Senior Grants & Commissioning Manager

The Youth Endowment Fund

Senior Grants & Commissioning Manager

Reports to: Assistant Director of Finance & Operations

Line Manages: Delivery Operations Manager

Salary: £52,692

Location: Central London, Hybrid

Contract: 2-year fixed term – potential to extend

Closing date for applications: 12pm, Tuesday 17th March 2026

Interview dates: Week commencing 30th March 2026

About the Youth Endowment Fund

We’re here to prevent children and young people becoming involved in violence.

We do this by finding out what works and building a movement to put this

knowledge into practice.

In recent years violent crime has risen significantly. Homicides, assaults, robberies

and offences involving weapons have all seen sustained growth. We have also

seen large increases in violent crime involving children and young people. This is

a tragedy. Every child captured in these numbers is an important member of our

community and society has a duty to protect them.

The Youth Endowment Fund (YEF) is a charity with a £200m endowment and a

mission that matters. We exist to prevent children and young people becoming

involved in violence. We do this by funding great initiatives, finding what works
and working for change - scaling and spreading the practices that make a

difference.

One of the most important things we do is ensure that our funding and

commissioning processes run smoothly and deliver maximum impact. We

manage significant grants and complex commissioning arrangements that

support projects designed to make a lasting difference. To do this well, we need

robust systems, clear governance and strong relationships with partners. This role

is critical to making that happen. As our Senior Grants & Commissioning

Manager, you’ll lead on optimising our grant management system Salesforce,

oversee risk and compliance and drive improvements in commissioning and

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procurement across the organisation. You’ll be the go-to person for contracts,

grant agreements, policy guidance and Salesforce, ensuring data integrity and

enabling confident decision-making. By keeping everything organised and

efficient, you will be helping us achieve our strategic goals and deliver on our

mission.

Key Responsibilities

Your role would be to ensure our funding and commissioning processes run
efficiently, compliantly and strategically. You’ll lead improvements in systems,

governance and risk management, act as the organisation’s Salesforce and

grant management expert, and provide strong leadership to the team which will

enable confident decisions and maximising impact. A detailed list of your key

responsibilities on how you’ll do this is given below:

•  Grant management and system optimisation:

o  Manage the organisation’s grant management system (Salesforce),

ensuring functionality, accuracy and integrity of data.

o  Configure and update forms, fields and workflows to support new

applications and evolving business needs.

o  Develop and deliver custom reports and dashboard for internal teams

to enable effective monitoring and decision-making.

o  Act as the primary liaison for system enhancements, ensuring
continuous improvement, and day-to-day troubleshooting.

•  Commissioning and procurement:

o  Support the Assistant Director of Finance and Operations in delivering
improvements to commissioning and procurement processes across

the Programmes, Evaluation, Change and Evidence directorates.

o  Ensure commissioning activities align with organisational priorities and

compliance requirements.

o  When required, provide support and additional resource to the Delivery
Operations Manager on the execution of agreements for all teams.

•  Risk management and compliance:

o  Lead on negotiating terms and conditions with grantees, evaluators and

researchers, escalating complex issues where necessary.

o  Conduct due diligence for funded projects, ensuring compliance with

organisational standards and risk mitigation.

o  Maintain and control master versions of all templates, including Grant
Agreements and Variations, ensuring accuracy and consistency.

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•  Governance and policy development:

o  Develop, maintain and disseminate non-HR policies and guidance

documents related to commissioning and procurement.

o  Ensure governance frameworks are robust, up-to-date and embedded

across the organisation.

•  Training and capacity building:

o  Design and deliver training sessions to build staff competency in

policies, guidance and system procedures.

o  Act as the organisational expert on Salesforce and grant management

processes, providing ongoing support and advice.

•  Leadership and team management:

o  Provide direct line management, mentorship and professional

development for the Delivery Operations Manager. When required

during periods of peak activity, provide support and resource for their

responsibilities.

o  Ensure effective delegation, clear escalation routes and a culture of

high team performance

About You

You’re this sort of person:

•  You’re an expert at managing complex grants and commissioning
processes: You can oversee large-scale grant programmes and

procurement activities, ensuring compliance, efficiency and impact. You’ve

designed and implemented systems and processes that make

commissioning work seamlessly.

•  You’re confident with systems and data: You have a deep experience with
grant management platforms (ideally Salesforce) and can optimise them

to meet evolving organisational needs. You understand the importance of
accurate data for forecasting and decision-making and know how to

maintain integrity and usability.

•  You’re skilled at risk and governance: You can negotiate terms and

conditions, manage due diligence and ensure compliance with policies

and procedures. You’re comfortable being the go-to person for complex

queries on contracts and agreements.

•  You build strong relationships and influence effectively: You’ve worked

with senior leaders, delivery partners and external stakeholders to achieve

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shared goals. People trust and respect you because you communicate

clearly, listen actively and foster collaboration.

•  You’re a strategic thinker and a team player. You see the big picture and

align operational delivery with organisational objectives. You’re not

motivated by personal credit; instead, you want the team and partners to

succeed and delivery meaningful outcomes.

•  You lead and develop others: You have experience managing and

mentoring team members, ensuring high performance and professional

growth. You know how to delegate effectively while maintaining oversight.

•  You learn fast and stay adaptable: You’re comfortable leading in a

dynamic environment, quickly getting to grips with new policies, systems

and priorities. You seek feedback, embrace learning and remain humble in

your approach.

•  You’re a problem-solver and innovator: You don’t just maintain systems,

you improve them! Whether it’s streamlining processes, enhancing

technology or refining data management, you’re always looking for ways

to make things better.

•  You care about impact: You want your work to make a tangible difference.

You’re passionate about improving outcomes for communities and

ensuring resources are used to create lasting change.

•  You champion equality, diversity and inclusion: You actively promote

inclusive practices and value diverse perspectives in decision-making and

delivery.

While it’s not a criterion, we’re especially interested to hear from applicants
who have lived experience of youth violence.

It’s also important to us that the people we hire do not discriminate. We believe

in being inclusive and giving everyone an equal chance to succeed. Applications

are welcome from all regardless of age, sex, gender identity, disability, marriage

or civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, religion or belief, race, sexual
orientation, transgender status or social economic background.

Hybrid Working Details
The office is based in Central London. Those living in and around the 32 London

Boroughs are expected to be in the office for a minimum of 2 days per week. If you

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live outside of London and work remotely, you’ll be expected to work from the
London office 2 days per month.

As part of our commitment to flexible working, we will consider a range of options

for the successful applicant. All options can be discussed at the interview stage.

To Apply

To apply, please send a CV, your answers to the three questions below and
complete the monitoring form by clicking on "Apply for this" button by 12pm on
Tuesday 17th March 2026.

When applying for this role, please ensure that your cover letter can answer,
within a maximum of 400 words per answer, the following questions below:

1. Please provide an example of a complex operational process you’ve developed

from scratch and implemented independently. What did you do, what impact did

it have, and what did you learn?

2. Please describe your experience working with CRM or database systems and

provide an example of when you’ve implemented a change to how that system is

designed.

You’ll be required to provide proof of your eligibility to work in the UK. As part of our

commitment to flexible working, we will consider a range of options for the

successful applicant. All options can be discussed at the interview stage.

Interviews will take place in the week commencing 30th March 2026, we foresee
this being a one stage process.

Benefits Include

• £1,000 professional development budget annually

• 28 days holiday plus Bank Holidays

• Four half days for volunteering activities

• Employee Assistance Programme – 24hr phone line for free confidential support

• Volunteering days - 4 half days per year
• Death in service - 4 times annual salary

• Flexible hours. Core office hours 10am – 4pm

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• Financial support including travel and hardship loans

• Employer contributed pension of 5%

Personal Data

Your personal data will be shared for the purposes of the recruitment exercise.

This includes our HR team, interviewers (who may include other partners in the
project and independent advisors), relevant team managers and our IT service

provider if access to the data is necessary for performance of their roles. We do

not share your data with other third parties, unless your application for

employment is successful and we make you an offer of employment. We will then

share your data with former employers to obtain references for you. We do not

transfer your data outside the European Economic Area.

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