Church Engagement & Fundraising Officer

Church Engagement & Fundraising Officer

12-month Fixed Term Contract. Full Time, Home-based (with weekly travel)

Location: London and the Northern Home Counties

Salary: £44,945 per annum

If we receive a high volume of applications, we reserve the right to close the advert before the scheduled closing date. Therefore, we encourage interested applicants to apply at their earliest convenience.

About us

Christian Aid exists to create a world where everyone can live a full life, free from poverty. We are a global movement of people, churches and local organisations who passionately champion dignity, equality and justice worldwide. We are the changemakers, the peacemakers, the mighty of heart.

We’re committed to building a diverse and inclusive workplace, and recognise the value this brings in forming strong, creative and high performing teams. We welcome applications from all sections of the community, and from those with experience from outside of the voluntary sector. And no, you don’t have to be Christian to work here – we encourage people of all faiths and none to apply.

We just ask that everyone lives out our values of dignity, equality, justice and love. We value a good work-life balance, so we’re open to part-time and flexible working. We also offer hybrid working for our office-based colleagues. This is a homeworking role with weekly travel around the region, and you are expected to be in the London office once a month

About the role

Reporting in to the Church Engagement & Fundraising Advisor, the Church Engagement & Fundraising Officer is a proactive fundraising and church engagement role.

You will be out in churches and communities across London and the home counties, building new relationships, strengthening existing high-value support, and inspiring churches to give, act and pray with Christian Aid.

You will identify and approach prospective churches, pick up the phone to book meetings, speak confidently in church services and local gatherings, and make compelling asks that lead to increased giving and deeper engagement.

This is a remote team to facilitate post holders to be proactively present in local church communities. Much of your impact will come from being out and about: visiting churches, meeting clergy and volunteers, attending local events, speaking at services, and building relationships face to face. You should expect regular travel across London and the home counties, including some evenings and weekends.

We are looking for someone who is energised by being out in the community, not someone looking for a primarily desk-based role.

In this role, success will mean:

• building a strong pipeline of churches and groups with the potential to support Christian Aid;
• securing meetings, speaking opportunities and invitations into church spaces;
• inspiring churches to increase their giving, particularly around appeals and key fundraising moments;
• strengthening relationships with current high-value church supporters so they feel known, thanked and encouraged;
• equipping volunteers and local champions to extend Christian Aid’s reach;
• using insight, data and local knowledge to prioritise the relationships with greatest potential.

A significant part of this role will be proactive new relationship-building. You will not only respond to churches already connected with Christian Aid; you will identify new opportunities, approach churches and leaders, and work creatively to open doors for giving, fundraising, campaigning and prayer.

About you

Who we are looking for:

Essential:

• Demonstrable experience driving fundraising and relationship building.
• Knowledge of church audiences across all denominations.
• Experience of mentoring volunteers to add capacity, skills and aptitude to empower and support them.

Desirable:

• Knowledge of current fundraising legislation and good practice.
• Knowledge of relevant church networks and denominational structures.
• Ability to effectively portray development messages in a theological context.
• Knowledge of global development issues and Christian Aid’s work.
• Good knowledge of the London and South East geographical region.

This role would suit you if you are a confident relationship-builder who enjoys getting out into communities, opening doors and inspiring people to act. You might come from community fundraising, church engagement, major donor engagement, sales, business development, volunteer mobilisation or a church-facing role with clear fundraising experience.

You will need to be confident talking with churches, meeting ambitious targets, comfortable making asks for financial support, and motivated by helping local communities turn faith, generosity and concern for global justice into practical action.

Further information

At Christian Aid we strive to be an inclusive and diverse employer and recognise the value that this brings in helping to build strong, creative and high performing teams.

We are actively encouraging racialised minorities, LGBTQ+, people with disabilities, returning parents or carers who are re-entering work after a career break, people with caring responsibilities, people from low socioeconomic backgrounds, women, and older workers to apply. This is because these groups are under-represented within our teams, especially at senior level, and we recognise and value the contributions members of these groups make to strong, creative and high performing teams.

We have a strong Christian ethos and we encourage applications from all faiths. Applicants will be expected to demonstrate an understanding of and sympathy with Christian Aid’s faith identity.

All successful candidates will require a DBS/police check appropriate to the role and location and a Counter Terrorism Sanction check as part of your clearance for commencing your role with us. We also participate in the Inter Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information as part of the referencing process from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.

This role requires applicants to have the right to live and work in the country where this position is based and undertake the role that you have been offered. If you are successful and we make you an offer for the role, we will be required to conduct a right to work check on your immigration status in the UK. We will contact you regarding the documentation you will need to provide to evidence this.