Curriculum Development Manager

Havering Adult College – London Borough of Havering

Indicative salary range reflecting the 3.3% pay award; updated Council pay scales are awaiting publication.

36 hours per week | Full time

24-month fixed-term contract, with strong potential to become permanent

Post Number: 104764

Primarily based at Upminster Creative Centre, with hybrid working and travel across College and community venues

About Havering Adult College

Havering Adult College is an ambitious, forward-thinking adult learning service delivering education and skills opportunities for adults across the borough.

Our mission is to deliver transformative, high-quality adult education that enables individuals to gain essential skills, achieve personal and professional goals and contribute to a thriving and inclusive society.

We are now looking for an exceptional Curriculum Development Manager to lead the development of some of the College's most exciting areas of future growth.

The opportunity

This is not a traditional curriculum-management role focused simply on maintaining an existing programme. We are looking for an entrepreneurial curriculum leader who enjoys building things.

You will take ownership of a portfolio that combines established provision with significant opportunities for growth and innovation:

• Arts & Crafts
• Languages, including British Sign Language
• The College's new discrete SEND provision

You will be expected to understand your markets, identify opportunities, develop high-quality curriculum, build partnerships, grow learner participation and create financially sustainable provision.

This means developing new courses from the ground up as well as challenging, improving and expanding established programmes. You will work with employers, communities, partners and colleagues across the Council to identify unmet need and turn good ideas into viable learning opportunities.

The College's strategy supports an increasingly agile approach to curriculum development, including new priority-sector programmes, flexible and stackable pathways and stronger employer involvement in curriculum design. It also recognises the importance of diversifying income through grants, partnerships and co-investment.

What you will be responsible for

• You will have significant delegated responsibility for the quality, growth, performance and financial sustainability of your curriculum portfolio.
• Your responsibilities will include developing an ambitious curriculum plan aligned to the Adult Learning Strategy; identifying and launching new accredited, Tailored Learning and fee-paying provision; setting and achieving learner recruitment, participation, quality and financial targets; and ensuring courses remain relevant, viable and responsive to learner and stakeholder need.
• You will line manage Specialist Teacher/Assessors and sessional teachers, developing a high-performing teaching workforce and ensuring consistently high standards of teaching, learning and assessment.
• You will use data confidently to understand performance and take action. This will include enrolment, attendance, retention, achievement, learner experience, progression, curriculum viability and financial performance. Curriculum Development Managers are expected to own their performance position, intervene where required and provide evidence-led forecasts and recommendations rather than simply report problems.

A major part of the role will also involve identifying opportunities to bring additional resources into the College. You will be expected to develop relationships and propositions capable of generating grant funding, commissioned activity, employer investment, partnership funding and sustainable fee income.

The successful candidate will have an important role in developing the College's new discrete SEND curriculum offer.

Direct experience of SEND curriculum development or delivery is therefore particularly advantageous and will be weighted strongly within the desirable criteria.

However, we recognise that the strongest candidate may not already be a specialist practitioner across every curriculum area within this varied portfolio. What matters most is your ability to identify need, build high-quality provision, recruit and develop the right expertise and turn strategic priorities into successful curriculum.

You must be willing to undertake additional specialist qualifications or professional development where these are identified as necessary to assure high-quality provision, particularly in relation to SEND.

About You

We are looking for someone with extensive curriculum development experience and clear evidence that they can turn ideas into successful, sustainable provision.

You will need to demonstrate a strong track record of:

• Developing and growing curriculum provision rather than simply maintaining established programmes.
• Successfully achieving quality, curriculum and financial KPIs.
• Leading and developing teaching staff.
• Using performance, financial and market information to make effective decisions.
• Identifying new learner or customer demand and translating it into viable programmes.
• Building productive relationships with employers, community organisations and other stakeholders.
• Managing budgets and understanding the financial viability of curriculum provision.
• Improving underperforming provision and taking decisive action where targets are not being achieved.
• Managing multiple priorities with a high level of autonomy, drive and personal accountability.

You will be entrepreneurial, commercially aware and highly motivated by growth and improvement, while understanding that innovation within a local-authority education service must be evidence-led, financially responsible and operate within appropriate governance and quality requirements.

Experience in Creative Industries, Arts & Crafts, Languages/BSL or SEND would be advantageous. SEND experience will be particularly valuable, but specialist subject experience alone will not outweigh the ability to successfully develop curriculum, people, partnerships and income.

Qualifications

In line with the existing Job Profile, applicants must hold:

• A relevant subject-specific full Level 4 or Level 5 qualification, as dictated by national standards.
• A recognised teaching qualification at a minimum of Level 4.
• Level 2 or equivalent literacy and numeracy.

An Internal Verification/Internal Quality Assurance qualification is desirable.

Where further specialist qualifications are subsequently identified as necessary for elements of the candidate's portfolio, the successful postholder will be expected to undertake the appropriate professional development.

Building something sustainable

This is initially a 24-month fixed-term appointment, but there is a strong prospect of the role continuing beyond the fixed term and potentially becoming a permanent position.

Continuation will be subject to future funding, organisational and service requirements, satisfactory performance and the relevant Council approval processes.

A major objective during the 24-month period will therefore be for the successful candidate to strengthen the long-term sustainability of their portfolio and the post itself. This will include:

• Growing participation and provision in their curriculum areas;
• Developing Creative Industries in line with the Adult Learning Strategy;
• Successfully establishing and growing the College's discrete SEND offer;
• Maintaining strong quality and learner outcomes;
• Achieving agreed curriculum and financial KPIs;
• Developing sustainable fee-paying and commercially viable provision; and
• Securing additional income through grants, commissioned activity, partnerships and other external funding opportunities.

The College's strategic direction is explicitly towards more responsive provision, stronger partnerships, employment-relevant learning and diversified funding, so the postholder will have considerable opportunity to directly influence the future shape and sustainability of their portfolio.

Working arrangements

The post will be primarily based at the Upminster Creative Centre, reflecting responsibility for the College's growing Creative Industries provision.

Havering Adult College supports flexible and hybrid working, although this is a leadership role and regular on-site presence will be required. You will also need to visit other College centres, community delivery locations, partners and external meetings across Havering and occasionally beyond.

Given the regular travel required, a full driving licence and access to a car, or suitable alternative travel arrangements, will be necessary.

Some occasional evening or weekend working may be required to support College events, curriculum delivery or other service requirements.

This is an unusual opportunity to take genuine ownership of a varied curriculum portfolio at a point when Havering Adult College is actively investing in growth, innovation and new models of adult learning.

Rather than inheriting a fixed programme and simply keeping it running, you will have permission and expectation to build: new courses, new markets, new partnerships, new income streams and a new SEND offer.

You will work as part of the College's management team but will have substantial autonomy within your own curriculum areas, alongside access to Specialist Teacher/Assessors, sessional teachers, quality, marketing, MIS and operational support.

For someone who enjoys developing provision and seeing measurable results from their work, there is significant scope to make the portfolio their own.

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Bradley Burton, Quality & Curriculum Manager at bradley.burton@havering.gov.uk

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