Governors (Corporation and Audit & Risk Committee)

Business & Human Rights Resource Centre; North East; On-site; GBP 100,000 - 125,000; Full time

Job summary

An educational institution in North East England seeks new Governors to shape its strategic direction. Candidates should possess finance and audit expertise, along with business development skills. This role involves contributing to the governance structure and supporting the college’s mission of enriching lives through education. Applications close at 9 a.m. on Friday, October 3, 2025.

Qualifications

• Qualified finance professional with experience at a senior level.
• Proficiency in audit, risk, and compliance.
• Business development skills for income diversification.

Responsibilities

• Shape the strategic direction of East Durham College.
• Support governance and financial health monitoring.
• Contribute to the Audit & Risk Committee.

Skills

Finance

Audit and compliance

Business development

Cyber security expertise

Data protection knowledge

Job description

Overview

East Durham College seeks to appoint new Governors who will bring strategic experience and curiosity to their Corporation and contribute to their Audit & Risk Committee.

Applications close: 9 a.m. Friday 3rd October 2025

Location: County Durham, North East

Time commitment: 6 – 10 hours per month

About East Durham College

East Durham College is a college deeply rooted within its local communities. Working across three sites in Peterlee and Houghall, we provide a broad and diverse range of education and training to almost 6,000 students each year. We have been consistently rated ‘Good’ by Ofsted, most recently in April 2024, when we were also judged to be ‘Outstanding’ in the areas of Behaviours & Attitudes and Personal Development.

We deliver a broad curriculum, offering vocational provision, A Levels, apprenticeships and T Levels for our learners aged 16-18, as well as vocational, academic and professional development provision for adult learners. Our provision also includes higher education, courses for those with high needs and for those aged 14-16, making us one of the largest providers of foundation learning in the county.

All of our provision is designed to support the learning and development needs of our communities whilst continuing to be a lead contributor in supporting local employers and regional prosperity, something we continue to do with great success. Through all of our work, our staff team, led by our Principal & CEO, Scott Bullock, continue to drive us towards our mission to enrich lives through transformative education.

About the roles

Our Board of Governors is known as ‘the Corporation’. Governors play a vital role in shaping our strategic direction and in helping to set our organisational culture and ethos whilst demonstrating our values of excellence, respectful, sustainable and student-focused.

Led by our Chair, James Bromiley, we have recently completed an external review of governance in which our Corporation was recognised as high performing, and one which puts the success and well-being of students first.

As a governor of East Durham College, you will have the chance to shape the future of education and training across the region, supporting Scott Bullock and his senior leaders to develop and deliver a strategy which positively impacts the futures of thousands of students, local employers and our local communities.

You’ll have the chance to be involved in the further growth of our college, support the development of new and innovative curriculum and help safeguard the financial future of the organisation.

Who we are looking for

As we enter a new academic year, and having already appointed new Governors recently, this recruitment process represents an opportunity for us to identify new board colleagues who can help bring the skills and expertise we believe we are still lacking as a board. We plan to welcome new candidates to our full Corporation as well as to our Audit & Risk Committee.

Firstly, we will be welcoming applications from qualified, experienced finance professionals. You will be working at a senior level and be able to bring a curious approach to our financial position and related reporting.

In addition to this, we will also be welcoming applications from candidates who have experience in the following areas:

• Qualified audit, risk and compliance professionals to help us safeguard our financial health and remain compliant.
• Those with business development acumen who have experience of income diversification.
• Candidates with expertise in cyber security, data protection and IT systems.

Candidates could have experience at a senior level in a range of sectors and professional contexts, which may include educational settings, the public sector, corporate settings and those based within local employers.

Peridot Partners and East Durham College are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and our client expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references before any final offer can be made.

Please click 'Apply on website’ to be redirected to the Peridot Partners website, where you can find full details of the candidate profile and register your interest to apply.

Applications for this role close at 9 a.m. Friday 3rd October 2025.