Reports to Director of Early Years and ITT
Works with Partnerships, Candidate Support, Assessments, Quality, Marketing
Location Flexible location (including monthly visits to the Bristol office)
Starting salary £55,000- £60,000
Recognised for our excellent quality, Best Practice Network (BPN) is a national provider of the Early Career Framework (ECF) and National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) and is the largest provider of Early Years Initial Teacher Training (EYITT). With recent Initial Teacher Training Accreditation, we are now one of just a few organisations delivering the full golden thread of teacher CPD nationally.
BPN’s vision is for every child to access an excellent education regardless of background. Over 20,000 school staff are taking qualifications with us, with 90+ delivery partners and 2000+ associate facilitators, assessors, tutors and coaches across the UK and beyond.
Our quality, growth and success depend on our collaborative, innovative and friendly employees. Our core team enjoy flexible working arrangements, a generous benefits package, with career development opportunities enhanced by the connections across Supporting Education Group, our parent company.
Our Values are to Strive for Excellence, Inspire Learning, Work as a Team and Act with Integrity.
The Position
This is an exciting opportunity for a motivated and capable professional to join Best Practice Network as the Head of Primary Initial Teacher Training (ITT). This is a new role where the successful candidate will help build and shape Best Practice Network’s ITT offer from the ground up.
Reporting to the Director of Early Years and ITT, the Head of Primary ITT will be responsible for ensuring high quality professional development for trainee teachers, mentors and lead mentors with accountability for successful programme delivery. You will lead on curriculum design to encompass a new mentoring curriculum and training programme that meets the requirements of the ITT criteria 2024.
You will lead and manage heads of curriculum areas to ensure they design and deliver high quality subject curriculum content.
You will also help drive the continuous improvement of Best Practice Network’s ITT provision and participant experience across learning and teaching, delivery partner relationships, quality assurance and compliance.
Responsibilities
- Lead ITT provision by driving the achievement of KPIs and objectives through effective recruitment, leadership, coaching and development of the team
- Develop the curriculum and content in line with the DfE Core Content Frameworks ensuring it is fresh, relevant and reflects various national contexts and best practice evidence bases
- Lead, manage and motivate heads of curriculum areas ensuring a high level of individual and collective team performance
- Develop learning, teaching and assessment across all modes of delivery, creating and executing plans based on excellence and best practice
- Ensure programme content, resources and delivery methods are aligned to current and future workplace needs, curriculum development and best teaching practices
- Work alongside the EYITT Team and Quality Team to review the quality of the programme, including trainee evaluations and external assessment by Ofsted and others
- Use stakeholder and CQI feedback to inform setting of priorities and strategic direction
- Lead on the completion of the Self Evaluation and Quality Improvement Plan alongside the Head of Quality and Compliance and Head of EYITT
- Ensure a robust suite of reports and performance data is available to enable measurement of quality performance, trainee engagement levels and impact of ITT provision on trainees
- Work with the Head of Partnerships to assure delivery partners’ provision is to a high standard
- Work with Marketing to effectively market and promote BPN’s ITT provision
- Provide contingency direction and planned response to external landscape
- Have oversight on the pastoral support across the programme
- Contribute to monthly budget management and reporting to track performance ensuring that financial, human and physical resources allocated are deployed efficiently and effectively and achieve excellent value for money
- Engage with a range of external partners developing strong and supportive partnerships and alliances with communities, stakeholders, other education providers, employers, professional bodies, placement providers, funders, government agencies, etc. as necessary
- Hold regular team meetings, development surgeries and training
- Foster a culture of respect, high aspirations, empowerment and collaboration to achieve excellent outcomes and personal job satisfaction for all
Supporting Documents
Applications
Please email a CV and covering letter.