Regional Communications Officer & Clerk to Governors – Essex Region in Colchester

Location: Essex Region

Based at: Hylands School, Chelmsford, Essex. While working in the region's primary schools and hybrid working options.

Travelling: The expectation to travel to the Essex primary school in line with business requirements (Travel cost will be remunerated in line with the Trust’s travel policy).

• Heybridge Primary School, CM9 4TU
• Maldon Primary School, CM9 5DQ
• Stapleford Abbotts Primary Academy, RM4 1EJ
• Willow Brook Primary School and Nursery, CO4 0DT

Role: Part-Time, must have availability for a flexible working pattern, 39 Wk/Yr (Term Time + Inset Days)

Employer: The Kemnal Academies Trust (TKAT)

Are you ready to embrace a dual role where your expertise in communication directly impacts the success and reputation of a leading educational trust, while your administrative excellence ensures critical strategic governance runs seamlessly? We are seeking a highly motivated and experienced professional to join our team in the Essex region. This unique, part-time position combines two critical functions: promoting the professional image of our academies in the public domain and providing indispensable procedural guidance to our Local Governing Bodies.

The Opportunity: Expert Communications & Culture Champion

Communication has a powerful impact on our sense of identity, meaning and connection. As an experienced professional in communications, copywriting or PR, you will be pivotal in ensuring our Essex group of primary schools stays connected and thrives.

You will step in as the expert in communication for our academies. This includes the challenge of supporting the creation, ownership, and execution of the internal comms strategy across our group of Essex primary schools. Teaming up with our trust's People & Culture colleagues, you'll foster a culture of sharing and recognition through fresh, varied communications for a diverse community and workforce. You will report to our Regional Business Manager, with links to our brilliant People & Culture team (who own generalist HR, including L&D, recruitment, and payroll) and the Director of Opportunity and the academies’ Senior Leadership Team (SLT).

Key Responsibilities: Two Roles, One Vision

Your time will be strategically split between actively promoting our educational mission and maintaining the integrity of our governance structure.

• Public Relations, Marketing & Communications:
• Brand Gatekeeper: Act as the brand gatekeeper for all public-facing documents and ensure the academies’ brand standards are adhered to in all communication media.
• Strategy & Delivery: Map out and deliver the academies’ marketing strategy across the academic year, including events, admissions, and open days.
• Digital Leadership: Manage the academies’ social media platforms, promoting news and events in line with safeguarding and branding requirements whilst ensuring the schools adhere to statutory requirements through their websites.
• Community Cohesion: Work collaboratively to increase community cohesion with communities local to the academies.
• Fundraising: Work with the Director of Opportunity and the academies’ SLT to identify funding sources and prepare and submit timely bids.
• Lettings Management: Manage and oversee lettings at each academy, acting as the day-to-day point of contact.
• Governance and Clerking:
• Advisory Guidance: Advise the Local Governing Body (LGB) on its core functions, regulatory framework, governance legislation, and procedural matters before, during, and after meetings.
• Meeting Administration: Work with the Chair and Headteacher to prepare focused agendas, liaise for papers, ensure meetings are quorate, and draft/circulate accurate minutes.
• Compliance: Ensure statutory policies are in place and revised when necessary, and update GIAS websites to accurately reflect the structure of the LGB.
• Membership: Advise on the expiry of a governor's term of office and maintain up-to-date records of governors (e.g. pecuniary interests and training).

What You'll Bring: Expertise, Values, and Drive

Because we're relying on your expertise, we can only consider applicants who have strong experience in truly leading communications or a closely associated field in Primary school Public Relations and/or as a Clerk to Governors.

Essential Experience & Skills:

• Strong experience in communications, copywriting, or Public Relations.
• Experience in carrying out complex administrative tasks.
• Working knowledge of marketing procedures and practices.
• Excellent verbal and written communication, with strong listening skills.
• High level of ICT experience, including design packages, Google Suite, and/or MS Office/word processing, as well as the ability to update our websites.
• Ability to plan, organise, and prioritise workloads under pressure to meet deadlines.
• Excellent attention to detail, aligned with brand standards.
• English and Maths to GCSE/Standard Grade or equivalent (at least Grade 4/C).

If you would like to have an informal discussion before applying, please contact Kenneth Sheard, Regional Business Manager, via kenneth.sheard@tkat.org before the closing date. Internal applicants should discuss this role with their line manager before submitting an application form via the internal recruitment page on the one stop shop.

About TKAT

The Kemnal Academies Trust (TKAT) is one of the largest Multi-Academy Trusts in the South & East of England with 45 Primary and Secondary Academies in the TKAT Family. Our ultimate aim is to ensure we drive educational standards through the provision of outstanding teaching, leadership and learning for all. Within the #oneTKATfamily, the shared and common purpose is to work together as a community of schools to ensure that every child, whatever their background, receives a high quality education. We place a high value on collaboration; ‘achieving more together’, giving staff the opportunity to come together and learn, ensuring a shared sense of purpose across our network and by sharing expertise across the TKAT family.

We have a flexible approach to interviews and can offer a range of dates and times to suit your personal circumstances. We reserve the right to close the vacancy early should we receive a significant number of applications.

Safeguarding

TKAT is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Offers of employment will be subject to the full safer recruitment process, including an enhanced disclosure and barring service check.

Flexible working

TKAT recognises the value of enabling our employees to develop their career and balance this with their commitments and interests outside of work. In TKAT we promote flexible working practices and opportunities to promote a positive work life balance.

Our Commitment - Equal, Inclusive, Diverse

TKAT is committed to inclusion, diversity and equality of opportunity by encouraging and welcoming differences, listening to individual experiences, aspirations and accomplishments and learning how to grow better together. We welcome applications from all suitable candidates, regardless of any protected characteristic.

Access to interview Be Who You Are at TKAT - should you be selected and invited to interview please let us know if you require us to adapt the recruitment process to enable you to participate as your authentic self. We want applicants to be able to engage with us in ways that support who they are and we are committed to making adjustments within the recruitment process and within the workplace.