Development Assistant (Edinburgh International Book Festival)

The Edinburgh International Book Festival is a charity which brings together outstanding writers and thinkers from around the world with curious audiences in 600 events for children and families, young adults, and adults each August, as well as year‑round community activities. The Book Festival has a permanent staff of 25 throughout the year, expanding over the spring and summer to a peak of around 135 staff during the Festival. All staff members play a role in the ongoing development of the organisation through several full team planning and debrief meetings during the year.

The role of Development Assistant (Festival) will support the Development team (and wider colleagues as required), helping to ensure smooth fundraising operations, both public facing and behind the scenes, during the Festival. Part runner and part organiser, you’ll play an essential role in looking after Festival supporters, ensuring their hospitality spaces are well maintained, responding to day‑to‑day demands and essential errands, liaising with their site team, and eventually helping us track and tidy away everything ready for the next Festival. Aspects of the role are physical in nature, with a light to moderate level of exertion required of the successful candidate. Examples of such responsibilities include collecting and delivering tickets from box office to their receptions, helping to set out furniture, carrying small numbers of books or packages of leaflets short distances, and traversing the large Festival footprint multiple times a day. Manual handling and wider training will be given, and aids such as carts and trolleys will be available. All heavier construction and deconstruction is undertaken by their Site team and other partners, who will be able to assist the Development team where they have need.

The role’s key duties are:

• Before the Festival (Mon 3 – Fri 14 August): Assisting with the preparation and collation of event signage, reserve signs, and hospitality dressing. Working with teammates on preparing for the office move, ensuring everything the team will need at site is identified, collected and prepared for couriers. Once on site, working with the wider Development team to complete the set‑up of hospitality dressing across the two spaces. Initial CRM, phone and systems training.
• During the Festival (15 Aug – 30 Aug): Liaise with Development colleagues, Waterstones staff, and Author Hospitality to coordinate the signing and distribution of books for sponsors and supporters. Collect tickets from box office for supporters, and run tickets back to box office ahead of cultivation events. Manage the printing of name badges and guest lists for Development cultivation events. Coordinate the distribution of exit leaflets following select sponsored events. Monitor shared inboxes and phone lines to support membership queries during the Festival. Lead on the placement of temporary signage ahead of all hospitality events. Ensure the two hospitality venues are set up correctly ahead of events, and work with site teams to manage AV and tech requirements for the team and external partners. Work with Front of House to make sure reserve seating is in place for all required events. Monitoring hospitality areas during receptions and liaising with Hospitality Collection caterers. Collecting orders from external suppliers within the city. Liaising with the Site Co‑ordinator and other members of the Site team to ensure appropriate packaging materials are acquired for site pack‑up. Any other duties, as reasonably needed, to support the Development team.
• Post-Festival (Mon 31 August – Wednesday 2 September): Assisting with the disassembly of the Festival site, namely the collection, cataloguing and readying of Development team elements for their return to storage. Working with colleagues, ensuring a clear and tidy catalogue of assets and their storage destinations. Assisting with the packing up of the Development team’s Festival office area, helping to ensure all the items are ready for the return to the George Street office. Assisting with the return to the George Street office, and the storage, tidying and reset of the Development team office area.

This is a busy position, and requires a high degree of organisation, can‑do attitude, and flexibility. The successful candidate will display an ability to grasp plans quickly and hit the ground running, show determination and a willingness to get stuck in and be hands‑on, as well as bringing bags of energy and an enthusiasm to make the most of their time working on the Festival. The Festival environment is fast‑paced and this role is practical, so the ability to work quickly and independently is essential. The successful candidate will be reliable and can be depended on to complete their core tasks, whilst looking out for where else support may be required.

The successful candidate will possess the following:

• The ability to establish a range of positive working relationships quickly, and communicate clearly and consistently.
• Experience in working events or hospitality, or other public facing activity/projects, with an understanding of the on‑the‑ground nature and pace of work involved.
• Great organisation, initiative, and attention to detail.
• The ability to complete tasks independently and reliably, with a desire to lead on core tasks.
• An enthusiasm to get stuck in, and make the most of the opportunity both in terms of supporting the team and for their own experience and development.
• An interest in Festivals and the arts.
• An understanding of how small daily tasks contribute to a successful bigger picture.
• Experience in hospitality.

Personal Attributes: Is energetic, confident, determined, positive, and resilient. Enthusiastic and curious about the cultural sector, festivals and/or fundraising, with bags of initiative and a flexible, can‑do attitude. Has initiative, can take charge of and own their workload, and show a proactive approach.

Pay Rate: £13.45 per hour

Location: Edinburgh

Contract: Fixed‑term contract from Monday 3 August – Wednesday 2 September 2026, full‑time.

Working Pattern: Will vary over the length of the contract, with indicative hours: Mon 3 – Fri 7 August: 9.30 AM‑5.30 PM and Mon 10 August onwards: 35 hours/week (pro rata).