Job info	Job info details
Job title	Divisional Director - Education and SEND
Strategic team/Directorate	Children’s Services
Service	Education and SEND
Business unit	Education and SEND
Responsible to (day to day issues)	Director of Children’s Services
Accountable to (line manager)	Director of Children’s Services
Salary grade	HAY460TORB

1. Key purpose of job

• To provide strategic leadership and management of the division, ensuring that creative and innovative solutions are deployed to improve long term performance, effectiveness and efficiency of the Division and wider Directorate, whilst ensuring that these services meet the highest standards of governance, finance, people, risk management, probity and service delivery.
• As a member of the Children’s Services and wider Council Leadership Team, to take a collective and shared responsibility service delivery of improved outcomes.
• To support the development and delivery of the overall strategic objectives of the Council, working as ‘one Council’ across the organisation.
• To positively promote and represent the Director of Children’s Services to manage the Directorate – driving performance, effectiveness, and efficiency

2. Anticipated outcomes of post

• To develop and lead the delivery of the Schools and SEND driving strategic objectives and ensuring that services support the overall direction of the Council.
• To lead organisational improvements, reform, and change management in line with the Community and Corporate Plan to support delivery of efficient, high-quality services which enable resident choice and a ‘One Council’ approach.
• Provides clear, strong, and motivational leadership to create a high-performance culture, both across the Division and wider Directorate that drives continual improvement, efficiency savings and high levels of customer satisfaction.
• Opportunities are identified to deliver the strategic agenda and find means of realising the full value of those opportunities through direct action, securing the necessary resources, adapting policy, commissioning, and community and partner action.
• Supporting the Director of Children’s Services to ensure that the Council is an active partner in the Southwest and will be engaged in all initiatives and opportunities that emerge from regional and national collaboration.
• As a Senior Leader in the Council, the role will support the continued improvement of our cultural aspirations, role modelling and embedding our values, driving engagement and innovation, and promoting diversity and inclusion.
• Providing support for the Director of Children’s Services and wider SLT in providing strategic advice to Members.
• Lead the development of Schools and SEND, whilst ensuring that the Council meets its legal and statutory obligations for young people and their achievements.
• Commission strategies to work with schools and other associated bodies to influence and inform the level of school performance and pupil attainment.

3. List key duties and accountabilities of the post

Leadership

• To contribute towards the corporate management and leadership of the Council as a member of the Senior Leadership Team, actively understanding the challenges and proactively and effectively support colleagues in ensuring policy objectives are achieved and services planned, commissioned, and delivered in an effective and efficient way.
• To ensure delivery of budget priorities and the effective use of the Council’s resources.
• To lead on areas of activity, policy and organisational development as required.
• Contribution to a high-performance culture by providing strong and motivational leadership to drive continuous improvement and efficiency savings.
• To develop a culture of collaborative working relationships with partners and communities to ensure the effective delivery of services and management of resources.

Strategic

• To support the strategic leadership of the Council’s financial position, in collaboration with the Director and other Senior Leadership Team colleagues.
• To proactively engage in the interface between elected Members and Officers; taking a leading role in relation to policy co-ordination and performance management; assist and advise Elected Members and work closely with the relevant Portfolio holders.
• Support strategic leadership of the Directorate, ensuring that the development, design and delivery of services reflects evolving delivery models and supports the delivery of efficiency savings and high quality, customer focussed services.
• To assist the Director in ensuring that appropriate governance, programme management and stewardship for delivery of services is embedded within the Directorate.
• Ensure partnerships are created, developed, and maintained across Torbay, regionally and nationally in order to generate resources and opportunities.
• Build a cohesive management team that supports and delivers the Council’s Community and Corporate Plan.

Service

• Provide clear leadership and management direction to achieve the efficient and effective operational delivery within services in the Divisional Directorate.
• Provide guidance and support to Elected Members to help them translate their political priorities into initiatives that deliver the intended outcomes for residents.
• Deliver on the service plan, ensuring that it underpins and supports the achievement of the Community and Corporate Plan, with appropriate governance procedures, clear objectives, and performance monitoring.
• Support the Director to deliver excellent client, management, and contract oversight of all external service providers, ensuring delivery standards are met.
• Actively engage with the community – individuals, community groups, businesses, and public sector partners as required.
• As an Employee of Torbay Council all roles are expected to work in a way that ensures vulnerable children and adults are safeguarded and report any safeguarding concerns in accordance with established policies and procedures. The Designated Senior Lead for Safeguarding is the Chief Executive and Director of Children’s Services.

4. Budgetary/Financial Responsibilities of the post

• Management of a budget totalling £10m

5. Supervision/Line Management Responsibilities of the post

• Postholder will directly line manage the Head of the Virtual School, the Head of Inclusion and SEND and the School Services Manager.
• The Postholder will have overall responsibility for all staff in these services.

6. Working environment and conditions of the post

• Office based with flexibility for homeworking on a hybrid basis
• Occasional weekend and evening work is required

7. Physical demands of the post

• Normal physical demands

8. Specific resources used by the post

• Laptop, Mobile Phone, iPad or similar

9. Key contacts and relationships

External

Ofsted, Department for Education, Regional Schools Commissioners, NHS, 0-19 Partnership, Torbay Safeguarding Children’s Partnership Central Government, other Local Authorities, other public sector organisations, the Council’s auditors, private and voluntary organisations and employers, community and voluntary sector

Internal

Chief Executive / Senior Leadership Team, Leader of the Council and Executive Members, other senior staff across the Council, Trades Unions, employees at all levels across the Council.

10. Other duties

• To undertake additional duties as required, commensurate with the level of the job.

Other Information

N/A

Person Specification

Note for Candidate

All Candidates

The supporting statement on your application form will be used to assess ability to meet the essential requirements of the role, so you should explain how you meet each of the numbered essential requirements within your supporting statement. In a competitive situation, the desirable criteria may be taken into consideration, so you are encouraged to show how you also meet each of the desirable criteria.

Candidates who consider that they have a disability

Reasonable adjustments will be made to the job, job requirements or recruitment process for candidates with a disability.

If you consider yourself to have a disability you should indicate this on your application form, providing any information you would like us to take into account with regard to your disability in order to offer a fair selection interview.

Where ever possible and reasonable we will make adjustments and offer alternatives to help you through the application and selection process.

If you have indicated that you have a disability on your application form you will be guaranteed an interview if you clearly demonstrate in your supporting evidence how you broadly meet the essential requirements of the role.

Job info	Job info details
Job Title	Divisional Director - Education and SEND
Strategic team/Directorate	Children’s Services
Service	Education and SEND
Business unit	Education and SEND

Skills and effectiveness

Essential skills and effectiveness

• Excellent leadership skills, able to provide clarity to teams on the vision and purpose of their work.
• Ability to promote and ensure the delivery of high standards of Education for school aged children of the Bay.
• Ability to ensure all statutory responsibilities are met by the Local Authority for children as citizens of Torbay.
• Ability to provide strategic leadership, advice and support to other Educational providers and leaders across the Bay.
• Excellent analytical skills with the ability to interpret and deploy complex data and translate complex information.
• Strong track record of building and nurturing productive working relationships, able to influence at the most senior levels both inside and outside the Council.
• Ability to provide insight and strategic understanding around the current and future landscape of Education Services.
• Ability to show strong financial management.
• Highly effective communication skills, able to influence others with impact and professional credibility.
• Ability to work with and manage demands of elected members and their priorities.
• Ability to deliver creative and innovative solutions to improve the use of resources and achieve value for money across the Directorate.
• As this post meets the requirements of the Immigration Act 2016 (part 7), the ability to converse at ease with members of the public and provide advice in accurate spoken English is essential for the post

Desirable skills and effectiveness

• Experience of working in a similar role in the public sector.
• Experience of working with Elected Members and of dealing with politically sensitive issues

Knowledge

Essential knowledge

• Extensive knowledge and understanding of the current Education landscape including SEND and all other statutory functions provided by the Local Authority.
• Proven competent working knowledge of School leadership / Inspection Frameworks and ability to advise Schools and Academies appropriately.
• Competence and confidence in working with elected members and regulators.
• Knowledge and understanding of schools and how teaching, learning, curriculum, leadership, management and governance contribute to overall effectiveness and establish a positive climate for improvement.
• Knowledge of keys factors, influences and legislation facing education establishments and local government.
• Good knowledge of project, change and performance management.

Desirable knowledge

N/A

Experience and achievements

Essential experience and achievements

• Significant experience of working within or with the Education sector at a senior level.
• Experience of managing and improving service delivery within a complex work environment.
• Experience of building high performing teams and providing inspirational leadership to teams, driving a high performance culture.
• Highly motivated senior leader, able to act as a role model to team members and peers.
• An inspiring leader, able to engage team members to deliver exceptional performance in a challenging environment.
• Significant experience of working with partners and communities for the benefit of the Service and wider Council.
• Adaptable and flexible to meet a variety of challenges.
• Innovative, change champion, who is happy to challenge the status quo.
• A passionate role model of the values of the Council.
• Experience of managing budgets

Desirable experience and achievements

N/A

Qualifications/professional memberships

Essential qualifications/professional memberships

• A relevant qualification to degree level (or equivalent).
• Commitment to continued personal and professional development.

Desirable qualifications/professional memberships

• Project Management
• Professional management qualification

Other requirements

Other requirements of the job role

• Demonstrates a commitment to safeguard and promote the welfare of children and young people
• Ability to travel efficiently around the Bay/South West/UK in order to carry out duties
• Ability to accommodate unsociable hours
• Ability to accommodate on-call working
• Ability to accommodate occasional home-working