Assistant Director of Organisational Development and Learning in Ewell

At Samaritans, our vision is that fewer people die by suicide. Every day, our volunteers and staff provide life‑saving emotional support to people in distress, and behind that work is a culture built on compassion, inclusion, learning and human connection. We are looking for an experienced and values‑led leader to join us as our new Assistant Director of Organisational Development & Learning within our People and Culture Directorate. This is a rare opportunity to shape how learning, leadership and organisational capability enable one of the UK and Ireland’s most respected charities to deliver its mission.

You will lead the development of an ambitious organisation‑wide learning and organisational development strategy, ensuring our 23,000 volunteers and 300 staff members have the skills, confidence and support needed to deliver safe, effective and compassionate services.

About the role

Reporting to the Executive Director of People & Culture, you will lead a talented team responsible for organisational development, leadership capability, learning and development, delivery of training through our training school and external learning provision through STEP, our commercial training offer. Samaritans is on an ambitious journey of change, we are evolving how we work, strengthening collaboration across the organisation to meet growing need for our life‑saving listening services. You could not be joining us at a more pivotal time and the capability of our people has never been more important.

Working closely with senior leaders across the organisation, you will:

• Lead the development and delivery of innovative, inclusive and high‑quality learning solutions
• Shape and embed leadership capability frameworks that support a positive, accountable and compassionate culture
• Support organisational transformation and change through strong organisational development expertise
• Drive strategic approaches to learning, talent and succession planning
• Partner with leaders to build a high‑performing and psychologically safe learning culture
• Ensure our learning approaches reflect best practice, accessibility and equity, diversity and inclusion principles
• Support the development of our geographically dispersed volunteer and staff teams
• Bring external insight, thought leadership and innovation into the organisation

You will also play an active role as part of our Senior Leadership Group and People and Culture Senior Leadership Team, contributing beyond your specialist area to help deliver our wider organisational strategy and mission.

About you

You are an experienced organisational development, learning or people capability leader with a strong track record of delivering strategic cultural and organisational change. Importantly, you are someone who leads with empathy, curiosity and integrity. You understand that high performance and compassion go hand in hand, and you are passionate about creating environments where people feel supported, empowered and able to grow.

Qualities and experience you will bring:

• Significant experience leading organisational development and learning strategy at a senior level
• Expertise in leadership development, capability building and organisational change
• Experience of identifying future capability needs through workforce planning
• Strong stakeholder engagement and influencing skills, including experience working with senior leadership teams
• Experience developing inclusive learning cultures and blended learning solutions
• Knowledge of talent and succession planning approaches
• The ability to inspire and lead geographically dispersed teams, including volunteers
• A collaborative and values‑driven leadership style

Experience within the charity or not‑for‑profit sector would be welcomed, though we also encourage applications from candidates outside the sector who share our values and mission.

Why Samaritans?

At Samaritans, people matter deeply. We know that meaningful impact starts with how we support each other. We are committed to creating an inclusive, supportive and flexible workplace where everyone can thrive. We value diversity of thought, background and lived experience, and we actively encourage applications from people from all communities.

In return, we offer:

• Competitive Salary and Rewards; £73,000 - £75,000 per annum plus Benefits.
• Flexible and hybrid working; our full time hours are 35 hours per week, but we are committed to flexible working and offer a hybrid approach to working. Due to the nature of our work, some evening and weekend working is required with time off in lieu given.
• Hybrid working: Meeting in person and working collaboratively are things we value. This role is linked to our Ewell (Surrey) office with a blend of home working and option to work out of our London office as required.
• The opportunity to shape learning and organisational capability in a nationally recognised charity
• A supportive and inclusive culture
• The chance to contribute directly to work that saves lives

Every person at Samaritans plays a role in helping fewer people die by suicide. If you are motivated by purpose, compassion and the opportunity to make a lasting difference, we would love to hear from you. We recognise the enormous benefits and the social justice imperatives of ensuring diversity at every level of our organisation. Samaritans is wholly committed to inclusion and diversity and to building a culture and environment where everyone is appreciated for the unique person they are. To ensure Samaritans is representative of those we support and who support us, we particularly welcome applications from disabled, racialised minority and LGBTQ+ candidates, as these people are under‑represented at Samaritans.