At a Glance
- Tasks: Lead safeguarding across schools, ensuring every child is safe and statutory requirements are met.
- Company: Cheshire Academies Trust, dedicated to creating a safe educational environment.
- Benefits: Competitive salary, pension scheme, professional growth, and supportive community.
- Other info: Opportunity for career progression and a culture that values leadership.
- Why this job: Make a real difference in children's lives and shape a safer future.
- Qualifications: Experience in safeguarding leadership and strong communication skills required.
The predicted salary is between 46142 - 54495 £ per year.
Cheshire Academies Trust is seeking to appoint an experienced and compassionate Trust Safeguarding Director. This pivotal role offers the opportunity to lead safeguarding across our community of schools, ensuring that every child is safe and that statutory requirements are met consistently. The successful candidate will act as the Trust's central point of safeguarding expertise, challenge, and support for school-level Designated Safeguarding Leads. This position involves working closely with the CEO, the Safeguarding Trustee, and other executive team members to embed a culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and where staff feel confident to raise concerns.
Key Responsibilities:
- Strategic Leadership: Develop, review, and maintain the Trust's overarching safeguarding and child protection policy, ensuring alignment with KCSIE, Working Together, and local safeguarding partnership requirements across Cheshire, Wirral, and Liverpool.
- Compliance and Assurance: Conduct at least annual safeguarding audits in every Trust school, oversee the Single Central Record across all schools, and quality-assure safer recruitment practices Trust-wide.
- Training and Culture: Facilitate and lead termly DSL professional learning and supervision networks, ensuring designated safeguarding leads remain up to date with statutory guidance, emerging risks and best practice.
- Operational Support: Act as the first point of contact for complex safeguarding cases escalated by school-level DSLs, liaise with local authority children's services, police, health services, and local safeguarding partnerships, and manage support referrals to the DBS, TRA, and LADO as required. Provide professional supervision, challenge and support to DSLs and Headteachers in relation to complex safeguarding decision-making. Support schools with safeguarding aspects of Ofsted inspections, complaints, allegations management and serious safeguarding incidents.
- Governance and Reporting: Produce a termly safeguarding report for the Board of Trustees covering compliance, training completion, audit findings, and emerging themes; advise the CEO and Board on safeguarding matters; and support the named Safeguarding Trustee in their role. Lead the review and development of wider safeguarding-related policies and procedures in response to legislative and sector developments. Lead Trust safeguarding reviews and quality assurance activities, identifying strengths, areas for development and opportunities for improvement across schools. Maintain an up-to-date understanding of safeguarding legislation, emerging risks, national developments and best practice, ensuring that Trust policy and practice remain current and effective.
The Ideal Candidate Will Possess:
- A proven track record of safeguarding leadership, ideally as a Designated Safeguarding Lead or senior safeguarding professional in education, social care, or a related setting.
- A thorough understanding of child protection procedures, referral pathways, and multi-agency working, with experience ideally across more than one school or setting.
- The ability to engage, influence, and challenge individuals and teams at every level, including senior leaders.
- An absolute commitment to the safety and welfare of children, with a keen focus on our most vulnerable pupils.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to analyse data, identify trends, and produce clear written reports for governors and trustees.
- Working knowledge of KCSIE, Working Together, and relevant legislation, with the ability to translate statutory guidance into effective practice.
- Professional integrity, resilience, and sound judgement under pressure, particularly when responding to complex or sensitive cases.
- The ability to work autonomously, manage competing priorities within a part-time role, and travel flexibly across the Trust's geographical footprint.
We Offer:
- The opportunity to build an overall educational experience for pupils which is world-leading.
- A supportive, committed Trust community.
- A culture that values and nurtures leadership, professional growth and career opportunity.
- A temporary one-year contract (subject to a successful 6-month probationary period) with the expectation to continue beyond this time period.
- Annual salary progression within a national pay scale (performance-related).
- Membership of the Teacher Pension Scheme.
- An annual flu vaccination.
- Access to our ‘green schemes’ including cycle to work, electric cars and white goods.
Application Process:
Interested candidates are invited to speak to the CEO and School Improvement Director as well as tour some of our schools ahead of submitting an application on MyNewTerm. For more information and to apply: https://mynewterm.com/jobs/5455/EDV-2026-CAT-32317
Join us in shaping an ethical, courageous and innovative future at Cheshire Academies Trust. Cheshire Academies Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Appointments will be subject to an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references.
Trust Safeguarding Director Employer: Bexton Primary School Reference: OTH/26/339468 employer: Cheshire Schools
Cheshire Academies Trust is an exceptional employer, offering a supportive and nurturing work environment where safeguarding is at the heart of our mission. As a Trust Safeguarding Director, you will have the opportunity to lead and influence safeguarding practices across multiple schools, with access to professional growth and development opportunities. Our commitment to employee well-being is reflected in our culture that values leadership, alongside benefits such as annual salary progression and membership in the Teacher Pension Scheme.
StudySmarter Expert Advice🤫
We think this is how you could land Trust Safeguarding Director Employer: Bexton Primary School Reference: OTH/26/339468
✨Dive into Local Community Groups
Social work thrives on community connections, so get involved in local groups or forums specific to your interests. Whether it’s volunteering at local shelters or joining community action boards, these are great ways to boost your visibility and make direct contacts that could lead to opportunities like the one at Cheshire Schools.
✨Attend Social Work Events and Workshops
Keep an eye out for workshops, seminars, or conferences in social work. These events are fantastic for meeting professionals in the field, learning about emerging trends, and spotting job openings. Plus, you might just bump into someone from Cheshire Schools!
✨Showcase Your Passion and Expertise
Use platforms like Instagram or LinkedIn to share your journey and insights into the social work sector. Whether it’s writing about your experiences or sharing relevant articles, this helps to establish you as an engaged professional. Potential employers, like Cheshire Schools, will notice your enthusiasm!
✨Leverage Your Network
Don’t hesitate to reach out to professors, mentors, or even past colleagues who are in social work. They might have inside knowledge about openings at Cheshire Schools or be able to connect you with someone who’s hiring. Networking is key, especially in a full-time role where relationships matter.
We think you need these skills to ace Trust Safeguarding Director Employer: Bexton Primary School Reference: OTH/26/339468
Some tips for your application 🫡
Show Your Passion for Social Work:In your cover letter, let us see your passion for social work shine through! Talk about the experiences that made you want to pursue this career—whether it’s volunteering, personal experiences, or academic projects. We want to know why this field matters to you.
Emphasise Relevant Qualifications:Make sure your CV highlights any relevant qualifications, like degrees in social work or certifications like a DBS check. If you've done any workshops or training, don’t forget to include those as well. We're keen to see your commitment to your professional development!
Detail Your Experience with Clients:Since this is a hands-on field, detailing any direct experience you have with clients is crucial. Whether it's internships, volunteer roles, or previous jobs, highlight those experiences in your CV to show us you've got the practical skills necessary for the job!
Tailor Your Application to Cheshire Schools:Before hitting send, make sure to tailor your application specifically to Cheshire Schools! Research our mission and values, and refer to them in your cover letter. This shows us that you understand our work and are genuinely interested in being a part of our team!
How to prepare for a job interview at Cheshire Schools
✨Understanding the Role of Empathy
In social work, understanding and demonstrating empathy is key. Be prepared to share personal experiences or scenarios where you effectively showed compassion and support. This helps show that you genuinely care about the well-being of others, which is crucial in social work.
✨Demonstrating Knowledge of Frameworks
Familiarise yourself with the frameworks and models used in social work, such as the Strengths-Based Approach or the Ecological Perspective. Be ready to discuss how these frameworks apply to your work, especially if you can tie them into real-world examples or case studies you've encountered.
✨Showcasing Your Multi-Disciplinary Skills
In a full-time social work role, you'll often collaborate with healthcare professionals, educators, and law enforcement. Be prepared to describe your teamwork experiences and how you've effectively communicated with other disciplines to achieve the best outcomes for clients.
✨Preparing for Scenario-Based Questions
Expect questions that put you in hypothetical social work situations, such as dealing with a crisis or managing a complex case. Think through your thought process for these scenarios beforehand, considering how you'd assess the situation and what steps you'd take, as this demonstrates your critical thinking and problem-solving abilities.
