Development Manager

English Touring Opera Ltd; Sheffield; On-site; GBP 60,000 - GBP 80,000; Full time

Job summary

A dynamic opera company in Sheffield seeks an ambitious and experienced fundraiser to join their Development team. The successful candidate will be responsible for growing voluntary income and applying for grants from trusts and foundations. Strong fundraising experience, teamwork, and persuasive writing skills are essential. This role offers the chance to contribute to an award-winning organization's mission to make opera accessible to all. Applications are due by 9am on Friday 20 February 2026.

Qualifications

• Experience in fundraising with a successful track record.
• Ability to write persuasive applications for trusts and foundations.
• Experience managing a team or collaboration in a busy environment.

Responsibilities

• Join the Development team to grow voluntary income.
• Write applications for Trust and Foundation grants.
• Manage the Trusts & Foundations Officer.

Skills

Fundraising experience

Teamwork

Persuasive writing

Job description

Closing Date:

9am on Friday 20 February 2026

The Role:

ETO are seeking an ambitious and experienced fundraiser to join our busy Development team as we continue to grow our voluntary (fundraised) income to support our work on the stage, in schools and in the community.

Please see full responsibilities and specifications in the attached job pack.

About English Touring Opera:

ETO is an Olivier award‑winning opera company with a mission to make our artform accessible to all.

Since 1979, ETO has toured outstanding live productions and impactful education and community projects to more towns and cities than any other UK opera company, reaching over 30,000 people per year. As an Arts Council England National Portfolio Organisation, we tour exceptional and ambitious theatre‑based productions across the country, performing rare, unjustly under‑performed repertoire that is neglected by the rest of the sector. With an average ticket price of £26.81, we are committed to breaking down financial barriers to opera and challenging the perception that the artform is elitist. It is an exciting time for ETO, as we establish ourselves in our new base of operations in Sheffield as part of the ACE Transfer Programme.

ETO creates award‑winning educational opera experiences as part of our Learning & Participation (L&P) Programme. We tour participatory opera across the country for infants, children, families, and learning‑disabled young people and we deliver creative workshops for young people in secondary schools and alternative provision settings. Through our multifaceted approach, we work carefully with participants to deliver activities that reflect their backgrounds, interests, and needs, alongside important issues such as climate change and mental health.

How to Apply:

Please email your CV (maximum two pages) and a separate document (maximum two pages) that answers the following four questions to [e-mail]. Please use the following four questions as headings:

1. Tell us about your biggest success or a piece of work of which you are most proud.

2. This role will involve writing persuasive applications for Trust and Foundation grants. Please can you write a short paragraph explaining why a Trust or Foundation should award a grant towards ETO’s Spring 2026 season, including our opera for children.

3. You’ll have to work as part of a busy team in this role, whilst managing the Trusts & Foundations Officer. Please can you give us an example of how you’ve worked in a team before and what your management approach would be.

4. Please tell us if you have any previous fundraising experience, or previous experience which has given you skills which are transferable to fundraising.