Chair of the Board

Bring your non-executive experience and professional expertise to lead the Governing Body of St Helens College as their new Chair of the Corporation Board as they continue to deliver on their mission to "transform lives through excellence in education and training".

Location: St Helens, Merseyside

Time commitment: Approx. 2-3 days per month

Closing date: 9 a.m. Monday 22nd January 2024

About the role

The St Helens College Corporation Board is made up of 16 individuals, including student governors, with a broad base of skills and experience drawn from the local and wider communities served by the College. The role of Chair of the Board is the key board leadership role, fundamental to delivery of strong and effective Governance across the organisation and is therefore key to St Helen’s College realising our long-term aspirations.

As our new Chair you will bring experience as a successful, senior strategic leader in your professional career alongside an understanding and appreciation for the difference that education makes to the lives of thousands of people each year.  At St Helens College, we are committed to further achieving equality and diversity on the Corporation Board, both cultural diversity and vocational diversity are important considerations to help represent its communities.

You will bring a range of professional, strategic leadership skills, allowing you to offer the appropriate levels of support and advice to our Senior Management Team as they continue to deliver the wider objectives of the organisation in line with our strategic plan.

You will possess an ability to lead our Corporation Board by example. You will ensure that the Corporation Board promotes inclusion and respect in a supportive setting so that colleagues are each able to engage, support and challenge as appropriate, thus creating an effective and cohesive unit.

As the Chair, you will lead the Corporation Board as they continue to review the organisation’s mission, consider strategic developments, systematically monitor performance, review and monitor the implementation of a range of college policies, and ensure compliance with statutory requirements at all times. The Corporation is charged with developing an environment that enables the College to fulfil its mission, for the benefit of learners and the community.

With an ambitious strategic plan to be one of the very best technical and vocational colleges in the country, this is an exciting time to join the Corporation Board of St Helen’s College and help shape our future success across the communities we serve, as well as the regional and national landscapes.

The benefits

• An opportunity to develop skills in a strategic leadership role, outside of your normal sector.
• The opportunity to lead and work with a team of Governors and staff in achieving the goal of becoming the very best technical and vocational further and higher education provider.
• Training to develop an understanding of specific college management issues, governance, and the wider sector.
• A sense of achievement in making a difference to the College and the communities it serves.

Who we are looking for

Recognising the ambitious strategy, we seek to engage a strategic leader from the local or wider area to lead our Corporation Board on this journey, whilst bringing a passion for success along with a recognition of the value of post-16 education to society.

St Helens College seeks to engage a diverse range of candidates who can each demonstrate a passion for education and a drive to build on our continued success for the benefit of learners, people, the local community and employers.

As the Chair of St Helen’s College, you will have responsibility for leading a dedicated group board members who are passionate about the future success of the organisation whilst ensuring that the governance of the College remains effective and continues to be of the highest standard. You will need to be able to demonstrate an appropriate level of challenge and scrutiny yourself whilst also facilitating a safe and inclusive space that allows your board colleagues to do the same. As such, we hope to receive applications from candidates who have experience of being on – or leading – boards previously, either in the education sector or elsewhere, enabling you to have the knowledge and understanding of good governance, as well as an appreciation for procedure, policy and expectations associated with the board room.

You will also have responsibility for ensuring that accountability is maintained in relation to the effective use of resources, that the welfare and wellbeing of both students and staff is maintained and that all safeguarding policies and procedures are followed as necessary.

As Chair, you will also need to be able to offer support to the senior leadership team as they work to deliver on the College’s strategic priorities moving forward and so you will need to not only be able play the role of critical friend, but also to be accessible and mindful of the time commitment associated with holding such an important post.

This is a fantastic opportunity to join an ambitious and successful organisation and make a genuine impact on the future success of the College and its learners. You will support the development and influence the direction of St Helens College at a time of great momentum as we seek to secure the finances, grow the organisation and aspire to provide high quality, meaningful education opportunities for learners across the region. As the Chair of our Board, you will be a vital ambassador for this positive journey and would expect you to help us share our good news stories and continue to build our reputation across the local region and nationally.

Peridot Partners and St Helens College are, together, committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and our client expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The successful candidate will be subject to an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references before any final offer can be made.

Please click 'Apply’ to be redirected to the Peridot Partners website, where you can find full details of the candidate profile and register your interest to apply.

Applications for this role close at 9 a.m. Monday 22nd January 2024.