Senior Operations Lead - #1740771

Bloomsbury Football Foundation are looking for ambitious people who want to make a difference for young people in London!

We have ambitious plans to reach 20,000 young people per week by 2028 – we need YOU to make this happen.

Young people in London are facing a growing mental and physical health crisis, made worse by the pandemic, social media and the cost-of-living crisis. These challenges disproportionately affect young people from disadvantaged backgrounds.

At Bloomsbury Football Foundation, we believe in the transformative power of football to help address all these challenges. The benefits of regular access to the beautiful game are not open to all and impossibly expensive for many families.

Our financial assistance model, coupled with our approach of mapping our service-delivery around areas of highest Income Deprivation Affecting Children, is already making regular football accessible for over 6,000 children and young people each week.

In the context of an increasingly segregated society, we also bring together children from a wide range of socioeconomic backgrounds, ethnicities and nationalities – facilitating friendships across these societal divides.

We are on a mission to reach 20,000 young people a week by 2028, ensuring access to all, regardless of ability to pay or play. This includes a commitment to reach 10,000 girls weekly.

As this role involves working directly with children, please note that Bloomsbury Football has a commitment to keeping children safe from all forms of abuse and to uphold our safeguarding responsibility. We will expect you to adhere to this commitment.

This post is subject to an extensive disclosure check.

About The Role

The Senior Programmes Operations Lead will play a crucial role in ensuring that Bloomsbury Football Foundation's programmes are set up for scale. You will oversee a six-figure annual budget for pitch bookings, manage relationships with key community providers, and negotiate multi-year agreements to secure the best outcomes for the charity.

This is an exciting opportunity for a highly organised and proactive individual to thrive in a fast-paced environment, ensuring our programmes run smoothly and effectively.

This individual will work very closely with the Digital team to ensure that all processes are automated where possible.

Key Duties And Responsibilities

• Budget Management: Oversee and manage a six-figure annual budget for pitch bookings, ensuring cost efficiency and value for money.
• Supplier Relationships: Build and maintain strong relationships with community pitch providers, acting as the primary point of contact for all operational needs. We are actively looking to build meaningful partnerships to run services with/for other organisations to facilitate our growth plans.
• Contract Negotiation: Lead negotiations for multi-year agreements with facility providers, securing favorable terms and long-term partnerships.
• Operational Excellence: Ensure all Facilities & Equipment (& other operational inputs) meet the required standards for program delivery, addressing any issues promptly to minimise disruptions.
• Cross-functional Collaboration: Work closely with Digital & programme teams to understand their requirements and ensure programme-operations are setup for scale.
• Operational Excellence: Ensure all Facilities & Equipment (& other operational inputs) meet the required standards for program delivery, addressing any issues promptly to minimise disruptions.
• Problem Solving: Proactively address operational challenges and adapt to changing priorities to maintain the smooth running of programs.
• Reporting: Use Microsoft Office and Excel to manage budgets, track expenses, and produce detailed reports for senior management.

• Process Improvement: Identify opportunities to enhance operational efficiency and implement the best practices across the organisation.
• E.g. "ensure the smooth operational running of all our sessions whilst building processes to allow us to scale across multiple venues all over London'.
  

Essential Skills, Experience And Knowledge Required

We are seeking a motivated and entrepreneurial individual who is passionate about making a difference. The ideal candidate will have:

• Organisation: Exceptional organisational skills, with the ability to prioritise competing responsibilities and meet tight deadlines.
• Adaptability: The ability to thrive in a fast-paced environment where priorities frequently change.
• Communication Skills: Excellent verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to build relationships with stakeholders at all levels.
• Technical Proficiency: Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office, particularly Excel, for budget management and reporting. A keen interest in the role of digital in scaling operations.
• Problem-solving: A proactive approach to identifying and addressing challenges.
• Passion: A genuine enthusiasm for grassroots football and its potential to drive social impact.
• Excellent academic record
  
  

Other requirements: The candidate must have the right to live and work in the UK. Bloomsbury Football does not sponsor visas.

Application process

• Please complete the online application in full, making sure you address the job specification criteria in your statement as this will enable us to make an informed shortlisting decision.
• Interviews to be held ASAP.
• For queries, please contact Harry Clarke, [email protected]