Head of Product Design

Explore Learning is a leading educational organisation that is committed to making learning enjoyable and effective for children, and supporting families and schools as true partners. With our network of learning centres across the country and our online tutor offering, we help thousands of children develop their skills and reach their full potential.

We’re looking for a Head of Product Design to own how our products look, feel, and work - end to end, from the first messy idea through discovery and design to the final assets shipped alongside engineers. This is a senior, hands-on role: you’ll set the direction and hold the bar for craft, and you’ll be in the work yourself - shaping flows, building the design system, and creating the things that children, parents, teachers, and schools actually use. You’ll lead a product designer and bring in additional designers as work demands.

We’re building impactful, industry-leading products that serve families and schools with consistent experiences. We’re looking for a design leader who’s genuinely excited by that, who has a point of view on what product design becomes in an AI-enabled company, and who is already experimenting rather than waiting to find out.

The Role

• Own product design end to end - discovery, concept, interaction, visual design, and the final production-ready assets to build with engineers.
• Partner closely with product owners and front-end engineers (web and mobile), from problem definition through to shipped, polished implementation.
• Set and hold the bar high for design craft and quality across everything we ship.
• Continuously evolve our design system so design and engineering move fast without losing consistency.
• Design for multiple audiences across our platforms - children as learners, parents, teachers, and school administrators.
• Lead and grow designers.
• Ground decisions in user research, feedback, and product data rather than opinion - run or commission research, test, and iterate.
• Champion accessibility and inclusive design, with real care to design well for children.
• Be curious and bring AI into the design process - helping define how we use it well and responsibly across the entire workflow.
• Connect design to outcomes - adoption, activation, engagement, and learner results - not just outputs.
• Act as a leader for the whole business: spot opportunities beyond your immediate remit and pick them up.

Must-haves

• A strong portfolio of end-to-end product design - not just polished screens, but the thinking, discovery, and shipped outcomes behind them.
• Proven ability to own the big-picture design direction and do the hands-on creation yourself.
• A collaborative approach with experience working directly with front-end engineers and product owners across both mobile and web, through to implementation.
• Demonstrable craft, taste, passion and obsessive attention to detail.
• A genuinely user-led approach - you prioritise evidence and user needs over design ego.
• Mastery of modern design tooling (e.g. Figma) and experience building and maintaining design systems.
• Active, hands-on use of AI in your work, and a clear point of view on where product design is heading within the end-to-end workflow.
• Create clarity through your communication so your design thinking lands with different stakeholders.
• The confidence and initiative to lead beyond your remit and put your hand up.

Nice-to-haves

• Experience designing for children, or in EdTech / consumer products used by families.
• Accessibility expertise (WCAG) and a track record of inclusive design.
• Experience designing for multiple personas or multi-sided platforms.
• Comfort in front-end code (HTML/CSS, React) for prototyping and closer collaboration with engineers.

You’ll thrive here if you

• Care about the user more than your own opinion.
• Sweat the details other people miss.
• Want to own outcomes, not hand off screens.
• Get excited about delivering meaningful outcomes with real purpose.
• Are genuinely curious about AI and already playing with it.
• Lead because you can’t help yourself - not because a title told you to.

Logistics

• Location: Remote, UK based - with travel for user testing and occasional time with the team.
• Job Type: Full time, permanent contract.
• Salary: Negotiable based on experience.
• Start date: ASAP.

Please note: Proof of eligibility to work in the UK will be required. Unfortunately we are not able to offer any form of sponsorship.

Additional Perks:

• Enjoy 22 flexible annual leave days (pro rata) + bank holidays + 4 gifted days when centres are closed at Christmas.
• You’ll have an additional 3 paid days you can take for a personal or religious celebration, wellbeing or a volunteer day.
• You’ll also receive additional holiday time based on your length of service.
• Benefit from staff discounts including gym memberships and sportswear, free 16-25 or 26-30 railcard, free counselling services, access to My Possible Self (a wellbeing app), a cycle to work scheme, and a discounted Tastecard.
• An additional length of service reward will give you access to private health insurance with Vitality.
• We offer fully subsidised tuition for the children of all salaried staff and 50% off Explore Learning membership fees for all immediate relations of staff members.
• Take advantage of our referral bonus offering, payroll giving scheme, enhanced parental leave, and pension options.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff to share this commitment. Safeguarding is paramount. Our safer recruitment processes are rigorous and designed to deter, identify and reject anyone who may pose a risk to children. Any offer is strictly conditional upon satisfactory references (taken directly from referees) and an Enhanced DBS check. You must provide a full employment history with all gaps clearly explained and evidenced where required. Any omission, inconsistency or misleading information may result in your application being rejected, an offer withdrawn, or dismissal. This role is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (and relevant Exceptions Orders). Relevant disclosures will be required in line with DBS and safer recruitment requirements.