Oaklands College
Head of Sport & Public Services
St Albans
£50.4k – £55.1k/yr
Posted 2 days ago
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SUMMARY OF POST
The Head of Curriculum will provide strategic and operational leadership across their designated curriculum areas, ensuring the effective delivery, quality, and performance of provision aligned to local, regional, and national skills priorities.
Working as part of the College Management Team, the postholder will drive excellence in teaching, learning, and assessment, securing strong student outcomes and progression. The role will champion continuous improvement and innovation with a clear ambition to achieve an ‘Exceeding Expectations’ Ofsted judgement and to position Oaklands College as a high-performing provider nationally in terms of quality, outcomes, and impact.
SCOPE & ACCOUNTABILITY
The postholder holds management responsibility for:
- Curriculum planning, performance, and operational delivery across their designated curriculum areas.
- Managing quality within the provision across all ages and levels, including study programmes, apprenticeships, adult, higher education, and learning for leisure.
- Teaching, learning, and assessment standards across the area.
- Student outcomes, including achievement, behavior, retention, attendance, and progression.
- Employer engagement, industry collaboration, partnerships, and work-related learning.
- Supporting quality assurance, inspection readiness, and continuous improvement.
- Digital, data, and AI-enabled curriculum practice.
- Visible leadership and effective management of staff, resources, and budgets within the remit.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Curriculum Leadership & Development
- Lead the operational planning, delivery, and continuous improvement of the designated curriculum areas.
- Translate the College’s curriculum strategy into effective operational delivery plans within the area.
- Ensure curriculum programs remain innovative, inclusive, and aligned to current industry practice, standards, and labor market intelligence.
- Develop progression pathways across all levels that support learners into employment, higher education, apprenticeships, and professional careers.
- Contribute to curriculum growth strategies and support the development of new programs aligned to emerging skills needs and industry demand.
- Ensure clear and inclusive learner journeys across all provision types.
- Maintain curriculum compliance with awarding organization and regulatory requirements.
2. Teaching, Learning, Assessment & Quality
- Undertake a teaching commitment of up to 7 hours per week, as required, to support curriculum delivery and modeling high-quality teaching, learning, and assessment practice.
- Promote clear expectations for high quality, learning, and assessment across the College.
- Work in partnership with the Quality Team to drive sustained improvements in learner progress, achievement, and outcomes.
- Ensure robust assessment practices, maintaining validity, reliability, and integrity across all programs.
- Ensure best practice and continuous professional development for curriculum staff.
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3. Inclusion, Equality & Student Experience
- Embed inclusive practice across all designated curriculum areas, ensuring equitable access, participation, and achievement.
- Identify and address barriers to learner success, particularly for disadvantaged and vulnerable students.
- Promote a positive student experience, including high standards of behavior, attendance, and engagement for all learners.
- Support the implementation of the College-wide Inclusion Strategy.
4. English, Maths & Core Skills
- Ensure delivery, quality, consistency, and impact of English, Maths, and core skills across the area.
- Promote the integration of literacy, numeracy, and digital skills within curriculum delivery to support learner success and employability.
5. Industry Engagement & Employer Partnerships
- Support employer engagement across the provision, developing and maintaining strong partnerships across relevant industries.
- Ensure curriculum content reflects industry practice, standards, and workforce needs.
- Work collaboratively with employers and Oaklands Training & Development to design and develop new programs, aligned to skills demand and commercial opportunities.
- Promote meaningful work experience, industry placements, and employer-led learning opportunities.
- Support the development of progression routes into employment and apprenticeships.
6. Performance & Quality Improvement
- Take direct accountability for the delivery and performance of curriculum provision within the area, ensuring achievement, retention, progress, and positive progression outcomes are met or exceeded.
- Identify risks and underperformance, implementing timely and effective interventions to improve student outcomes.
- Ensure the curriculum area is inspection ready, contributing to Ofsted, QAA, and internal and external quality review processes.
- Support self-assessment and quality improvement planning across all relevant areas of the provision.
7. Digital, Data & AI-Enabled Practice
- Manage the effective use of digital systems, data, and AI across the curriculum to improve quality, insight, and outcomes.
- Champion innovation in curriculum design and delivery, promoting the effective integration of digital technologies and forward-thinking approaches to enhance the student experience and outcomes.
- Model the responsible and effective use of AI within the role to enhance efficiency, ensuring ongoing awareness of developments, risks, and best-practice guidance.
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8. Resources, Finance & Sustainability
- Manage budgets within the area, ensuring effective value for money.
- Align curriculum delivery with affordability and sustainability.
- Ensure efficient deployment of staffing, timetabling, and resources.
9. Leadership & Management
- Provide visible, values-led management across campuses and curriculum areas.
- Act as duty manager on a rota basis and take part in College meet & greet activities, supporting a visible and proactive presence.
- Support talent development, succession planning, and staff performance management.
- Contribute actively to College Management Team priorities and cross-college initiatives.
- Work closely with the Assistant Principal to deliver curriculum strategy, performance targets, and improvement priorities within the area.
PERSON SPECIFICATION
Essential Criteria:
- Educated to degree level or equivalent professional qualification.
- Teaching qualification or equivalent professional recognition.
- Significant management experience within FE, sixth form, or related education environment.
- Proven management of performance, quality, and performance improvement.
- Strong understanding of Ofsted EIF and inspection requirements.
- Experience within one or more relevant sectors relating to the curriculum area.
- Experience of managing staff and resources effectively.
- Employer engagement and partnership experience.
- Ability to manage inclusively, and promote equality, diversity, and inclusion.
- Credible, values-led leader able to inspire, challenge, and hold staff to account.
- Demonstrable understanding of how to use AI tools appropriately and effectively within the role, with a commitment to keeping knowledge up to date.
Desirable Criteria:
- Experience across multiple provision types (16–19, adults, HE, or apprenticeships).
- Experience within a multi-campus or group organization.
- Experience of contributing Outstanding/Exceeding Expectations inspection outcomes.
- Experience of digital or AI-enabled transformation.
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Skills
Curriculum Planning
Strategic Leadership
Quality Assurance
Performance Management
Employer Engagement
Budget Management
Teaching & Learning
Ofsted Compliance
AI Integration
Staff Management
Student Outcome Tracking
Inclusive Practice
Digital Transformation
Partnership Development
Resource Allocation
Educational Leadership