Business & Operations Manager - Education - Independent Charity School

Our client is an Ofsted 'outstanding' independent All Through school expanding into an all-through school, who cater for children aged 4-16 years with a range of mild to moderate special educational needs including autism, ADHD, dyslexia and downs syndrome.

The School Business Manager will form part of the Senior Leadership Team and would primarily report to the Head Teacher, but also to Governors.  The School Business Manager will be responsible for managing a team of office and support personnel. The successful candidate will be a strategic, self-motivated, enthusiastic and forward-thinking individual, and will provide strategic and operational leadership in all aspects of business activities within the school and be accountable for the operation, maintenance and development of systems, processes and procedures relating to budget, finance, procurement, administration, HR, payroll, third party contract management, premises, including ICT and health and safety.

Key Responsibilities

• Provide strategic leadership and management of the schools’ finances, advising the Headteacher, Governing Body, and relevant committees on all financial matters.
• Take overall responsibility for the school’s annual budget; take the lead role in developing, setting and monitoring the annual budget.
• Advise the school on financial strategy which supports and develops the educational aims, ethos and growth strategy of the school.
• Present financial reports to the Finance Committee and Trustees focusing on future projections, benchmarking and value for money.
• Ensure that the school complies with standard financial and legal practice and maintains standards of corporate governance.
• Advise the headteacher and governors of the legal, governance, accounting and tax implications of proposed policies
• Monitor changes in relevant legislation and the regulatory environment and taking appropriate action.
• Liaise with external regulators and advisers, such as lawyers and auditors.
• Have overall responsibility for the school’s staff pension arrangements and report to the Governors as necessary in connection with such arrangements.
• Oversee and as necessary develop the systems that ensure the school complies with all regulatory obligations, in addition to its legal and statutory requirements.
• Develop robust financial management policies, processes and reporting systems that satisfy the internal and external audit requirements.
• Preparation and submission of required returns to statutory bodies, i.e. Charities Commission and HM Revenue and Customs.
• Produce and present regular detailed financial reports on revenue and capital funds to The Governing Body and relevant committees.
• Maintain the school’s risk register and have responsibility for ensuring that all risk assessments are kept up to date.
• Take overall responsibility for all aspects of the school’s insurance cover, keeping the same under periodic review and dealing with the school’s insurance brokers.
• Ensure that ‘Value for Money’ principles are applied to all appropriate purchasing decisions including service contracts and insurance policies.Ensure that Financial Standards are complied with in line with current legislation and the school’s Financial Procedures Manual.

The ideal candidate will already be working for another well-respected educational provider, preferably within a business or financial management capacity, although candidates would also be considered suitable for this position if they are working within a deputy management capacity and would like the chance to operate at a more strategic level. In addition to this, candidates who have worked for another independent charity school would be preferred, although candidates who have worked within Free schools or for Further Education providers would also be considered highly suitable for the position.  Candidates will need to be hands-on operational leaders, with the ability to interact with both teaching staff as well as reporting to the Board of Governors and external stakeholders. You will possess strong communication and negotiation skills, with a strong commercial background, and would ideally need to be fully ACCA/CIMA qualified, although consideration would also be given to those candidates who are part-qualified and working towards obtaining their accountancy/finance qualification. Candidates would need to have a strong sense of career mobility, and due to the continued growth plans, they would expect the successful candidate to be able to move into a more senior Director-level position in the medium-term.