Programme Manager – Food and Drink Capital Funding Scheme

Salary: £45,000.00  – £50,000.00 annually, dependent on experience 
Annual Leave entitlement: 25 days (plus 10 bank holidays) 
Working hours: Full time – 35 hours per week
Contract: Fixed-term Contract – 12 Months
Location: Ratho, Edinburgh / Hybrid-working

Closing date for applications: Thursday, 9 October 2025

In person interviews for this role will take place w/c 16 October 2025

Prior to any employment commencing with Scotland Food & Drink you will be asked to provide documents to demonstrate your right to work in the UK.

JOB SUMMARY

This role will be responsible for ensuring the programme meets its objectives to the timescales needed, within budget, and complies with all regulatory and contractual obligations. The role will be the main point of contact with government stakeholders and oversee all key stages of the programme, getting involved with processes as needed to ensure successful delivery.

ABOUT THE ROLE

Your day-to-day responsibilities may include but are not limited to:

• Lead the overall programme planning, delivery, evaluation and reporting.
• Oversee all operations to ensure alignment with goals and compliance requirements, becoming involved directly where needed to ensure successful delivery.
• Serve as the liaison point with government and other key stakeholders, managing relations and ensuring transparency.
• Set up and oversee an independent assessment panel.
• Manage external contractors and ensure they deliver to the project timescales
• Work to key milestones, budgets, and deliverables and ensure the work is delivered in the timescales identified.
• Supervise reporting, risk management, and quality control throughout the programme lifecycle.
• Gather, analyse, and disseminate insights from project implementation to inform potential future phases.
• Manage the Programme Support Officer.
• Willingness to travel and attend events outside normal working hours when required. 

ABOUT YOU

• Proven experience of successfully managing and delivering complex projects or programmes (preferably involving government or public sector partners).
• Strong understanding, ideally with direct experience of, grant and/or funding distribution, including application processes, risk management, data protection, stakeholder engagement.
• Excellent communication and leadership skills.
• Competent in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, etc.) for data analysis, documentation, presentations, and correspondence.
• Strong literacy and numeracy skills.
• Excellent presentation skills.
• Strong organisational and time management abilities.
• Comfortable working independently while contributing to a team environment.
• Experience in the Scottish food and drink sector is desirable. 

ABOUT SCOTLAND FOOD & DRINK

Scotland Food & Drink is the industry leadership organisation tasked with delivering the industry strategy and driving responsible growth for the sector. We are also a membership organisation with over 350+ companies at our heart. 

Working with us gives you an opportunity to be part of one of the most exciting and innovative industries in Scotland.

Our culture and our people are core to delivering our diverse and collaborative work . We have work/life balance as one of our core values and a comprehensive benefits package including, a group pension plan, 35 days annual leave (in addition to your birthday off), enhanced maternity & paternity benefits, a health care cash plan, a flexible working policy, an electric vehicle scheme, a cycle to work scheme, a life assurance scheme, professional study & training assistance, an employee assistance programme and wellness events.

There is also opportunities to socialise and attend industry events and dinners. 

We believe working with us should be a hugely positive experience, our core values are:
Ambition – We pursue excellence with unwavering ambition.
Collaboration - We believe in the power of working together.
Innovation – We embrace a culture of continuous improvement and creativity.
Celebration - We believe in recognising and celebrating achievements.
Authenticity - We are committed to honesty, transparency, and integrity.
Balance - We believe in finding balance between work and the rest of our lives.

We are also an equal opportunity employer, and we recognise that diversity and inclusion is a journey, and we are committed to learning, listening and evolving to become more diverse, equitable and inclusive. We support candidates with reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process, please let us know when applying if you will require any additional support.

APPLY NOW

Please send CV and covering letter, or any questions you have regarding the role to: careers@foodanddrink.scot with the title of the job you are applying for in the subject line.