Head of Advocacy and Influencing (Maternity Cover) in London

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Salary: £62,651 per annum

Contract Type: Fixed Term Contract - Maternity Cover (up to 12 months)

Closing date: 12 April 2026 at 11pm

Interview date: 4 - 15 May 2026

About CARE

CARE International is a global humanitarian organisation leading the fight to end poverty in the world's most challenging situations. Women and girls are at the centre of our work, because we cannot overcome poverty and inequality until all people have equal rights and opportunities. We know that when a crisis erupts, women are often the first to pick up the pieces, so we work alongside women, so they have the power to make change where it's needed most. Founded in 1945, CARE currently works in over 100 countries and last year alone reached 53.4 million people through nearly 1,500 projects.

Why work for CARE International UK?

CARE International UK is currently developing its new 4-year Strategy working within the CARE International Vision 2030, which will launch in July 2026. The strategy will build on our focus on women's leadership in crisis, seeking to work more directly with women's rights/women-led organisations. The post-holder will be joining us just as we begin implementing the strategy, and this will be an exciting time to shape new and evolving ways of working with women's rights activists from across the globe.

The Advocacy and Influencing team are central to achieving the goals of the strategy by encouraging the UK Government and other UK-based stakeholders to use their power on the world stage to counter the rollback on women's rights.

About you

You will have significant experience of advocacy and/or public affairs with a track record of driving strategies that achieve measurable policy, attitude or legislative change. You will be a strategic thinker with excellent communication skills in English, and the ability to translate complex issues into plain English. You will have experience of project management and preferably budget management, particularly team or donor-funded project management. You will be media trained and confident speaking to and influencing a range of external senior stakeholders. In past roles, you will have line managed colleagues and may have managed teams, and will know how to work with others, including in coalition with other organisations, to design and deliver advocacy campaigns. You will understand how to motivate your team to deliver against an organisational strategy. Your leadership style will be aligned with CIUK's feminist leadership principles and values. You will have strong understanding of, and preferably experience working on, international development issues, in particular with reference to gender equality.

About the role

The Head of Advocacy and Influencing is a leadership role with significant responsibility for external analysis and positioning for CIUK - including through regular updates to the board Impact and Transformation Committee. The role is responsible for providing strategic direction for CIUK and CI's advocacy and influencing and leading the team to deliver UK and globally facing advocacy campaigns. The role is responsible for ensuring high quality publications and managing sign off and profile risks as part of CIUK's risk management strategy. The Head of Advocacy and Influencing will also act as a senior external spokesperson for the organization to the media, parliament and public events. The role has significant responsibility for positioning and meeting expectations of donors who fund the team's work. The Head of Advocacy and Influencing is critical for ensuring the CEO and SLT have up-to-date power analysis, political analysis and policy lines for external engagement with high level targets. As the manager and contract holder for the Centenary Action Group campaign and fundraising coordinator and a standing member on the Steering board of the Centenary Action Group, the role also manages CARE UK's role as a convener and ally of the UK women's rights movement in line with our global commitment to shift the power and localization.

The role covers four main areas of responsibility:

• Strategic Leadership & Delivery
  • Play a key role in the delivery of CIUK's new 4-year strategy.
  • Lead cross-organisational teams to deliver high quality policy analysis, advocacy and campaign strategies to UK government, parliamentary and private sector targets.
  • Work with communications to design and deliver integrated campaign plans.
• External representation and relationship management
  • Build the visibility and reputation of CIUK by building and managing key external relationships in government, parliament, private sector and across the sector, including in coalitions and alliances.
  • Provide strategic advice on political developments, external opportunities, and risks, ensuring timely and well-informed positioning, and prepare the CEO/SLT for high-level external engagements.
  • Serve as a senior spokesperson for CIUK in political, media, and public forums.
  • Work with the CARE confederation to develop advocacy lines and approaches.
• Thought leadership and Policy Development
  • Provide strategic leadership of the Gates Foundation partnership, delivering against expectations and securing further funding from this and other donors.
  • Ensure a rigorous evidence base for CIUK's policy agenda, both by working with CIUK's team of thematic experts, as well as commissioning and managing research projects where needed.
  • Prepare and approve briefings, position papers, op-eds and other communications in support of CARE UK's influencing goals.
  • Oversee CIUK's strategic role in Centenary Action, including representation on the Steering Group and overall coordination.
• Team and line management
  • Set and drive the advocacy and influencing team's annual plans and contribution to the organisation's strategic priorities.
  • Be accountable to delivering on team KPIs and organisational KPIs that link to the team's work, and for managing the team's budget.
  • Play a key role in the leadership of the Programme and Policy department.
  • Provide strong line management to direct reports and demonstrate a strong personal commitment to CIUK's equity, diversity and inclusion goals and feminist leadership principles.

Right to Work in the UK

All applicants must have the legal right to work in the United Kingdom at the time of appointment. Proof of right to work will be required as part of the recruitment process.

Safeguarding

CARE International UK has a zero-tolerance approach to any abuse to, sexual harassment of or exploitation of, a vulnerable adult or child by any of our staff, representatives or partners. CARE International UK expects all staff to share this commitment through our Safeguarding Policy and our Code of Conduct. They are responsible for ensuring they understand and work within the remit of these policies throughout their time at CARE International UK. Safeguarding our beneficiaries is our top priority in everything we do, including recruitment.

Equality and Diversity

We are committed to Equality and value Diversity. We are a Disability Confident Employer and particularly welcome applications from disabled people. We guarantee interviews to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role. We are committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace where everyone feels valued and respected. We particularly welcome applications from people of underrepresented backgrounds, including those from Black, Asian and other ethnic minority communities, and individuals who identify as LGBTQ+.