ensuring equality of opportunity and that all applicants receive equal consideration for employment. We strongly encourage individuals from all backgrounds, including those underrepresented at present at the Trust, to apply for this role. As such we particularly welcome applications from people with disabilities, Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ and from different socio‑economic and educational backgrounds. We are committed to being an inclusive and welcoming place to work and know that greater diversity will lead to even greater results for the young people we support.
We are committed to providing reasonable adjustments for disabled candidates throughout our recruitment process and during employment.
We also operate contextual recruitment at the Sutton Trust. Our application process gives you the option to include information about your background, such as whether you were eligible for free school meals, whether your parents went to university, or whether you attended a state school. For more examples and information on contextual recruitment, please see our website.
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