Job Description: Commercial Income Lead
Location: West Horsley Place (hybrid working considered)
Reporting to: Deputy Director
Hours: 0.8 Part Time
Contract: Fixed-term contract (12 months) with the option to extend.
We are open to a range of contract models, including freelance arrangements,
annualised hours, job share or alternative part-time structures. Applicants with
experience delivering events at a senior level are encouraged to propose a working
arrangement that supports effective sales performance and event delivery.
Working pattern: Working hours will be agreed to meet business needs, with regular
evening and weekend work required to deliver events
Salary: £35,000 for 0.8 Part Time (£43,750 FTE)
Role purpose
The Commercial Income Lead is a senior, entrepreneurial role responsible for
shaping, growing and diversifying West Horsley Place’s commercial income.
This is a highly proactive position for a self-starter who thrives on identifying
opportunity, creating new sales channels and turning ideas into deliverable, incomegenerating activity. The postholder will develop and lead commercial strategy while
remaining closely involved in hands-on sales, client management and on-site
delivery.
The role oversees a broad portfolio including corporate venue hire, filming and
photography, third-party commercial activity and estate partnerships. It also
provides strategic oversight of weddings and private events, line-managing the
Weddings & Private Events Coordinator who leads day-to-day sales and delivery in that area.
Key responsibilities
Commercial leadership & strategy
• Develop and lead a clear commercial income strategy, aligned with the Trust’s
charitable purpose and long-term sustainability.
• Identify, test and launch new sales channels, commercial products and
partnerships, taking ideas from concept to implementation.
• Drive income growth by improving yield, diversifying offer and unlocking
under-utilised assets across the house and estate.
• Monitor market trends and competitor activity, using insight to evolve pricing, positioning and proposition.
Sales & business development
• Personally lead sales activity for corporate hire, filming/location hire and
other non-wedding commercial use.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with clients, agents, production
companies and partners to generate repeat business and referrals.
• Represent West Horsley Place confidently in commercial negotiations and external relationships.
Planning & delivery
• Act as commercial lead for the planning and on-site delivery of non-wedding
hires and events.
• Ensure high standards of delivery, client experience, risk management and
operational coordination.
• Work closely with colleagues, contractors and tenants to ensure smooth
delivery with minimal impact on public activity.
• Review performance and delivery post-event, embedding learning and continuous improvement.
Filming, traders & partnerships
• Serve as principal contact for filming and location hire, including management
of the relationship with the location agency.
• Oversee relationships with regular and seasonal traders and third-party
hirers.
• Identify, negotiate and secure commercial partnerships and estate-based opportunities that align with the Trust’s values and character.
Weddings & private events – strategic oversight
• Provide strategic oversight of weddings and private events to ensure
alignment with wider commercial objectives.
• Line-manage the Weddings & Private Events Coordinator, setting priorities,
supporting development and monitoring performance.
• Enable cross-support between weddings and other events where appropriate,
while protecting the coordinator’s primary focus on wedding sales and delivery.
Organisational contribution
• Contribute to Trust-wide planning, commercial thinking and income
development.
• Support Trust-led events and fundraising activity as required.
• Champion continuous improvement, new ways of working and a confident
commercial culture.
• Undertake other reasonable duties as required.
Person Specification
Attributes
• Warm, welcoming and highly professional manner.
• Confident, proactive and commercially minded.
• Highly organised, detail-oriented and solutions-focused.
• Excellent relationship-builder with the ability to work positively with
colleagues, volunteers, trustees, tenants, contractors and external clients.
• Calm under pressure, flexible and adaptable in a busy events environment.
Skills and experience
Essential
• Proven experience in commercial sales, business development or income
generation (typically 3+ years).
• Experience of venue hire, events, hospitality or visitor-attraction
environments.
• Strong commercial judgement, with a track record of meeting income targets.
• Confident people manager with line management experience.
• Excellent relationship-building, negotiation and client-handling skills.
• Highly organised, adaptable and calm under pressure.
• Willingness to work evenings and weekends as required.
Desirable
• Experience working in a charity or small organisation with mixed commercial
objectives.
• Knowledge of estate-based commercial models (tenancies, concessions,
licences).
Equality, Diversity and Inclusion
West Horsley Place Trust is an equal opportunities employer. We are committed to
equality of opportunity in all our activities, including recruitment, and we ensure,
through best practice that our recruitment is free from unfair and unlawful
discrimination.
We value all people as individuals and welcome individuals with diverse beliefs,
cultures, backgrounds, lifestyles and circumstances regardless of any protected
characteristic.
Accessibility Statement
We are committed to doing all we can, within the limitations of our Grade I listed
heritage buildings, monuments, gardens and wider estate to continually challenge
ourselves as a listening and learning organisation to provide the best and most
engaging experience to all our visitors. We ensure through all our processes,
including recruitment, that we remove barriers wherever reasonably practicable to
do so. If you require this pack in a different format or if you have access needs to
enable you to access the application and interview process, please contact
[email protected].
Your personal data is important to us and we use it only for the purpose for which it
was provided to us. A privacy policy is available on our website
Enhanced DBS check
As a visitor-facing organisation delivering events and activities for the public, all
team members may at times be required to support visitor welfare and safeguarding
arrangements, including responding appropriately to situations involving lost
children, vulnerable visitors, or similar incidents. For this reason, all staff are required
to undertake an enhanced DBS check as part of our commitment to maintaining a
safe, welcoming, and well-managed environment for everyone who visits or works
with us
To join our team:
If you are interested in this role and believe you have the skills, experience, and
knowledge then we’d love to hear from you. Please apply by submitting your CV and
covering letter to [email protected]
Deadline: Sunday 17 May 2026