Fundraiser Apprenticeship
Level 3 | Duration: 15 months
It has never been a more interesting time to be a fundraiser. This apprenticeship provides the essential foundations for starting out in fundraising at your charity, combining expert-led teaching and coaching with practical experience. From the basics of budgeting to mastering donor motivation, this programme will help learners develop the skills and knowledge to help your charity make a difference.
Fundraising encompasses a broad range of roles, including philanthropy and major gifts, corporate partnerships, direct marketing/individual giving, events, community fundraising, legacies and innovation. As part of the fundraising team, a fundraiser contributes to the implementation and execution of the fundraising strategy, projects and plans.
The apprenticeship programme focuses not only on knowledge but also on developing the key skills and behaviours needed by successful fundraisers.
As the only fundraiser for a small charity, this apprenticeship has been really useful for helping me to gain the skills I need to develop our fundraising and communications strategy and diversify our funding mix. It has been delivering exactly what we hoped.
The training encompasses a range of learning methods to meet each apprentice’s learning and thinking styles, with opportunities to debate concepts, opportunities and challenges in fundraising and to support lateral thinking and encourage innovation.
Our programme has been developed and is delivered by experts in the sector with a wealth of experience in practical and strategic fundraising for both small and large charities.
Course tutor, Harpreet Kondel, is the Chair of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising.
We provide a range of other apprenticeships to support the needs of the voluntary sector. For example, to support investment in your charity’s marketing and/or events function.
Meet the team
Hannah Kowszun
Charity sector expert with nearly 20 years of experience in strategy development, fundraising, marketing, communication, and membership management.
Harpreet Kondel
Over 30 years of fundraising experience and a fundraising consultant since 2016, supporting numerous charities, universities, hospitals and Chair of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising.
Joel Voysey
A fundraising manager since 1997, with experience at WaterAid, Amnesty International, VSO, and senior roles in UK health and social care charities, including United Response and Breast Cancer Now.
Course contents
Over 15 months apprentices will develop knowledge, skills and behaviours in:
- Auditing a fundraising programme
- Growing a professional network
- Managing supporter data
- Analysing and addressing problems
- Developing self-awareness
- Budgeting
- Setting KPIs
- Tailoring communications to an audience
- Understanding the motivations of donors
On successful completion of the Level 3 Fundraiser apprenticeship programme with us, learners can receive a Level 3 Foundation Certificate in Fundraising from the Chartered Institute of Fundraising for a small charge.
Delivery model
The course is delivered through half-day seminars which take place online twice each month, combined with further learning activities, including:
- Research tasks
- Work-place based activities which represent real-life, useful exercises for your organisation
- Further reading and access to high-quality digital resources
- A collaborative project to develop an integrated fundraising campaign and pitch to a charity
All this is complemented by regular skills coaching.
Throughout the apprenticeship, the personalisation of each apprentice’s Workplace Development Plan will ensure that they have agreed on the most appropriate personal and professional objectives.
We also encourage individuals to make the most of their daily work-based activities and tailor project work in line with the vision, mission, ethics and culture of their organisation.
Fostering a culture of equity, diversity, and inclusion and developing the resilience of people working within fundraising, is essential for a thriving sector. These principles are at the heart of the apprenticeship and are explicitly covered in a module dedicated to organisational culture.
The course can be adapted to those working part-time (20-30 hours per week).
Get in touch to see how we can help your organisation
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Suzanne Duffy: The ROI of Fundraising Apprenticeships
Suzanne Duffy’s experience demonstrates the powerful return on investment that fundraising apprenticeships can deliver to charities. Since enrolling on the programme, Suzanne has rapidly developed new skills, increased her confidence and applied fresh strategies that have contributed directly raising income generation.
Our clients include
