Governors x 4 | MidKent College

Educating and training around 7,000 students every year, MidKent College is looking to bolster the talent of its Governing Body by appointing four new Governors to its Board.

About the role of Governor

Acting in a similar capacity to a company’s non-executive director or charity’s trustee board, our Governing Body (‘the Board’) is a legal structure responsible for the overall functioning of MidKent College. As a collective group of independent members, our Board is responsible for the quality of service the college offers to students and the local community, as well as approving and monitoring the college’s annual budget. We have a high-performing board of 16 Governors who reflect the different communities served by our college. Our committed and experienced Board is comprised of people who bring a range of career backgrounds, and specialist industry and sector knowledge. Our Board includes both independent members and two members of staff, two students, and the Principal & Chief Executive Officer.

The Board meets at least five times per year, in addition to an annual strategic away day. There are five committees: Risk and Audit; Finance & General Purpose; Quality, Teaching & Learning; Remuneration, and Search and Governance which meet regularly throughout the year. We ask that new Governors become members of both the Board and also at least one other committee, depending on their specialist knowledge and interests.

In addition to attending scheduled meetings throughout the year, we encourage Governors to experience the college by linking them with senior managers and different departments, providing opportunities for them to visit the campuses and meet and speak with students, apprentices, and staff.

Recognising that many of our Governors may have little or no prior experience of working in the further education sector, our Clerk provides new members with a comprehensive induction, including being paired with a more experienced Governor. We also ensure Governors receive ongoing training and development, especially around their statutory duties, which is facilitated in-house and through signposting to online resources and conferences.

Our Governors are ambassadors for MidKent College. They speak positively about us in their own professional networks and advocate for the further education sector and its direct impact on both national productivity and employment.

Who we are looking for

Whilst we have identified a range of skills that would be helpful to MidKent College’s Board, and include them below, we are keen to attract as broad and diverse a group of new Governors as possible. We know the value which a diverse Governing Body brings, and so we welcome people with the skills listed below to consider this opportunity as well as others with skills, knowledge and career backgrounds not listed. What matters most to us is that Governors are passionate about our mission, enthusiastic about joining MidKent College, and keen to contribute to our future success.

Governor (Finance and Investment)

Overall, our group turnover is in the region of £50m and our financial health is outstanding. Each year we generate a modest surplus due to our robust curriculum and financial planning processes and the profit generated through our trading arm, MKC Training Services.

Our Board has directed the Executive Leadership Team to devise an investment strategy and, whilst there is financial planning and accounting experience already represented on the Board, we wish to strengthen this area of specialist knowledge and ideally welcome a candidate with experience in managing multi-million-pound investments.

Governor (HR, OD and DEI)

We are proud of our organisational culture and have a highly engaged workforce. We have several strategies in place to constantly evaluate and improve our organisational outputs through high-quality learning and development, and robust measures to support performance.

We are always looking for ways in which we can evolve and improve our organisational design; with a focus on improving the experience for our students and staff and developing improved inclusive practice across the college.

With all of this in mind, we welcome the contribution of a Governor with experience in leading or managing HR/People Services teams and planning, especially in the specialist areas of organisational development and diversity, equity and inclusion. If the person appointed also brought additional experience in setting senior leadership pay policies and developing review processes, that too would be beneficial.

Governor (Student Experience)

We have recently led a small restructure of our Executive Leadership Team and appointed a senior leader who will be accountable for the development of the student experience here at MidKent College.

Whilst our Board is always focused on the student journey at our college and keen to understand how we can be the best in the country in this regard, we welcome an experienced leader with experience in developing impactful strategies which have resulted in improved services for students.

We would be keen to receive interest from people working in a leadership or management role in the FE, skills or HE sectors.

Closing date: 12 p.m. Monday 19th September 2022

Please click ‘Apply via website' to be directed to the Peridot Partners website and to contact the advising consultants to discuss this role in more detail.