DEVELOPMENT MANAGER - KILMALLIE COMMUNITY CENTRE in Fort William

DEVELOPMENT MANAGER - KILMALLIE COMMUNITY CENTRE

Do you have the qualities needed to help a busy community Hall develop and implement exciting plans to deliver a sustainable long-term future? This is a challenging rewarding role, offering the opportunity to make a real transformative difference to a highly valued community venue, putting you at the heart of your local community, bringing benefit to everyone who lives, works and visits here.

We are a busy venue, open 7 days a week all year (apart from Christmas and New Year public holidays) providing Hall spaces for hire (daytime and evening) to a wide range of individuals, community groups and organisations, charities and businesses. We are open to the public every day, providing public toilets, campervan waste facilities, and a book exchange. We are also host to a number of community facilities like the Community Fridge, a Recycling Point, an e‑bike stance and an electric vehicle charging point. We have a large car park and extensive grounds.

The Hall is run by a team of 4 directors on a voluntary basis. After a recent opportunity to re‑appraise our staffing needs, we are creating a brand new team consisting of this Development Manager role, a part‑time Administrator and a part‑time Hallkeeper. It is an exciting time to join the 60 year old Hall, a third of the way through a year‑long ‘Heartbeat project’, funded by Highland Council’s Community Regeneration Fund, for a Five Year Business Plan incorporating proposals for extensive improvements to our facilities, services, administration and governance.

Our new employee team, along with our Directors and a growing number of volunteers, need to keep the Hall running on a daily basis whilst planning all the improvements we need to thrive into mid 221st century. Everyone in the team will be playing an equally important part, whilst serving different roles. The Development Manager will work with Directors and a team of consultants to deliver various aspects of our Heartbeat project.

Applicants with suitable experience are welcome to apply to us for more than 1 currently‑advertised post to provide additional hours. A separate application form must be filled in for each post. If you think you could provide some but not all aspects of this role, please email us with details, max 200 words, for advice as to whether to apply: we may be able to consider restructuring roles, but only in the most exceptional circumstances.

LOCATION: Kilmallie Hall, Station Road, Corpach. A fair degree of physical presence is needed at the Hall but the opportunity to work from home will be available where possible, subject to the needs of the Heartbeat project and the Hall overall. The role will also involve occasional working off‑site, eg for outreach activities.

DURATION: This post is funded until end of May 2027 with good expectation of continuance thereafter: our need for someone in a Development role is expected to continue for a number of years while we implement our[5‑10] Heartbeat Plan.

WAGES: £18.00 to £20.00 per hour, depending on experience and other factors.

PENSION: the minimum statutory employer’s contribution will apply

WORKING HOURS: 18 hours per week, no fixed schedule but with requirement and opportunity to be flexible to suit Heartbeat project and overall Hall needs. There is need to attend monthly evening Board meetings and also occasional other need to work in evenings or at weekend. There may be need for occasional additional hours. All hours will be at standard rate.

INTERVIEWS: Will be held in person at Kilmallie Hall between 9am and 6pm on Friday 27th and Saturday 28th November 2026

CLOSING DATE FOR APPLICATIONS: 5:00pm, Friday 20th November 2026

Please note we are in process of changing our name to Kilmallie Hall, but our email address will continue to refer to kilmalliecommunitycentre until further notice.

JOB DESCRIPTION BACKGROUND

Our Heartbeat project (funded by the Community Regeneration Fund) is vital to the long term sustainability of the Hall. This Development Manager role is central to the success of that project. Building on our work on the project so far, you will be responsible, together with directors and consultants, for creating a number of long‑term plans, and for delivery of some of the most urgent elements within those plans. It will involve a lot of desk‑based work, as well as extensive engagement with volunteers, users, the community and other stakeholders.

ABOUT YOU

You will be a confident, friendly individual who can work well with people of all ages, backgrounds, interests and needs. You will approach your work with professionalism and a positive constructive approach. You will be self‑reliant, energetic, able to inspire others, take responsibility and prioritise your activities. You will be systematic, an excellent planner and organiser, able to work well independently, manage your time and use your initiative, while also being a constructive supportive member of our overall team. You will represent the Hall in all you do as a welcoming, inclusive, vibrant community venue. You will be able to work flexible hours to suit the Hall’s needs, and be happy to communicate for work purposes using WhatsApp on your own device.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES

• Extensive community consultation to inform a Heartbeat Plan of improvements to facilities and services
• Community outreach activities to explore opportunities for growth, for expanding our volunteer team, and for improving our accessibility and inclusivity
• Developing our Governance Development Plan and implementing prioritised elements of it, including policy development and the development of our management and administration systems
• Developing our Digital Improvement Plan and implementing prioritised elements of it, including improvements to our email, filesharing, collaboration and cybersecurity provisions
• Rolling out our new logo and graphic design package as we revert from Kilmallie Community Centre to our original name
• Populating and maintaining our new website (currently in design)
• Assisting us in preparing a 5‑10 year plan for building repairs, improvements and alterations
• Assisting Business Consultants’ preparation of a 5‑10 year business plan
• Administration of current CRF grant claims, identifying other funding opportunities and assisting in preparation of other applications for funding
• Working with Consultant to expand and co‑ordinate our volunteer team
• Developing regular publicity in local press, social media, newsletters and our own noticeboards, and developing positive relationships with all stakeholders incl users, potential users, neighbours, statutory bodies etc
• Contributing to line‑management of other employees and volunteers

OTHER RESPONSIBILITIES

• Other reasonable duties as required to deliver our Heartbeat project
• Reporting to and attendance at Board meetings
• Occasional cover and support for day‑to‑day running when needed

QUALIFICATIONS REQUIRED

• Good grades at Higher and/or Advanced Higher level (or equivalent) across a good range of subjects applicable to this role, including essential English and Mathematics
• A higher education qualification (ie degree level) is a strong advantage if you don’t already have a demonstrable career record in a relevant field

ESSENTIAL SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• Excellent computer literacy with strong proficiency in Office apps or similar (especially word docs and spreadsheets)
• Excellent literacy, with strong proficiency in production of a wide range of professional material, such as reports, promotional info, policy documentation
• Excellent numeracy skills with experience of managing project budgets, preparing detailed grant claims and working with financial data
• Excellent organisational skills, with experience of project planning and delivery
• excellent interpersonal and communication skills, with experience of working with others to deliver change
• Working without reliance on AI

DESIRABLE SKILLS AND EXPERIENCE

• Previous experience in a similar role
• Community engagement
• Workshop or focus group facilitation
• Working in a leadership capacity
• Experience of GoogleWorkspace or similar collaborative platforms
• Fundraising and funding applications
• Preparation of policy and procedure documentation, familiarity with document control
• Building facilities management
• Involvement in business planning
• Great local network and knowledge of the area
• Competence in Canva or similar publishing software
• Maintaining lively website and social media platforms for engagement, marketing and info purposes
• Organising events
• Ability to drive, and current clean driving licence

Note: If the job is offered to you, we may ask you to consent to Disclosure Scotland checks.