Made In Hackney
Executive Director
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Executive Director
Job Title: Executive Director
Hours: 5 days per week (Monday to Friday)
Contract: Permanent contract, subject to probationary period
Location: Hybrid: Partly at Liberty Hall, London, E5 9AA, and partly home-based
Salary: £50,000 – £55,000 per annum (FTE)
Holiday: 25 days per year, plus bank holidays
Pension: 4% Employer contribution
Deadline: Friday 7 August 2026
ABOUT MADE IN HACKNEY
Made in Hackney started life in 2012 as a community cookery school working across London with the mission of tackling the climate crisis, health inequalities and bringing communities together using the power of plants.
The impact of our work is varied and far-reaching, changing hundreds of people’s lives for the better.
We provide diverse culinary education, inspiration and support networks needed to ensure no one is left behind in the transition to a plant-centred, planet-friendly diet.
Our work has been recognised with prestigious accolades including the BBC Food and Farming Award, Caroline Walker Trust Award, and Urban Food Award. We have showcased our work through major events: Vegan Life Live, the Great Exhibition Road Festival, and Billie Eilish’s Changemaker Partnerships collaboration.
Made in Hackney has attracted support from a range of supporters and ambassadors including: Andi Oliver, Olivia Colman, Jamie Oliver, Dr Nitu Bajekal and Support and Feed.
ABOUT THE ROLE
The Executive Director will provide strategic and operational leadership at Made In Hackney, working closely with the Board to deliver organisational priorities. The role focuses on strengthening impact, financial sustainability, and organisational resilience.
Key priorities include:
- Overseeing fundraising and income generation
- Ensuring robust governance and financial management
- Continuing to develop our five-year strategic plan
The postholder will lead and empower a diverse team, foster an inclusive culture, and champion the organisation’s mission around plant-based living, sustainability, and community cohesion, ensuring effective delivery, measurable outcomes, and continued growth in reach and influence.
Direct Reports include:
- Head of Development
- Head of Operations & Programmes
- Finance Manager
Freelance contractors include:
- Marketing
- Plant Prospects
- Global Plant Kitchens
ROLE DESCRIPTION
Leadership & Vision
- Provide inspirational leadership, galvanising support for a compelling strategic direction, agreeing clear milestones for delivery and ensuring consistent measurement and evaluation of our impact
- Work with the Board of Trustees to ensure organisational structure and accountabilities are aligned with strategic and operational requirements. Ensuring MIH’s ethos, vision and values drive and underpin all decision making
- Act as a passionate advocate for plant-centred eating and living, environmental sustainability, health, food justice and community cohesion
- Be a positive role model for colleagues, volunteers and beneficiaries, actively promoting a representative, inclusive and forward-looking approach
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Strategy & Organisational Development
- Provide strategic leadership - taking responsibility for the implementation and delivery of a 5-year strategic plan, identifying and implementing best practices from across the sector
- Build on our current position of strength to expand MIH’s reach, impact and profile
- Identify, assess, and communicate strategic risks, issues and opportunities to the Board and take responsibility for initiating and leading associated changes
Fundraising, Business Development & Partnerships
- Responsible for strategic oversight of fundraising at MIH, providing support and guidance to the fundraising team to build a portfolio of individual, corporate and grants trusts and donations, as well as owned income streams, to ensure long-term sustainable funding of activities
- Develop income generating strategies and set, agree and track against clear targets with the Board
- Generate fundraising leads and cultivate fundraising opportunities with high-value donors
- Actively build MIH’s profile whilst maintaining and cultivating strategic relationships with supporters, donors, businesses and corporate bodies aligned with MIH’s values and mission
- Proactively seek out entrepreneurial opportunities to capitalise on the rise of veganism and growth of the plant-based food market; developing an innovative strategy to ensure MIH becomes a leading voice within the plant-based food sector
Financial and Governance
- Accountable to the MIH Board of Trustees for the overall financial health of the charity, you will ensure that the charity’s financial resources are managed effectively, risks identified proactively and mitigating actions taken appropriately
- Support the Trustees in all areas of their governance and legal responsibilities in line with Charity Commission requirements and other relevant regulatory bodies
People and Culture
- Develop, align and empower the team to communicate and excel together as a cohesive unit and within their individual roles
- Foster a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion ensuring it’s embedded into all aspects of the charity’s work
- Continue and further develop MIH’s culture as a progressive employer
General
- Able to work occasional evenings and weekends (we operate a TOIL policy)
- Undertake other tasks as required to fulfil the role and support the charity
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PERSON SPECIFICATION
- Leadership or senior position in a medium to large size charity or organisation with charitable objectives, working with a Board of Trustees or Directors
- Experience in leading through a period of change
- Experience in developing and implementing organisational strategy
- Storytelling ability – being able to articulate a vision to engage others and galvanise support behind it
- Experience in successful bid writing and securing high-value tenders and contracts
- Experience in securing funding in the region of £500k plus a year and developing and maintaining high net worth partnerships
- Experience working with, recruiting, supporting and maintaining a diverse, inclusive workforce with proactive approaches to inclusion, anti-racism and allyship
- Experience developing and selling services, products or a business proposition
- Exemplary communication and people skills, including active, empathetic listening and the ability to derive insights that may lead to opportunities
- A nimble, agile and dynamic approach to work
- Alignment with the plant centred ethos
BENEFITS
- Hybrid working arrangement with flexibility to work from home and in the office
- Access to an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP)
- Staff Wellbeing and social activities throughout the year
- Holidays: 25 days per year full-time (FTE) plus bank holidays
- Pension: 4% Employer contribution
EQUALITY OF OPPORTUNITY
Made In Hackney is an equal opportunities employer. We welcome and encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and communities, particularly those currently underrepresented in the charity sector.
The experience of working for Made in Hackney is varied, unique and rewarding. There is scope for the successful candidate to be creative and implement new ideas. If this role inspires you but you don’t meet every single requirement, we would still love to hear from you.
HOW TO APPLY
The deadline for the receipt of applications is: Friday 7 August 2026
You can download the full job description at the bottom of this webpage - https://madeinhackney.org/were-recruiting-executive-director/
We encourage you to apply as soon as possible as we will be scheduling interviews on a rolling basis as we receive applications.
To apply, please send a CV outlining your career history and relevant experience for the role and a cover letter outlining what has attracted you to apply for the role of Executive Director Head and what makes you the right candidate for this exciting position.
Please send your application to: Claire Atchia McMaster, Interim Executive Director. Please also contact Claire if you have any queries relating to your application: claire@madeinhackney.org
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