As Development Manager, you'll lead on day-to-day trusts and foundations fundraising, building a strong and well-qualified pipeline and developing compelling applications that secure restricted and unrestricted income. The postholder will research prospective funders, translate the organisation's work and impact into persuasive cases for support, coordinate high-quality submissions, and manage grants through to reporting and renewal. You will lead small and medium-sized applications and support the Head of Development on larger, strategic, or capital bids. This is a hands-on income-generation role requiring previous success in trusts and foundations fundraising, strong written communication, and disciplined pipeline management. You will also play a vital part in supporting the Development team to increase restricted and unrestricted income through individual giving streams, including work to support a refreshed membership scheme in 2027.
Responsibilities
- Own and maintain a live trusts and foundations pipeline and bid calendar, ensuring prospects are appropriately researched, qualified, prioritised, and progressed.
- Research and identify prospective funders whose priorities align with Buxton Opera House's artistic, community, learning, heritage, organisational, and capital ambitions.
- Assess the strength and suitability of opportunities, recommending where the organisation should invest its time and where an application is unlikely to be competitive.
- Maintain accurate records of prospects, approaches, decisions, awards, reporting requirements, and next actions on the CRM Bid development and income generation.
- Lead the development and writing of high-quality applications to small and medium-sized trusts and foundations, taking responsibility for submissions from initial concept through to completion.
- Work with colleagues across the organisation to shape fundable projects, define intended outcomes, and gather the evidence, delivery information, and budgets required by funders.
- Translate complex organisational information into clear, persuasive, and funder-focused cases for support, tailored to each prospect.
- Support the Head of Development and, where appropriate, external bid writers on larger, strategic, statutory, or capital applications by coordinating information, drafting content, and managing internal deadlines.
- Build relationships with prospective funders, seeking guidance and feedback where this will strengthen an application or future approach.
- Work towards agreed income and activity targets and provide accurate forecasts on the value, stage, probability, and timing of opportunities.
- Grant management, reporting, and stewardship: ensure that the conditions, payment schedules, monitoring requirements and reporting deadlines attached to every grant are understood, recorded, and communicated to relevant colleagues; coordinate timely, accurate, and engaging reports to funders, drawing together financial information, delivery evidence, outcomes, and participant or audience insight; maintain regular and appropriate contact with funders throughout the life of a grant; identify opportunities for renewal or further support and begin planning well in advance of the end of an existing grant; work with Finance and delivery teams to identify and address any risk of underspend, delay, or variance from agreed grant conditions.
- Membership scheme development: assist with the management and development of our membership supporter scheme (due to be redeveloped in 2027), with support from the Head of Development, Head of Marketing & Communications, Ticketing & Sales Manager, and Development Officer, including improving and implementing a fresh CRM pathway for donor and member management; steering campaigns and identifying opportunities to grow membership, including through the creation of onsite communities and giving opportunities; planning and leading cultivation and stewardship events throughout the year.
- Contribution to wider fundraising: contribute research, written cases for support, and proposal development to selected individual, corporate, or campaign opportunities led by the Head of Development; contribute to the ongoing review and implementation of the Development strategy and share market insight about emerging funding priorities, opportunities, best practices, and legislation; support colleagues, volunteers, and trustees to understand the case for support and their role in identifying or opening appropriate funding relationships.
- General: be an ambassador and advocate for Buxton Opera House and promote its values and behaviours both internally and externally; collaborate effectively with colleagues across Buxton Opera House and contribute to the wider aims of the organisation; maintain confidentiality and comply with organisational policies, fundraising regulation, data protection requirements, and relevant legislation; keep informed of current best practice and emerging trends in trusts and foundations fundraising; work occasional evenings and weekends where required, with pre-agreed time off in lieu; undertake any additional duties as may be required at the discretion of the Head of Department, including deputising for the Head of Department when appropriate.
Measures of Success
- A healthy, well-researched, and realistic pipeline of trust and foundation prospects.
- A consistent flow of high-quality, tailored applications submitted to deadlines.
- Income secured against agreed targets, with reliable forecasting and learning captured from unsuccessful approaches.
- Grants administered compliantly, with accurate records and reports submitted on time.
- Strong internal working relationships that enable fundable ideas to be identified and developed.
- New Membership scheme processes implemented to facilitate future cultivation, segmentation, and future-proofing.
- Development events and communications coordinated smoothly, with effective follow-up.
Requirements
- Minimum of 2 years' experience in a fundraising role, ideally in the charity sector.
- Demonstrable experience of applying to trusts and foundations and securing income, with a clear understanding of the individual's own contribution to the result.
- Knowledge of growing membership schemes and individual giving schemes.
- Experience of building and actively managing a prospect pipeline, prioritising opportunities and working to multiple external deadlines.
- Proven experience of building meaningful relationships with stakeholders and funders, including personally researching prospects, developing persuasive propositions, and writing successful applications.
- Experience of meeting fundraising and relevant business-related targets.
- Experience of working with a CRM system or fundraising database to manage prospects, activity, income, and reporting requirements.
Skills and Knowledge
- Exceptional communication skills, both written and verbal, with the ability to produce clear, persuasive, and tailored applications for different funders.
- Strong research and analytical skills, including the ability to assess alignment, eligibility, and likelihood of success.
- The ability to understand budgets, outcomes, monitoring information, and organisational data, and use them accurately in proposals and reports.
- Ability to build and maintain relationships with funders, as well as working collaboratively with colleagues at all levels.
- Ability to use and work with own initiative and be a 'self-starter'.
- Strong planning and organisational skills, with the ability to coordinate contributions and meet deadlines.
- Computer literacy (specifically Microsoft Office and CRM systems).
- Understanding of donation management, administration and Gift Aid, including the Data Protection Act 2018 requirements.
Education, training, and qualifications
- Educated to A Level standard (or equivalent experience).
Personal attributes
- Proven ability to work to a high standard with attention to detail and under own initiative.
- Creative, energetic problem solver.
- A collaborative approach and the ability to develop good working relationships and be a team player.
- Ability to work on multiple projects with conflicting deadlines.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
- Enthusiasm for theatre and the arts.
- Persistent and resilient, with the ability to learn from feedback and respond to a competitive funding landscape.
- Flexible approach to working, including some evenings and weekends.
Experience of fundraising in the arts, heritage, or cultural/creative industries, or wider charity sector; experience of capital fundraising or working on complex, multi-partner applications; knowledge of the theatre and cultural funding landscape; experience of developing applications to statutory or public funders, meet every criterion listed, and that's okay. If you have some relevant experience and a motivation to learn and grow, we encourage you to apply.
Contract: Full time, permanent (37.5 hrs per week). Salary: Up to £35,000 per annum (depending on experience). Probation period: 6 months. Pension: Auto enrolment. Holidays: 25 days (plus 8 days bank holiday) per annum. Preferred start date: Monday 1 February 2027.
Closing dates: 23 October 2026 (Buxton Opera House); 25 October 2026 (Buxton, SK17 6AZ); 18 October 2026 (Royal Opera House, Bow Street, London, UK).
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