Senior Development Officer
The Opportunity
This is a fantastic opportunity to shape a new fundraising role at Abbotsford within the small but mighty
fundraising team.
The Senior Development Officer will set up, and/or develop: individual giving, campaigns,
membership schemes including the Friends of Abbotsford and the recently launch mid-level patrons’ scheme –
Scott’s Abbotsford Circle, and legacy giving.
In addition, the role will maximise fundraised income on site, through fundraising events, and also online.
This is a hugely exciting time to join the Abbotsford family. Last year the charity launched Witch Corner,
an interactive woodland folklore story trail aimed at families inspired by Scott’s favourite part of his library.
In February the Walter Scott Prize for Historical Fiction came home to Abbotsford as the charity took over
the running of this worldwide literary prize.
The charity are currently developing a new 10-year strategy from which will come many engaging opportunities
for fundraising!
You will be responsible for current initiatives including:
- Editing the supporter newsletter
- Social media, website, and all digital aspects of fundraising
- Help develop regular income steams and steward the current and new donors
- Collaborating with other staff to support onsite fundraising at Abbotsford
(See Job description for full information).
However, you can identify and develop other fundraising mechanisms including lotteries, give-as-you-spend, crowdfunding, etc.
The Abbotsford Trust
Abbotsford, near Melrose in the Scottish Borders, is the historic home and estate of author Sir Walter
Scott (1771-1832).
Famous worldwide from his very first novel on the scale that JK Rowling is today, Scott was THE
best-selling author of his time. His work was pioneering – he looked back at history as a way of
holding a mirror up to contemporary society in a way that is still very relevant today.
The Abbotsford Trust’s mission is to inform and engage audiences in the life and legacy of Scott who
is revered as both the father of the historical novel and inventor of Scotland’s international identity, as
well as to safeguard the house and collections.
Skillset & Experience
You must have integrity, curiosity, and the ability to listen and learn from others. Comfortable working in a purposeful and rapidly evolving environment, you should possess:
- Experience in managing successful individual giving/direct marketing programmes and campaigns from start to conclusion, ideally within a fundraising environment.
- Evidence of donor or membership acquisition and retention across print media and digital channels.
- Experience of using databases/CRMs to gain supporter insight and inform decision-making.
- Ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines simultaneously.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills including copywriting.
- High level of expertise in Microsoft Word, Excel, and other
- The ability to develop relationships with supporters/customers to grow engagement and loyalty.