Development Lead

To Apply for this Job Please Email your CV and Cover Letter directly to our CEO at hisham@rootsacademy.co.uk

Opportunity

This is the first dedicated development hire in Roots Academy's history. You will build the entire development function from the ground up — designing strategy, building relationships, and creating the systems that will take Roots from a grassroots operation to a financially sustainable international institution.

Roots has a unique and largely untapped asset: thousands of students pass through our programmes every year, many of whom go on to become professionals with deep loyalty to the organisation that shaped their faith. We also have a nationwide network of 70+ instructors teaching in masjids, community centres, and university campuses across the UK — a ready-made grassroots fundraising infrastructure that no other Muslim education charity can match. This role will unlock both of these assets.

You will initially lead a team of volunteers and contractors, with a clear mandate to grow this into a paid department of 5–7 staff within two years. As Roots scales globally, you will also coach regional leads in Australia and Canada on building their own local development teams.

The most important thing we're looking for is someone who lives, loves, and breathes this mission. Everything else can be learned, but conviction can't be taught.

Year 1 Priorities

Before we list the full scope of the role, here's what success looks like in your first year. These are the priorities — everything else is sequenced behind them.

The North Star: Grow Roots' recurring direct debit base from £15k/month to £40k/month, so that Roots' core operating costs are covered by predictable, committed giving. Everything below feeds into this.

• Community Investment Model: Design and test a model for leveraging the Roots instructor network in masjids and community centres. Create a fundraising package and toolkit that instructors can use — test it locally, refine it, and then scale it nationally. This is a unique channel that no other organisation in this space has.
• University Tour: Plan and execute a nationwide university tour — part awareness, part fundraising. Recruit student fundraisers on each campus and generate direct donations. This should feel like Roots: energetic, relatable, mission-driven — not a generic appeal.
• Donor Care & Advancement System: Build a system that keeps donors invested, creates natural opportunities for them to upgrade their giving, and uses storytelling and impact updates to maintain engagement. 
• Alumni Pipeline: In collaboration with the Revival team, build the foundations of a Roots alumni community through 1–2 in-person events in Year 1. This is the beginning of a long-term student-to-donor pipeline — plant the seeds now.
• Digital Campaigns: Strategise and execute digital fundraising campaigns, with Ramadan as the flagship. Work with marketing and offshore design support to optimise channels.
• Institutional & Major Giving Relationships: Close and maintain relationships with 2–3 institutional donors and up to 10 high-net-worth individuals. 

Key Responsibilities

Grassroots & Community Fundraising (30%)

• Design, test, and scale the masjid and community centre fundraising model using the Roots instructor network.
• Create fundraising packages, talking points, and giving options that work for different settings.
• Plan and execute the 20–30 city university tour, recruiting student fundraisers and generating direct donations and direct debits at each stop.
• Build a repeatable events calendar — community iftars, campus fundraising evenings, donor dinners — that becomes part of Roots' annual rhythm.
• Manage event logistics end-to-end.

Donor Care & Stewardship (20%)

• Build the donor journey from first gift through to sustained, upgraded giving. Design stewardship touchpoints: welcome sequences, impact updates, renewal prompts, lapsed donor reactivation, and milestone-based giving opportunities (first job, Ramadan, etc.).
• Develop storytelling and communications that keep donors emotionally connected to the mission.
• Track donor retention, upgrade rates, and lifetime value as core KPIs.
• Line-manage the offshore Donor Care & Admin support role.

HNW & Institutional Development (10%)

• Cultivate high-potential donors within and beyond the Roots network, particularly within the UK Muslim professional community.
• Develop donor stewardship strategies: personalised engagement plans, impact reporting, and bespoke giving opportunities.
• Organise intimate cultivation events: private dinners, campus visits, and one-to-one briefings with the CEO.
• Prepare compelling briefing materials and proposals for major gift asks.
• Manage relationships with institutional funders, ensuring compliance with reporting obligations.
• Own the closing and ongoing management of consultancy and earned income projects generated by the Education Director or other senior leaders.

Alumni Network & Student-to-Donor Pipeline (20%)

• Work with the Revival team to design and build a structured Roots alumni community — not just a mailing list.
• Create alumni engagement touchpoints: reunions, career networking events, campus revisits, and giving opportunities tied to personal milestones.
• Work with education and campus teams to ensure student data is captured at enrolment and throughout the programme journey.
• Build messaging that normalises giving back as part of the alumni identity. Identify and cultivate high-potential alumni as future major donors, ambassadors, and advocates.

Campaigns & Digital Fundraising (20%)

• Lead annual digital fundraising campaigns, with the Ramadan appeal as the flagship.
• Work with marketing and offshore design support to optimise digital channels.
• Develop and grow the recurring giving programme — this is the backbone of financial sustainability.

Grant Writing

Grant writing sits within this role's remit but is not a Year 1 priority. The CEO's Executive Assistant currently supports grant applications and will continue to do so. Over time, you will own the grants pipeline and may bring in dedicated support as the team grows.

Safeguarding Responsibilities

All roles must adhere to Roots Academy’s Safeguarding Policy and report any concerns appropriately.

• Act in line with the charity’s safeguarding policies and procedures.
• Recognise and report any safeguarding concerns following the charity’s reporting procedures.
• Maintain appropriate professional boundaries with students, volunteers, and staff.
• Lead on safeguarding risk assessments and oversee incident reporting within your team.
• Maintain up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding policies and best practices.
• Support in handling safeguarding disclosures sensitively and appropriately.

Who This Role Is For

The most important thing is that you live, love, and breathe this mission. You see Roots' thousands of students, its 70+ instructor network, its growing international footprint — and you immediately see the development potential that hasn't been unlocked yet.

You don't need to come from a traditional charity fundraising background. We actively welcome candidates from:

• Venture Capital & Investment: You understand how to build conviction in a thesis, construct a pitch narrative, and close.
• Investor Relations: You know how to steward high-value relationships, communicate impact, and build long-term commitment.
• Account Management & Sales: You've managed portfolios of relationships, built pipelines, and hit targets with discipline and creativity.
• Marketing & Brand Strategy: You understand positioning, audience segmentation, and how to craft messaging that moves people to act.
• Non-Profit Development: You've been an early hire at a scaling organisation and know what it means to build the plane while flying it.

What unites these backgrounds is a set of transferable capabilities: the ability to build systems from scratch, read people and rooms with warmth and perception, pitch with conviction, and think strategically about long-term relationship value.

As a 0→1 department lead, you'll need to be comfortable getting your hands dirty. You'll automate your grunt work using AI tools and technology. You'll recruit and lead volunteers before you have paid staff. You won't wait for permission or infrastructure — you'll build both.

Person Specification

Essential Criteria

• Deep personal alignment with Islamic values and the mission of Roots Academy. This is non-negotiable and comes before everything else.
• 3–5+ years of professional experience in any of: fundraising/development, VC/investment, investor relations, account management, sales, marketing, or relationship-driven commercial roles.
• Demonstrated ability to build functions, systems, or programmes from scratch — not just maintain existing ones.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills: warm, extroverted, perceptive, and able to command a room during a pitch or donor ask.
• Strong strategic planning and pipeline management capability.
• Excellent written and verbal communication — you can write a compelling proposal and deliver a compelling presentation.
• Comfortable with events management and logistics — from intimate dinners to a 20-city university tour.
• Ability to build and maintain senior stakeholder relationships (board members, HNW individuals, institutional partners).
• Self-starter who thrives with minimal infrastructure, uses AI and automation tools to multiply their output, and can operate with high autonomy.
• Willingness and ability to travel domestically on a regular basis and internationally 1–2 times per year for events, donor cultivation, and community engagement.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience scaling a function within a growing organisation (ideally from early stage to £500k+ annual income or equivalent commercial targets).
• Experience within the Muslim charity, community, or education sector.
• Existing network within the UK Muslim professional and philanthropic community.
• Working knowledge of Islamic giving instruments (Zakat, sadaqah, waqf, Lillah) and their implications for fundraising strategy.
• Experience building alumni, membership, or community giving programmes.
• Experience managing offshore, remote, or volunteer team members.
• Experience working closely with Boards of Trustees or senior leadership teams.
• Experience coaching or directing strategy across multiple geographies.

Growth & Team-Building Path

This role is designed to scale with Roots:

Year 1: Build the foundation. Test and prove the masjid fundraising model. Execute the university tour. Build the donor care system. Launch the alumni community with the Revival team. Deliver the Ramadan campaign. Close first institutional and HNW relationships. Grow recurring giving from £15k to £40k/month. 

Year 2: Scale the function. Begin hiring paid team members (target: 5–7 staff department). Systematise grassroots fundraising, major donor cultivation, and campaign delivery. Establish board-level development reporting as standard. Take on earned income/consultancy project management.

Year 2+: Go global. Actively support regional leads in Australia, Canada, and new geographies in building their own development teams as Roots registers entities internationally. Shape the path toward long-term financial sustainability.

Who We're Not Looking For

We're not looking for someone from a large charity who's used to having a team of 10 and established systems — they'll be paralysed by the lack of structure. We want a builder, not a maintainer. The right person has built something from nothing before, whether in a charity, a startup, a fund, or a commercial environment. They're energised by the blank canvas, not intimidated by it.

We're also not looking for someone who treats God's work as leftovers. At Roots, we believe this is the most important work there is to do — and we want someone who feels that in their bones.