Senior Underwriter - New Business

Working hours: 35 hours per week, Monday to Friday

Duration:  Permanent

Location: Manchester

Job Ref: 205367

About the role

Ecclesiastical Insurance , who are proudly part of Benefact Group are looking for two Senior Underwriters to join our Trading Team based in our Manchester office on a hybrid basis.

As a Senior Underwriter you'll be responsible for delivering profitable growth through effective underwriting, relationship management and market engagement. Working closely with brokers and partners, you'll identify and secure new business opportunities, provide technical leadership to colleagues, and help drive continuous improvement across the team. You'll act as a trusted referral point, using your technical expertise and commercial insight to support decision-making, strengthen broker relationships and contribute to the ongoing success of the team.

Why join us?

Join a collaborative and inclusive culture that’s committed to making a difference and building a more sustainable future. Ranked amongst the UK's 15 Best Big Companies to Work For in 2025, we offer fantastic career and development opportunities within a rapidly growing, innovative Group - where all profits go to charity and good causes.

What you'll be doing

• Develop, negotiate and profitably underwrite new and existing business within delegated authority, delivering growth in line with trading and brand objectives.

• Manage a portfolio of cases while prioritising workload effectively to meet service standards, customer expectations and business targets.

• Build and maintain strong broker and partner relationships, using effective communication and market engagement to drive new business opportunities.

• Provide technical leadership and referral support, coaching and mentoring colleagues to enhance underwriting capability and performance.

• Drive underwriting excellence through audits, quality reviews and knowledge sharing, identifying opportunities for continuous improvement and best practice.

• Ensure compliance with regulatory requirements and company standards, managing risk appropriately and resolving issues or complaints effectively.

What you'll need to have

• Strong technical underwriting knowledge and expertise within the commercial insurance market.

• Proven ability to build, manage and influence internal and external stakeholder relationships at all levels.

• Commitment to delivering exceptional customer and broker service, both independently and as part of a high-performing team.

• Sound understanding of relevant regulatory and compliance requirements, with a focus on delivering good customer outcomes.

• Strong analytical skills, with the ability to interpret data, identify trends and produce meaningful management information and reports.

What makes you stand out

• Cert CII, Dip CII and ACII qualified.

• Proactive mindset with a focus on continuous improvement and personal development.

• Ability to build collaborative and productive relationships with colleagues, brokers and key stakeholders.

• Experience of coaching and developing others, with the ability to empower colleagues in a commercial environment.

• Strong organisational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to effectively prioritise and manage workloads.

What we offer

• A competitive salary - let's discuss it

• Hybrid working

• Group Personal Pension - up to 12% employer contribution

• Generous annual bonus scheme: on-target bonus between 6% and 24%

• 25 days annual leave plus bank holidays, and a holiday buy and sell scheme

• An array of health and wellbeing benefits, including private healthcare, income protection and life assurance

• £200 annual personal grant to a charity of your choice

• Encouraged to take at least one volunteering day per year

• Employee Assistance Programme

• Full study support to gain professional qualifications

• Access to virtual GP

• Enhanced maternity and paternity pay

Hear from the hiring manager

"New business is at the heart of our success. We're looking for an ambitious underwriter who thrives on identifying opportunities, making sound underwriting decisions, and building lasting broker partnerships that drive profitable growth. At Ecclesiastical, you will find yourself joining supportive and innovative team dynamic, complimented by a specialist and niche underwriting ethos.”

About us

Ecclesiastical Insurance   offer insurance with award-winning service across a broad range of specialisms, including faith, charity, heritage, education, art and private client, real estate and schemes, across Ireland, Canada and the UK.

As a business, we’ve been trusted to protect some of the UK’s best-loved and most iconic buildings for over a century, and we’re not standing still. We’re a forward thinking, energetic organisation entering new markets, with an ambition to double our size, because when we grow, we give back more.

Benefact Group is a unique international financial services Group made up of over 30 businesses. We are owned by a charity and have been the 3rd largest UK corporate donor over a decade*, having given away £250 million since 2014. We have ambitious plans to become the UK’s number one corporate donor, with strategic objectives in place to double the Group’s size.

We believe it’s essential to attract, empower, grow and reward talented people, offering fantastic opportunities for career and personal development. Our giving ethos, 135-year history and the diversity of what we do, has enabled us to build a culture of kindness, great ambition, and of passionate people driven to do better and be better.

At Benefact Group, we are committed to creating an inclusive culture and building an environment where each and every one of us feels valued and respected. We are a community made up of people with a range of different backgrounds, abilities, perspectives, beliefs and interests and we value the strength this brings to us as a Group. We welcome applications from everyone.

If you need any additional support during the recruitment process, then please let us know.

*Directory of Social Change’s UK Guides to Company Giving 2017-26