The Role

Corporate Director of Education    

Salary: Up to £126k

Are you a seasoned executive seeking a pivotal role in strategic leadership within the vibrant heart of London? Waltham Forest Council invites you to lead the charge as our Corporate Director of Education, where your expertise will shape the future trajectory of our dynamic borough and the young people we serve.

Why Waltham Forest?

Join a thriving borough known for its unwavering dedication to excellence. Waltham Forest is more than just a location; it is a vibrant community that embraces cultural diversity and encourages innovation. Your strategic leadership will set a new benchmark for excellence in a forward-thinking council committed to transforming children’s services.

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.

Your role

As a pivotal member of our Corporate Leadership Team, you will work closely with the 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!

For a confidential discussion about this transformative role, please call our Penna Consultants: Carol Coyle on 07500 887849 or email: carol.coyle@penna.com or Amin Aziz on 07709 514141 or email: amin.aziz@penna.com 

Closing date: Midnight, Monday 9th September 2024

Apply for Corporate Director of Education role Corporate Director of Education Job Description

Diversity Is Our Strength

We are keen to hear from anyone who meets the job criteria and we firmly believe that diversity produces the best team performance. We are proud of and driven by our Diversity Rationale and aim to have a workforce, at all levels, that reflects the communities we serve.

We are determined to increase staff from underrepresented groups. In order to tackle these we would particularly encourage Women, people of Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic heritage, people who live openly as LGBTQI+ or those with a disability to apply.

Waltham Forest is a Disability Confident Employer.

Disability confident employer

How to Apply

This guidance contains important information to help with your application:

Please apply by submitting a CV and Covering Letter (no more than four sides of A4 in length per document aligned to the person specification). Please also include your contact details.

Please ensure all gaps in employment and education history are fully explained on your CV; we may wish to verify this information during the recruitment process.

Please provide the details of two referees. Note that we will only approach referees for candidates proceeding to final selection and only with your permission. Please clearly indicate whether we can approach each referee before the selection date.

Please ensure that you address the key requirements as set out in the person specification. These competencies will be used as part of the assessment process.

Please complete the Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form when you upload your details. We are keen to ensure that all our jobs are accessible to all members of the community and use this data to monitor our progress in doing this.

Please return your application by the closing date – no applications will be accepted once the long listing process has begun.

Following long listing, you will be contacted directly by a Penna consultant to update you on the status of your application.

The following timetable sets out the key dates in the recruitment process (please note these are subject to change):

Corporate Director of Education

Activity Date
Closing Date Monday 9 September 2024
Longlist Meeting Wednesday 11 September 2024
Preliminary Technical Interviews via MS Teams Wednesday 18 September 2024
Stakeholder Panels (in person) Tuesday 24 September 2024 
Final Panel Interviews (2 day process in person) Wednesday 2 and Thursday 3 October 2024 


To apply for this role, please click the link below:

Corporate Director of Education

For a confidential discussion about this transformative role, please call our Penna Consultants: Carol Coyle on 07500 887849 or email: carol.coyle@penna.com, Amin Aziz on 07709 514141 or email: amin.aziz@penna.com 

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