Head of Education Effectiveness

North Northamptonshire Council; England; Hybrid; GBP 65,000 - 85,000; Full time

Job summary

A local government council is seeking a Head of Educational Effectiveness to drive strategic school improvement and champion inclusive education for children aged 0–16. This role involves leading a high-impact team, influencing educational policy, and ensuring the delivery of the Education Improvement Framework. Candidates should have significant leadership experience and a strong commitment to enhancing children's outcomes.

Benefits

Competitive salary

Pension scheme with significant contributions

Opportunities for professional development

Generous leave entitlement

Hybrid and flexible working arrangements

Qualifications

• Significant professional and/or management experience in strategic education operations.
• Experience in relevant education senior leadership that secures confidence of school leaders.
• Comprehensive understanding of Council activities and regional local political context.

Responsibilities

• Lead a high-impact team across Early Years and School Effectiveness.
• Influence policy and practice locally, regionally, and nationally.
• Deliver the Education Improvement Framework 2025–2028.
• Collaborate with schools, settings, and multi-agency teams.

Skills

Strategic leadership

Influencing policy

Educational improvement

Working with multi-agency teams

Education

Degree level education or equivalent

Qualified Teacher Status (QTS)

Job description

About The Role

North Northamptonshire Council is looking for a dynamic and visionary senior leader to shape the future of education for children aged 0–16. As Head of Educational Effectiveness, you’ll drive strategic school improvement, champion inclusive education, and collaborate across services to ensure every child thrives.

This is a unique opportunity to influence the future of education across our locality, working in partnership with schools, early years settings, and multi-agency teams. We are looking for a credible and experienced education leader who can bring strategic insight and a commitment to improving outcomes for children and young people.

What will you be doing?

This is your opportunity to:

• Lead a high-impact team across Early Years, School Effectiveness, Governance & Safeguarding
• Influence policy and practice locally, regionally, and nationally
• Deliver our Education Improvement Framework 2025–2028
• Work in partnership with schools, settings, and multi-agency teams

About You

You will:

• Be educated to degree level or equivalent qualification e.g. NVQ 4, HNC and have Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
• Have significant professional and/or management experience of a strategic operation/service.
• Have experience of credible and relevant education senior leadership sufficient to secure the confidence of school leaders and other system leaders locally and regionally.
• Have a comprehensive understanding of the activities and objectives of the Council, both current and future with a good understanding of the political context at regional and local level and working with Elected Members in a constructive and sensitive way.
• Will have the ability to successfully influence key decision makers at senior levels, both internal and external to the council.

Shortlisting w/c 8th December 2025.

Interviews w/c 5th & 12th January 2026.

Should you have any queries, please contact us via email at [e-mail]. We kindly ask that you include a brief description of your enquiry to enable us to respond promptly and appropriately.

Our benefits

Here at North Northamptonshire Council, we’re transforming for the better, using all our creativity and imagination to create the best life for our local people.

You’ll find that we have a wide range of careers that may be more surprising than you think!

Why choose us?

We Offer a Vibrant Working Environment With

• A competitive salary
• A pension scheme, where we pay a significant contribution on top of your contribution. It provides life cover and ill-health protection.
• Lots of opportunities to develop your skills, knowledge and potential in a large unitary council
• Generous leave entitlement (28 days, rising to 33 days) and bank holidays, plus the option to buy up to an extra 10 days
• Hybrid and flexible working arrangements, where practicable for service needs to help you with a healthy work-life balance.

We provide a range of great benefits such as an Employee Assistance Programme, an Employee Benefits Scheme, wellbeing support, travel rates at HMRC rates, as well as supporting a range of active Employee Network Groups.

About Us

Our values define who we are and how we operate, by forming the foundation for how we interact with our customers, colleagues and provide our services. They are also at the forefront of our decision making and delivery and are:

• Customer-focused
• Respectful
• Efficient
• Supportive
• Trustworthy

Our Key Commitments

Our key commitments help ensure that the priorities we make, now and in the future, maintain the necessary breadth of focus in those areas that we believe matter most.

We are proud to be a recognised Disability Confident Employer and is committed to providing an inclusive recruitment process and will offer an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role.

North Northamptonshire Council re-signed the Armed Forces Covenant in June 2024 which highlights the Council’s pledge to support the Armed Forces community. The council obtained the silver status award for the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme (ERS) and we are now currently working towards achieving Gold status.

Further information can be found at Jobs and careers | North Northamptonshire Council (northnorthants.gov.uk)

• Job description and person specification.

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