Key information
Closing date: 10am, Thursday 18 September 2025
Salary: £30,500 per year
Contract: Maternity cover contract for up to 9 months
Hours: Full-time, 35 hours per week
Location: Based in the north of England as a home working role
Interviews: Online, Tuesday 30 September 2025
We empower people with the literacy skills they need to succeed in life. Together we're helping people change their stories. We are looking for a Project Manager to provide maternity cover in our school libraries team.
What you’ll be doing
We believe that well-resourced and effective school libraries are a vital part of the education system. We have already created and transformed over 1,000 primary school library spaces, and have ambitious targets to reach even more, particularly targeting primary schools that currently have no dedicated school library space. As well as library space transformation, the programme helps to transform reading in primary schools by providing new books, ebooks and audiobooks, training and resources for teachers, and parental engagement strategies.
We are recruiting an experienced project manager to provide maternity cover in our school libraries team. You will work alongside a wide range of partners to deliver our primary school libraries programme in targeted locations across the north of England. You will manage all aspects of project delivery, including recruitment of schools, delivering training and evaluation, and creating high-quality resources linked to the school curriculum.
This is a home working role based in the north of England. It will require regular travel to project locations to support partnerships and delivery, as well as travel to London for team and organisational days. All travel expenses will be covered.
What we’re looking for
You will need excellent project management skills as well as experience of managing events and working with schools and/or young people. You will also need knowledge of the education system and primary school curriculum, and excellent communication skills. Experience working in the education or library sector would be an advantage. A driving licence and access to your own vehicle would also be helpful, due to the nature of delivery and areas to be covered.
Why our work is so vital
Literacy changes everything.
It gives you the tools to get the most out of life, and the power to shape your future. It’s the key to knowledge, confidence and inspiration. It’s better results at school, and better jobs. If children grow up without the tools to communicate, without books to read or opportunities to write, it’s harder to get where you want to go.
The National Literacy Trust is an independent charity helping people overcome these challenges and change their life chances through the power of words – reading, writing, speaking and listening. From first words, through school days to training, jobs and beyond.
- We work collaboratively in local communities, focusing our work in 20 areas of the UK that are facing the biggest challenges.
- We support schools, developing the most effective tools and techniques and providing resources and programmes to engage and inspire children.
- We campaign to make literacy a priority for politicians and decision-makers.
- We support vulnerable adults, people in the criminal justice system and young offenders’ institutions to build their literacy skills
What we offer you
Our team are passionate about our mission and we have a strong and positive working culture, based on shared values and respect. We offer a range of flexible working options and promote a workplace where you can be yourself and contribute to our success, whoever you are.
As well as a competitive salary, we offer benefits including a generous leave allowance totalling 39 days (including bank holidays and office closure between Christmas and New Year), pension contributions of 8% of annual salary, a cycle to work scheme, employee assistance programme and other health and wellbeing benefits.
Application details
Our people are our most important asset and we value and respect diversity in all its forms (seen and unseen). We particularly welcome applications from those from Black and Asian backgrounds, as well as candidates with disabilities and from the communities in which we work. We would like to increase representation of these groups among our staff as we know greater diversity will lead to an even greater impact for our work.
For more information and to apply, download the files below.
Please also complete our online equal opportunities monitoring form when you submit your application.
Unfortunately, we are unable to respond individually to applications so if you have not heard from us by the advertised interview date, this means we have not been able to shortlist your application this time.
Please note we do not accept CVs. No agencies or recruitment sites.