Trust and Foundations Manager

Location: Hybrid - your time will be split between our office/venue on Bristol Harbourside, and your home or wherever you like to work, however we would like the successful candidate to be able to commit to at least two days a week in our Bristol office.

We're happy to support a flexible working pattern across three, four or five days a week. You just need to be able to attend key meetings, have some crossover with the rest of the Development team and deliver the responsibilities of the role.

Department: Development
Report to: Gifts and Partnerships Manager
Responsible for: N/A
Salary: £40,000 per annum pro rata (£24,000 - £28,000 per annum dependent on whether contract is 0.6 or 0.7 FTE, see working hours below).
Contract: 18-month fixed-term contract

Working hours: Part-time, 22.5 hours a week (0.6 FTE) OR 26.25 hours a week (0.7 FTE), flexible over 3, 4 or 5 days. This may include attending events outside of normal working hours.
About We The Curious

We The Curious is an educational charity and one of the UK's leading science centres. We produce experiences that bring people together to play, get creative with science and explore different ideas. We work with partners, locally and nationally, supporting people to be inquisitive, develop new skills and improve their wellbeing. We are progressive, inquisitive, collaborative, playful and creative.
About the role

We The Curious is about to enter an exciting new phase in its mission to connect and empower everyone through shared creative science learning experiences. It is nearly a year since we reopened and as we enter our 25th Anniversary Year there is lots to celebrate and talk about with our new multi-year strategy, Plan 2030 which encompasses numerous major projects for which we must develop and cultivate support.
The Development Team is responsible for fundraising across the whole organisation and the stewardship and development of our donors and supporters. The other members of the team are the Development Manager, the Gifts and Partnerships Manager and Development Account Manager. We are looking for a Trusts and Foundations Manager who is collaborative, organised and an excellent communicator to join the team to help us maximise and unlock some very exciting fundraising opportunities.

What will you do in this role?
Role specific responsibilities

1. Identify new grants funding sources, including trusts and foundations, research councils and statutory/government funders.
2. Prepare and submit high quality funding proposals, expressions of interest and budgets in accordance with strict deadlines and application criteria, to a diverse range of funders, for up to seven-figure sums.
3. Work closely with internal departmental teams to develop We The Curious projects so that they are ready for fundraising and write detailed and compelling cases for support that include timelines, budgets and evaluation and reporting plans.
4. Support the funding applications of other partner organisations by collaboratively drafting budgets, attending project development meetings and writing letters of support.
5. Support the Development Account Manager to cultivate potential funders, including attending on-site visits and events, phone calls and delivering presentations to secure support.
6. Support the Development Account Manager to manage a portfolio of funders including overseas relationships, fulfilling reporting and public recognition requirements, thank you letters, regular communications and other correspondence.
7. Liaise with the finance team to record new income and report on expenditure in accordance with funder deadlines.
8. Support the Gifts and Partnerships Manager and Development Manager in identifying new strategic opportunities and exploring new types of income stream. This may include presenting to the leadership team. Contribute to the delivery of the fundraising strategy, including proposing financial targets for grants, lottery and research income.
9. Work closely with the Open City Research (OCR) Manager to identify and pursue new funding opportunities for our ambitious OCR programme and work with the finance team to establish a new funding model for this activity. Support the Gifts and Partnerships Manager and Sustainability and Science Director in cultivating high-value stakeholders in STEM and research sectors.
10. Assist in the implementation of the Development Team's migration onto a new CRM database working closely with the Development Account Manager to customise the database for the Development team's needs.
11. Work with the finance team to understand our financial position and as requested by the Finance Director, contributing to key organisational financial documentation, such as the annual business plan.
12. Manage Fundraising Volunteers supporting the administrative workload of the team and attend Volunteer Key Contacts meetings.
13. Attend and occasionally present at We The Curious staff meetings, exhibition launches, project meetings, project development presentations and meetings as required.

General responsibilities

1. Develop and maintain an up-to-date knowledge of We The Curious' planned activities for communities and schools to present our work persuasively to funders and partners.
2. Embody and demonstrate our values; Collaborative, Creative, Inquisitive, Playful, Progressive.
3. Responsible for carefully following safeguarding policies and procedures and raising any concerns to manager/Designated Safeguarding Officer.
4. General responsibility for departmental compliance with GDPR.
5. Occasional out of hours work and travel to events.

What we're looking for from you

1. You'll have at least three years of fundraising experience, with success at delivering against financial targets and strict deadlines. You'll have the ability to network, build and manage funding relationships with a wide range of funders and other stakeholders.
2. You'll be confident explaining and pitching ideas to internal and external stakeholders.
3. You'll have experience of working very closely with project delivery teams to develop projects, ensure they know what they need to deliver for funders and monitor their expenditure.
4. You'll have excellent budget management skills, the ability to work independently and effectively and will be confident reporting on six or seven figure budgets.
5. You will have good understanding of the financial and regulatory environment charities operate within.
6. You'll have some technical knowledge and experience at using and developing fundraising databases.
7. You'll have experience and confidence in managing multiple projects simultaneously.
8. You'll have the ability to understand We The Curious' broad-ranging project content and tailor it to appropriate style and content for target funders.
9. You'll have excellent verbal and written communication skills.
10. You'll ideally have an understanding or experience of working in education, culture and/or science charities.

Application process
Deadline for applications: Friday 25th April at midnight.
Interview date and location: Wednesday 14th May 2025 at We The Curious.
Start date: Approximately 9th June 2024.
Application process:
If you would like to apply, please complete the application form. It contains questions designed to assess your interest in and suitability for the role.

Please don't send in CVs or cover letters as we don't review them.

If you are invited for an interview, we'll send you the questions that you'll be asked beforehand so that you have time to prepare.

If you have any particular needs or requirements, please do let us know so that we can make the required adjustments.

If you would like to talk about the role or the application process, please email
Support during the process
We The Curious is a Disability Confident Employer and we welcome applications from candidates who self-assess themselves as having a disability. We will guarantee an interview to applicants who advise that they have a disability and who meet the minimum criteria for a job vacancy. To help you, under the Equality Act 2010 a person is defined as having a disability if a) they have a physical or mental impairment, and b) the impairment has a substantial and long-term adverse effect on their ability to carry out normal day-to-day activities.

We want to work with you to ensure the recruitment process is accessible for you.

If you are disabled, neurodivergent, or if you have a long-term health condition, we'll be happy to make reasonable adjustments to our processes for you.

You'll have the opportunity to let us know about any adjustments you may need throughout the application and selection process. We'll continue this conversation if you join us as a staff member, and we'll work with you to make sure you have the adjustments you need to succeed in your role.

Examples of adjustments could include:

1. providing alternative formats at every stage
2. options to apply
3. extra time for tasks
4. providing some extra information about what to expect
5. office orientation before an in-person interview.

Including everyone

We value the positive impact greater representation will have on our organisation, programmes and culture. It's our goal to become an inclusive place to work and for our teams to better reflect our city and the people who visit us.
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