Corporate Director of Education
Organisation: London Borough of Waltham Forest
Salary: Corporate Director £117,674 - £126,862
Contract Type: Full-time/Permanent
Working hours per week: 36
Application Deadline: 9th September 2024
Proposed Interview Date(s): TBC
Reference:1396
About Us:
Bursting with culture, energy, and opportunity, the London Borough of Waltham Forest is a fantastic and exciting place to work.
We are a highly ambitious borough. Driven by culture and the innate creativity of our residents, we have developed new and innovative ways to build our communities. Our Council is relentlessly resident-focused, insight-led, digitally driven and commercially minded; a Council focused on meeting the needs of our existing and future residents.
London Borough of Waltham Forest is one of the Mayor of London's Good Work Standard employers. This accreditation is a proof of our commitment to creating a healthy, fair and inclusive workplace. This includes fair pay and conditions, workplace well-being, skills and progression and diversity and recruitment.
The Council's preference is for online application. However, if you have a disability and are unable to complete an online application, please email recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk so we can arrange an alternative application method.
Click here for further information on the Human Resources recruitment privacy notice.
About the role:
As a pivotal member of our Corporate Leadership Team, you will work closely with our new Strategic Director of Children Services, receiving the support and empowerment necessary to achieve operational excellence. You will forge impactful partnerships with schools and stakeholders, delivering exceptional value for our young people and the community. Your role is crucial in introducing fresh ideas and enhancing priority services such as SEND, addressing Education Health and Care plan (EHCP) demand, and future-proofing our social care services.
What we seek
We are seeking a leader who embodies our values, demonstrates a proven track record of strategic innovation, and can unite a team towards shared objectives. Seize this opportunity to drive strategic innovation and become the visionary leader shaping the future of children and young people in Waltham Forest!
About you
As our designated Corporate Director of Education, you will be a visible leader skilled at collaborating effectively with partners, schools, and families. Fulfilling statutory responsibilities, you will lead diverse services aimed at enhancing outcomes while prioritising the safeguarding and wellbeing of children and young people in Waltham Forest. You will be an experienced leader who can evidence how they would achieve inspection readiness within special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)services. You will have a proven track record in enhancing the quality of education provided to young people and meeting sufficiency in school placement needs. You will be both financially and politically astute, directing and guiding your teams and the organisation through complex and challenging issues.
>> Click here to download the Role Profile <<
Key Responsibilities:
To lead the Council's Education Services, providing strategic direction, operational management and financial control.
To commission local school and early years provision in line with community needs, and ensure high standards are achieved.
To provide advice and guidance to the Director of Children's Services, Chief Executive, Management Board and Council Members in all matters associated with Learning.
Provide a breadth of vision, strategic thinking and innovative problem solving in situations where there are often aspects which are ambiguous, intangible or unstructured. A significant degree of evaluative judgement is required in relation to risks and issues, with the ability to identify the potential impact of a wide range of changing and potentially conflicting internal and external factors.
To contribute to the corporate leadership of the Council
Qualifications and Requirements:
Please refer to the role profile linked above.
Terms and conditions:
The below terms and conditions apply to this role:
Satisfactory employment references and CIFAS identity checks;
Satisfactory declaration of interest;
This role is subject to safer recruitment practices as it involves work with children and/ or vulnerable adults;
Satisfactory DBS check;
Suitable driver's license;
This post is politically restricted therefore the post holder is disqualified from undertaking certain political activities under the Local Government Officers (Political Restrictions) Regulations 1990.
How to Apply:
Interested candidates are invited to submit their applications online by pressing the 'Apply' button below. This includes a supporting statement that outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy.
We reserve the right to close this vacancy early if we receive sufficient applications for the role. Therefore, if you are interested, please submit your application as early as possible.
Equal Opportunity Employer:
Waltham Forest is a diverse borough where diversity is valued and is integral to both, service delivery and employment of its staff. The Council is proud of its rich mix of communities and as the largest employer in the area, it works hard to respond to the changing needs of its population. We use our statutory duties on race, gender and disability equality and best practice in respect of age, faith and sexual orientation to ensure equality of opportunity in the workplace. The Council is committed to meeting its 4 equality objectives: - Promoting equality of opportunity - Opposing all forms of discrimination, intolerance and disadvantage - Ensuring our workforce reflects the diverse communities of Waltham Forest at all levels. - Providing fair, appropriate, accessible and excellent Services to all. Respecting Diversity is a core Council value.
To support the above and reduce the risk of bias in its recruitment activities, the council is operating an anonymous shortlisting process, which hides personal information that can identify individuals until their application has been considered for shortlisting. The council also operates a scheme whereby, for jobs graded up to and including scale SO2, internal candidates are considered first. This includes those candidates who self-identify as having a disability for the purposes of the Disability Confident scheme. For more information, please refer to our recruitment and selection policy.
We are keen to support employees to balance their working life with other commitments. Therefore, wherever possible, we will consider working arrangements that suit an individual's personal circumstances whilst still meeting the needs of the Council. If you would like to discuss the possible flexible working options that might be applicable to this role, please contact the person named below or feel free to discuss this during your interview.
For more information on the benefits of working for the Council, please visit https://www.walthamforest.gov.uk/jobs-and-training/find-jobs-and-other-opportunities/working-us.
Contact Information:
For further details and to express your interest, please visit www.missionwalthamforest.com
For a confidential discussion about this transformative role, please call our Penna Consultants: Carol Coyle on 07500 88749 or Amin Aziz on 07709 514141
If you have any technical issues when trying to apply for this post, please contact our Recruitment Team via email at recruitment@walthamforest.gov.uk.