Principal & Chief Executive Officer

Salary:                        Pay points 1 to 5 of the GC Principal pay scale - £129,750.00 to £147,600.00 per annum

On behalf of the Board of Governors, thank you for your interest in applying for the position of Principal and Chief Executive Officer of Greenhead College.

Greenhead College is located on an attractive campus close to Huddersfield town centre, adjacent to the picturesque Greenhead Park. The College is a short drive from the M62 and within walking distance of the train and bus station, an easy commute from much of the Northwest and Yorkshire.

The College has been providing the highest quality academic Sixth Form College education in the area for 50 years. According to Government performance tables, Greenhead is currently one of the best performing Sixth Form Colleges nationally and is heavily oversubscribed.

Approximately 2600 students attend the College studying predominantly A Level courses across 35 subjects, and the College has ambition to grow to at least 2800 students by 2025-26. The academic structure of the College is based on Heads of Curriculum who are subject specialists. The College also maintains a unique tutorial system, with all Personal Tutors being fully qualified teachers, highly experienced in pastoral care, careers guidance and trained in Mental Health First Aid. Students are also offered numerous extra-curricular enrichment activities and a comprehensive programme of projects and work placement opportunities as part of our ‘Step Into Your Future’ scheme.

At Greenhead, we are very proud of our students’ achievements, and we have a strong ethos of ambition and aspiration which runs through all aspects of College life. The purpose of the College is ‘to be exceptional’. The College has excellent progression rates to higher education, including a substantial percentage of entrants to Russell Group Universities.

In March 2022, the College was once again graded ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted, with no areas of weakness identified. This is testament to the resilience, ambition and success of our students, and the hard work of staff.

The College has an annual income in excess of £16.5 million. Like most similar educational establishments, Greenhead has, in recent years, faced funding pressures and increasing costs. However, the College maintains and forecasts ‘Outstanding’ financial health, which is a demonstration of the strong ethos of ambition and aspiration which runs through all aspects of our work.

The College employs 275 staff and is a great place to work, with a warm, inclusive atmosphere. Our staff are recognised for their hard work and are encouraged to inspire each another, and to develop and grow. We are proud to have a strong and able College Leadership Team, and a highly experienced Board, who work collaboratively to deliver the College’s purpose and principles, and strategic objectives.

This is an exciting time to be joining Greenhead College. We were one of only 50 schools and colleges nationally to be granted multi-million-pound funding to build a new four-storey science block, which opened in November 2023. Further building work is ongoing, and the College has ambitious plans for future growth.

Building on the work of the current Principal, Simon Lett, we are seeking someone with outstanding drive, commitment and enthusiasm to lead our College in the next phase of its development. The ideal candidate will be a senior leader in a Sixth Form College, a General Further Education College with a good understanding of 16-18 education, or a school with a significant Sixth Form. The role is broad enough in scope to offer excellent career satisfaction to an existing Principal or Head seeking a fresh challenge, whilst our existing structures and leadership team will ensure that a successful and motivated Deputy Principal or Deputy Head would also be capable of achieving great things in the College.

The full job description and person specification can be found on the Greenhead College website.

Applicants should complete and submit the following documents:

·        Complete the College’s application form or TES application form.

·        Equality and Diversity form.

·        Write a supporting letter of application.

All applications should be submitted to email address jobs@greenhead.ac.uk

The closing date for applications is Wednesday, 15 May 2024 and interviews will be held on Thursday, 23 May 2024.

If you would like further information regarding the role, please contact Jessica Norcliffe, our Director of Human Resources, via email jnorcliffe@greenhead.ac.uk. She will be happy to answer your queries, arrange an informal visit and provide further information about the College and role.

Greenhead College is committed to safeguarding the welfare of all of its students and staff. The successful candidate will have to meet the requirements of the person specification in order to be offered the post and will be subject to safer recruitment checks, including an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references. This position is working in regulated activity and therefore exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Applicants will be required to self-disclose particular criminal convictions should they be shortlisted for interview. Further details can be found within the DBS filtering guide at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dbs-filtering-guidance

Greenhead College is committed to Diversity and Inclusion and welcomes applications from all sections of the community.