School Applications Officer

Lancashire County Council; Preston; Hybrid; GBP 42,000 - 48,000; Full time

Job summary

Lancashire County Council in Preston is seeking an experienced School Applications Officer to join Education Digital Services. The post supports SIMS for over 490 Lancashire schools, delivering training, consultancy, events and day-to-day issue resolution.

You will become a leading SIMS specialist, with expert knowledge of FMS or Nova-T Timetabling, and you will develop expertise in other areas while building strong relationships with school staff, face-to-face or digitally.

Qualifications

• Experience in supporting school staff using SIMS.
• Lead specialist in at least one SIMS area; capable of expanding to others.
• Expert knowledge of FMS or Nova-T Timetabling.
• Must have a driving licence and access to a car for travel.

Responsibilities

• Provide SIMS support and consultancy for over 490 Lancashire schools.
• Deliver training, consultancy services, events and day-to-day resolution of queries.
• Create support documentation and assist in developing new service options.
• Communicate effectively with school staff, face-to-face and digitally.

Skills

SIMS knowledge

Lead specialist

Communication skills

Tools

ServiceNow

Power BI

Excel

Microsoft 365

Job description

Description

Salary £42,143 - £47,665 per annum | 37 hours per week | Permanent, Full Time | School Applications Officer

Salary £42,143 - £47,665 per annum | 37 hours per week | Permanent, Full Time | School Applications Officer

International Sponsorship

this role is not open to international sponsorship

Local Government Reorganisation

The Government has confirmed that local government across Lancashire will be reorganised, with the current 15 councils being replaced by four new unitary councils covering North, South, East and West Lancashire from April 2028.

If you are successful in your application, you will initially join Lancashire County Council. However, as part of the planned transition, your employment will transfer to one of the new unitary councils from April 2028, subject to the implementation of the reorganisation and relevant employment legislation.

Throughout this period, our focus remains on delivering excellent services to our communities. By joining us now, you'll play an important role in shaping the future of local government and helping to build a strong new organisation that will serve residents for years to come.

Schools Applications Officer

Designated Base: Preston, Lancashire (hybrid working)

We are seeking experienced SIMS Support staff to join Education Digital Services, a traded service within Education Digital Services at Lancashire County Council. The role is based with our SIMS support team who provide application support and consultancy services for over 490 schools in Lancashire and the wider North-West.

Our SIMS support team provide customers with training, consultancy services, events, presentations, resolution of day-to-day queries as part of our ICT Service Centre; create support documentation for our customers and assist in the development of new service options.

We will require the successful candidate to be a lead specialist in at least one area of SIMS, with the expectation to develop expertise in other areas. Candidates must have substantial experience in supporting school staff using SIMS or be an end-user with advanced knowledge able to demonstrate an aptitude to move into a support and consultancy role. We are particularly interested in candidates with expert knowledge of either FMS or Nova-T Timetabling. We will require the successful candidate to be a lead specialist in at least one area of SIMS and to increase this to additional areas of expertise.

Candidates must have excellent verbal and written communication skills and be confident in forming relationships with school staff, both face-to-face and by digital channels. Experience of using IT service management systems e.g., Service Now and advanced data manipulation skills, using products such as Power BI and Excel would be advantageous alongside Microsoft 365 capabilities.

This role requires a driving licence and access to a car for occasional travel across Lancashire and further afield.

The closing date for applications is 30th October 2026 with appointment from 1st December 2026. For full details please refer to the attached Job Description and Person Specification.

The post you are applying for is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2013). If successful you will be required to apply to the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) for a 'disclosure'. Further information can be found on the 'Our Recruitment Process' tab.

In return Lancashire County Council offers a range of benefits, found on our website here.

We reserve the right to close down a vacancy early, before the closing date, if we receive sufficient applications.