Business Development Graduate

About Chayn

Chayn is a global nonprofit making healing accessible for all survivors of gender-based violence. By reimagining technology, we create online resources that are trauma-informed, multilingual, and feminist, supporting survivors to heal at their own pace, wherever they are.

Chayn started in 2013 to provide survivors of abuse with accurate, diverse and accessible information. Since our beginnings, over 800,000 people have accessed our award-winning work online, generating 1.2 million page views. Up to 70% of our volunteers are survivors of abuse, which means not only are our projects user-centred; they are user-led.

We are experts in trauma-informed work, and have developed trauma-informed design principles that we apply at every level of the organisation, from HR to user research and UX/UI. We are one of only a few feminist technology organisations tackling gender-based violence while creating and maintaining openly-licensed products and code.

While we’ve been going for over 10 years, Chayn was entirely volunteer-led until 2020 when we started to grow our team of paid staff. We are now a core team of 11, with up to 10 supporting contractors and a team of contributing volunteers, working together remotely from all over the world.

⚓ Location: Fully remote, you can be based anywhere in the world

⏱️ Hours: Full-time, 30 hours per week

💰 Salary: £1,800/month

📜 Contract: 12 months with possible extension subject to funding and performance

👤 Reporting to: CEO

🕰️ Deadline: Tuesday, June 30, 2026

The role

We’re looking for a thoughtful, organised and motivated Business Development Graduate to help Chayn build the relationships and resources we need to sustain and grow our work.

You’ll work across fundraising, grants, donor engagement and partnerships. You might spend one day researching a funder whose priorities align with ours, another helping prepare a grant application, and another drafting an update that shows supporters what their funding has made possible.

This is a recent graduate role, so we don’t expect you to arrive knowing everything. You’ll work closely with our CEO and other members of the team, gaining practical experience in fundraising and business development within a small, international feminist nonprofit.

Your brief

You’ll help us identify opportunities, build strong relationships and communicate clearly about Chayn’s work and impact.

Your work will include:

• Researching trusts, foundations, institutional donors and other funding opportunities that align with Chayn’s work
• Helping prepare grant applications, proposals, budgets and supporting documents
• Maintaining accurate records of funding opportunities, applications, deadlines and reporting requirements
• Supporting the coordination and delivery of funded projects, including monitoring deadlines and gathering information from across the team
• Helping prepare grant reports and other updates for funders
• Collecting and organising monitoring, evaluation and impact information
• Supporting individual giving campaigns and fundraising events
• Researching prospective donors and opportunities to grow Chayn’s supporter community
• Drafting donor communications, including thank-you messages, appeals, newsletters and project updates
• Helping develop thoughtful supporter journeys and donor stewardship
• Supporting research and outreach for potential partnerships
• Helping coordinate online and in-person events for funders, partners and supporters
• Monitoring fundraising activity and helping us understand what is working
• Supporting fundraising reporting for Chayn’s leadership team and Board of Trustees
• Keeping donor and partner information organised and up to date

Your biggest challenge

Fundraising for work on gender-based violence can be complicated.

You’ll need to communicate the urgency and value of Chayn’s work without sensationalising survivors’ experiences or presenting people only through the harm they have experienced. Our fundraising must reflect the same trauma-informed, survivor-centred and feminist principles that guide the rest of our organisation.

You’ll also need to balance different priorities and deadlines. Funding applications often require input from several people, detailed information and quick turnaround times. You’ll need to be organised, ask good questions and follow up with people while recognising that you are working within a small and busy team.

We don’t expect you to manage this alone. You’ll receive guidance from the CEO and work with colleagues across Chayn to develop your skills and understanding.

Your profile

We’re interested in people who are curious about how social-impact organisations build relationships, secure funding and create the conditions for their work to continue.

You may have recently graduated in humanities, social sciences, international development, business, communications, gender studies or another relevant subject. We also recognise that useful skills can be developed through volunteering, activism, community organising and other routes, so we welcome applicants whose experience does not fit neatly into one academic pathway!

Essential

• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English
• The ability to research a topic and identify the most relevant information
• Good organisational skills and close attention to detail
• The ability to manage deadlines and keep accurate records
• Confidence using Google Workspace, Microsoft Office or similar digital tools
• The ability to summarise complex information clearly and persuasively
• A proactive approach and willingness to take initiative
• The ability to work independently and collaboratively in a small remote team
• Openness to feedback and a willingness to learn
• An understanding of intersectionality and systems of oppression
• An affinity with Chayn’s mission and organisational values

Desirable

You do not need to meet all of these:

• Experience in fundraising, business development, partnerships or nonprofit work
• Experience gained through an internship, student project, volunteering, activism or paid work
• Familiarity with grant applications, proposal writing or donor reporting
• Experience conducting prospect or funding research
• Experience writing newsletters, appeals, reports or other external communications
• Familiarity with databases, customer relationship management systems or fundraising trackers
• Experience supporting events, campaigns or partnerships
• Basic experience with budgets, data or monitoring and evaluation
• Experience working remotely or as part of an international or multicultural team

What you’ll gain

During the 12 months, you’ll have the opportunity to:

• Gain practical experience across grants, fundraising, donor engagement and partnerships
• Develop your research, proposal-writing and relationship-management skills
• Learn how a small international nonprofit builds a sustainable and values-aligned funding model
• Contribute to real funding applications, campaigns and donor communications
• Learn how trauma-informed and survivor-centred principles shape fundraising in practice
• Work alongside colleagues across programmes, communications, survivor services and operations
• Build a portfolio of fundraising and business development work

Inclusion

At Chayn, inclusion and accessibility are at the core of our work. We welcome applicants from all walks of life. Given the nature of our work and our global audience, we particularly encourage applications from those who grew up in the Global South or Majority World.

We also encourage applications from people of colour, LGBTQ+ people—we are a trans-inclusive organisation—people with disabilities, and people who have experienced exclusion or marginalisation. Up to 70% of our team members are survivors of abuse, so if you are one too and are thinking of applying, know that you will be in a safe and affirming space.

We aim to make our recruitment process as accessible as possible, but know there may be more we can do. If you have particular accessibility needs or require additional support, please contact us so we can think together about how to make the process easier for you.