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Eye Charity Shop Manager Vacancy

Job Title: Shop Manager

Employer: Families Together Suffolk, Waterworks Centre, 17 Station Road West, Stowmarket, IP14 1EF

Location: Eye

Hours Of Work: 32 hours per week (4 days)

Salary Scale: £26,835 (pro rata)

Responsible To: Business Development Lead

Purpose of the Job

Responsible for the effective day-to-day management of the charity shop, including leadership of staff and volunteers, excellent customer service, stock control, financial and administrative duties, and ensuring compliance with legislation and organisational policies. The Manager will actively promote the values and ethos of Families Together Suffolk (FTS) while working to achieve budgeted sales targets, maximise income generation, and champion sustainability within shop operations.

Main Responsibilities

Shop Premises:

• Overall responsibility for shop premises, ensuring they are clean, safe, welcoming, and well-presented.
• Hold a key for the shop and maintain a list of authorised key holders.
• Ensure shop security is maintained, including opening, closing, and alarm procedures.

Trading Hours:

• Ensure trading hours are adhered to and that staffing is sufficient to cover business needs.

Staffing and Volunteers

• Provide leadership, supervision, and day-to-day management of staff and volunteers.
• Induct, train, and develop staff, volunteers, and work experience placements.
• Promote volunteering in the shop, encouraging engagement and inclusion.
• Maintain an up-to-date rota (main site).
• Delegate shop tasks effectively according to strengths and capabilities.
• Identify and address training and development needs of staff and volunteers.
• Support staff and volunteer wellbeing, addressing conflict or issues as they arise.
• Ensure safeguarding responsibilities are upheld at all times, particularly for under-18s and vulnerable adults on placements.

Budgets and Finance

• Achieve sales targets and run a cost-effective operation against set budgets.
• Monitor and control shop expenditure (utilities, consumables, repairs).
• Ensure robust cash handling, financial controls, and fraud prevention.
• Bank income securely and reconcile daily takings, investigating discrepancies.
• Maximise income generation, including through Gift Aid.
• Contribute to financial forecasting and planning for retail growth.

Stock Maintenance and Generation

• Operate effective stock management systems to maximise profit from donated and new goods.
• Implement clear sorting and pricing policies, stock rotation, and merchandising standards.
• Take the lead on stock quality control, ensuring only suitable goods are sold.
• Maintain attractive, themed window and in-store displays.
• Encourage and promote stock donations from the public and other sources.
• Develop and maintain relationships with recyclers, ensuring regular collections and appropriate recycling of unsaleable items.
• Manage new goods stock levels and ensure displays reflect retail strategy.

Promotion

• Represent FTS as an ambassador, promoting its values and ethos.
• Promote the shop through local outlets, networks, and social media.
• Contribute to local, seasonal, and national sales campaigns (e.g. The Big Green Week, sports events, Christmas).
• Build links within the community to enhance visibility and income opportunities.

Customer Experience

• Deliver and promote excellent customer service at all times.
• Ensure an inclusive, welcoming, and safe environment for all customers.
• Manage and resolve customer complaints or feedback professionally.
• Administration and Banking.
• Ensure accurate and timely completion of all administration required by Trustees, charity law, and trading legislation.
• Provide regular shop performance reports to the line manager.
• Contribute to the development of guidelines and procedures for staff, volunteers, and shop operations.
• Maintain accurate financial and administrative records for audit purposes.

Compliance and Audit

• Ensure compliance with legislation and organisational policies, including Health and Safety, Safeguarding, Data Protection, Equality and Diversity, and Trading Standards.
• Complete and update risk assessments as necessary.
• Cooperate with internal and external audits relating to finance, gift aid, health and safety, and operations.

Sustainability

• Champion environmentally sustainable practices within the shop.
• Maximise opportunities for reuse, recycling, and waste reduction.
• Support FTS’s wider sustainability objectives.

Safeguarding Responsibilities

• Hold responsibility for safeguarding within the shop, ensuring compliance with organisational policies in relation to staff, volunteers, customers, and work experience placements.
• Undertake risk assessments, provide supervision and support, maintain professional boundaries, and report concerns to the Designated Safeguarding Lead.

Health and Safety Responsibilities

• Ensure full compliance with health and safety legislation and organisational policies.
• Maintain a safe working environment through the completion of risk assessments, regular checks, and safe systems of work.
• Promote safe practices among staff and volunteers and ensure training needs are met.

Other Duties

• Attend meetings, training, and development activities as required.
• Undertake any other duties which may arise and fall logically within the remit of the Shop Manager.

Safer Recruitment

Families Together Suffolk is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. All applicants will be expected to share this commitment. Appointment will be subject to appropriate pre-employment checks and references.

Families Together Suffolk registered charity no. 1127760.

A company limited by guarantee registered in England & Wales no. 6674059. Registered office: 20 Broad Street, Eye, Suffolk IP23 7AF

For more information:

We welcome informal conversations about the role.
If you would like to find out more about the shop, the team or what we are looking for in our new manager,
please contact Andy email: andy@familiestogethersuffolk.org.uk or telephone 07936 913929

How To Apply:

Please find the application pack below
Completed application to be returned to info@familiestogethersuffolk.org.uk

Closing date: 11.59pm Sunday 11th October 2026

Application pack

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Waterworks Centre
17 Station Road West
Stowmarket IP14 1EF

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