Head of L&D

Hollybank Trustees Ltd; Coleshill Heath; On-site; GBP 90,000 - 130,000; Full time

Job summary

Hollybank Trustees Ltd. seeks a strategic Head of Learning and Development to lead the UK-wide L&D agenda, shaping a culture of continuous professional growth and aligning development with business objectives.

You will design and oversee programmes, manage budgets, champion digital learning, coach senior leaders, and collaborate with HR, site GMs and SMT to deliver measurable impact across the organisation.

Qualifications

• Minimum 8–10 years in Learning and Development with leadership success.
• Experience designing UK-wide L&D programmes.
• Professional certifications in L&D, leadership development, or organisational development.
• Proficiency with learning data to prioritise investment and demonstrate impact.

Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership: Develop and implement the UK L&D strategy within the Group framework, aligning with goals and priorities.
• Programme Design & Delivery: Oversee training programmes, workshops, leadership development, and culture transformation projects.
• Talent Development: Identify skill gaps, coach senior leaders, and support career development and succession planning.
• Learning Governance and Compliance: Ensure mandatory and role-critical learning, quality standards, records and reporting.
• Budget & ROI Management: Manage L&D budget, track effectiveness, and report ROI for training initiatives.
• Team Leadership: Build and lead the L&D team including sub-functions such as leadership development, diversity & inclusion, and e-learning management.
• Stakeholder Collaboration: Work with functional leads, HR, site GMs and SMT to align initiatives with performance goals.
• Innovation & Trends: Stay updated on L&D trends and technologies to enhance solutions.
• Digital Learning & Technology: Confident use of LMS, AI-enabled learning, learning analytics and digital content creation.

Skills

Strategic Leadership

Stakeholder management

Project management

Effective communication

Change management

Team leadership

Analytical thinking

Education

L&D certifications

Tools

LMS platforms

AI-enabled learning

Learning analytics

E-learning content

Job description

Location: On site / Marston Green, Birmingham B37 7GN, UK
job type: Permanent / Full-time
Sector and subsector: People & Talent | Learning & Development
Salary: Competitive salary

Location:

UK; 20 locations; 7000 headcount

Role Definition

Lead the strategy, design, and implementation of learning and development programmes to enhance employee skills, drive organisational growth, and align talent development with strategic and operational business objectives.

This position is pivotal in shaping the organisation’s learning culture, ensuring employees are equipped with the skills, knowledge and behaviours to meet current and future business challenges while fostering continuous professional growth.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership: Develop and implement the overall UK L&D strategy within the Group framework, ensuring alignment with organisational goals and business priorities, addressing labour availability and key skill challenges

Programme Design & Delivery: Oversee the creation, delivery, and evaluation of training programmes, workshops, leadership development initiatives, and culture transformation projects

Talent Development: Identify skill gaps, coach senior leaders, and support career development and succession planning

Learning Governance and Compliance : Accountability for mandatory, regulatory and role-critical learning, quality standards, records and reporting

Budget & ROI Management: Manage the L&D budget, track programme effectiveness, and report on return on investment for training initiatives

Team Leadership: Build and lead the L&D team, including sub-functions such as leadership development, diversity & inclusion, and e-learning management

Stakeholder Collaboration: Work closely with functional leads, HR, site GMs and SMT to ensure L&D initiatives support performance and organisational objectives

Innovation & Trends: Stay updated on emerging L&D trends, technologies, and best practices to enhance learning solutions

Digital Learning & Technology – confident use of LMS platforms, AI enabled learning, learning analytics, digital content creation, virtual learning, and collaboration tools

Change Management – lead learning interventions during automation, digital transformation, restructuring, new technology implementation, and process change

Commercial Acumen – build business cases, track L&D budgets, assess ROI and link learning investment to productivity and operational outcomes

External provider relationships & integration – ensure external learning and programmes are connected to ABP’s framework, pathways and internal development strategy

Strong leadership and project management capabilities

Excellent communication and interpersonal skills to influence stakeholders at all levels

Strategic thinking with the ability to translate business needs into effective learning solutions

Experience in designing and implementing UK-wide L&D programs

Proficiency in managing e-learning platforms and digital learning tools

Commercial and analytical capability - require experience using workforce and learning data to prioritise investment and demonstrate business impact

Personal specification

Minimum of 8–10 years of experience in Learning and Development, with proven success in leading L&D initiatives

L&D team leadership experience

Professional certifications in L&D, leadership development, or organisational development

Practitioner for psychometric and personality tools

Regular travel throughout the UK will be required

Cross-divisional stakeholder relationship management, supporting the Group-wide people agenda and initiatives

Occasionally represents the organisation at industry events and contributes to the evolution of talent strategies