Director of Volunteering & Growth

Marine Society & Sea Cadets (MSSC) is a long-established and ambitious charity, supporting young people across the UK to develop confidence, resilience and skills for life. Through a network of over 400 units and the commitment of more than 9,000 volunteers, MSSC works with over 14,000 young people each year, providing transformative experiences rooted in challenge, community, learning and adventure. We are proud of the difference we can make to young people’s lives, often in communities that are challenging for other charities to reach.

We are now seeking a Director of Volunteering & Growth to join the Senior Leadership Team at an important point in our development. We have an ambition to significantly grow our Cadet numbers, requiring us to strengthen our infrastructure, grow our reach and volunteer numbers, and ensure we are delivering consistently high-quality experiences across the country.

Reporting to the Chief Executive, this is a broad and pivotal leadership role with responsibility for a diverse and operationally critical portfolio. Key responsibilities will include:

• Focusing on growing our Cadet and Volunteer numbers, supporting MSSC to expand its reach and impact while maintaining quality and consistency.
• Leading and developing our Volunteering strategy, strengthening the recruitment, retention and support for the large, national volunteer base which is vital for our successful expansion.
• Providing strategic leadership supporting young people through safeguarding and ensuring the Cadet Voice is heard and reflected in our decisions, and we strive for consistently high standards across the organisation.
• Overseeing safety, safeguarding, risk and compliance, ensuring robust frameworks and a strong organisational culture in relation to safety, governance and accountability.
• Driving the development of systems, processes and infrastructure to enable effective delivery at scale across a dispersed network of federated local Units.
• Leading core support functions, including governance, legal and risk, policy and insight, conflict resolution ensuring the organisation operates efficiently and sustainably.
• Working collaboratively across the Senior Leadership Team, helping to shape strategic direction and deliver and monitor progress against organisational priorities.

This is an exciting, broad role and we are not expecting someone to bring experience across all aspects; you will be supported by a team with functional expertise. We are looking for experience of driving strategic development and growth within complex, volunteer-led organisations, working at scale with volunteers, including leading services that support, enable and engage diverse volunteer communities. You will also have a strong understanding of governance, safeguarding and risk, alongside a track record of delivering transformation and improvement. Just as importantly, you will bring a collaborative, inclusive and values-driven approach, and a genuine passion for improving outcomes for young people. Experience within the youth sector would be welcome but is not essential.

This is an opportunity to join a high impact, well-established organisation with a strong sense of purpose and a clear platform for growth, and to play a key role in shaping how it delivers its mission in the years ahead.

A full recruitment pack, details of the role and selection process is available through the ‘Apply’ button. Our recruitment partner is James Stephens, Director, Morgan Law Executive Search. Applications should be submitted as a CV and supporting statement. The closing date for applications is 11pm on Monday 1st June.

MSSC is committed to building a diverse and inclusive organisation and welcomes applications from all backgrounds.