Partnerships Manager

We are proud of our long‑term, transformational partnerships with business across professional and financial services, technology, healthcare and the built economy. This role will account manage and deliver our skills and employability programmes which are designed in partnership with industry to help young people in underserved communities.

Key Priorities

• Prepare young people for a future they choose
• Be a trusted connector between education and employment
• Scale our impact through sustainable growth

Salary and Benefits Overview

• Starting salary: £35,000 p/a (pro‑rata for part‑time)
• Hybrid working 37.5 hours per week
• 28 days holiday plus bank holidays
• £500 learning and development budget
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Morning/afternoon of your birthday off

About the Role

You will be working collaboratively with our corporate and industry partners to support teachers and students in schools and further education institutions in accessing a range of free, TTF educational programmes. You will line‑manage and be responsible for the development of our Programme Coordinators, and work closely with our inspirational network of freelance facilitators who deliver our workshops in schools. While you’ll be working remotely, you will not be on your own – you will talk to TTF colleagues, industry colleagues, schools, facilitators and volunteers daily, and regularly visit your projects in schools across the UK. You are comfortable meeting targets, budgets, deadlines and outcomes, while being adaptable to improvements driven by stakeholder feedback.

Key Responsibilities

• You’ll be a brilliant account manager, someone who is action‑orientated and highly organised. You enjoy working in partnership with a variety of people and implement practical solutions to meet TTF goals. You can balance competing priorities and deadlines, and are comfortable making decisions after gathering insight and information from colleagues and partners.
• Multiple Projects Management: As a skilled account manager, you will nurture and build long‑term relationships with major employers and schools to deliver several social mobility programmes. You will take responsibility for all stages of the project lifecycle and plan effectively in line with agreed budgets and timescales, considering a plan‑B and making the decision to adapt programmes when needed.
• Team Management for Programme Delivery: You will directly manage individuals who work with you on specific projects and supervise others working with other Programme Managers. Helping your direct reports to manage priority tasks and demand from across our school network is key to meeting our vision. You will help identify learning and development needs, be involved in recruitment, probation through to annual review, and provide ongoing supervision and direction to your team.
• Build Exceptional Relationships: You will be an ambassador for your programmes and TTF to develop and maintain excellent working relationships at all levels of our partner organisations. Key relationships include industry partners, corporate volunteers, our facilitators who deliver workshops to thousands of young people every week, and the schools with which we work. You’ll want to get to know the geographic areas you are working in and be excited by spotting opportunities to grow our pipeline of partners and programmes.
• Use Systems and Administrative Processes: Whether you are monitoring budgets, planning school bookings, commissioning facilitators or providing volunteer briefings, you will find the most efficient and cost‑effective ways to manage the day‑to‑day operations of your programme activities. This includes assessing the best delivery model, setting deadlines and confirming suitable logistics and/or technical requirements at schools and venues. You’ll be happy to make recommendations on how we can do this better.
• Evaluation and Reporting: You will advise corporate partners and funders to create ways to support young people through workshops, resources, content, and materials. With the support of our Programme Coordinators, you will seek feedback from students, teachers and volunteers and continuously review opportunities for improvements. You will also write regular reports and impact reports for partners, ensuring what we do works.
• Staff and Team Culture: Operate as a flexible team player, provide a high level of self‑administrative support to facilitate a ‘one team’ approach, understand and comply with all policies and procedures at TTF including Safeguarding, Health & Safety and Data Protection & GDPR responsibilities, support diversity and equal opportunities for all, attend and participate in monthly in‑person Team Together Days (London), TTF meetings, workshops, events, training and learning activities, visit TTF projects, and undertake all other duties commensurate with the level of the post as required.

Experience

• Track record of managing multiple projects with a variety of stakeholders and/or funders from the commercial sector
• Account management experience
• Direct line staff management, including performance management
• Track record of achieving targets and objectives
• IT, data and systems to operate efficient programmes, and evaluate and measure their success
• Experience using CRM (Zoho One desirable)
• Budget and resource monitoring

Skills

• Excellent business and professional written communications skills
• Speaking and listening skills with the ability to lead and respond confidently in conversations with senior leaders
• Administrative skills, using data, spreadsheets and CRM systems to plan and organise work and support your team
• Confidence using MS packages including email, Teams, PowerPoint, Excel and Word, and comfort with technology to enhance activities
• Problem‑solving ability and resilience in logistical or operational challenges
• Initiative and decisiveness to ensure ambition for the charity and its students

Knowledge

• Ability to handle and keep commercial information confidential
• GDPR and safeguarding, particularly in relation to protecting young people
• Understanding of and interest in the UK education sector

Person Specification

While it’s not a criteria, we’re especially interested to hear from applicants who have lived experience of some of the challenges young people from underserved backgrounds are facing today. It’s also important to us that the people we hire do not discriminate. We believe in being inclusive and giving everyone an equal chance to succeed. Applications are welcome from all regardless of age, sex, gender identity, disability, marriage or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, race, sexual orientation, transgender status, or social economic background.

Job Details – Salary and Benefits

• Salary – £35,000 per annum
• Annual leave – 28 days, plus Bank Holidays
• Reports to – Senior Programmes Manager
• Hours – 37.5 hours per week, Monday to Friday
• Part‑time option (0.8 FTE) available – please note on your application

Place of Work

This is a hybrid role. You will be working from home (IT equipment provided) with 2–3 individual days per month (on average) in London for Team Together Days in a co‑working space – these days are considered commuting days. The role also includes regular travel to projects and visits to schools across the UK (expenses paid).

Benefits

• Employee Assistance Programme
• Training and development budget
• Quarterly social activities at a Team Together Day
• The afternoon of your birthday off (or the morning after)
• Cycling to work scheme
• Enhanced maternity package after three years service
• Pension scheme including employer contributions

Application Process

Apply through our CharityJob portal which uses anonymous recruitment. Include a comprehensive CV with full work history, any employment gaps, and start/finish months and years. Answer the application questions: Why do you want to work for The Talent Foundry? (250 words); Choose three of the sub‑headings in the key responsibilities section and describe which of your previous work history demonstrates your success in this role (500 words). Provide a clear and concise review of strengths and areas for learning. We will screen for child protection and conduct references, background checks and DBS as required.

Closing Date

We are actively hiring for this role and will interview successful candidates on a rolling basis in September 2025.

Next Steps

If shortlisted, you will receive a telephone screening call, followed by a virtual interview on MS Teams. After the first round, a second interview (including a technical test) will take place in‑person and reasonable travel expenses will be reimbursed. We always inform candidates of the outcome, but due to high application volumes, this may not occur until a month after the closing date.