Head of Strategic Planning (Maternity Cover)

Contract: 12-month fixed term contract, maternity cover. Start date: August 2026. Salary: £55,000-60,000 per annum. Hours: 35 hours per week. Location: London Coliseum/Hybrid.

We’re hiring a Head of Strategic Planning to work closely with the CEO and Director of Strategy & Partnerships, leading ENO’s approach to public funding. This is a pivotal role at the heart of the organisation, driving strategic planning processes, leading major funding bids, and shaping how we articulate our impact and value. You will play a critical role in delivering key strategic projects, strengthening organisational planning, and ensuring ENO’s impact is clearly measured and communicated.

If you’re a strong analytical thinker and experienced bid writer or funding specialist, with the ability to bring together data, strategy and storytelling to secure major public investment, we’d love to hear from you.

Requirements

• Significant experience leading funding applications or bid development within the arts or wider not-for-profit sector
• Strong understanding of Arts Council England processes and the UK public funding landscape
• Good knowledge of annual planning cycles within the context of a large arts organisation
• Exceptional writing, editing and narrative development skills
• Strong analytical capability, with experience using data to inform strategy and storytelling
• Proven ability to coordinate complex work across multiple senior stakeholders
• Highly organised, outcome-focused and able to operate with sound judgement in a fast moving environment

English National Opera is an Equal Opportunities employer, and we strive to create an inclusive working environment that reflects the diverse communities we serve. As we work to address underrepresentation in our workforce, we particularly encourage potential candidates from underrepresented groups and communities to apply, including those from global majority backgrounds and/or with protected characteristics, including race, disability, sexual orientation, gender reassignment and religion and belief. We will provide appropriate support for candidates with access requirements if they identify as disabled. This includes during the application process and through candidate assessment stages.