Cafe Development Manager jobs

A message from the CEO

“The Sherborne is a young organisation with incredible potential. Since reopening in 2024, we have achieved a great deal - from being awarded the South West Refurbishment/Revitalisation Award at the RICS UK Awards 2026, to winning the Arts, Culture and Theatre category for Dorset, Somerset and Bristol in the 2026 Muddy Stilettos Awards, to being celebrated by Condé Nast Traveller as a catalyst in Sherborne's creative momentum - and yes, a Loo of the Year award too, because we believe every detail matters. There is still enormous potential ahead of us, and the Head of Development is a new role, with the unique opportunity to shape our philanthropic strategy from the ground up.

You'll be joining at a formative time - helping shape the case for support for an arts space that is both historic and contemporary, across every art form, from our top-floor offices, our archive and residency programme at the recently acquired Glove Factory, and the evolving business case for our Pavilion and Art Room, to the launch of our full artistic programme and our engagement with Sherborne as Dorset Town of Culture 2027, including the potential to help resource and grow a Wessex Culture Trail across art forms in the years that follow.

At its heart, this is a role about resourcing a tradition that runs through this building's DNA. This building has always been a place of creativity and thought leadership - in the nineteenth century, William Charles Macready hosted literary and scientific salons here, drawing guests including Charles Dickens, Robert Browning and William Makepeace Thackeray. That same spirit is now being consolidated and embedded in our growing talks programme and literary evenings, alongside our literature salon, Art and Absinthe evenings, natural world café and music nights - programmes our Programmer/Curator will lead and grow into regular fixtures of our cultural calendar, and which this role will help fund and sustain for the long term. This is a rare opportunity to work with extraordinary individuals and organisations, and to help ensure The Sherborne continues to flourish as a home for the arts, in the South West, as we evolve into a fully independent charity.”

About The Sherborne

The Sherborne is a heritage landmark in the thriving Dorset market town of Sherborne, and one of the newest cultural venues in the UK - a home for the arts in the South West, with a cultural programme of growing ambition and impact. After more than 30 years of unsuccessful restoration attempts, this Grade I listed Georgian house reopened in spring 2024 after extensive renovation, and is home to the nationally significant Thornhill Mural alongside an equally striking contemporary pavilion extension.

We believe in sharing inspiring creative and culinary experiences for everyone to enjoy. Visitors can experience exhibitions and events, beautiful gardens, our iconic restaurant, bar and coffee pavilion, and a shop showcasing artisanal creators and makers, all within an 'art everywhere' ethos.

The Sherborne's restoration was undertaken with great sensitivity to its historic fabric and a strong commitment to sustainability - principles which now extend to how the building is used. Our upstairs galleries house a changing exhibition programme, alongside separate facilities for hot-desk and office hire, including our top-floor offices, and further art-filled spaces within the historic house available for private hire. We have also recently acquired the Glove Factory, which will be developed as a home for our archive and residency space - a project the Head of Development will help resource.

The Sherborne was reborn in 2024 thanks to the extraordinary generosity and drive of philanthropist and food and beverage entrepreneur Michael Cannon, a role continued by his wife, Sally Cannon. His vision for The Sherborne continues to be built upon.

Our mission

Our mission - shaped through consultation with the local community, including students from Gryphon School, and refined with our design partners, Rose Design - is to inspire audiences, artists and communities across the South West, Wessex and beyond, with a cultural programme of local relevance and national ambition: exhibitions in galleries and sculpture gardens, heritage (including natural heritage), indoor and outdoor music, dance and theatre performances, outreach and events, and wellbeing and yoga in the gardens - enhanced by elegant dining, flexible events spaces, artist residencies, and a beautifully curated shop - accessible to all. Our aim is to be a cultural hub for the South West, locally and regionally relevant, while drawing audiences from across the region and nationally.

An outstanding heritage asset, reimagined and restored for posterity

The Sherborne is where history meets innovation - an arts and cultural space breathing new life into one of Sherborne's most iconic buildings. Behind its Georgian façade lies a story stretching back more than 800 years: from its early life as a bishop's estate - a mansion, courthouse and barn built by Bishop Richard Poore for the newly chartered medieval borough of Newland - to the grand vision of Sir Henry Seymour Portman in the 1720s, the house has always been a place of ambition, artistry and reinvention. Pevsner himself described it as “a very handsome early Georgian mansion”.

Each chapter has left its mark: the elegance of Georgian design, the echoes of school life under Lord Digby's School, and the vibrant cultural conversations once hosted by William Charles Macready, whose guests included Charles Dickens, Robert Browningand William Makepeace Thackeray. Dickens gave a reading from A Christmas Carol in the very room that today houses The Sherborne's restaurant - a reminder that this building has been a home for Sherborne's cultural and intellectual life for well over a century and a half.

Sherborne as Dorset Town of Culture 2027

Sherborne has been named by The Sunday Times as one of the best places to live in the South West and - most recently - as Dorset Town of Culture 2027, following a competitive bid process run by Dorset Council and the Arts Development Company. We're proud to be playing our part in the town's Town of Culture success; from this year's Zak Ové sculpture, extending from Pageant Gardens to The Sherborne itself, to 2028 plans for a Wessex Culture Trail across art forms, and the celebration of Sherborne's own remarkable cultural heritage and alumni. Liz Gilmore, our CEO, has been invited to be one of the directors of the Town of Culture 2027 to provide strategic strategic advice and help shape the creative programme.

Role Purpose

This is a new leadership role at a pivotal moment in The Sherborne's development.

The Head of Development will lead fundraising and income-generation strategy for the charity - building and establishing a major gifts programme, membership and patron schemes, trust and foundation funding, legacy giving, and grant applications. Working closely with the CEO and the Board, the postholder will enable The Sherborne's artistic, cultural and public impact, and lay the foundations for long-term financial sustainability, independent of any single benefactor.

A foundational early priority will be building The Sherborne's core case for support - grounded in clear evidence of our cultural and organisational impact - to underpin all fundraising activity, alongside a clear understanding not just of the potential for philanthropy within our network, but the likelihood of it. This includes building the funding case behind specific capital ambitions already underway, such as the business case for our newly acquired Glove Factory and capital evolutions to our Art Room, working closely with the Programmer/Curator and CEO.

This is an asset-led role: The Sherborne's heritage, its earned income through F&B and events, its executive expertise and its audience all represent real fundraising assets. The successful candidate will create the pathways for sustainable income growth over the next five to seven years, working across the charity to identify and develop fundraising opportunities.

Key Responsibilities

Fundraising strategy and execution

Lead the development and delivery of a clear, multi-year fundraising strategy aligned to the charity's mission, strategic plan and risk profile - spanning major gifts, grants, corporate partnerships and individual donor campaigns - to support long-term sustainability. Identify and develop new income opportunities and innovative approaches, informed by insight, performance data and external best practice.

Donor cultivation and stewardship

Build and maintain strong relationships with existing and prospective donors, ensuring engagement through personalised communication, events and recognition. This includes:

• Major gifts and HNW fundraising - working closely with the CEO and Board to leverage and grow strategic networks; designing and leading a major giving strategy focused on high-net-worth individuals, and private philanthropists, built on trust, alignment and shared ambition.
• Patron and membership programmes - designing and leading The Sherborne's Patrons' scheme and membership programmes to grow income, strengthen loyalty and engagement, and build structured supporter journeys.
• Legacy giving and endowment - leading the development of a legacy giving programme, and exploring the potential for an endowment strategy, including with our founding philanthropist and other associated high-net-worth individuals.
• Trusts & foundations - leading relationships and income generation from trusts, foundations and institutional funders, and building a strategic pipeline aligned with organisational priorities, including towards a future Arts Council England National Portfolio application and National Lottery Heritage Fund opportunities.

Grant and proposal management

Oversee the preparation, submission and tracking of grant applications, ensuring compliance with funder requirements and timely reporting.

Budgeting and financial oversight

Work with the finance function to develop budgets, track revenue projections, and monitor fundraising performance against target - analysing return on investment across fundraising activity and adjusting approach as needed.

Compliance and record-keeping

Maintain accurate donor records, and ensure all fundraising activity complies with Charity Commission requirements, the Fundraising Regulator's Code of Practice, and data protection legislation.

Cultivation and collaboration

Work across departments to align fundraising with the charity's mission, and lead cultivation and stewardship events - private views, talks, dinners and behind-the-scenes experiences.

Leadership and growth

Contribute to organisational strategy, business planning and long-term sustainability planning as a member of the senior team.

Person Specification

Essential

• Significant experience in fundraising leadership across a multi-stream income portfolio.
• A demonstrable track record of delivering significant income growth, partnership development or step-change results.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to articulate complex ideas clearly and credibly.
• The ability to influence, negotiate and engage confidently with senior stakeholders.
• The ability to build effective cross-organisational relationships and work collaboratively to shape and deliver partnership propositions.
• A sound working knowledge of UK charity governance, regulation and compliance requirements.

Desirable

• Experience of fundraising within arts, culture or heritage organisations.
• Experience of legacy giving and/or endowment development.

Pay: £60,000.00-£65,000.00 per year

Benefits:

• Company pension
• Employee discount

Work Location: In person