Development Manager; Grants and Reporting

OVERALL PURPOSE OF THE ROLE

The Royal Ballet School is a global centre for performance excellence. Its dual mission is to nurture the best ballet dancers for the main stages of the world and assure the future of classical dance art form. With 90% of our students relying on financial support to attend, philanthropy is fundamental to ensuring the School remains accessible to exceptional talent, regardless of financial circumstances.

Through exceptional stewardship of existing supporters and the successful cultivation of new funding partnerships, this role will play a vital part in securing the School's future and enabling the next generation of outstanding dancers to realise their potential.

As an integral member of the Development Team, the Development Manager will support the growth of our trust and foundation partnerships to fund a number of our core annual programme areas (Student Bursaries, Healthcare, Facilities etc) as well as new projects. The Manager will also lead on research and funding applications to trusts and foundations, while also delivering quality impact reporting across the School’s work.

Duration: Fixed-term maternity cover (approximately 12 months) from October 2026.

Hours: 35 hours per week, Monday - Friday, with flexible hybrid working.

Location: Upper School, Covent Garden, WC2E 9DA
, with the option to discuss remote work.

Salary: £45,000 per annum.

Final date to receive applications: 14 August 2026. Applications will be screened on submission. The School reserves the right to interview and appoint if a suitable candidate is found before the closing date.

• Maximise income from existing trust and foundation funders by building and maintaining strong relationships, ensuring agreed donor retention and income targets are achieved across designated projects and programme areas
• Steward trust, foundation and corporate funders already or capable of contributing over £100,000 per year by producing high-quality, timely and compelling reports, funding proposals and thank-you communications
• Collaborate with the Development Team to deliver effective donor stewardship through events, communications and year-round engagement activities that strengthen relationships with funders and other key stakeholders.

• Support members of the Development Team and Centenary working committee, to identify, engage and deliver excellent income and impact for the School
• Work with the Head of Development to research, write and present attractive and compelling fundraising applications and proposals to trusts and companies for core programmes
• Engage key prospect targets through effective and appropriate verbal and written communication. This may range from sharing curated content and short case-studies to producing in-depth project proposals that include detailed financial data and research findings.
• Lead on the creation of Impact data, end of year reporting for core programme outputs and outcomes (showcasing Healthcare, Academic and Artistic performance and more), while ensuring links back to the case for support and the School’s strategic objectives as originally stated.

• Contribute to forecasting and regular reporting, internal planning and budget setting and producing verbal and written reports for senior management as required
• Liaise with relevant departments across the School to gather information for applications and reporting
• Produce and submit quality funding reports to meet deadlines, liaising with relevant teams to ensure funder requirements are met and the evidence base for funding is strengthened. Keep accurate and timely records of approaches, grant opportunities and funds received on our CRM.
• Play an active role within the fundraising team and contribute to the development and creation of strategies and campaigns to increase fundraising through all channels
• To maintain up-to-date knowledge of fundraising regulations, networks, and developments across the sector, advising on best practice in relation to Trusts fundraising.