Elevare Director for Development & Partnerships

About the role:

Director for Development & Partnerships

Elevare Education Foundation
0.6 FTE Up to £50,000 (pro rata) Orpington & Bromley (with flexibility across Group sites)

Shape impact. Build partnerships. Drive sustainable growth.

Elevare Education Foundation, a registered charity and part of the Elevare Civic Education Group, is seeking an ambitious and values driven Director for Development & Partnerships to lead our Foundation s work on income generation, strategic partnerships and civic impact across the Elevare Civic Education Group.

This is a senior strategic leadership role, working closely with the Group Chief of Staff, Group CEO, Boards and Executive and Senior leaders across our College, Trust and Foundation, that comprise the Elevare Civic Education Group. You will play a critical role in strengthening the long term financial sustainability of the Foundation, growing our social impact and positioning the Group as a leading civic education organisation locally, regionally and nationally.

As Director for Development & Partnerships, you will:

• Lead and deliver a Group wide Development & Partnerships Strategy, aligned to Elevare's mission, values and governance framework
• Drive income diversification and income generation, including fundraising, grant funding, sponsorship, partnerships, commissioning and ethical commercial activity
• Develop innovative products, programmes and partnerships that enhance learner opportunity, employability and social mobility
• Build and steward high value relationships with funders, employers, civic bodies, charities, local authorities and system leaders
• Provide strategic advice and assurance to senior leaders and Boards on income performance, risk, impact and opportunity
• Embed systemised approaches to horizon scanning, opportunity identification, pipeline management and impact reporting
• Lead and develop a high performing development and partnerships function, setting clear KPIs and delivery expectations

This role combines strategic leadership with hands on delivery and is ideal for someone who enjoys working across systems, organisations and sectors to create meaningful and sustainable change.

About you

We are looking for someone who brings:

• A strong track record in income generation and fundraising within education, charity or public benefit contexts
• Experience of developing and delivering partnership or development strategies that support organisational growth
• Proven success in writing and securing high value bids, tenders or grant funding
• Strong strategic thinking, project management and stakeholder engagement skills
• The ability to navigate and translate education and social policy into practical opportunities
• A commitment to ethical practice, inclusion and public value

You will be collaborative, intellectually curious and comfortable working at senior level, with the credibility and confidence to influence across complex systems.

About Us

Elevare Civic Education Group

Elevare Civic Education Group is the umbrella organisation that comprises our Group Organisations, London South East Colleges, London South East Academies Trust and Elevare Education Foundation. The Group rationale is borne from a shared mission, vision and values. It seeks to optimise governance alignment through a Group Strategy and provide efficiencies across the organisations. Built on charitable principles and a co incidence of interest, the Group ethos is founded upon high quality teaching and learning, the development of curriculum models fitting each school and cohort, and a core and bespoke school improvement strategy which focuses on our shared strength. The strategic and operational working relationships between the College, Trust and Foundation have been established to optimise collaboration and integration - and to reflect both the next stage of our journey and our growing civic mission. Collectively the Group annual income is c£150m, delivering education to c16,000 students and employing over 2000 staff.

Elevare - meaning to elevate or uplift - captures our mission to raise aspirations and opportunities, while Civic signals our responsibility and commitment to being an anchor institution, at the heart of our communities.

Working in the office that is the heart of the Elevare Civic Education Group, the postholder, is a key and important officer who enables and supports strategic leadership across the Elevare Civic Education Group.

Benefits

We offer a highly competitive benefits package, including excellent annual leave and a generous pension through the Teachers' Pension Scheme or Local Government Pension Scheme depending on role.

Additional benefits include:

• Access to an Employee Assistance Programme
• Cycle to work scheme
• Annual season ticket loan
• Access to the Discounts for Teachers portal
• Free Wi Fi access in over 10,000 locations worldwide through Eduroam
• Access to our on site gym at Bromley campus and discount at other local gyms
• Discounts in our in house restaurants and on hair and beauty treatments

Equal Opportunities

London South East Colleges is fully committed to equality of opportunity and to creating a diverse, inclusive and respectful working environment, free from discrimination and harassment. We welcome applications from all sections of the community, regardless of race, nationality, ethnic origin, religion or belief, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability, age, parental status or marital or partnership status.

As a Disability Confident Committed employer, we guarantee an interview to applicants who declare a disability and meet the essential criteria for the role.

If you require any reasonable adjustments to support you through the application or interview process, please contact People Services at .

In line with Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) guidance, we carry out social media checks on shortlisted candidates to assess suitability for working with children and young people. Our full Safeguarding policy can be found here.

Because we work with children and vulnerable adults, all roles are exempt from Section 4(2) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Appointments are subject to an enhanced DBS check and, where relevant, a Children's and/or Adult's Barred List check. Any offer of employment may be withdrawn if these checks are unsatisfactory. Self disclosure is required as part of the recruitment process, and failure to disclose relevant information or provide a DBS certificate is likely to result in withdrawal of an offer. Our DBS policy on the recruitment of ex offenders is available on request.

All appointments are also subject to verification of the right to work in the UK, in line with Home Office requirements. Original documentation will be required prior to commencement of employment.