Marketing and Communications Manager: Events and Enterprises

The Charleston Trust

Marketing and Communications Manager: Events and Enterprise

Reporting to: Head of Programme and Events

Contract: Permanent

Salary: £27,700 - £33,800

Hours: 35 hours per week: Monday to Friday. Some evening and weekend work will be required.

Location: Charleston in Firle (BN8 6LL) and Charleston in Lewes (BN7 1AB)

We are seeking a creative and results driven Marketing and Communications Manager with a passion for arts and cultural programming to lead the promotion of our events programme and enterprises offer. Working closely with the Head of Programme & Events, the role will plan and deliver end to end marketing campaigns that promote our festivals and events, driving footfall to our year round programme, cafes and shops.

Duties and responsibilities:

• Plan, create, and manage multi-channel marketing campaigns for our year round festivals and events programme, including digital and offline advertising, press, social media, website, and print, ensuring all event content drives revenue and is promoted consistently across all platforms.


• Plan and deliver marketing initiatives for Charleston’s enterprise offer to grow attendance, sales, and revenue.


• Work with external brands to promote commercial partnerships.


• Ensure community engagement and learning events are supported and promoted, forming an integral part of the wider programme.


• Design and produce marketing materials in line with brand guidelines, including brochures, flyers and posters using Adobe InDesign, Illustrator, and Photoshop. Working with external designers as and when required.


• Responding to operational or crisis communications needs with agility and creativity.


• Conduct and lead on research, surveys and digital analytics to deliver actionable audience insight on the events programme including booking behaviours, competitive positioning and trends.


• Monitor ticket sales and performance metrics in conjunction with the events team to determine ticket pricing.


• Work with the Ticketing and Events Coordinator and other teams to ensure a seamless audience journey through the website, ticketing, and on-site experience.

Press:

• Work closely with the PR agency on the planning and delivery of PR campaigns to generate coverage of Charleston’s festivals and year- round programme of events, cultivating existing relationships with local and national press.


• Write and distribute press releases for campaigns or announcements.


• Manage press visits across the programme.


• Work with external partners, speakers and sponsors to identify opportunities for cross-promotion.

Collaboration:

• Collaborate closely with the Marketing and Communications Manager: Exhibitions and Development to optimise cross-promotion opportunities, drive membership across the programme and maximise visitor engagement with Charleston’s offer.


• Share management of Charleston’s website, ensuring it is always up to date, engaging, and reflective of the organisation.


• Manage the communications calendar in collaboration with the Marketing and Communications Manager: Exhibitions and Development.


• With the Events Manager, organise and support photoshoots and film shoots.

General duties:

• With oversite from the Head of Programme and Events plan and manage budgets and expenditure for marketing campaigns.


• Ensure all data management and communications are compliant with GDPR and the UK Data Protection Act (2018)


• Keep up to date with emerging audience and marketing trends and share insights with colleagues.


• Build and maintain relationships and networks within the cultural sector, particularly across publishing, festivals and live events.


• Work a flexible pattern during our programme when required to help manage content creation, press and photography.


• Carry out other duties that may arise to fulfil the main objectives of the post and the aims of Charleston.

This list of duties and responsibilities is not intended to be exhaustive. The job holder will be expected to take on additional tasks when required; these tasks will be in keeping with the general profile of the role.

Person specification

Essential skills and experience:

• Minimum three years’ experience in a similar role.


• Experience planning and delivering marketing campaigns that drive revenue, ticket sales, and memberships, while taking an analytical approach to campaign performance.


• Knowledge of digital marketing platforms, analytics tools, and user experience considerations.


• Strong understanding of audience development and commercial growth within a cultural or events context.


• Knowledge of the publishing landscape, including upcoming publications, literary prizes, and literature festivals.


• Understanding of the cultural zeitgeist, with a willingness to contribute creatively to artistic programming.


• Experience of working with ticketing, EPOS and CRM systems.


• A solid understanding of print and digital design production processes.


• Excellent copywriting and content creation skills, including press releases and campaign storytelling, with meticulous attention to detail and the ability to maintain consistent branding and messaging across all channels, including exhibitions, events, café, and website.


• A comprehensive understanding of operational marketing with the ability to juggle short term operational pressures with long term priorities.


• Excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to build strong relationships with colleagues, stakeholders, and external partners.


• Highly organised with the ability to manage multiple campaigns and deadlines simultaneously.

Desirable skills and experience:

• Graphic design skills and experience using software such as Illustrator, InDesign and Photoshop.


• Experience of working in an arts related organisation or charity.


• Experience of audience data collection and analytics.


• Experience using CMS such as WordPress.


• Experience of digital marketing campaigns.

How to apply

Charleston is committed to equal and equitable opportunities, and to becoming a workforce that represents the diversity of our community. We positively encourage applications from Disabled people, Global Majority people, and working-class people, as people from these groups are currently underrepresented in our organisation.

Application deadline: 5pm, Sunday 12 July 2026

Interviews: w/c 20 July at Charleston in Firle BN8 6LL

To apply, please email a covering letter of no more than 2 pages detailing how you meet the person specification, along with a CV via the button below.

Alternatively, you can submit a link to an audio or video file that details how you meet the person specification, with an overview of your professional experience and skills. This should be no more than 10 minutes.

Please also complete a voluntary equal opportunities monitoring form here.

Interview process

Shortlisting

We will create a shortlist of applicants for interview based entirely on merit and suitability for the role, assessed against the person specification. If you are not selected to progress to the interview stage, we will let you know the outcome of the shortlisting process. Due to capacity, we’re unfortunately unable to provide individual feedback at this stage.

Interviews

We will share the core interview questions with you in advance so you can feel prepared. There may be a few questions that won’t be shared ahead of time, but we’ll keep these to a minimum.

If you require any reasonable adjustments to support you during the interview process, please do let us know in advance, we’re happy to help.

If you’re not successful following the interview, you’re welcome to request feedback on your performance.

All positions at Charleston are offered subject to the following conditions:

• Receipt of two satisfactory references


• Proof that you are legally entitled to work in the UK.

For further questions about the role, please email [email protected].uk