Head of Income and Engagement in Surrey, Woking

This is a new role to stabilise, diversify and grow income in a financially constrained environment, reducing reliance on statutory funding, increasing unrestricted income, and strengthening Catalyst Support’s credibility with all sources of non-statutory funding, including trusts, foundations, corporates, individuals and communities. The postholder holds clear accountability for income performance, return on investment and risk management, and plays a critical role in the organisation’s financial recovery and long-term sustainability. The role is designed as a strategic investment, with the expectation that income generated will move the function towards break-even and net contribution over time, supported by clear targets and Board oversight.

Key Responsibilities

• Leadership & Income Delivery: Lead and deliver a multi-year income and engagement strategy covering trusts and foundations, corporate partnerships, major donors, community fundraising and individual giving. Take ownership of income targets, pipelines and forecasts, including break-even requirements and risk exposure. Actively manage income risk, developing scenario plans and mitigation actions where delivery falls below expectation. Work with the Executive and Senior Leadership Teams to align income activity with organisational strategy and service priorities.
• Funding Applications & Grant Management: Provide strategic oversight, delivery and quality assurance of all high-value bids, tenders and funding applications. Ensure bids are evidence-led, outcome-focused, accurately costed and aligned to service capacity. Taking direct responsibility for bid and tender preparation and submission. Maintain strong relationships with funders and foundations, ensuring compliance with reporting requirements and effective stewardship. Contribute approximately 20% of working time towards partner applications and collaborative projects with key partners, supporting joint funding and shared objectives.
• Communications, Marketing & Engagement: Lead communications and engagement functions to directly support income generation, funder confidence and organisational reputation. Ensure all external messaging demonstrates impact, value for money and strategic coherence. Grow individual giving, community fundraising and supporter engagement where there is clear return on investment. Oversee brand consistency and visibility across digital and offline channels.
• Internal Collaboration & Income Culture: Work closely with service and enabling teams to strengthen funding evidence, case studies and impact data. Build organisational understanding that income generation is a shared responsibility. Work with services and enabling teams to develop compelling cases for support. Equip teams with clarity on how funding, impact and delivery are connected.
• Performance, Impact & Governance: Establish and monitor KPIs covering income performance, ROI, cost-per-£ raised, engagement metrics and pipeline health. Report regularly to the Executive team and Trustees, providing transparent assessment of progress, risks and corrective action. Support Board assurance through disciplined performance monitoring and review points.
• Team Leadership: Provide line management, development and performance oversight for income generation and communications staff. Recruit, develop and retain high-quality team capability aligned to organisational needs.
• Leadership Contribution: Contribute as a senior operational leader to organisational planning, change and continuous improvement. Work closely with the Director of Services on future service design, positioning and sustainability. Undertake other duties appropriate to the seniority of the role and Catalyst Support’s mission. Strengthen partnership development with Mary Frances Trust to enhance county-wide support, with particular emphasis on provision for mental health services across both East and West regions.

Person Specification

Essential Experience: Proven experience securing trust, grant and philanthropic income at scale, with clear evidence of income conversion and delivery. Track record of leading income strategies that generate net financial contribution, including roles where income targets were explicitly expected to cover or exceed post costs or programme investment. Experience operating in financially constrained, recovery-focused or turnaround environments, with responsibility for balancing income ambition against organisational risk. Experience of Board-level reporting, accountability and scrutiny, including transparent reporting of income performance against targets. Demonstrated ability to build senior relationships with funders, partners and individuals that translate into sustained or repeat income.

Desirable Experience: Experience in mental health, wellbeing or community services. Experience overseeing communications and marketing functions. Experience operating within multi-stream or system-based service environments.

Skills & Competencies: Commercially and financially astute. Strong analytical, forecasting and risk-management capability, including income pipeline assessment and contribution modelling. Confident influencer with credibility at senior and external levels. Strategic thinker with a strong bias towards delivery, outcomes and financial impact. Resilient, solutions-focused and adaptable in high-pressure, performance-driven environments.

Values & Behaviours: Commitment to Catalyst Support’s values: Kindness, Integrity and Commitment. Collaborative, inclusive and trauma-informed approach. Commitment to equality, diversity and lived-experience leadership.

Equal Opportunities Statement: We acknowledge the unique contribution that all Catalyst employees, volunteers and clients can bring to our organisation in terms of their culture, race, gender, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, marital status, nationality, age, religion or belief and any physical disability or history of mental health or additional problems.