Director of People

The Director of People will provide strategic direction and operational oversight for all human resources, talent development, and workforce planning across the CMAT. You will ensure the workforce is agile, engaged, and structurally aligned to deliver the highest standards of Catholic education.

Key Responsibilities

1. Strategic Workforce Leadership & Culture

• Vision & Strategy: Lead the development of an overarching workforce strategy that reflects the values of the Gospel, the Trust vision and values, and contemporary best practices in Human Resources.
• Ethos Alignment: Ensure that all people policies, recruitment frameworks, and employee relations emphasise dignity, equity, fairness, and the pastoral care of our workforce.
• Trust Centralisation: Drive the ongoing harmonisation and centralisation of HR processes across all academies, ensuring consistency while respecting individual school contexts.
• Executive Advisory: Act as the chief expert to the Trust Board of Directors, the Executive Team and our schools leaders on complex matters including employment law, structural reorganisations, and executive succession planning.

2. Talent Acquisition, Retention & Workforce Planning

• Employer Value Proposition: Shape a compelling brand identity for St Francis CMAT to successfully attract high-calibre teaching and support staff in a competitive labor market.
• Recruitment Pipelines: Standardise and modernise recruitment and onboarding systems across the CMAT to minimise vacancy rates and significantly reduce reliance on expensive supply/agency staff.
• Succession & Development: Partner with the School Improvement Team and school leaders to map out clear professional growth pathways, ensuring robust internal talent pipelines for future school leaders.

3. Employee Relations, Policy & Compliance

• Union Consultation: Build and maintain mature, highly collaborative relationships with local and national trade unions and professional associations through our Joint Consultative and Negotiating Committee (JCNC) frameworks.
• Policy Harmonisation: Consolidate and update employment policies across all schools, ensuring strict compliance with UK employment legislation, the School Teachers' Pay and Conditions Document (STPCD), the Burgundy Book, and local government Green Books.
• Complex Case Management: Oversee the resolution of high-risk or complex employee relations cases, including tribunal claims, severe grievances, disciplinaries, and capability procedures.

4. Wellbeing, Engagement & Performance

• Workforce Wellbeing: Establish a holistic employee wellbeing and mental health strategy that addresses workload issues, boosts morale, and measurably reduces staff absence rates.
• Performance Development: Evolve traditional appraisal processes into a growth-oriented performance development framework that motivates staff and drives up educational outcomes.
• Data-Driven Insights: Implement trust-wide HR metrics and analytics (covering turnover, absence, diversity, and engagement surveys) to provide actionable insights directly to the Executive Team and Trust Board.

5. Financial Management & Governance

• Budget Oversight: Manage the central HR department budget effectively, ensuring maximum value from external legal advisors, occupational health providers, and payroll systems.
• Due Diligence: Lead the HR due diligence, TUPE processes, and workforce integration for any new schools expanding into the Trust.