School Improvement Advisor (Primary)

Overview

We are seeking an experienced and highly effective education leader to join our team as a School Improvement Adviser (Primary).

The postholder will play a key role in delivering Buckinghamshire's Side by Side School Improvement Strategy, working closely with primary schools to raise standards, strengthen leadership, improve governance and secure positive outcomes for children and young people.

As part of Buckinghamshire Council's School Improvement Team, you will provide professional support, challenge and advice to school leaders, governors and trustees. You will help schools evaluate performance, identify priorities for improvement and access the support required to achieve sustainable improvement.

This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced primary leader who is passionate about educational excellence and committed to ensuring that every child receives the highest quality education.

About us

Buckinghamshire Council combines the strengths and expertise of the previous five councils in the county to create positive change for local people, communities and businesses. We are firmly focused on the future and have made a clear commitment to serve residents better and provide stronger representation for Buckinghamshire, both locally and nationally.

Our School Improvement Team works in partnership with schools, trusts, dioceses and wider educational partners to ensure all children and young people have access to high-quality education and the opportunity to fulfil their potential. Through our collaborative Side by Side Strategy, we support schools to develop, improve and share effective practice across the county.

Ensuring that children and young people in Buckinghamshire reach their potential is a primary focus within our Education Service. It is essential that we provide inclusive and lifelong learning opportunities for all our young people, so we continually work to raise standards, attainment and aspirations across the county.

Our key priorities include:

• Providing children and young people with the highest quality education possible.
• Improving outcomes for disadvantaged and vulnerable learners.
• Supporting excellence in leadership, governance and teaching.
• Improving the quality and timeliness of Education, Health and Care Plans.
• Strengthening support for children and young people with SEND and their families.
• Reducing permanent and fixed-term exclusions.
• Promoting inclusive practice and positive outcomes for all learners.

About the role

As a School Improvement Adviser (Primary), you will work directly with primary schools across Buckinghamshire, providing professional challenge, support and guidance to school leaders, governors and trusts.

You will undertake school improvement visits, analyse performance information, support school self-evaluation and help schools develop effective improvement plans. You will also broker support where required, drawing upon system leadership capacity and wider educational partnerships to secure improvement.

The role includes:

• Supporting and challenging school leaders, governing bodies and trustees to improve outcomes for pupils.
• Identifying priorities for improvement through rigorous evaluation of school performance.
• Planning and undertaking school visits in line with the Side by Side Strategy.
• Brokering school-to-school support and leadership deployments.
• Supporting schools preparing for, or undergoing, Ofsted inspection.
• Promoting and sharing effective practice across Buckinghamshire schools.
• Delivering traded school improvement services, including reviews, audits, training and Headteacher Performance Management.
• Supporting schools in areas including safeguarding, equalities, PREVENT and academisation.
• Contributing to county-wide initiatives focused on raising standards and reducing disadvantage.
• Building effective partnerships with schools, trusts, dioceses and other stakeholders.

This role offers the opportunity to make a significant impact on education across Buckinghamshire while working within a supportive and ambitious school improvement team.

Please see the attached job description for the full list of responsibilities.

As an ‘any-desk’ worker, you’ll need to be connected to our network to access digital folders and resources, but this can either be from home or an office location when required. You will be required to work from the office a couple of times a week, depending on your role and team requirements.

About you

We are looking for a motivated, credible and experienced education professional who brings:

• Successful leadership experience within a primary school setting.
• A proven track record of raising standards and securing sustainable school improvement.
• Excellent knowledge of current educational policy, accountability frameworks and inspection requirements.
• Strong understanding of effective leadership, governance and school improvement practice.
• Authority and credibility to work effectively with Headteachers, governors, trustees and other education professionals.
• Experience of analysing performance information and using evidence to drive improvement.
• Excellent communication, influencing and relationship-building skills.
• Experience of delivering training, support and challenge to education professionals.
• The ability to manage competing priorities and work effectively across a diverse school portfolio.
• A commitment to inclusion, collaboration and achieving the best possible outcomes for children and young people.

Essential Qualifications

• Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
• Degree-level qualification.
• Postgraduate qualification such as PGCE, NPQH, MA/MEd or equivalent.

Desirable Qualifications

• Ofsted Inspector qualification.
• School improvement accreditation or related professional qualifications.

Please see the attached job description for the full person specification.

We understand that candidates may use AI tools to assist with their applications. While we welcome innovation, we expect all submissions to reflect your own experience, skills, and achievements accurately. Please ensure your application is truthful and demonstrates your personal capabilities, as this will be assessed during the selection process.

Other information

For more information about this role, please contact Naureen Kausar, [email protected]  for an informal discussion.

Closing date: tbc

Interview Date: tbc

We reserve the right to close the vacancy once we have received sufficient applications, so please be advised to submit your application as early as possible.

Buckinghamshire Council is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults at risk.

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020 and 2023).

For further information on filtering please refer to Nacro guidance and the guidance published by the Ministry of Justice (see, in particular, the section titled ‘Exceptions Order’).

Our values and culture

We have a set of values, which our employees have chosen, that represent what we are – Proud, Ambitious, Collaborative and Trustworthy.

By joining Buckinghamshire Council, you can expect:

• a fair and inclusive culture
• the chance to really make a difference to those around you
• health and well-being initiatives including an Employee Assistance Programme, Mental Health First Aiders and mindfulness workshops
• a unified voice through our Employee Representative Group
• ongoing support, and the opportunity to develop and progress in your career with us
• opportunities to take part in fun activities such as fundraising and social events

At Buckinghamshire Council, we know that our biggest strength comes from the people that work for us, and that’s why we’re working hard to ensure we continue to be an accessible and inclusive organisation.

From dedicated staff networks overseen by our Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Steering Group, to proudly standing as a Disability Confident employer, it’s important to us that all our colleagues feel engaged, listened to, and valued. Our offer of flexible working empowers a productive and happy workforce and allows employees to combine work with other responsibilities and commitments.

We believe our workforce should reflect the diverse communities we service in Buckinghamshire, and are looking for like-minded individuals to join us in promoting equality, fairness, and inclusion for everyone.

About the Business Unit

Ensuring that children and young people in Buckinghamshire reach their potential is a primary focus within our Education service. It’s essential that we provide inclusive and life-long learning opportunities for all of our young people - so we look to raise standards, attainment and aspirations in a number of ways.

Our key priorities include: improving the quality and timeliness of Education, Health and Care Plans and the support families of children with SEND receive; reducing the number of exclusions both permanent and fixed term; and providing the children of Buckinghamshire with the highest quality education possible.

We aim to provide the right support, at the right time for families requiring non-statutory intervention, and provide sufficient, high quality early years and school places for children in Buckinghamshire. Despite Buckinghamshire having a higher percentage of good or outstanding Early Years providers and schools than national averages, we are not complacent.

We are keen to strengthen the services we deliver to provide the children of Buckinghamshire the highest quality education possible.

We recognise and reward you

Hard work and success deserves recognition. That’s why we pride ourselves on the benefits we give our people. We actively encourage a good work-life balance and promote flexible and agile working arrangements. We provide discounts on various Cafés, restaurants, shops and auto enrolment onto our generous Pension Scheme. In addition to the opportunity to gain membership to Costco, we have discounted gym memberships, travel discounts with Arriva and much more.

https://jobs.buckinghamshire.gov.uk/working-buckinghamshire-council/