Salary: £160,000 per annum
Hours: Full-time: 37.5 hours per week, flexible working available
Contract: Permanent
Base: UK – flexible
Travel: Regularly to Bristol and London, and extensively across the UK to teams, projects, events and stakeholders
Job purpose
Work with the Board to set the charity’s strategic direction, build the conditions for long-term success, and ensure that purpose, performance and culture are consistently aligned to ensure operational and impactful delivery of the strategy.
Place in organisation structure
Reports to: Chair of the Board of Trustees
Accountable to: Board of Trustees
Direct reports:
- Executive Director, Delivery
- Executive Director, Strategy & Engagement
- Executive Director, Resources
Key relationships
Internal
- Executive Team
- Senior Leadership Team
- All colleagues and volunteers
External
- Leaders and influencers in transport, environment, health and the third sector
- Major donors and CEOs of trusts and foundations
- Peer CEOs
- Government ministers, MPs and other political leaders in the UK government and devolved nations
- Senior civil servants in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, including those in the Department of Transport, Transport Scotland and Active Travel England
- Mayors and senior leaders across mayoral strategic authorities and local authorities
Key responsibilities
- Provide visible, values-driven leadership to leaders and colleagues across the organisation, ensuring strong delivery, collaboration, and accountability across walking, wheeling, and cycling programmes.
- Lead the development and execution of the Trust’s long-term strategy to grow active travel, improve public health, and reduce carbon emissions.
- Work in close partnership with the Board of Trustees to ensure high standards of governance, regulatory compliance, and strategic oversight.
- Oversee robust performance management, impact evaluation, and evidence-based learning to strengthen credibility and influence.
- Lead organisational development, workforce planning, and change management to support long-term organisational health and resilience.
- Translate national and regional active-travel policy into effective programmes, partnerships, and local delivery models.
- Ensure sustainable funding through diversified income streams, including government grants, contracts, fundraising, memberships and partnerships, with innovative approaches to developing our offer and revenue opportunities.
- Build and maintain influential relationships with central and local government, transport authorities, funders, strategic and sector partners and the media.
- Act as the Trust’s principal public advocate and media spokesperson on walking, wheeling, and cycling.
- Demonstrate the importance of serving diverse communities and embed a strong culture of inclusion, accessibility, and equity across all activities and services.
- Champion volunteering and meaningful engagement with communities.
- Use lived experience and public/user insights and date to informs strategy and delivery.
- Ensure effective risk management, internal controls, and transparent reporting to Trustees, funders, and stakeholders
- Support and comply with all Walk Wheel Cycle Trust’s policies, including employment, health and safety, safeguarding, inclusion and diversity.
Special Note
This job description does not form part of the contract of employment but indicates how that contract should be performed. The job description may be subject to amendment in the light of experience and in consultation with the jobholder