Confident Fundraising Leadership
You’re good at fundraising. But who taught you how to lead a team?
A practical, supportive fundraising leadership training programme for people who want to feel more confident managing teams, making decisions and leading fundraising.
Six live online sessions
Maximum six participants
Individual mentoring included
2027 programme fee: £695 per person (provisional)
You’ve worked hard to get where you are. You understand fundraising, you’ve built relationships, delivered campaigns and worked towards ambitious targets.
But leading a fundraising team brings a whole different set of challenges.
Suddenly you’re responsible for managing people, overseeing budgets, having difficult conversations and keeping everyone motivated, while still being accountable for bringing in the money. And sometimes it feels as though everyone expects you to know exactly what you’re doing.
Confident Fundraising Leadership is a six-session online development programme designed to help you navigate those challenges with greater confidence. You’ll learn alongside a small group of fellow fundraising leaders, explore real situations from your working life and develop practical skills you can use straight away.
Does any of this sound familiar?
You want to be a supportive manager, but you’re not always sure how to balance kindness with accountability.
You find yourself putting off difficult conversations because you’re unsure how to approach them.
You’re so busy with day-to-day demands that you rarely have time to think about the bigger picture.
You’re managing budgets and targets but don’t always feel confident discussing financial performance.
You want to challenge unrealistic expectations from trustees or senior colleagues, but you’re not sure how.
You’re trying to build a positive fundraising culture when the rest of the organisation doesn’t always understand fundraising.
You’re supporting your team through uncertainty while trying to work out what happens next yourself.
Being good at fundraising doesn’t automatically prepare you to lead a fundraising team. They’re different skills, and we don’t always give people the time or support to develop them.
That’s why I created Confident Fundraising Leadership.
Leadership is something we learn
Not something we’re expected to know
I became a Head of Fundraising at 25, managing a team of five people, and I had absolutely no idea what I was doing.
I knew how to fundraise. I cared deeply about the organisation and wanted to do a good job. But managing people, having difficult conversations, navigating relationships and making decisions that affected other people’s working lives were all things I had to learn.
Over nearly 20 years in the charity sector, including as a Director of Fundraising and Marketing, I’ve learned a huge amount about leadership, often through experience, mistakes and conversations with people who were generous enough to share what they’d learned.
I’ve also realised that being a good leader doesn’t mean having all the answers. It’s about understanding yourself, creating the right conditions for people to succeed, making thoughtful decisions and being willing to keep learning.
I wanted to create the kind of programme I would have valued when I first became a manager: practical and supportive, grounded in the realities of charity life, with space to ask questions, share experiences and talk honestly about the things that don’t always get discussed at work.
What will you get from the programme?
A clearer understanding of your leadership style and the kind of manager you want to be.
Confidence in managing people, giving feedback and having difficult conversations.
An understanding of how to create a positive fundraising culture across your organisation.
More comfort working with budgets, managing risk and making decisions.
Practical approaches to leading through change and uncertainty.
Stronger relationships with trustees, senior colleagues and other teams.
Connections with fundraising leaders who understand the pressures of your role.
You won’t leave with a magic formula for leadership, because I don’t believe one exists. But you will leave with practical tools, new perspectives and a better understanding of how to approach the challenges you’re facing.
What we’ll explore together
Six fortnightly sessions, with time between each to reflect and try things out
SESSION 1
What Fundraising Leadership Really Means
Finding your feet as a fundraising leader
What it means to lead a fundraising team, the difference between managing and leading, and how to develop an approach that feels right for you: creating clarity, building relationships and helping people move towards a shared goal.
SESSION 2
Building a Fundraising Culture
Helping the whole organisation get behind fundraising
What creates the right conditions for fundraising, how to build stronger relationships across your organisation, and how to focus your energy on what you can realistically control or influence.
SESSION 3
One-to-Ones, Feedback and Performance Conversations
Having better conversations with your team
What makes a useful one-to-one, how to give meaningful feedback, and how to approach performance conversations with clarity, kindness and accountability.
SESSION 4
Budgeting and Big Picture Thinking
Feeling more confident with the numbers
The key elements of a fundraising budget, the assumptions behind your targets, using financial information to make better decisions, and communicating the bigger picture to people outside fundraising.
SESSION 5
Leading Through Uncertainty
Supporting yourself and your team when things change
Different types of uncertainty, how they affect fundraising teams, and how to communicate clearly, manage competing pressures and support your team when you don’t have all the answers.
SESSION 6
Working with Trustees and Senior Leaders
Building relationships and influencing decisions
Communicating with confidence, managing expectations, presenting fundraising priorities and helping trustees and senior leaders understand their role in fundraising success.
How the programme works
Small groups, honest conversations and practical learning. This isn’t a course where you sit quietly listening to someone talk at you for hours.
Six live online sessions
We meet fortnightly. Each session includes practical learning, group discussion and time to consider how the topic relates to your own leadership.
A small group
A maximum of six participants, so everyone can contribute. You’ll learn from my experience, and a huge amount from each other.
Individual mentoring
A one-hour session with me to focus on something specific to you: a leadership challenge, a difficult conversation, a decision or your next career step.
Practical tools and resources
Workbooks, reflection exercises and practical resources to help you apply the learning between sessions and beyond.
A supportive space
We agree together how to keep the group respectful and confidential, so you can bring real challenges without needing everything figured out.
Piloted in autumn 2026
The programme was tested with fundraising leaders to make sure the sessions reflect the challenges they actually face.
Is this programme right for you?
Designed for fundraisers who are managing people or preparing to take on greater leadership responsibility. It could be a good fit if you’re:
A newly appointed Head of Fundraising or Fundraising Manager.
An experienced fundraiser moving into your first people management role.
Leading a small fundraising team and balancing strategic and operational responsibilities.
Looking to build your confidence as a manager.
Preparing for the next step in your fundraising career.
You don’t need to manage a large team or have a particularly senior job title. What matters is that you’re ready to invest time in developing your leadership skills, reflect on your experiences and learn alongside others.
For CEOs and Directors of Fundraising
Invest in the people responsible for delivering your fundraising ambitions.
Promoting a talented fundraiser into a management role is an exciting step, but it can also be a challenging transition. Suddenly they’re responsible for managing people, setting direction, overseeing budgets and navigating relationships across the organisation.
Confident Fundraising Leadership gives new and emerging fundraising leaders structured professional development, individual mentoring and connection with peers from other charities. It’s an investment in your people, and in the conditions for good fundraising to happen.
Join Confident Fundraising Leadership in 2027
I’m planning two cohorts for 2027, building on the experience and feedback from the pilot.
Planned programme dates
April to June 2027
September to November 2027
Programme fee
£695 per participant (provisional)
Your place includes six live online group sessions, a one-hour individual mentoring session, and practical workbooks and resources. Each cohort is limited to six participants. Final dates, fee and VAT details will be confirmed before bookings open.
Registering your interest doesn’t commit you to booking or paying. You’ll simply be among the first to receive confirmed dates, programme details and booking information.
Register your interest
No commitment to book or pay. You’ll be first to hear confirmed dates and booking details.
Frequently asked questions
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A six-session online leadership development programme for fundraising professionals. It focuses on people management, fundraising culture, communication, budgeting, leading through uncertainty and working with trustees and senior leaders, and combines practical training, peer discussion and individual mentoring.
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Fundraising Managers, Heads of Fundraising and other fundraising professionals who are managing people or preparing to take on leadership responsibilities. It’s particularly relevant to people in small and medium-sized charities, although participants from larger organisations are welcome.
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The proposed 2027 fee is £695 per participant, with final pricing and VAT details confirmed before bookings open. The fee includes six group sessions, one individual mentoring session and supporting learning resources.
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Six live online sessions delivered fortnightly, typically over about three months. The first 2027 cohort is planned for April to June, with a second from September to November.
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No. It suits people who are new to management, as well as fundraisers who have managed teams for some time and want to develop their leadership approach.
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Yes. One session focuses on one-to-ones, feedback and performance conversations, including how to approach difficult situations with clarity, kindness and accountability.
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Yes. Every participant receives a one-hour individual mentoring session with me, to explore a specific leadership challenge or development goal.
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Absolutely. The programme is designed as professional development and can be funded through your organisation’s training budget. I’m happy to provide information you can share with your manager.
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You’ll receive the confirmed programme dates, fee and booking arrangements when places become available. Registering doesn’t guarantee a place or commit you to booking.
Good leadership isn’t about having all the answers.
It’s about developing the confidence to make decisions, have honest conversations, support your people and keep learning along the way. If you’re ready to invest some time in becoming the leader you want to be, I’d love you to join us.