Programmes Manager (CPA Small Branches)

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association

About the Organisation

Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) is a membership-based association that brings together Parliamentarians, irrespective of gender, race, religion or culture, who are united by a community of interest, respect for the rule of law and individual rights and freedoms, and by the pursuit of the positive ideals of parliamentary democracy.

The Association is made up of over 180 Parliaments and Legislatures (also known as CPA Branches) divided up between nine geographic regions of the Commonwealth. It offers a vast opportunity for Parliamentarians and parliamentary staff to collaborate on issues of mutual interest and to share good practices. To promote knowledge of the constitutional, legislative, economic, social and cultural aspects of parliamentary democracy, with particular reference to the countries of the Commonwealth.

About the role

Reporting to the Deputy Head of Programmes (Multilateral Engagement), the role holder will have responsibility for developing, planning, implementing and reporting on the CPA Small Branches network’s work with respect to strengthening the institutional capacity of smaller Legislatures and supporting capacity building for the Parliamentarians and parliamentary officials that work within those Legislatures.

This includes drafting the CPA Small Branches network’s strategic objectives and priorities of the CPA Small Branches Work Plan, managing activities undertaken within the Work Plan, leading on the governance and coordination of the CPA Small Branches Steering Committee, delivering the annual CPA Small Branches Conference and the annual CPA Small Branches Workshop, alongside other relevant projects with CPA member Parliaments.

In liaison with senior colleagues, the role holder will also manage and administer the Regional Initiative Fund, a pooled fund to support CPA Small Branch initiatives, as well as the wider annual CPA Small Branches budget. The role holder will also be required to support the wider programmatic output of the CPA, including our bilateral work, under the guidance of the Deputy Head of Programmes (Bilateral Engagement). This may include, but is not limited to, post-election support, technical assistance programmes, parliamentary standards and benchmarking, and the CPA’s online Parliamentary Academy.

Responsibilities

Primary Duties and Accountabilities:

• Leading in the delivery of a portfolio of work related to the mission of the CPA Small Branches network, and in contribution to the CPA’s strategic commitment to empowering small jurisdictions.
• Leading and coordinating the planning, drafting and delivery of the annual CPA Small Branches Work Plan.
• Delivering in-person and virtual events and activities such as the annual CPA Small Branches Workshop and Conference, as well as webinars and other relevant events.
• Delivering other CPA Small Branches outputs, such as handbooks and toolkits on areas of particular importance and relevance to the CPA Small Branches member Parliaments.
• Acting as the primary Point of Contact for the CPA Small Branches Chairperson and coordinating and supporting their leadership role within the network, managing their travel budget and supporting their attendance at key events.
• Maintaining and supporting CPA Small Branches International Steering Committee governance structures and matters as they relate to the CPA Small Branches Steering Committee, specifically through the coordination of Chairperson elections, Steering Committee meetings and the CPA Small Branches Conference in the margins of the CPA’s annual Commonwealth Parliamentary Conference.
• In coordination with the Communications Team, delivering CPA Small Branches communications outputs, including updates and information through relevant sections of the CPA website, social media platforms and network e-newsletters and updates.
• Contributing to and conducting monitoring and evaluation across all assigned bodies of work, including theories of change, log frames and preparing reports.
• Commissioning consultants and resource people to deliver Programme outputs and acting as the primary liaison for those individuals.
• Delivering and contributing to elements of wider programme delivery, including supporting the CPA Parliamentary Academy, post-election support and technical assistance programmes as agreed by the Deputy Head of Programmes (Multilateral Engagement) and/or Head of Programmes.
• Line managing team members as and when required.

Skills, Competencies, Experience & Attributes

Essential:

• A proven track record in programme design and delivery in an international context.
• Excellent event design and management skills.
• A sound understanding of parliamentary democracy, parliamentary practice and procedure, the core functions of Parliament, the role of Parliamentarians and parliamentary administration.
• Confident working with senior internal and external stakeholders from a variety of contexts and backgrounds, and with the ability to establish positive and productive working relationships and professional credibility.
• Experience as a budget holder managing finances across a portfolio of work and the ability to account for and ensure value for money across assigned budget lines.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, including public speaking, delivering presentations on complex topics, and the ability to influence and communicate to a wider and diverse audience.
• An understanding of and commitment to diversity and inclusion within a work environment, including gender sensitivity, with experience of working with people from different geographical regions, backgrounds and cultures.

Desirable:

• Experience of working with Parliamentarians/parliamentary staff.
• A working knowledge of the wider international community, including across the Commonwealth, its shared values and associated organisations and the parliamentary strengthening community.
• Experience of delivering results across multiple different contexts, including in developing and developed countries.
• Experience with line management, including developing new and existing staff to achieve high performance, or proven experience of oversight and supervision for colleagues assigned to specific projects and programmes.
• Project/programme management qualification (Prince2 or Project DPro).
• Experience of engaging with donor organisations and seeking and managing funding to support new and emerging areas of work.

Required Qualifications

• A relevant graduate post-graduate qualification in international relations, development studies, public policy, politics or another relevant field.

Compensation & Benefits

• Weighting Allowance
• Attractive benefits, including a pension
• Travel insurance, Life Insurance
• Generous annual leave
• Maternity and paternity leave packages and flexible working arrangements.

Conditions of employment

• You must have the right to work in the UK
• To fulfil our security clearance vetting requirements, you are also required to hold at least 3 years' UK residency.

Working locations

• Hybrid model, working in the London office and remotely

How to apply

• If you are committed to progressing parliamentary democracy, highly self-motivated, hard-working and an organised individual who is willing to take on responsibility, then please apply for this role.
• To apply:
  • Please submit a copy of your CV and a covering letter of no more than two A4 pages, stating how you fulfil the requirements of the role. 
  • Please also complete the attached Application Form and Equality Monitoring Form and submit these with your CV and covering letter.
  • Read the full Job Description.
  • All applications should be sent via email to [email protected]. The application deadline is Sunday, 31st May 2026 at 23.59
• For informal enquiries about our vacancies, please contact Sharon Moses, Head of Human Resources at the CPA Secretariat via [email protected]. 

Interviews

• Interviews will be held during the week commencing 8th June 2026.

Policies

The Disability Confident scheme is a voluntary UK government initiative designed to help employers recruit, retain and develop disabled people and those with health conditions. It shows that an employer has demonstrated a commitment to encouraging inclusive hiring practices and workplace adjustments.  The Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) Headquarters has been accredited by Investors in People.

The Investors In People Silver award is an internationally recognised accreditation, which is celebrated worldwide as a global benchmark in good people management and development and shows that an organisation is putting people first. Investors In People is a standard for people management that offers accreditation to organisations observing a specific set of criteria, which has been developed to help organisations achieve excellence in management by providing organisations with tailored assessments in planning, implementing and evaluating effective strategies of improving organisations’ performance through their people.

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