Director of Secondary Education in Croydon

St Oscar Romero Catholic Academy Trust is recruiting for a Director of Secondary Education.

Contract Length: Permanent

Salary Range: Highly competitive + benefits

Location: Flexible. The nature of work will largely involve the postholder carrying out work at different schools within the Trust. There is also a Head office at Shirley Court, Croydon, CR9 5AS.

Accountable to: Chief Executive Officer

We are looking for an exceptional individual to join the Central Services team at St Oscar Romero Catholic Academy Trust, as our Director of Secondary Education. We currently have four Secondary schools and twelve Primary schools. We are a growing Trust and are supported by the Archdiocese of Southwark to grow to thirty-five schools over the next three to five years. This is a demanding role in a positive environment where we expect the very best from everyone in our team. Our Catholic Ethos and Mission is at the heart of everything we do and we expect candidates to share and embrace those values.

The ideal candidate will:

• Have extensive experience of working as part of a secondary school senior leadership team, including at Headteacher level.
• Be able to demonstrate recent success at leading school improvement and raising education standards for children.
• Possess the ability to inspire, empower and challenge staff to lead the next stage of a school’s journey.
• Be an excellent written and verbal communicator.
• Align to the mission, vision and values of St Oscar Romero and the Diocese.

In return we offer:

• The opportunity to work within a highly skilled and supportive team.
• A commitment to continue with national pay, terms and conditions.
• Access to the generous Teachers Pension or Local Government Pension Scheme.
• Staff benefits, including a cycle to work scheme.
• Opportunities for personal and professional growth and access to our Training Portal.
• The opportunity to join a growing Trust.

Closing date: 9:00am Thursday 14th May 2026.

Interview date: Wednesday 20th May 2026.

Start date: September 2026.

Responsible for: Secondary standards, Secondary school improvement and key performance secondary outcomes. The successful candidate would be responsible for a significant additional area, for example professional development pathways across the Trust.

Job Description: As a member of the Trust’s Executive Team, the Director of Secondary Education is a strategic leadership role, responsible for driving excellence in teaching, learning, and academic outcomes across Secondary schools within the Trust and working alongside the Directors of Primary. The successful candidate would also be responsible for leading on a key area for the Trust, for example professional development pathways across the Trust.

Main Purpose:

• Uphold, develop, and promote the Trust’s mission, vision, and values.
• Contribute towards the development and delivery of the Trust’s five‑year strategic plan, self‑evaluation and development plan.
• Produce reports for the CEO, Trust Board, and external partners on the quality of education and the impact of school improvement activity and contribute toward policy updates and newsletters.
• Ensure effective and timely delivery of Trust‑wide projects to ensure the best possible outcomes for all children.
• Develop, deliver and promote the positive reputation of the Trust and contribute towards broader system leadership support beyond the Trust.
• Develop and deliver policies and guidance in line with Trust and statutory requirements and ensure consistent implementation and application across all schools.
• Apply knowledge of statutory and regulatory compliance to ensure compliance across all schools.
• Take strategic responsibility for Trust‑wide areas as allocated by the Chief Executive Officer.
• Provide advice and guidance to school leaders on safeguarding.
• Support with the planning, organisation and facilitation of high‑quality professional development opportunities, networks and programmes for Trust staff.

Providing strategic leadership for the Trust secondary schools:

• Working with the Chief Executive Officer to deliver a long‑term Trust Secondary Strategy.
• Working with the Chief Executive Officer to challenge and support secondary school leaders to deliver outstanding Catholic Education for all.
• Support with the planning, organisation and facilitation of high‑quality professional development opportunities, networks and programmes for Trust staff.
• Support the Chief Executive Officer and secondary Headteachers in setting and achieving challenging school performance targets and other key performance indicators.
• Support the Chief Executive Officer and secondary Headteachers with all secondary scrutiny processes and self‑evaluation work.
• Work with the Chief Education Officer and secondary Headteachers to ensure consistency of approach and overall effectiveness of the Trust.
• Be a line manager for secondary Headteachers.
• Develop and deliver the Trust’s secondary school improvement strategy, action plan and framework; in coordination with the Chief Executive Officer and Headteachers.
• Support the Trust’s strategic approach and ensure statutory compliance across all secondary schools.
• Work with secondary schools Headteachers and school leaders to ensure effective delivery of school improvement.

Lead on strategic oversight of accountability, scrutiny, and quality assurance processes for the Trust secondary schools:

• Manage the approach with an understanding of the demands experienced by school leaders and the need to provide effective monitoring, accurate judgments and robust accountability.
• Support the Chief Executive Officer with all secondary scrutiny processes, e.g. academic outcomes and safeguarding.
• Support the Chief Executive Officer with secondary quality assurance processes, e.g. internal and external reviews.
• Provide performance reports to the Standards Committee of the Trust Board as required, including schools’ progress to targets and prompts for school improvement throughout the academic year.
• Monitor and report on key data such as attendance, persistent absentees, suspensions, permanent exclusions, self‑evaluation and pupil characteristics updates to inform strategy.

Safeguarding Children:

The Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. We expect all staff to share this commitment and to undergo appropriate checks, including enhanced DBS checks. We also expect full compliance with all statutory policies and procedures on safeguarding and child protection.

Confidentiality:

All staff are expected to maintain confidentiality in line with Trust policies and protocols. Staff are also expected to maintain statutory responsibilities such as Data Protection and Freedom of Information.

General:

The above responsibilities are subject to the general duties and responsibilities contained in the Statement of Conditions of Employment. Duties of this post may vary from time to time without changing the general character of the post or level of responsibility entailed. Any other duties reasonably assigned and regarded as within the responsibilities of the post are permitted, with any permanent changes incorporated into the job description. The post holder will be expected to have an agreed flexible working pattern to ensure all relevant functions are fulfilled through direct dialogue with the CEO and Directors.

How to apply:

The deadline for receipt of applications is 9:00am on Thursday 14th May 2026. If you would like to arrange a telephone appointment to discuss the role, please contact Sarah Yusuf‑Watson by email at syusufwatson@oscarromero.co.uk. Applicants should complete the Catholic Education Service Leadership form, available in supporting documents. Please use the personal statement in your application form to demonstrate how you meet the person specification, with evidence provided wherever possible of outcomes and positive impact. Candidates will be shortlisted on how well they demonstrate the knowledge, skills and attributes set out in the job description and person specification. Completed forms should be submitted by email. Should you have any queries please contact HR on 0207 202 8199. Shortlisted candidates will be invited to interview on Wednesday 20th May 2026. The interview process will consist of a series of job‑related exercises designed to give candidates the opportunity to demonstrate the key attitudes, skills and knowledge required for the role. Shortlisted candidates will be fully briefed at the beginning of the process and supported throughout the day.

Safeguarding: Appointment to this post will be subject to satisfactory shortlisting and pre‑employment checks, including an Enhanced DBS check. We are unable to accept CVs for this role; please complete the attached application form.