United Colleges Group
Governor - HR Professional
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What will you be doing?
UCG attracts students from across London and beyond. In the academic year 2025/26, we enrolled more than 3600 full-time 16-18 students, 7,000 adult learners, 250+ HE learners, and over 450 apprentices. Education is delivered through 6 sites in central and North West London. Many learners, including one-third of young learners, start at entry level or level 1 and come from vulnerable backgrounds.
We believe that one of our greatest strengths as an organisation is the diversity in every sense of our staff, students, and governors, which is reflective of our communities, and we work hard to create opportunities to ensure that those diverse voices are heard and contribute towards improving the experience of all our stakeholders.
UCG works with key partners such as Business London, West London Alliance, and Central London Forward to ensure our education and skills offer meets the needs of students, employers, and other stakeholders. We work with a wide range of employers to provide clear routes to the world of work for our students, enhance the curriculum and skills that we offer, and ensure that we meet and anticipate the needs of industry.
UCG is also in the middle of a significant property redevelopment to transform the college estate across North West London to attract the students of the future and provide the best learning environments for generations to come. A new campus is being built at Wembley, which we anticipate completing in 2028/29.
More information about United College’s Group is included in its College Plan College Strategic Plan and Accountability Agreement Accountability-Agreement-June-2026.pdf on UCG’s website.
As a Corporation Member, you will be closely involved in UCG’s development and have direct influence on its strategic direction and overall outcome. The ideal candidate will be a CIPD qualified HR Professional, have experience of leading the HR function at a senior level at a similar-sized or larger organisation. Knowledge and experience in areas such as executive remuneration, employment law, HR policies and procedures, staff engagement, organisational development, and change management would be an advantage. As would an interest and motivation in how Further Education supports the careers and life chances of adults and young people. As part of governor succession planning, it would be of benefit for the successful candidate to have experience of chairing committees as this role will include the chairing of the Governance, Search, and Remuneration Committee as well as membership of the Finance & Resources Committee.
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What are we looking for?
Collectively, individual governors contribute their professional and general skills and knowledge to the Corporation in a non-executive role to:
- Determine the educational character and mission of the College and oversee its activities
- Make effective and efficient use of the resources and safeguard assets
- Ensure the financial health of the College Group and approve the annual estimate of income and expenditure
- Approve the college’s quality strategy
- Oversee the appointment, grading, suspension, dismissal, and determination of pay and conditions of service of senior post holders
- Set the framework for the pay and conditions of service of all other staff
- Comply with the Corporation’s Code of Conduct
- Serve on appropriate Corporation committees, or other committees established as required by the Corporation for projects or other purposes
- Assist in the formulation and monitoring of the College Group’s strategic plan
- Assist in the annual self-assessment review of governance
- Attend appropriate governor training days as required
Corporation members have collective responsibility for the above, but no member has the authority to speak or act on the Board’s behalf unless specifically authorised to. Members must be free at all times to speak and act in what they believe to be the best interest of the College. They cannot be mandated by any group to express views which are not held by them personally.
Members are required to ensure that the balance of ‘oversight’ of the College and its business is seen as a positive contribution that does not interfere with the day-to-day operation and management of the College.
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As a public body, Corporation Members are required to sign an annual declaration of their interests, financial or otherwise, and to supply details of any gifts or hospitality which they may have received in connection with their role.
Governor - Person Specification
We are looking for candidates with the following skills, attributes, experience, and expertise:
Skills
- Effective communication
- The ability to absorb and analyse information
- Strategic awareness
- Objectivity and impartiality
- Scrutiny and constructive challenge
- Decision making
- Team work
Attributes
- Commitment to and an interest in education and skills training
- A willingness to contribute to public service
- Time and energy to understand and perform the role
- Access to contacts likely to assist the College in its interface with the local community and local businesses.
- Ability to contribute positively to the Corporation and its committees
What difference will you make?
Although this is a voluntary unpaid role, rewards come in the form of being an intrinsic part of the strategic thinking and decision-making, which will deliver life-changing opportunities for our young people and adults to enable them to make a significant contribution to the world of work and society.
Before you apply
Applicants should provide a copy of their CV with a covering letter setting out why they are interested in the role and what attributes they feel they can bring to it. The interviews will be with a panel of governors, and take place in Sept/October. United Colleges Group is an Equal Opportunities employer. All governors are required to complete an enhanced DBS check on appointment.
Time commitment
1-3 hours / week
The committee meetings are in the evenings, on Zoom, with the main Board meeting in person at the Paddington Campus.
The time commitment is approximately equivalent to no more than one day per month. There are no committee meetings from mid-July through to early September when the college closes for the Summer.
Deadline
31 October 2026
Opportunity reference number: 1330043
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