The Head of Governance will report into Director of Governance and Risk. This role is currently operating an agile working policy with two core days (Weds and Thurs) in the office (Occasional travel to Ark schools, including attending LGBs, in London, Birmingham, Portsmouth and Hastings will be required).
Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, so early submissions are advised.
Ark is seeking a highly motivated and experienced governance professional to join our central team as Head of Schools Governance. This is an important and interesting role responsible for running, shaping and strengthening governance across the trust, with a particular focus on innovation, development, and specialist governance. Working closely with the Director of Governance and Risk, this role ensures the operational rigour of governance and compliance models across the trust. The role holds oversight of key governance processes—including admissions, complaints handling, and permanent exclusions—ensuring alignment with trust-wide policies and standards.
The role also includes leading the trust’s local governance structures, including LGB governor recruitment and development strategy, helping to build a diverse, skilled, and engaged governance community. The successful candidate will support the implementation of new governance models, looking at how we can make the best use of this expert and dedicated group of volunteers, and play a central role in evaluating the impact of local governance. This includes shared responsibility for governance pilots and innovation, including looking at ways we can developing stronger links between our schools and the communities they serve.
In addition, we are looking for the Head of School Governance to look at ways we can innovate, including looking at new technologies to seek ways we can increase impact and reduce the administration burden on our schools and governors, be that through virtual clerking, streamlining complaint management, AI recording of meetings focusing on actions and better time management of meetings.
Above all, the successful candidate will be motivated by providing an outstanding quality of governance support and service to schools across Ark—bringing a practical, hands-on approach and a genuine commitment to helping school leaders navigate challenges and deliver the best outcomes for their communities.
The successful candidate, while based in our central head office, will be expected to travel throughout our network, on scheduled visits and attend a number of local governing bodies throughout the year.
Key Responsibilities:
- Provide expert advice to all schools regarding admissions, exclusions
- Act as the lead for specialist governance areas, including permanent exclusions, admissions, and complaints handling, ensuring consistency and compliance across all academies
- Design and deliver a comprehensive programme of governor development, with a focus on coaching, capacity-building, and succession planning
- Provide line management to members of the governance team, as required by the structure and operational needs of school governance
- Monitor and report on governance and compliance performance, contributing to trust-wide assurance and improvement processes
- Act as a key point of contact between the central governance team and local governance bodies, with additional responsibilities for Birmingham schools
Key Requirements:
- Educated to degree level or equivalent professional experience
- Strong working knowledge of governance frameworks in education, including statutory and regulatory requirements for academy trusts
- Demonstrable understanding of school governance structures, including schemes of delegation, Articles of Association, and compliance obligations
- Proven ability to interpret and apply relevant legislation, including the Companies Act 2006, Academy Trust Handbook, and General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR)
- Right to work in the UK
- This post is subject to an enhanced DBS check