Fundraising Assistant

Fundraising Assistant

Job Pack

Thank you for your interest in joining the Team!

This pack will give you a sense of what
it is like to work as Meningitis
Research Foundation’s Fundraising
About our National Events
Assistant and the kind of candidate we
Fundraising Programme
are looking for.

Starting Salary: £25,400

Location: Hybrid – 1-3 day pw in Bristol
office (Paintworks, Bristol)

Contract Type: Full Time Permanent

Benefits:
•

If you are seeking a role that is
rewarding, where every day is varied and
interesting – you are in the right place.

The work you will carry out will make a
difference in people's lives, both in the UK
and around the world as we work to
defeat meningitis.

•

•

•

25 days annual leave pro rata
plus statutory bank holidays
6% employer pension
contribution
Employee assistance
programme in place with free
access to confidential,
professional legal and health
advice
Cycle to work scheme

About our Events & Community Team

The Events & Community programme at Meningitis
Research Foundation is comprised of three areas: Student
Fundraising, Community Fundraising and National Events.
Our Student Team support hundreds of students every year
to complete challenges like climbing Kilimanjaro or Everest
Base Camp. Our Community Fundraiser supports anyone
who want to fundraise for MRF by organizing fundraising
and events in their communities.

Our National Events Fundraiser supports hundreds of
runners every year to take on big name events like the
London Marathon and Great North Run.

This role will provide vital administrative support to all areas
in the team as well as being the first port of contact for our
supporters over phone and email.

Many of our race participants join Team MRF for deeply
personal reasons, having had first-hand experience of the
disease. Without Team MRF supporters we would not be
where we are in the race to defeat meningitis, they are
fundamental to our work and have been since our early days
as a charity.

       Who are we looking for?

You love variety

You are a people person

This role is all about working with people, encouraging
them as part of Team MRF and supporting them to
reach their fundraising goals. You will need to be
enthusiastic, outgoing and thrive in motivating people
to take action through their fundraising.

You are passionate

You will need to be an advocate for our work to
defeat meningitis, enabling people to achieve their
goals and achieving the best for the Charity. It is
through the determination of everyone involved with
the events & community programme that we are able
to deliver a number of our goals as a charity.

You’re a skilled Communicator

We are proud of our quality supporter
communications, social media pages and in person
support. You will be equally happy on the phone to a
supporter as you will be responding to enquiries on
social media or dealing with volumes of supporter
data.

There are many different elements to the role from
speaking with supporters, database administration or
sending resources to our fundraisers. This isn’t a fully
desk-based job, as at different points of the year you
will get the chance to meet Team MRF supporters face
to face by attending events.

You are organised

With large numbers of supporters across Events &
Community you must feel comfortable in managing
deadlines, overlapping plans and keeping on top of
supporter communications. Whilst we have systems in
place to support this, our ideal candidate is someone
who enjoys taking responsibility for their own
workload and looking for improvements in processes.

You want to make a difference

Meningitis is responsible for around 240,000 global
deaths a year even though largely vaccine
preventable. We are driven to change this by 2030 in all
that we do. We also promise to continue to raise
awareness and be there to support people who have
been affected. If this excites you, then we think you
could bring a lot to this role.

How we will support and develop you

Your development is important to MRF. Once you join the team you will  meet with colleagues from across the
organization so you understand the important work MRF are doing to defeat meningitis. You will learn about your role to
get you up to speed on the various tools you’ll use as you settle into your role. Every month we have the opportunity to
come together in-person as a team to share learnings and look for opportunities for cross-team working. Through weekly
121s, longer monthly catch ups and bi-annual appraisals we’ll ensure you have everything you need to develop in your
role. We also have a training budget that can be used where you see fit.

About Meningitis Research Foundation

Meningitis Research Foundation is a leading UK and
international charity working to defeat meningitis
wherever it exists.

Founded by individuals whose lives were profoundly
affected by meningitis, we are dedicated to enabling
positive change by uniting people, funding research,
 and sharing knowledge to save lives.

Meningitis strikes quickly and can affect anyone of any
age. We provide direct support to people and families
affected by meningitis because no one should have to
go through this disease alone.

Since the 2021 launch of the World Health Organization’s
first ever global roadmap to defeat meningitis, an
ambitious new phase of development is underway for
the charity. We believe there has never been a more
 exciting time to join our team. We value imagination,
effectiveness and productivity in our work and provide
 an encouraging environment for enthusiastic, dedicated
staff to grow.

Meningitis and Me - Mike

Mike contracted meningitis and septicaemia and spent 10
weeks  in ICU, which resulted in having his four limbs
amputated. He is now the UK’s tenth person to receive a
double hand transplant.
Mike is a valued ambassador for MRF and works in partnership
with us to tell his story and not only advocate to defeat
meningitis around the world but to also inspire hope for those
affected.

"I’m just Mike - and that’s how I think of myself. It’s coming
back to that acceptance”.

You can watch Mike’s story here as part of MRF's Meningitis and
Me series and here speaking at the World Health organisation’s
first high level meeting to defeat meningitis in April 2024.

MRF Values

Our values are extremely important to us and mean far more to us than words on
a page

We are evidence-led
We pride ourselves on being grounded in facts.
Research and evidence are at our core and
remain essential to our work today – guided by
our panel of scientific advisors and disease
specialists. This approach ensures we provide
considered responses to the challenges brought
about by the disease, wherever they may be
found.

We operate with integrity
To the people we support and work with, we are
a trusted source of information and learning.
We weigh all of the evidence and operate with
openness and transparency to exceed
expectations and deliver the best  services and
responses - be that helping a family or working
with health organisations around the world.

We pursue our goals with determination
We will not stop until we defeat meningitis. We
will relentlessly seek answers, work tirelessly with
purpose and are driven by those we help. Our
dedication enables the best modern science,
research and on-the-ground learning to work in
the positive interests of individuals, families and
communities impacted by meningitis, both here
in the UK and in communities around the world.

We are a passionate advocate

We are a united voice against meningitis
and a dedicated champion for those it
affects. We exist to ensure that the voices
of our members, supporters and those
impacted by meningitis in the UK and
around the world, are heard and not
forgotten. We are highly focused in our
work and inform and advise health policy
and practice, driven to make a contribution
to reducing the burden of the disease and
its aftermath.

We are a passionate advocate
We are a united voice against
meningitis and a dedicated champion
for those it affects. We exist to ensure
that the voices of our members,
supporters and those impacted by
meningitis in the UK and around the
world, are heard and not forgotten. We
are highly focused in our work and
inform and advise health policy and
practice, driven to make a contribution
to reducing the burden of the disease
and its aftermath.

We collaborate to make
progress
We believe in partnership and
collaboration. Whether we are
supporting individuals and families who
have been impacted by the disease,
working with international funding
partners or supporting on-the-ground
health teams working in challenging
environments, we combine resources
and expertise to  deliver the very best
results. We share the knowledge we’ve
gained through more than 30 years of
work to support and enable those
impacted by or battling to defeat the
disease.

We act with compassion
We are driven by the stories of those
we  work  for  and  with.  We  care  deeply,
listen and take the best action for each
unique  circumstance.  Whether  it’s
providing  direct  support,  finding  the
right information, or campaigning for
the  change  that  will  make  a  real
difference.  If  you  have  read  and
understand  these  values  and  they
appeal  to  you  they  are  a  good
indicator  of  what  it  is  like  to  work  at
MRF. All applicants will be assessed
objectively on their merits in accordance
with our Equality, Inclusion and Diversity
Policy.

Fundraising  Assistant  –  Job  Description

Job Purpose & Summary

This role will see the successful candidate provide vital administrative support and supporter
stewardship for the Events and Community Team. The Fundraising Assistant is absolutely key in
allowing us to deliver our high standard of supporter care to all our donors.

The role requires a good attention to detail, strong prioritisation skills, sensitivity and flexibility. You will be
equally comfortable speaking on the phone with a supporter as you will be with updating a database or
managing spreadsheets.

Meningitis Research Foundation is based in Bristol, we would like you to be in the office once a week.
This may be more during busy events seasons. You will also be required to attend weekend events on
occasion – all travel and accommodation at weekend events will be covered by Meningitis Research
Foundation.

Key Relationships

You will report to the Senior Fundraising Manager who will support you with your role. The Fundraising
Assistant sits within the Events & Community team, which in turn sits within a wider Fundraising Team
that also includes grants fundraising, high value fundraising and corporate fundraising.

Internally you will work very closely with other members of the Events & Community Team to support
them to achieve our shared goals, as well as working closely with our Fundraising Data Administrator
to ensure our data is managed effectively. On occasion you may be required to support other
members of the Fundraising Management Team or Head of Fundraising.

Responsibilities

•  Understand our fundraising database and how it is used and to be able to create and maintain

records, acting as a key point of contact and support to the rest of the team

•  Provide proactive and responsive general day-to-day administrative fundraising support to the
events and community team, seeking ways to maximise the efficiency of the department

•  Carry out routine financial administration and monitoring processes within the department

•  Manage information from online fundraising platforms used by our supporters

•  Enthusiastically seek improvements to the department’s processes so as to bring about long-

term improvements to efficiency

Key Tasks

•  Manage donor information within our database. Updating event and contact details,

communica-tions and donation information

•  Managing the events & community team resources stock including, stock taking and sending

materials to supporters

•  Manage new online fundraising pages and set up and amend supporter information on database

•  Answer phone calls and monitor inboxes to deal with enquiries and requests for information

•  Support the promotion, recruitment and stewardship of supporters both via email, social media

and via the telephone

•  Supporting the management of the team’s email system, keeping the contact information up

to date and managing the automated email journeys.

•  Support donors with their fundraising plans and activities when necessary

•  Support in the application, administration and monitoring of fundraising opportunities provided

by Meningitis Research Foundation primarily to the student fundraisers including street
collections and raffles.

•  Provide support to fundraising projects as agreed with the Senior Fundraising Manager

•  Provide general administration support for the fundraising team

General, personal & developmental

•  Support all colleagues and communicate your work and needs openly and effectively.

•  Establish efficient and effective working relationships and communication with internal and

external stakeholders

•  Other tasks as directed by Senior Managers and Head of Fundraising where appropriate

Terms and Conditions – Essentials

Location

Your normal place of work will be at Head Office which is currently Room 703, The Programme
Building, 7th Floor, The Pithay, Bristol, BS1 2NB, but from the 1 April 2026 will be Paintworks,
Bath Road (A4), Arnos Vale, Bristol, BS4 3EH. Some hybrid working from home is possible. We
require you to attend the office at least once a week.

Salary

£25,400 including 2% employee pension contribution + 6% employer pension contribution.
Please note our salary bands and job titles are currently being reviewed. Paid in arrears on or
around 25th  of each month.

Contract Type

Full time, permanent

Hours of Work

36.25 hours between 8.00am and 6.00pm Monday to Friday, with occasional unsociable hours.
All time worked outside of out core hours can be reclaimed as TOIL at your managers discretion.

Annual Leave

25 days + statutory & public holidays. The Charity’s holiday year runs from 1st April to 31st
March.

Person Specification

Knowledge & Skills

Personal Attributes

General

Essential/Desirable

Good organisation and administrative
skills, able to prioritise, juggle multiple
tasks and work to deadlines
Excellent written and verbal
communication skills
Excellent attention to detail
IT competent including Microsoft
office package, Teams and Outlook
Confident using the phone to contact
people including warm and cold
calling
Experience of working in a charity or
having fundraising experience.

Confident using Excel including
formulas and data manipulation

Experience using a CRM or database
Understanding of GDPR and how it
relates to fundraising
Reliable and consistent
Effective team player with an ability to
build effective working relationships
Sensitivity, diplomacy and empathy
Self-motivated and able to work on
own initiative
Ability to demonstrate our
organisational values in all areas of
your work
Able to work occasional unsocial hours
and a willingness to travel,
occasionally overnight for events

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This job description should be taken as a general guide and the charity reserves the right to update and
amend it in keeping with operational requirements, which may change from time to time.

How to apply
The closing date for completed applications is 9am on Monday 30 March. Interviews will be
held via Teams w/c 6 April. If you have any questions or would like to discuss the role further
please email katl@meningitis.org.

Please send a CV and covering letter to hradmin@meningitis.org, ensuring you cover how you meet
the role requirements on the job description and person specification.

All applicants will be assessed objectively on their merits in accordance with our Equality,

Inclusion and Diversity Policy.

Following receipt of satisfactory references, the successful candidate will able to start as
soon as possible. MRF is committed to safeguarding, any advertised role will require
references and confirmation of your identity will be undertaken.