Contract role | 1-2 days per week | £300-£350 per day | Remote with regular in-person delivery in South Yorkshire
About Ignite AI
Ignite AI is the practical AI skills partner for small businesses. We run funded AI upskilling programmes across Doncaster, Barnsley and Rotherham, working with councils and funders to help business owners put AI to work in the real world. Cohorts, drop-ins, in-person events and hands-on mentoring, delivered by a small team of facilitators and coordinators. Ignite AI is a trading name of Fossu Ltd.
We are growing, and the founder is stepping back from day-to-day delivery to focus on winning new work. That is where you come in.
The role
You will own the delivery of our programmes end to end. When a cohort runs, an event happens or a partner needs an answer, you are the person responsible. You will lead a small delivery team (programme executive, programme coordinator and a pool of facilitators) and be the face of Ignite AI in the room.
This is a hands-on leadership role, not an oversight role. You will front our events, hold the relationships with the councils and funders we deliver for, and make sure every programme hits its numbers.
What you will do
- Run our funded programmes day to day: cohort schedules, facilitator bookings, participant experience, and everything in between
- Lead our in-person events: open the room, set the tone, host the day and make participants feel it was worth showing up for
- Own the relationships with our delivery partners (councils, combined authorities and funders): progress updates, meetings, and being their first point of contact
- Be accountable for monitoring and evaluation: make sure participant data, outcomes and evidence are collected properly and reported on time (the team does the collecting, you make sure it happens and stands up to scrutiny)
- Manage the delivery team: set priorities, keep quality high, and flag problems early
- Own delivery profitability: keep programmes on budget and tell the founder the truth about the numbers
What is not in this role
Business development and bid writing stay with the founder. Your job is to run what we win so well that partners come back for more.
Who you are
- You have run funded or contracted programmes before, ideally in business support, skills or enterprise, and you know what good monitoring and evaluation looks like from the delivery side
- You are confident and warm in front of a room. Hosting a launch event with 40 business owners in it is your idea of a good day
- You are organised enough to run several cohorts at once without anything slipping
- You manage partner relationships like a grown-up: proactive updates, no surprises, bad news delivered early
- You are comfortable with AI tools, or genuinely keen to get there fast. You do not need to be a technical expert (our facilitators are), but you need to hold your own in the subject
- You are self-managing. This is a 1–2 day a week role and you will decide how to use those days
The practical bits
- Commitment: 1–2 days per week, with scope to grow as the programme portfolio grows
- Rate: £300–£350 per day depending on experience
- Location: remote, but in-person delivery in South Yorkshire is a core part of the role. Evening and occasional weekend availability for events is a firm requirement, not a nice-to-have. Please only apply if you can commit to this
- Contract: freelance / self-employed contractor
- Start: as soon as possible, with a paid handover period working alongside the founder
How to apply
Send a short note or letter telling us about a programme you have run, an event you have fronted, and why this role fits the way you want to work, along with your CV or LinkedIn.
Timeline
- Applications close: Sunday 5 October 2026
- Interviews: week commencing 12 October 2026
- Decision: by mid October
- Start: November 2026
Pay: £300.00-£350.00 per day
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Barnsley S70 2JW
