This is an exciting opportunity to join the National Lottery Community Fund in a pivotal role in which you’ll shape the future of funding policy and practice across the organisation. Having a suite of effective funding policies is essential to the Fund, guiding our funding practice, enabling a consistent customer experience and alignment with relevant statutory frameworks. As Head of Funding Policy and Practice you will be responsible for maintaining and evolving the Fund’s suite of funding policies, playing a critical part in shaping the future of funding. The role offers an energising mix of strategic leadership, policy development, stakeholder engagement and cross-organisational collaboration, with the impact of your work being felt right across the organisation.
In this role, you’ll have the opportunity to lead a dynamic and important programme of work that is critical to the success of the Fund. The role will involve a variety of responsibilities, including:
- Lead and oversee the Funding Policy and Practice programme, ensuring that adequate resources, expertise, and capacity are in place to achieve successful outcomes.
- Develop a strategic roadmap for the programme, identifying key priorities and creating a plan to update existing policies and develop new ones as necessary.
- Gather insights from both internal and external sources to assess the current funding landscape and guide decision-making in policy development and support for good funding practice.
- Act as an ambassador for the programme, advocating for it at senior leadership levels, with the Board and across the organisation to ensure alignment with broader goals.
- Establish and maintain clear governance frameworks to manage decision-making processes and prioritise policy development.
- Foster collaboration across various teams to ensure seamless implementation of policies and initiatives.
Your day will be a blend of strategic thinking, stakeholder engagement, and practical execution, with plenty of opportunities to collaborate, influence, and drive change across the Fund.
We’re looking for someone with the expertise and passion to drive policy development and ensure our funding practices remain top-notch. You’ll bring a strong background in funding policy work in a grant-making environment. Excellent leadership and collaboration skills will be essential in building relationships at all levels, from senior management to external stakeholders and funding colleagues across the Fund. You’ll have a keen understanding of the funding landscape, the nuances of working within a public body, and a deep commitment to delivering policies that make a tangible difference. If you’re ready to take on a leadership role in an important organisation and have a genuine passion for supporting communities, this is the role for you.
Interview Date: Week Commencing 14th and 21st July - Virtual
Location: We have a hybrid approach to working, work pattern and location will be agreed with the successful candidate. The role can be based at any of our UK offices, these are Belfast, Birmingham, Cardiff, Exeter, Glasgow, Leeds, London, Newcastle and Newtown.
Briefing sessions: We will hold two briefing session to further outline the role and answer questions on the following dates:
- 10 June, 2-3pm
- 12 June, 10-11am
If you are interested in joining a briefing call on this opportunity, please email [email protected] and an invite will be sent nearer the time.
Any questions about the recruitment process, please email: [email protected]
On application, please align your supporting statement to the criteria below
Essential criteria:
- Experience in leading the development and delivery of effective funding policy for a funding body or function.
- Strong leadership skills, able to establish a clear vision and set direction for a programme of work, drawing on evidence and engaging others to shape a direction of travel.
- Strong engagement and collaboration skills, able to work with a range of people both internally and externally, at all levels of seniority.
- Excellent analytical skills, able to draw on data and qualitative evidence from a variety of sources to shape priorities.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including ability to prepare informative, engaging and succinct policy on complex topics.
- Ability to translate corporate plans and strategies into tangible policies while balancing operational challenges.
- A strong understanding of the funding environment for civil society organisations and ability to understand the implications of developments in the wider environment for your work.
Desirable criteria:
- Good understanding of the implications of the Fund’s status as a public body for policy and practice
Equity, Diversity and Inclusion
Communities in the UK come in all shapes and sizes. National Lottery funding is for everyone – therefore, we are committed to equity, diversity and inclusion and we work hard to ensure our funding reaches where it is needed.
We also believe our people should represent the communities, organisations and individuals we work with. That’s why The National Lottery Community Fund is committed to being an inclusive employer and a great place to work. We recognise and celebrate the fact that our people come from diverse backgrounds. We positively welcome applications from people from ethnic minority backgrounds, people with disabilities or longstanding health conditions, people who are LGBTQ+, and people from different socio-economic and educational backgrounds, as well as people of all ages.
As a Disability Confident Employer, we take a proactive approach in making reasonable adjustments, if needed, throughout the recruitment process and during employment. (This can be related to a physical and mental health condition.)