Background

This is an exciting and challenging opportunity to work with a driven team in one of Scotland’s most well regarded and effective local active travel and bike refurbishing charities.

The Bike Station has been based in the community for over 20 years, with a credible reputation of recycling, refurbishing and reusing donated bikes and making bikes available within the community.

Our communities continue to be under increasing pressure with the cost-of-living crisis and within a climate crisis.

Enabling more people to choose cycling has multiple financial, health and social benefits and the demand for our services has grown in recent years.

We are looking for a confident and strategic Development Manager to build strong relationships and develop services that will significantly enhance their sustainable income.

This role will create and lead our long-term unrestricted income and business opportunities.

Primary Aim

Contribute to the long-term sustainability of The Bike Station by increasing unrestricted income.

Purpose of the role

• Explore and source public giving commercial opportunities in alignment with The Bike Stations strategic objectives.
• Analyse market data to support opportunities for business development with existing and potential clients and provide recommendations to success and routes to increased revenue.
• Develop and maintain strategic partnerships and relationships developing strong working relationships with key stakeholders, influencing decisions both internally & externally.
• Develop and deliver our commercial income opportunities including our skills development programme, corporate volunteering and public giving campaigns.
• Collaborate with The Bike Stations refurbishing, skills development, community, volunteering and communications teams to ensure strong customer experience .
• Lead on developing messaging, with the support from the Communications Team, to create marketing materials that facilitates expansion of The Bike Stations commercial and giving opportunities.
• Monitor performance against budget and implementing action plans to ensure achievement of budget targets.
• Line manage Volunteer Development Officer and Communications Officer to ensure programmes of activity are well resourced, ensuring high quality with a commitment to continuous improvement and return custom.
• Such other tasks as may be required which are consistent with the duties and responsibilities of the post.

Person Specification

Real experience, aptitude, values, fit with team and a passion for cycling are more important to us than formal qualifications.

That being said this post requires strong business acumen, evidence of successful income generation and a practical and effective approach.

Essential

• Confident, self-motivated and proactive with excellent communication, organisational and people skills.
• An excellent understanding of third sector and commercial business development including charitable trading, grants and contracts.
• Evidence of securing unrestricted income through commercial and public giving campaigns
• An excellent relationship builder with people and professionals from a range of backgrounds and sectors: ideally someone with gravitas and integrity.
• Ability to process complex information, analyse data and articulate it well to a range of audiences and stakeholders.
• Experience of completing financial and resource analyses of opportunities to create sustainable options and lead on creating appropriate plans. This can include options appraisals, business plans, funding assessments.
• Experience of preparing programme budgets including financial reports and cash flow forecasts.
• Ability to problem-solve and design and implement solutions.
• Ability to manage their time effectively, multitask, work on several projects simultaneously with tight timescales.
• Proficient in the use of technology and willing to learn new ways of working as needed.
• An excellent team player and willing to share skills and knowledge with co-workers with experience developing an line managing teams

"Do you want to work in one of the most scenic parts of Scotland? Do you have the skills and energy to take the helm of Torridon District Community Association and Loch Torridon Community Centre. This is an exciting opportunity to develop the centre, diversify its range of activities and increase income. You will never be far from the sea or mountains and you will be working alongside people who share a passion for the landscape, environment and long-term sustainability of the community. “

Vision

Our vision is to enhance, develop and support this fragile rural community, enabling its residents to thrive, and to create a welcoming environment for the many tourists whose presence in turn supports the ongoing sustainability of the community.

Background

Torridon District Community Association (TDCA) is a charity which runs Loch Torridon Community Centre (LTCC) and employs a part time centre manager, a part time finance officer and a part time cleaner. In addition, TDCA employs a full-time community development worker to develop community projects and assets which in time will generate income to support the community centre. TDCA also employs a part time resilience officer to increase the resilience of the local community.

LTCC is a hub for year-round social activities and events, promoting physical and mental health and wellbeing. It is a meeting point for the community and provides employment opportunities for local residents and space for services such as the Post Office, Community cinema, live music, osteopathy clinics, gym and other health activities. The café is an important part of the centre, bringing together both residents and visitors, while the art and craft gallery provides locals artists and community businesses the opportunity to exhibit and display their products, generating sales, particularly in the tourist season.

Purpose of the post

As the centre has grown from a small village hall to a busy hub for the whole of the Torridon district, the staffing requirements have also grown and we are now looking for a senior manager to lead on the smooth running of the Community Centre; to promote the use of the Centre more widely; to increase TDCA revenue and capital grants; and to ensure the continued success of the annual Celtman event. The Board of Directors has been directly involved in many aspects of running the centre and now needs to appoint someone to take over that work, freeing Directors up to focus on their wider remit while supporting the operations & events manager as s/he develops into the role. Beyond the centre TDCA is working on a number of additional projects which will, as the organisation grows further, become part of this new role.

Tasks

Leadership and Management

The operations & events manager will be responsible for the smooth running of the LTCC; line management including maintaining and developing team ethos; developing a volunteer strategy; oversight of running costs and income streams.

Developing LTCC and events

Promoting the LTCC for events, conferences, weddings etc; exploring new opportunities and developing a strategy to increase the use of LTCC; generating new income while ensuring facilities remain accessible to local community groups; and promoting wider community benefit from LTCC and events.

Developing and implementing a communications strategy, including social media, local communication forums and TDCA membership.

Ensuring the successful running of the annual Celtman triathlon (held in June) including negotiations with organizers (2026 negotiations complete); pre-event planning; overall co-ordination and management of the 2 weekends; and coordinate post event feedback

Funding

Developing and implementing a funding strategy for TDCA including regular donations, one-off donations and grants as well as developing relationships with key funder such as Highland Council and Highland & Islands Enterprise.

Objectives

1. Continued smooth running of the LTCC, ensure running costs are covered and increase income.
2. Increase external and community bookings of LTCC
3. Maintain a positive relationship with the Celtman team and the community and ensuring level or increased profit
4. Increase revenue and obtain grants for capital work as needed

The post will be reviewed in late September 2028 with a view to extending it if funding is available.

Conditions of work and in-work benefits

• The post will be based in Loch Torridon Community Centre. While most days will involve being in the Community Centre, we can offer some flexibility for 1 day a week home working;
• Working hours will be average 28 hours per week across the year. The centre is very quiet in winter and very busy in summer so there is scope for some seasonal variation by mutual consent - although much of the job is proactive and therefore less affected by the tourism seasons. Job-share applications and secondments will be considered;
• Some evening and weekend work may be required and time off in lieu will be offered;
• The standard paid annual leave entitlement is 30 days - pro rata 22.5 (inclusive of public/bank holidays) per calendar year;
• Membership of NEST workplace pension scheme;
• TDCA is a living wage employer with a fair work first policy and would be happy to share this with potential candidates;
• We would be very glad to discuss any accessibility adjustment requirements and associated in-work support that may be needed to ensure a positive and inclusive workplace;
• TDCA takes a proactive approach to staff development, and seeks to provide staff with training and development opportunities.

Person specification

We are looking for a highly driven and capable individual, experienced in leadership, promotion of events and finance who is able to build and sustain good working relationships with staff, funders, the community and other stakeholders. The following are the essential and desirable elements for candidates for the role and in your application and the interview process we will expect you to provide examples that demonstrate how you meet these. This will inform scoring of applications.

Experience:

Essential

• Leading a small organisation or autonomous team within a larger organisation
• Promotion and organisation of one off or regular events
• Controlling and forecasting budgets
• Developing and maintaining key stakeholder relationships within the third sector

Desirable

• Fundraising for a small organisation
• Working in the public and/or third sector, where funding conditions apply.
• Previous experience of working with a community.
• Using social media on a professional basis

Education:

Essential

• Degree in relevant subject, or demonstrable experience of learning at this level.

Skills and abilities:

Essential

• Strong people skills as the job involves engaging with local community members, visitors, staff and directors.
• Good at developing and implementing strategy – eg to bring in more events to the centre, to promote the centre, to increase funding and donations
• Financial literacy: able to develop budgets, track income and expenditure and undertake financial reporting.
• Proficiency with intermediate IT skills including MS Office, and able to pick up basic use of website content management (e.g. WordPress).
• Able to identify, organise and prioritise tasks in order to achieve objectives, meet deadlines and respond to emerging needs.
• Strong team working skills and a flexible approach, including setting realistic expectations on what can be sustainably delivered by yourself and others.

Knowledge and understanding:

Essential

• An understanding of the pressures and challenges facing remote communities.

Desirable

• Relevant knowledge of compliance requirements eg health and safety, building compliance, and accessibility

Other requirements

• The role will require you to be in the Community Centre at least 3 days a week and 2 of those days will be public facing
• There will be a need to be in the centre over the 2 weekends of Celtman triathlon in June

Help us turn community ambition into practical delivery in the West Highlands.

About us

Kinlochleven Community Trust (KCT) is the Community Anchor Organisation for our village, set between mountains and sea at the head of Loch Leven in Lochaber. We are a community-led charity managing a range of assets and services that matter locally — from community facilities, paths and woodland to e-bike hire, an AIRES motorhome site and the developing Aluminium Story Museum.

Supported by the Scottish Government / DTAS Strengthening Communities Programme and the Highland Community Regeneration Fund, KCT is entering an important three-year development period. We want to grow income, strengthen systems, deepen community engagement, and explore long-term arrangements for strategic local sites.

The role

We are looking for a Development Manager: a practical, organised and ambitious person who can take community ideas and make them real.

Working closely with the Board, you will lead day-to-day delivery across income generation, asset and lease management, governance, monitoring and reporting, community engagement and partnership working. Income generation is at the heart of the job — a core priority is helping KCT identify and secure the funding needed, through new grants and stronger earned income, to continue this post and our wider work in Years 2 and 3.

This is a varied, hands-on role with real scope for someone who enjoys spotting opportunities and turning them into income — whether that is e-bike hire, visitor donations, the AIRES site, an events programme, or grant fundraising.

What you will do

• Lead income generation: grow earned and donation-based income, develop the events programme, support the Ice Factor lease arrangement, develop the Aluminium Story Museum as a sustainable visitor attraction, and identify and secure further grant and trust funding.
• Strengthen asset management: develop business and maintenance plans, improve lease and tenant records, and help the Board explore long-term arrangements for strategic local sites including the Kinlochleven Business Park.
• Improve governance, finance, monitoring and reporting: including maintaining a combined monitoring and evaluation framework and submitting quarterly CRF and SCP funder reports on time.
• Improve communication and engagement with members, residents, tenants, visitors and partners.
• Support land, environmental and visitor activity: paths, woodland, public realm and visitor infrastructure.
• Help KCT live its Fair Work First commitments and operate as a fair, well-run small employer.

Who we are looking for

You will probably bring much of the following:

• Experience in community development, project management, asset management, charity management, social enterprise or fundraising.
• A track record in identifying and securing grant funding and/or developing earned income for a charitable or community organisation.
• Strong organisational, communication and report-writing skills and the ability to manage a varied workload.
• Financial awareness including budgeting, income monitoring and grant reporting.
• The ability to work constructively with a voluntary Board and build relationships with tenants, funders, public bodies, partners and community members.
• Working knowledge of Scottish charity governance and OSCR expectations.
• A full UK driving licence and access to a vehicle (or a clear plan for travelling reliably across Lochaber), and the right to live and work in the UK without restriction.

Experience of community asset management, Community Right to Buy, rural community organisations, or delivering against SCP/CRF or similar Scottish Government funding is desirable but not essential. We are far more interested in the right person than the perfect CV.

Why work with KCT?

• A genuinely meaningful role in a small, ambitious, community-led charity at an important moment in its development.
• Real autonomy and breadth — no two weeks the same, and the chance to shape a job rather than inherit one.
• Salary of £32,000 per annum in line with our Fair Work First commitments.
• 20 days’ paid annual leave plus 9 Scottish public holidays, auto-enrolment workplace pension, and flexible working by agreement.
• Working life in one of the most beautiful corners of Scotland, with mountains, lochs, walking, climbing and the Ice Factor on the doorstep.

Do you want to help alleviate poverty and improve the lives of families and children impacted by illness and disability? The Royal Hospital for Children and Young People provides care to patients from across Edinburgh and nationally. Many will be experiencing very challenging and life changing events which also impact the finances and circumstances of the family.

This is an exciting opportunity to join CHAI Advice Service and help deliver benefits and housing advice through our highly successful service at the RHCYP. Comprehensive and continuous training is provided by CHAI to support this rewarding role.

Are you?:

• Resilient and able to demonstrate empathy at a challenging time in peoples’ lives, which will sometimes involve children who have terminal illnesses.
• Able to quickly learn complex rules and legislation on Welfare Benefits and Housing.
• Able to grow trusting professional relationships in a formal setting.
• Understanding of people’s journeys and the challenges they have had in their lives, and how poverty can have an impact on them.

As an Adviser in CHAI, You will:

• Provide high quality accurate advice, information, and representation in line with the Scottish National Standards for Information and Advice Providers.
• Provide advice within a range of settings from on site at the hospital, the CHAI office, community venues and some home working.
• Work in partnership with NHS practitioners at the RHCYP, social work teams and other children’s charity providers.

CHAI offers the following exceptional benefits:

• Extensive training programme
• Flexible working
• Access to Simply Health benefit plan
• 33 days of annual leave + public holidays
• Enrolment to NOW pension scheme
• Supportive work environment
• Opportunities to improve services and make a difference