Learning Delivery & Learner Experience

• Oversee online, blended, face-to-face and partner-delivered learning.
• Build and coordinate an appropriate faculty of volunteer, associate and commissioned trainers and subject-matter experts.
• Champion accessible, inclusive, and user-centred learning design.
• Develop effective arrangements for learner support, evaluation, certification, and continuing engagement.
• Ensure safeguarding considerations are embedded within learning environments, events, and delivery arrangements.

Partnerships, Accreditation & External Recognition

• Develop relationships with universities, awarding organisations, training providers, employers, professional bodies, and sector partners.
• Identify opportunities for co-designed, co-branded, endorsed, or accredited provision where this advances the Federation's objectives.
• Support the Federation's longer-term professional-institute ambitions by building a credible education and professional-development architecture.
• Represent IfS externally on safeguarding education, training, and workforce-development matters.

Commercial Development & Impact

• Work with Membership, Marketing, Fundraising and Finance colleagues to translate sector need into high-value learning offers.
• Develop sustainable pricing, commissioning, and partnership propositions.
• Use data and evaluation to assess reach, completion, satisfaction, learning transfer, and impact.
• Identify opportunities for commissioned, grant-funded, and international learning programmes.
• Ensure intellectual property, licensing and partner arrangements appropriately protect IfS.

Leadership & Culture

• Lead, develop and inspire the Federation's education and training capability.
• Establish clear standards, processes, and professional-development opportunities for those contributing to delivery.
• Work collaboratively across the organisation and build strong relationships with members and external stakeholders.
• Promote inclusion, accessibility, professional integrity and safeguarding throughout education and training.

About You

We are looking for a strategic and pragmatic leader who combines professional credibility with excellent judgement, communication, and stakeholder-management skills.

You will be comfortable operating with senior leaders and the Board while remaining sufficiently hands-on to build high-quality systems and services in a developing, volunteer-led organisation.

You will be motivated by the opportunity to strengthen safeguarding for public benefit and will understand that trust, inclusion, professional integrity, and ethical responsibility are fundamental.

Essential Experience & Skills

You will have:

• Significant senior experience in education, training, professional learning, workforce development, or qualifications.
• A proven track record of developing and delivering education or professional-learning strategies.
• Strong knowledge of curriculum design, adult learning, assessment, and quality assurance.
• Experience developing learning programmes, qualifications, or professional-development pathways.
• Experience working with senior executives and/or Boards.
• Experience managing partnerships, programmes and multiple stakeholders.
• The ability to translate complex safeguarding, policy or professional issues into clear learning and development solutions.
• Experience using evaluation and data to improve quality and impact.
• Excellent communication, facilitation, influencing, and relationship-building skills.
• A strong commitment to safeguarding, inclusion, ethical practice, and public benefit.

Desirable Experience

Experience of one or more of the following would be particularly valuable:

• Safeguarding, social care, education, health, justice, charity, or other public-service environments.
• Membership organisations, federations, or professional bodies.
• Accredited qualifications, apprenticeships, awarding organisations, or higher education.
• Digital and blended learning platforms.
• International professional learning or cross-jurisdictional safeguarding.
• Commercial training, commissioning, or grant-funded programmes.
• Professional standards, competency frameworks or continuing professional development schemes.

Personal Attributes

• Strategic — able to see beyond individual courses and understand how education and training can advance the Federation's wider mission.
• Values-led — committed to safeguarding, ethical practice, inclusion, and public benefit.
• Collaborative — able to build trust across professional disciplines and organisational boundaries.
• Pragmatic — capable of balancing ambition with quality, affordability, and operational reality.
• Quality-focused — committed to evidence, evaluation, and continuous improvement.
• Entrepreneurial — able to identify sustainable learning opportunities without compromising professional integrity.
• Decisive — able to make sound decisions in complex and developing circumstances.
• An excellent communicator — able to engage Boards, colleagues, members, learners, and external partners.

What We Offer

We offer:

• The opportunity to shape and deliver the Federation's education and training strategy.
• A visible leadership role working closely with the COO, CEO, Executive Team, and Board.
• The opportunity to influence safeguarding practice through high-quality professional learning and qualifications.
• A collaborative and purpose-driven working environment.
• Flexible working arrangements.
• Professional development and training.

Safeguarding & Safer Recruitment

The Independent Federation for Safeguarding is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and adults at risk.

All staff, volunteers and associates are expected to share this commitment. Appointment to this role will be subject to appropriate safer-recruitment procedures and pre-employment checks, which will include references and relevant criminal-record checks where applicable to the responsibilities of the post.

Equality, Diversity & Inclusion

We are committed to creating an inclusive organisation in which everyone is treated with dignity, fairness, and respect.

Apply

To apply, email your CV and a supporting statement to info@ifs-safeguarding.com by 23:59 on 4th Oct.