Challenge Event Coordinator
Company Description
MEDECINS SANS FRONTIERES UK
Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders (MSF) provides life-saving emergency relief and longer-term medical care to some of the most vulnerable and excluded communities around the world. As an independent medical humanitarian organisation, we deliver care based only on need, regardless of ethnic origin, gender, religion or political affiliation.
MSF relies on donations from private individuals and organisations for the majority of its income. This private funding gives MSF the freedom to respond where needs are greatest and to speak out publicly, free from any political interference.
MSF has around 63,000 local and international staff working in over 70 countries, in some of the most challenging places in the world. Our medical humanitarian projects are supported by offices in 44 countries, including the UK and Ireland. These teams recruit staff, organise fundraising, and raise awareness on the humanitarian crises our colleagues are witnessing, as well as running different and diverse support activities. MSF offices are spread across Europe, North and South America, Asia, Africa and Australasia.
At MSF UK/IE, we support MSF's operations by building relationships with our supporters, increasing awareness of our work, raising funds, providing specialist medical expertise, ensuring MSF staff have access to relevant higher education programmes, catalysing change on medical humanitarian issues, and recruiting field staff. MSF UK/IE personnel are dynamic, hard-working, enthusiastic and committed to MSF's values and aims. In addition MSF continues to build upon its presence in Ireland to become a widely recognised, accepted and respected humanitarian organisation among Irish audiences, and within the Irish humanitarian and political sector.
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Position
Join Médecins Sans Frontières / Doctors Without Borders (MSF) as a Challenge Event Coordinator and play a vital role in our fundraising team. This position is central to managing our portfolio challenge events, directly generating essential revenue to fund MSF's medical humanitarian operations worldwide. We are looking for a highly organized and results-driven professional capable of managing complex logistics, motivating participants, and hitting ambitious fundraising targets. If you are committed to independent humanitarian action and excel at high-impact service delivery, apply now to help us save lives.
Hours: 37.5 hours per week, Mon Fri
Duration: Permanent
Location: London - hybrid, 2 days per week in London office
Salary: £35,375.80 per annum
Job Purpose:
The Challenge Events Fundraising Coordinator supports individuals and organisations raising funds for MSF, ensuring the safe processing and acknowledgement of donations and the administrative processing tasks related to community fundraising, ensuring supporters have the best possible experience with MSF when raising funds for our work.
The Challenge Events Coordinator plays a pivotal role in delivering and growing the third-party challenge events portfolio, including flagship events such as the London Marathon and Royal Parks Half Marathon. You will project manage the events calendar from planning to recruiting, stewarding, and supporting participants, ensuring they have an exceptional experience throughout their fundraising journey. A key focus will be providing outstanding supporter care while building lasting relationships to maximise engagement and income. This is an exciting opportunity to make a tangible impact, supporting vital work that transforms lives, while contributing to the growth and success of the organisation’s challenge events programme.
The Challenge Event Coordinator will also work collaboratively within the team, supporting day-to-day operations of the wider Community Fundraising and Commercial Engagement Team helping to create a seamless and rewarding experience for MSF’s community of supporters across all fundraising initiatives including in-memory and tribute donations.
Please download the full job and person specification below for further details.
Requirements
Knowledge, Skills & Experience:
- Knowledge of events fundraising (preferably third party) and fundraising practices.
- Awareness of current trends in the UK events market and charity sector, with the ability to apply insights to improve MSF’s challenge events programme.
- Familiarity with social media platforms and their use in promoting events or fundraising activities.
- Basic understanding of fundraising compliance and law in relation to challenge events.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills - with the ability to authentically communicate to support fundraisers, convey the work of the MSF UK and show impact of support.
- Ability to build and develop strong relationships, internally and externally, to be able to maximise opportunities.
- Ability to manage deadlines and effectively balance a varied and ever-changing workload whilst maintaining excellent attention to detail.
- Ability to work independently within general guidelines, using initiative to solve problems, drive progress, and identify opportunities to grow income and enhance brand awareness.
- Flexible, can-do attitude and good team player – this role involves working very closely and collaboratively with colleagues in the fundraising team and wider office.
- Experience in the practical use of personal IT equipment and Microsoft Office 365 suite. The ability to effectively collaborate and communicate within a hybrid working environment utilising Teams, SharePoint, One Drive, Yammer or similar platforms.
- Experience using a Customer Relationship Management (CRM/Database) system.
- Fluency in written and spoken English.
- Commitment to the aims and values of MSF and interest in international humanitarian aid work.
- Willingness to work occasionally evenings and weekends and to travel nationally and internationally if required.
Other information
HOW TO APPLY
Please apply on our website by submitting a copy of your CV together with a letter of motivation by the closing date.
Please apply as soon as possible as MSF reserves the right to close the vacancy early, or on the appointment of a candidate.
Incomplete applications will not be considered.
Recruitment timetable:
- Closing date for applications: Monday, 26 January 2026, 9:00am (GMT)
- First round interviews:4. 5 & 6 February 2026
- Projected Start Date: March 2026
Accessibility
We are committed to removing barriers for people with specific accessibility needs. If you need an adjustment to the recruitment process to be considered for the role, please let us know by contacting recruitment.UK@london.msf.org.
Examples of adjustments we can make:
- offering you an alternative if you are unable to use our online application system
- providing necessary information, such as the job description or assessment materials, in an alternate format
- allowing you to have someone with you during an interview for example, a Sign Language interpreter.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
We are a welcoming, diverse, and inclusive organisation. MSF UK thrives when everyone feels comfortable bringing their best self to work. We celebrate difference, whilst striving to create an environment where colleagues feel respected and valued for their unique potential. We are committed to our values on equity, diversity, and inclusion. Please read our Equality & Diversity policy for more information.
MSF UK is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to diversity and creating an inclusive environment for all employees. We encourage applications from all sections of our diverse community.
Safeguarding
MSF UK/IE is dedicated to safeguarding everyone who comes into contact with the organisation, for whatever reason and however brief. All posts are subject to safer recruitment process which include robust reference requests, scrutiny of employment history and where applicable criminal record and barring checks.
Our safeguarding commitment is underpinned by policies and procedures which encourage and promote safe working practice across the organisation. On joining MSF UK/IE you will be required to attend safeguarding training to ensure responsibility for and maintaining safe working practice and to safeguard our teams, beneficiaries, and communities.
Right to work in the UK
Candidates must have the right to work in the UK. Please click here to check whether you have the right to work in the UK. If you would like to discuss your right to work status further, please contact recruitment.UK@london.msf.org.
For questions, issues or further information, please contact Recruitment.UK@london.msf.org.
We look forward to receiving your application!