• Good communication skills, including face-to-face, over videoconference and written, with ability to understand and explain information (including financial information) clearly.

• Good judgement as to when to progress an issue independently, and when to escalate to line manager or other senior staff.

Selection for interview will be based on these 4 criteria so please ensure that your application demonstrates in detail how you meet these requirements. You may find it helpful to use each criteria as a subheading, or to use the STAR method to structure your statement. We suggest candidates write between 250-300 words per criteria.

If we receive a large number of applications candidates will initially be assessed on one criteria:

• An understanding of grant funding in the research and/or cultural heritage sectors.

Artificial Intelligence can be a useful tool to support your application, however, all examples and statements provided must be truthful, factually accurate and taken directly from your own experience. Where plagiarism has been identified (presenting the ideas and experiences of others, or generated by artificial intelligence, as your own) applications may be withdrawn and internal candidates may be subject to disciplinary action. Please visit the Civil Service Careers website where you can find further information on the use of AI in the application guidance section.

Interviews will be held on-site, ideally during week commencing 2nd November.

Applicants invited to interview will be assessed against ALL of the essential criteria (see full job description below).

We are unable to offer sponsorship for this role.

Job Description

Role and Responsibilities

Fundraising and Project Support

• Proactively support the Grant Development Team in the management of grant applications, from ideation to submission to various funders, including (for example) UK Research and Innovation (UKRI) or The National Lottery Heritage Fund, using collaboration and influencing skills to work across different teams and contribute to the timely completion of quality bids.
• Conduct prospect research, identifying new funders, calls and opportunities, matching them appropriately with internal initiatives and expertise, and communicating them across the organisation.
• Support the delivery of our internal Strategic Research Fund, providing guidance for applicants at pre-award stage and administrative support at post-award stage, advising on project design and delivery, supporting financial processing where necessary and identifying solutions to project challenges where required.
• Managing the administration of demand-managed funding calls, designing and delivering an internal process to select applicants from within The National Archives, and developing bespoke bids that deliver on institutional strategic goals while supporting the needs of the funders programme.
• Lead the approval, drafting and submission of institutional letters of support.

Administration and Process Delivery

• Lead the administration of TNA’s pre-award process, collating necessary documentation for internal approval, peer review and submission to funder. Communicate internal decisions on proposals, ensuring that applicants and the Grant Development Team receive timely guidance, templates, and documentation.
• Support with the compilation of activity reports and statistics, to assist with reporting of institutional grant activity to the Head of Department and TNA’s Executive Team, Finance and Performance Committee and Board.
• Manage the Grant Development Team’s information and documentation, maintaining an accurate and auditable filing system.

Communications and Events

• Lead the Grant Development’s team internal and external communications and messaging, communicating with TNA’s internal and external audiences through various channels, in collaboration with the Research Impact, Culture and Engagement (RICE) team.
• Identify and communicate funding opportunities across The National Archives. Using our internal intranet, email, events, person-to-person liaison and other communication channels as appropriate, ensure that relevant staff are informed of and engaged by opportunities to generate external funding.
• Support external meetings and events for TNA’s grant development portfolio (in-person and online), including preparing agendas and materials, booking spaces and catering, organising technical support, publicising and marketing, and taking minutes, including in hosting and liaising with senior or Board-level external stakeholders.
• Co-ordinate the set up and delivery of grant development training and knowledge dissemination workshops, making a proactive and meaningful contribution to our Research Pathways researcher development programme.

Finance

• Assist with project budgeting and grant proposal costings, including for complex proposals of over £1m, ensuring that proposal budgets are robust and compliant, and that value for money is demonstrated in fundraising proposals.
• Understand funder financial regulations and support Grant Development Team in meeting key financial compliance requirements in bids.
• Support the financial processing of the Grant Development Team as required.

The post-holder may be required to undertake any other duties which may be reasonably requested within the nature of the duties and responsibilities of the post as defined.

Working Conditions

• Normal office environment
• Display Screen Equipment user

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• Graduate-level education or equivalent experience, with excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• An understanding of grant funding in the research and/or cultural heritage sectors.
• High level of numeracy for budgeting and financial processing.
• Strong time management skills, with ability to prioritise tasks within a shifting workload and manage conflicting demands.
• Good communication skills, including face-to-face, over videoconference and written, with ability to understand and explain information (including financial information) clearly.
• Excellent team player with good co-ordination and interpersonal skills, able to build effective collaborative relationships and networks, and to negotiate and manage challenge with clarity and diplomacy.
• Good judgement as to when to progress an issue independently, and when to escalate to line manager or other senior staff.
• Excellent attention to detail and the ability to maintain accurate and up-to-date record-keeping systems.

Desirable Criteria

• Prior experience of grants administration in the academic or cultural heritage sectors.
• Interest in arts, culture and heritage, and the work of The National Archives.

Other Requirements

A combination of onsite and home working is available and applicants should be able to regularly travel to our Kew site. Our expectation is that 60% of our time is spent in the office or working offsite (e.g. on visits), with 40% being from home.

The Civil Service is committed to attract, retain and invest in talent wherever it is found. To learn more please see the Civil Service People Plan and the Civil Service D&I Strategy.

Benefits

• Generous benefits package, including pension, sports and social club facilities, onsite gym, discounted rates at