Save the Children UK is looking for an Innovative Finance Manager to join our Innovation Hive, developing and scaling innovative finance solutions—impact investment and inclusive insurance—to mobilise capital and drive sustainable impact for children globally. This is a unique opportunity to help shape and deliver new approaches to funding that can unlock transformational change at scale.
About The Role
The Innovative Finance Manager role is central to advancing innovative finance initiatives that create transformative outcomes for children.
You will lead the design, shaping and execution of a portfolio of innovative finance projects—such as child‑lens impact investment and inclusive insurance—across the Save the Children Movement, supported by the Innovation Hive. This includes designing and structuring financing mechanisms, developing proposals, and coordinating partners.
The role combines strategic leadership, venture development and execution, with a strong emphasis on mobilising capital, building partnerships, and developing scalable solutions that can influence systems and markets. You will play a key role in originating and structuring new opportunities, supporting their progression from early‑stage concept through to implementation and scale, while ensuring alignment with organisational priorities and impact objectives.
Working across geographies, with a focus on Latin America and Africa, you will collaborate with cross‑functional teams, internal stakeholders, and external partners to deliver high‑impact programmes. With impact on children as your guiding star, you will also monitor emerging trends and opportunities in innovative finance to inform strategic decision‑making.
You will also contribute to strengthening organisational capability in innovative finance, supporting knowledge sharing, mentoring colleagues, and embedding best practice across Save the Children UK.
In This Role, You Will
* Lead the origination, design and structuring of high‑impact innovative finance projects that advance child‑focused impact, such as blended finance, insurance, carbon finance and impact investment funds.
* Exercise strong judgement and autonomy in prioritising opportunities, shaping initiatives, and influencing decision‑making on programme design, resource allocation, and strategic direction.
* Develop compelling proposals, concept notes and investment cases that unlock funding and advance scalable innovative finance solutions. Lead market scanning, research and strategic analysis and originate opportunities in priority areas and across geographies, particularly in Latin America and Africa.
* Integrate impact management frameworks into projects you lead, ensuring all initiatives are data‑driven, aligned with Save the Children’s impact objectives, and deliver measurable outcomes for children.
* Contribute to the development and implementation of tools, resources, frameworks and support mechanisms that enhance the delivery of innovative finance projects.
* Build and manage strategic partnerships with internal teams, country offices, and external stakeholders including investors, foundations and development finance institutions, to grow pipeline and enable delivery.
* Represent Save the Children in external forums and contribute to thought leadership and insights on innovative finance for children, strengthening the organisation’s position in innovative finance.
About You
* Demonstrated experience in leading the design, execution, and management of innovative finance models such as impact investment, carbon credits and inclusive insurance.
* Ability to understand how these can be applied to advance scalable and sustainable impact for children.
* Ability to integrate IMM frameworks into projects.
* Demonstrated experience in analysing and interpreting data, and presenting information in a compelling way.
* Demonstrated experience in market research and analysis, communicating the potential impact in a clear and compelling way, and applying learnings to drive strategy and project development.
* Experience or ability to work with teams across geographies and sectors, collaborating with internal teams, external partners, and stakeholders from diverse sectors.
* Confidence presenting to partners, donors or investors.
* A team player, someone who is open and able and willing to deliver beyond their personal brief.
* Resilience, enthusiasm, energy and drive with a commitment to Save the Children’s vision and values.
* A commercial and entrepreneurial mindset.
* Comfortable with ambiguity and able to navigate uncertainty and complexity, remaining organised and focused in fast‑changing environments.
* Fluent in Spanish (ideally but not essential).
* Ideally experience or understanding of human‑centred design, agile and lean methodologies, to deliver impactful innovations that meet user needs.
* Ideally experience or ability to manage knowledge systems that support innovation projects.
Location & Ways of Working
The majority of our roles can be performed remotely in the UK, but at times you will be required to come to your contracted office (usually between 2–4 days per month, depending on the needs of your role, team, or service). Travel costs to your contracted office will be at your own expense.
Flexible Working
We are happy to discuss flexible working options at interview.
Commitment to Diversity & Inclusion
Save the Children UK believes in a world that is fair, inclusive and equitable where all children have the opportunity to change their world. We apply this to our workforce and are committed to developing and supporting a diverse, equitable, and inclusive organisation where all employees have a sense of belonging. We are especially interested in people whose childhood experiences—of life on a low income, of migration, of being in a racialised community, of the care system, of being LGBT+ or in an LGBT+ family, or living with (or with someone with) a disability—help us to see things we might otherwise miss. Whatever your story is, we want to hear it because we know that different voices, ideas, perspectives and knowledge, working together enable us to better the lives of children around the world.
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