Digital Innovation Specialist, Leeds

Luminate Education Group is recruiting for a Digital Innovation Specialist to join our Digital Innovation team. Are you a passionate technologist and educator ready to shape the future of learning? This is an exciting opportunity to join our team and play a pivotal role in our digital transformation journey, helping us turn big ideas into reality.

As a Digital Innovation Specialist, you will be at the centre of our intent to keep the group at the forefront of educational technology and AI integration. You will collaborate closely with curriculum departments, SEND, and TLA teams to provide expert digital support. Your focus will be on empowering departments to effectively use digital tools (from virtual classrooms to immersive spaces) to support digital teaching, learning, and assessment for all our students and apprentices. If you are a curious, energetic individual who can "talk tech" without the jargon and is committed to an ‘Access by Default’ approach, we encourage you to apply! Join us and help develop a culture of digital curiosity across the organization.

What You Will Do:

• Lead on Training: Design and deliver dynamic training programs and resources that build staff confidence and make digital tools feel like second nature.
• Support and Guide: Mentor and coach colleagues to embed new digital practices and AI tools effectively and ethically into their teaching.
• Drive Innovation: Spot and test-drive new tech, such as immersive spaces and multimedia tools, ensuring we employ fresh thinking and evidence-based practice.
• Champion Accessibility: Act as the voice for ‘Access by Default,’ ensuring every digital tool and pedagogical practice works for everyone.
• Conduct Quality Activity: Assist in digital audits and quality assurance activities that inform and shape our group-wide digital journey.
• Maintain Professional Credibility: Deliver specialist input, such as guest lectures or workshops within your area of expertise.

About You:

• A Passion for Digital Pedagogy: A keen interest or background in how digital tools, AI, and immersive technologies can support outstanding teaching, learning, and assessment.
• A Proven Track Record: Experience in developing innovative practices and delivering high-quality learning experiences within an educational setting.
• Confident Mentoring Skills: A confident and empathetic approach to mentoring, coaching, and professional development.
• Expert Communication: The ability to talk ‘tech’ without the jargon, making complex ideas easy to grasp for everyone.

Benefits:

• Annual leave: Curriculum and Management: 44 days plus bank holidays; Curriculum support and business support: 39 days plus bank holidays.
• Pension schemes with generous employer contributions: Teachers’ Pension Scheme, Local Government Pension Scheme, People’s Pension Scheme.
• CPD opportunities: Annual staff conference plus 2 additional staff development days.
• Qualifications including PGCE, Apprenticeships, Leadership and Management courses.
• Employee wellbeing initiatives: Family Friendly Policies, discounted onsite spa (Printworks) and gym (Park Lane).
• Travel and commuting: Discounted travel available through Metro card, Northern Rail, First Bus, Arriva Bus and Cycle to work schemes.
• Flexible and hybrid working opportunities: Please speak to the recruiting manager regarding flexible opportunities as these differ between roles.

About Us:

Luminate Education Group is a collective of education providers based in Yorkshire with one clear purpose: to make a positive difference to people’s lives through genuinely transformative education and training. We offer a wide range of job vacancies across our business support functions - Finance, Human Resources, ITSS, Marketing, Communications, Executive Support, Estates and Food Services. Our large size and diverse range of member organisations means there are always exciting opportunities to progress. As an education provider, we are committed to lifelong learning and investing in our workforce, and you’ll have access to a broad variety of training and professional development designed to help you continually develop and grow.

Join us on the journey to being the best that we can collectively be for our students, apprentices, staff and our stakeholders.

Luminate Education Group consists of; Harrogate College (HC), Keighley College (KC), Leeds City College (LCC), Leeds Conservatoire (LC), University Centre Leeds, Leeds Sixth Form College and Yorkshire Centre for Training & Development.

SAFEGUARDING: At Luminate Education Group we are committed to the safeguarding and welfare of all our students including children, young people, and vulnerable adults. We expect all our staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow the Safer Recruitment requirements and best practice as set out within Keeping Children Safe in Education statutory guidance. All successful applicants will be required to complete mandatory pre-employment checks which include an enhanced DBS check, online checks and must have two satisfactory references. Please be aware that it is a criminal offence to apply for this post if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity in connection to children.

EQUALITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION: We recognise, value and champion diversity & Inclusion. As we engage with a diverse student population we want to ensure we reflect that in our staff population too. For us diversity is about building happy teams, full of people that want to learn and be inspired by each other, by our different experiences and backgrounds. It is important to us that both staff and students achieve their full potential. Diversity is important to us, but inclusion is equally, if not more important. It’s not just about having the representation but also providing the people we recruit with opportunities and valuing everyone’s contributions and perspectives.

RECRUITMENT AGENCIES: We kindly request that recruitment agencies do not forward any unsolicited CVs in relation to any of our advertised roles or speculatively. If we require support with any of our vacancies we will get in touch with agencies directly. We do not recognise submissions of unsolicited or speculative CV applications from recruitment agencies. We shall not be liable for any fee / commission in the event we employ a candidate that may have been submitted as an unsolicited/speculative application from an uninstructed recruitment agency.