Marketing & Admissions Director in Northampton

We’re looking for someone exceptional to join our Senior Leadership Team and take ownership of how Dancebox grows.

About Dancebox: Dancebox Studios & Theatre Works is one of the UK’s most exciting and forward-thinking professional training providers, preparing performers for careers across cruise, cabaret, musical theatre, music tours, film, and TV. We don’t follow the industry. We’re building something different — and growing fast.

The Role: You’ll lead our marketing, recruitment, and admissions strategy — but more importantly, you’ll own the outcome.

• More applications
• Stronger conversion
• Bigger, better cohorts
• Real growth

You’ll work directly with senior leadership to scale the business and play a key role in shaping what Dancebox becomes over the next 3–5 years.

The Opportunity: £35k base salary, significant performance-based bonuses, realistic OTE £70k+ (with scope for more).

This is a role where:

• High performance = high reward
• Results are recognised and paid for
• The right person can grow the role and their earnings quickly

Who This Is For: We are not looking for someone who just wants a job. We want someone who:

• Is commercially driven and thrives on hitting targets
• Loves building, improving, and scaling systems
• Takes ownership and responsibility for outcomes
• Wants to be part of a fast-growing, ambitious business
• Is motivated by performance, progression, and earning potential

Why This Role Is Different: You’ll be part of a genuinely ambitious leadership team. You’ll have real autonomy and influence. You’ll see the direct impact of your work. You’ll be rewarded for delivering growth — not just activity.

Role Purpose: The Marketing & Admissions Director is a senior leadership role responsible for the strategic direction, performance, and growth of Dancebox’s marketing, student recruitment, and admissions function. As a member of the Senior Management Team, the postholder will hold direct accountability for delivering student recruitment targets, alongside overseeing brand development, lead generation, applicant conversion, and enrolment outcomes across all programmes.

Key Responsibilities:

• Lead and deliver the overall marketing, admissions, and student recruitment strategy for Dancebox.
• Take ownership of annual student recruitment targets and the strategic planning required to achieve them.
• Contribute to wider organisational growth strategy as a member of the Senior Management Team.
• Ensure all recruitment activity is aligned with commercial objectives, capacity planning, and long-term growth targets.
• Drive a fully integrated approach across brand, marketing, lead generation, applicant management, outreach, and conversion.

Brand & Marketing Performance:

• Hold overall responsibility for the consistency, quality, and ongoing development of the Dancebox brand.
• Oversee all marketing channels including digital campaigns, social media, content, and audience engagement.
• Ensure marketing activity is not only creative and on-brand, but performance-driven and conversion-focused.
• Monitor campaign effectiveness, lead generation, and return on investment, using data to continuously improve performance.
• Ensure all external communications accurately reflect the organisation’s positioning and attract the right calibre of applicant.

Student Recruitment & Admissions Performance:

• Hold full accountability for recruitment outcomes across the entire applicant journey, from initial enquiry through to enrolment and start.
• Oversee admissions strategy and conversion performance, ensuring strong applicant engagement and effective follow-up processes.
• Monitor and drive performance across key metrics including enquiries, applications, audition attendance, offers, and enrolments.
• Identify and address gaps in the recruitment funnel, implementing strategies to improve conversion and overall yield.
• Ensure recruitment activity delivers both volume and quality of students, aligned with programme standards and retention expectations.

Outreach, Events & External Engagement:

• Provide strategic oversight of outreach activity, recruitment events, and external partnerships.
• Ensure these activities support both brand visibility and measurable recruitment outcomes.
• Oversee the planning and effectiveness of audition events, open days, and external engagement activity.
• Ensure strong alignment between outreach, marketing campaigns, and admissions conversion strategy.

Leadership & Team Management:

• Lead and manage the Admissions Manager, Performances, Outreach & Events Manager, and social/marketing team.
• Set clear objectives and performance expectations aligned to recruitment targets.
• Foster a culture of accountability, ownership, responsiveness, and continuous improvement.
• Ensure all team activity is aligned with strategic priorities and delivers against agreed outcomes.

Data, Reporting & Performance Management:

• Take a data-led approach to decision making across marketing and recruitment activity.
• Monitor and report on performance against key metrics, including lead generation, conversion rates, enrolment numbers, and overall recruitment targets.
• Provide regular updates to senior leadership on progress against targets, risks, and opportunities.
• Use insight and analysis to inform forecasting, planning, and continuous optimisation of the recruitment strategy.

Person Specification:

• Significant experience in a senior marketing, recruitment, admissions, or growth-focused leadership role.
• Proven track record of delivering measurable growth and improving recruitment or commercial performance.
• Strong understanding of marketing funnels, lead generation, conversion strategy, and customer journey management.
• Experience leading and managing teams to deliver against clear performance targets.
• Highly commercially aware, with the ability to balance brand, creativity, and results.
• Strong analytical skills and confidence working with data to drive decision making.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and organisational skills.

• Experience in education, training, or the performing arts sector.
• Experience marketing to post-16 and post-18 audiences.
• Understanding of the vocational training or performing arts education landscape.

• Strategic and commercially driven
• Results-focused with strong accountability
• Confident leadership presence
• Highly organised and performance-oriented
• Brand-conscious and detail-driven
• Proactive, analytical, and solutions-focused