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Director of Finance and Operations

Director of Finance and Operations

Parkwood Hall Co-operative Academy

Kent

  • £79,000 - £80,000 per year
  • Expired
Job type:
Full Time, Permanent
Start date:
25/09/2024
Apply by:
14 October 2024

Job overview

Director of Finance & Operations  

Swanley, Kent - Salary: £80,000

Parkwood Hall Co-operative Academy is a specialist day school for children and young people aged 8-19 who have moderate to severe learning difficulties and autism. Many of our pupils have additional needs including ADHD, Downs Syndrome and language difficulties. Referrals come from local authorities across London, Kent and the Southeast.

 

We are committed to providing a learning environment that enables all our pupils to achieve the best they can and help prepare them for adult life so they can live as independent a life as possible. We are fortunate in having an amazing site where our children can access seventy-eight acres of green space and woodlands. We have two Forest Schools as well as purpose-built playground areas and sports areas.    

 

We have a highly skilled team of professionals including teachers, teaching assistants, speech and language therapists, occupational therapists, a school nurse and residential staff.   We are looking for an exceptional individual to join our leadership team and play a key role in the future development of the organisation.  

As Director of Finance & Operations, reporting to the Principal/Trustees, you will provide direction and lead operational services and a team of 20+ colleagues covering Finance, Administration, HR, Estates, Catering and ICT. You will be integral to the strategic development of the organisation and the delivery of our aims and ambitions, ensuring that we are highly efficient, effective and agile as we evolve and grow.  Currently our budget is in the order of £7 million.

A qualified accountant and/or a highly experienced Business Manager, you will have a track record of successful financial management/stewardship. This may have been gained inside the schools/academies sector or outside. You will be keen to play a broader role in other operational areas and will understand the importance of high-quality service and problem solving.  You may well be looking for a varied role, with greater responsibility or a more worthwhile context to utilise your expertise. Key will be a value set that matches our own. At the heart of which is one statement - All our staff must be kind.

This is a stimulating environment where you can work within a committed team and make a real difference to the lives of young people. It is also an exciting time to join the organisation.  We are ambitious for our young people, and we believe there is much to build on. Our young people deserve the very best.  If you are excited by the prospect and believe you can make a difference, then we would like to hear from you.

For more information including the job description and person specification then follow the link https://www.pentir.com/roles/directorfinandoperations/


For a confidential conversation about the role then contact Mike Phillips (mike.phillips@pentir.com) on 07830-313915 at our advisors Pentir.

Closing Date: Monday 14th October

Parkwood Hall Co-operative Academy is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We welcome applicants from underrepresented groups including ethnicity, gender, transgender, age, disability, sexual orientation, or religion. Appointment to this po

Attached documents

About Parkwood Hall Co-operative Academy

Mission Statement: growth through personal and social development

Parkwood Hall Special Needs School converted to a Co-operative Academy in 2015 to secure our independent future, having first become Foundation Trust School in 2014. We are now in the fortunate position of owning our buildings and the 78 acres of wood and parkland in which our school is set on the outskirts of Swanley. 

We are ideally situated just off the junction of the M25 and the M20 and are able to offer both day and residential places to students from the London Boroughs, Kent and the South East of England. Our places are in demand and we are currently over-subscribed. We have the capacity to increase the number of places offered through careful planning and development.

Our school admits children with significant learning disabilities and a variety of additional needs. Although we are improving the accessibility of our buildings and grounds, we are not yet able to fully meet the needs of students who rely on wheels for their mobility. Our small classes of around 6-8 students mostly learn in large classrooms in the main building with plenty of opportunity for outdoor learning, and access to our two Forest School sites. We employ a diverse team of therapists who work with our teachers to accelerate learning. All our students benefit from a free school lunch, cooked on site by our catering team.

Our buildings are mainly Victorian, we started out as a Convalescent Home in 1892, with a market garden growing produce for the residents, and the original house in the grounds becoming the Nurses’ Home. Some of our staff currently live on site here now. We also have a boarding house in the grounds and a gatehouse, as well as many other outhouses, and even a derelict old laundry deep in the woods!

Our calm nurturing ethos, and our well supported staff create a great environment in which to learn. Our Ofsted judgements are good and our parents are our strongest supporters. Here are some quotes from the latest parental survey:

“The school meets his needs, and has allowed him to calm down, know he is safe, and start to

grow into the young man I am so proud of today.”

“It has literally been the happiest he has ever been in school. This has had such a positive effect

on him and on us as a family as a whole, helping to keep us together. “

“The first time I have not had to worry about him when he is not with family, because Parkwood had become a second family to him. “

“We have daily contact book and PEP, school review and phone contact”

“My daughter is respected and well looked after by every member of staff”

Whilst we are a stand alone Academy we take our co-operative values very seriously. They are Self-Responsibility, Self-Help, Equality, Solidarity, Democracy, and Equity. In addition, our ethical values are Honesty, Openness, Social Responsibility and Caring for Others. We are on the look out for ways in which we can co-operate for educational and social purpose.
 

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Applications closed