Job Title: Milk Bank Administrator
Location: Office based at The Human Milk Foundation, Gossoms End Health Centre, Victory Road, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, HP4 1DL
Hours: Full time - 37.5 hours per week - 9:00am-5:00pm. Occasional out of hours service may be required.
Contract: One year fixed term contract, with 6 month probation period.
Reports to: Co-Founder
Salary: £26,500 per annum
Closing date: 17th July 2026. We reserve the right to close the vacancy ahead of the
closing date if we receive sufficient applications. We therefore recommend submitting
applications early.
Role summary
The Human Milk Foundation (HMF) is looking for a Milk Bank Administrator to support the day-to-day operations of the Hearts Milk Bank. You will be working closely with rest of the team, volunteers and external partners to play an integral role in ensuring the smooth running of the milk bank service which provides donor human milk to hospitals and families in the community.
You will be an integral part of a supportive team, energetic and keen to learn. Full training will be given with a pathway to independent working through a probation period. The Human Milk Foundation aims to be a nurturing environment which focuses on personal development, and we encourage developing independence and autonomy alongside the support of senior team members.
You will have an understanding of the work we do at the Human Milk Foundation and Hearts Milk Bank and the role in supporting infant and maternal health that milk banking plays. You will be helping to drive excellence and innovation in everything we do. Support will be offered by the charity in the form of training, supervision and regular opportunities to gain new skills. Experience in an office environment is essential. This role offers variety in day-to-day activity across a range of areas:
Key roles and responsibilities:
1. Providing an administrative service within the milk bank.
2. Answering email and phone enquiries from milk donors, families, hospitals and
partners, with sensitivity, and responding to messages promptly.
3. Assisting with donor recruitment and ongoing communications.
4. Supporting the logistics of donor human milk coming in and going out of the milk bank including packing and preparing of collections and deliveries.
5. Maintaining accurate record-keeping and compliance with GDPR, ensuring the
highest standards are met.
6. Providing support to the Finance Lead with book-keeping and invoicing tasks.
7. Liaising with hub volunteers and local contacts to manage hub stock across the network and collections and deliveries of donor human milk to and from the donor hubs (currently 7 hubs across England & Wales).
8. Ensuring donor milk hub facilities run efficiently and to the highest standards including visits to each hub at least once every year.
9. Helping to coordinate volunteer blood bikers and ensuring the safe storage of incoming donated milk.
10. Following and maintaining high standards regarding health and safety protocols, hygiene and data protection of milk donors and recipient families, ensuring confidentiality at all times.
11. Maintaining and monitoring office information systems, including our in-house bespoke tracking systems.
12. Maintaining good communication with external partners and identifying opportunities to develop partnerships further.
13. Assisting with charity admin tasks including support with events, projects and planning.
Roles in the Human Milk Foundation may flex or change over time. Some elements of this job description may develop and others may be less relevant as the organisation changes and in line with any developing career interests of the successful candidate. To apply, please send your CV, details of two referees and a covering email, to
[email protected]. Informal enquiries and virtual or in-person tours to meet the team are encouraged. Informal enquiries should be directed to [email protected].
Person specification
Candidates/post holders will be expected to demonstrate the following:
E = Essential D = Desirable
Education
A-level education or equivalent - E
Degree level qualification or equivalent - D
Knowledge & Experience
Experience with office administrative work - E
Excellent communication skills and the ability to deal with a wide range of people - E
Ability to prioritise own work and operate in a busy environment - E
Detail-orientated approach to work, with multitasking abilities - E
Maintaining confidential records within GDPR requirements - E
An understanding of donor milk use and impacts on infant feeding, and the significance of infant feeding to infants, families and society - D
Skills & Abilities
Ability to prioritise work to drive efficiency - E
High capacity for attention to detail and a meticulous approach - E
Empathetic and professional communication skills - E
Able to produce positive solutions under time pressure -E
Excellent computer literacy, including web tools, Excel, Word, Outlook - E
Personal Attributes
A willingness to help drive this service forward, while maintaining the highest of standards and respect for the team, beneficiaries and aims of the charity - E
A desire to improve the experience of families in the perinatal period - E
A willingness to learn new skills and responsibilities, showing a long-term commitment to the broad aims of the HMF (see below) - E
An independent decision-maker but know when to ask for help - E
An ability to motivate and encourage others and desire to work as part of a close, supportive team. - E
Charity overview
The Human Milk Foundation (HMF) is a charity based at Gossoms End NHS Health Centre in Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire. Our goal is to support more families to feed their babies with human milk, through education, research and the supply of donor human milk.
We operate the UK’s first independent, non-profit human milk bank - the Hearts Milk Bank, providing donor human milk to neonatal intensive care units across England & Wales.
Much like donated human blood, there are situations where donated human milk can be life-saving. Premature babies are very vulnerable and at risk of infections and life-threatening conditions such as necrotising enterocolitis (NEC), which causes some or all of the bowel to die. Mothers who have given birth early are sometimes unable to produce enough of their own milk straight away and can be very unwell themselves, so donor milk is often vital in protecting baby during the first days and weeks after birth; it allows mum the time and support to establish her own milk supply.
The HMB team recruit milk donors who undergo blood tests via their GP or phlebotomy clinic and complete a detailed lifestyle and health questionnaire before donating milk. Donor milk is collected from donors by volunteer SERV (“blood-biker”) volunteers and delivered to the milk bank where it is heat-treated (pasteurised) to destroy potentially harmful bacteria and viruses, checked by microbiologists to make sure that there is no unacceptable bacterial contamination and stored frozen. The milk is collected and delivered to hospitals and to mothers in the community who cannot breastfeed such as those with cancer, HIV or lack of breast tissue. The HMB has recruited over 3,000 milk donors in the past 8 years and supplied donor milk to feed thousands of babies cared for in 54 neonatal units. We have also supported more than 1000 families in the community, including mothers who are establishing their own milk supply and mothers with cancer. The HMB is also a centre for a range of research projects.
The Human Milk Foundation has a small team of dedicated individuals with a broad set of skills. We all have a great passion to make change to improve the health of future parents and babies and to give mothers the support they need to be able to feed their babies, and new members of the team should share that passion.
The HMF is committed to promoting equal opportunities in employment. You and any job applicants will receive equal treatment regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity, race, colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin, religion or belief, sex or sexual orientation (Protected Characteristics).
Pay: £26,500.00 per year
Benefits:
- Company pension
- Free parking
- Health & wellbeing programme
- On-site parking
Education:
- A-Level or equivalent (preferred)
Work authorisation:
- United Kingdom (required)
Work Location: In person
