Head of External Relations

Salary Band: £40,000 - £65,945 gross per annum

Contract: Permanent

Hours: Full Time

Location: Woodstock, Oxfordshire. We value in-person collaboration and this role is primarily office based, with flexibility available where appropriate and regular travel across the UK.

About Us

Plunkett UK is a national charity supporting people in rural areas to set up and run successful community-owned businesses. These businesses, from shops and pubs to woodlands and farms, provide vital services, create local jobs, strengthen rural economies and bring people together. We've championed community ownership for over 100 years because it delivers thriving, inclusive and resilient places.

About the Role

We're looking for an ambitious and strategic Head of External Relations to lead delivery of Plunkett UK's Stronger Movement strategic priority, helping to grow our visibility, influence, membership and external relationships.

This is a senior leadership role with a particular focus on strengthening our communications and marketing. You'll help ensure Plunkett's impact, expertise and role within the rural community business movement are better understood by community businesses, funders, policymakers, corporate partners and other key stakeholders. Working closely with the Chief Executive and leading a multidisciplinary team, you'll develop compelling communications, build our profile and ensure our voice is heard where it matters most.

You'll also lead the development of our membership strategy, helping us strengthen and grow the rural community business movement, while providing strategic oversight of our policy, public affairs and research work. The role offers an exciting opportunity to shape how Plunkett is perceived externally, build influential relationships and contribute directly to the organisation's long-term sustainability and impact.

The successful candidate should have the following skills and attributes:

• A strategic communicator – able to turn complex ideas into clear, persuasive and memorable messages.
• Marketing-minded – focused on audiences, positioning, reach and converting awareness into action.
• Creative and proactive – bringing ideas, energy and momentum rather than waiting for direction.
• A strong leader and coach – able to inspire colleagues, build confidence and create ownership.
• Collaborative – comfortable working across teams and through other managers to achieve shared goals.
• Commercially aware – able to connect external relations activity with membership growth, partnerships, fundraising and wider organisational sustainability.
• Politically astute – confident operating with senior stakeholders while maintaining Plunkett’s independence and apolitical stance.
• A relationship builder – able to develop trusted relationships with members, funders, policymakers, partners and suppliers.
• Accountable – committed to Plunkett’s principle of listening first and acting second, using evidence and insight to guide decisions.

Closing date for applications: 9am on Monday 28 September

Interview date: In person w/c 5 October

We are committed to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) and our approach goes beyond ‘protected characteristics’ to thinking more broadly about inclusion. Every individual will think and feel differently and we believe that these differences should be embraced, and individual needs taken into account. Additionally, the makeup of the rural communities we work with leads to their own particular diversity and exclusion challenges and opportunities compared to urban areas. Our commitment to EDI, both internally and externally, has been tailored to Plunkett and the

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