Chief Operating Officer
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Shrewsbury School
Shropshire
- New
- Job type:
- Full Time, Permanent
- Apply by:
- 23 September 2024
Job overview
Founded by Royal Charter in 1552, Shrewsbury is a leading independent co-educational boarding and day school with a growing family of overseas schools and a world-class reputation for all-round excellence. Situated on a beautiful 110-acre site in the heart of Shrewsbury, Shropshire, the School provides a highly distinctive whole person education for some 840 pupils aged 13-18. In 2019, Packwood a leading co-educational day and boarding prep school for pupils aged 4-13 became part of the Shrewsbury family of Schools. An ambitious £21M programme of new build and refurbishment over the last 5 years means that facilities are outstanding. With nearly 1,100 pupils across the two schools employing over 500 staff and a turnover of £38M, Shrewsbury is a substantial, complex and thriving organisation set on further growth.
The Governors and Headmaster seek to appoint a highly motivated, financially astute and commercially driven Chief Operating Officer (COO). Building upon Shrewsbury’s recent successful growth, the candidate will play a pivotal role in its strategic development, shaping and delivering the financial strategy to ensure both schools’ long-term success. With responsibility for finance, estates, operations and trading activities, candidates will be able to demonstrate proven ability in executive leadership and financial control, strategic planning and operational delivery within large complex organisations.
Reporting to the Headmaster, the COO will lead a team of 175 staff. As a critical member of the Leadership Team, they will deliver and manage change to ensure Shrewsbury's financial and commercial success. They will be a collaborative senior leader, a strategic and creative thinker with strong financial and commercial acumen, first-rate analytical and business skills and finely tuned risk antennae. An outstanding communicator, the COO will inspire, motivate and operate at pace.
Prior experience in the education sector is not a prerequisite and applications are encouraged from candidates with commercial, charitable, private-sector and public-sector backgrounds. The successful candidate must be able to demonstrate empathy with independent education and commitment to Shrewsbury’s ethos and educational philosophy.
Further details and how to apply
A sector-leading remuneration package, including accommodation and fee remission, will be available for the successful candidate.
For further information about the role and details of how to apply, please visit https://www.rsacademics.com/current-vacancies/coo-shrewsbury/
Interested candidates are invited to contact RSAcademics to arrange an informal and confidential discussion about the role: Nina Lambert, Head of Commercial Appointments: ninalambert@rsacademics.com
The closing date for applications is 10.00am on Monday 23rd September 2024.
Shrewsbury School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.
This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020.
The safeguarding responsibilities of the role are indicated in the candidate information. RSAcademics is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and to promoting diversity and inclusion in schools.
About Shrewsbury School
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A brief history of Shrewsbury:
Shrewsbury School, Independent School of the Year 2020, has a world-class reputation for all-round excellence. Fully co-educational, with a seven-day boarding heartbeat and an integral day community, the school delivers a dynamic education that develops the abilities and enthusiasms of each and every pupil.
Founded by Royal Charter in 1552, Shrewsbury School is one of the ‘great’ nine schools in England identified by the Clarendon Commission of 1861. The School moved to its current location in 1882. Over the centuries it has grown in size and reputation. Girls first joined the Sixth Form in 2008 and it is now ranked amongst the leading co-educational boarding schools in the world, educating around 830 pupils aged 13-18 years.
Shrewsbury delivers a programme of academic learning that is exciting, challenging, responsive and versatile. On the School’s breath-taking 105-acre site on the banks of the River Severn, pupils also have the opportunity to participate in a wide range of sporting, music, drama and co-curricular activities, as well as being encouraged to engage in adventure and charitable endeavour.
Our Ethos:
The celebration of individuals and individual talent is central to education at Shrewsbury – both in and beyond the classroom. In whatever sphere, a pupil will find a member of staff to support and encourage, enthuse and inspire him or her to exceed their expectations and meet the challenges that lie ahead with confidence and good judgement.
Life at Shrewsbury is founded on a close partnership between staff, parents and pupils to promote the strength of family life, foster responsibility, and balance the claims of developing individuality with the needs of a vibrant community. To make this ideal a living and working reality, the School cares for its pupils in 12 Houses for both boarders and day pupils.
Academics at Shrewsbury:
Our aim in the classroom is to inspire and enthuse pupils from across the top of the ability range. In recent years, on average, up to 10% of our leavers have gone on to Oxford and Cambridge and virtually all have won places at the university of their first choice; we expect about 80% of A Levels each year to be passed at A*, A or B grade. But there is as much joy for the less academic pupil who surpasses his or her expectations as there is for the pupil whose progress to top grades always seemed more certain.
Co-Curricular at Shrewsbury:
We want all our pupils, whatever their ability, to enjoy their life beyond the classroom, and Shrewsbury has a well-earned reputation for academic, musical and sporting excellence. We compete internationally in cricket and rowing, and we are one of the strongest schools in the country for football, cross-country running, cricket and fives; facilities and coaching for these and a host of other sports including badminton, basketball, tennis, fencing, hockey, netball and swimming are excellent.
Our school plays and musicals have drawn praise at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival and in London. As one would expect from one of the strongest music departments in the country, the breadth and quality of music-making are remarkable, and several students win places at some of the top music colleges each year.
We also offer our pupils an extraordinary array of clubs, societies and other co-curricular activities, many of which take place on a dedicated weekly activity afternoon. Members of the school staff lead the majority. Shrewsbury is surrounded by glorious unspoilt countryside and the School makes the most of its easy access to the Shropshire Hills, the Welsh Marches and Snowdonia.
Location:
Shrewsbury School lies on the outskirts of the town of Shrewsbury, approximately 50 miles west of Birmingham, and 75 miles south of Manchester. Shrewsbury is served by Virgin trains from London Euston (by changing at Birmingham New Street or Wolverhampton). There are also regular services from Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool, Oxford, Cardiff and Bristol. The international airports of Birmingham, Manchester, Liverpool and East Midlands are all between 1 hour and 1 hour 30 minutes away (by car or rail).
We are well positioned to enjoy the benefits of the local countryside and the mountains and coastline of North Wales.
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