Chief Financial Officer

Salary: £54,734 - £57,820

Start date: March 2023

A new and exciting opportunity for the role of Chief Financial Officer has arisen to join one of the country’s leading grammar schools as a member of the Senior Leadership Team.

Wolverhampton Girls’ High School has a long and established history of providing outstanding education for girls for over 100 years. The school’s motto: Ludus Supra Praemium ( “the game before the prize”), emphasises the value of taking part as a member of the school community. We pride ourselves on our traditions, but we do not stand still, we are striving for continuous improvement. 

The school is respected as one of the best state schools in the country, regularly achieving examination results which place it at or near the top of national league tables. This success has also been recognised by Ofsted, with the school achieving four successive “Outstanding” inspections. Indeed, the school was awarded this highest rating in every category in each of the two most recent inspections. In November 2017 we were also awarded the Sunday Times West Midlands Secondary State School of the year award.

In recent years the school has seen an increase in income arising from a growth in student numbers and reached a position of a healthy balanced budget. Additional funds from the Department for Education has led to two investment projects in recent years; alongside the school’s strategic investment of its own reserves. 

As part of the school’s development and progress, WGHS are now seeking to appoint a Chief Financial Officer who has an excellent experience of financial and operational management.

The CFO role will work strategically with the Headteacher and Trustees to ensure the proper financial conduct of the school. The postholder will have a proven track record in financial management, detailed knowledge of financial practices, procedures, and regulations, having worked strategically and operationally to improve an organisation. The CFO will keep ahead of funding, compliance and legislative matters providing robust longer term strategic and budget planning that ensures the Headteacher and Trustees are able to make informed decisions. The successful candidate will have strong interpersonal skills with the demonstratable ability to motivate, influence and negotiate strategically and effectively to turn a vision into a reality. They  will also have had experience of astutely leading teams and of effectively managing change.

Opportunities like this do not come up often to work with our able and well-motivated students as part of our team of hardworking and committed staff. The role brings with it the exciting opportunity to work as a full member of the leadership team shaping the strategic direction of the school and collaborating to achieve the school’s goals.

I hope that you are excited by this post and the challenge. To find out more about how to apply for the post of CFO then please contact our recruitment partner Chris Gartner from Hays Leadership on 07595 646 645 or via email to chris.gartner@hays.com

This School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The post is subject to satisfactory references which will be required prior to interview, an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, medical check, evidence of qualifications and verification of the Right to Work in the UK. Please note police checks will also be required for time spent working outside of the UK.