Freelance IT Specialist - Systems (until 31st March 2026)

Start Date: 10th February 2026

Initial Duration: Until 31st March 2026

Time commitment: Estimated up to approximately 24 hours per week (based on delivery needs) 

Rate: £28 per hour

Help us keep Oak’s systems secure, reliable and working well for the people who rely on them.

Oak National Academy is engaging an experienced freelance IT specialist to deliver a defined programme of systems, access management and compliance work. This task is focused on strengthening our security posture, validating business continuity arrangements and ensuring our core systems are well managed and auditable.

You’ll work independently within a clear scope, using your expertise to plan and deliver the work, while collaborating with Oak colleagues only where necessary to complete the agreed scope of work.

🔧 What You’ll Be Doing

• Review and improve the security of Oak’s core systems, including assessing Google Workspace configuration against CIS Google Workspace Benchmarks and supporting agreed updates.

• Test and validate business continuity and disaster recovery arrangements, running agreed BCDR scenarios using dummy data and clearly documenting outcomes, risks and follow-up actions.

• Manage identity and access changes for freelancers and partners, including onboarding and offboarding, password resets and access updates across Google Workspace and Slack.

• Audit user access and permissions, confirming appropriate access and identifying and closing redundant or inactive accounts.

• Respond to access-related support requests within the agreed scope, resolving authentication and access issues clearly and efficiently.

• Support systems assurance and audit activity, including reconciling software records between NinjaOne and Cledara and validating onboarding and offboarding workflows.

• Support the rollout and configuration of NinjaOne MDM across existing Mac devices, helping ensure devices are managed consistently and securely.

🌱 What We’re Looking For

• 3+ years’ experience working in IT systems or infrastructure roles, where systems administration, access management and security were a core part of your work.

• Strong working knowledge of Google Workspace, including user management, groups, permissions and security settings.

• Experience supporting compliance, audit or assurance activity, such as security benchmarks, access reviews or BCDR testing.

• Confidence working independently within a defined scope, prioritising work sensibly and documenting outcomes clearly.

• A careful, trustworthy and improvement-focused approach, aligned with Oak’s values of responsibility, clarity and collaboration.

You don’t need formal certifications to apply; we’re most interested in practical experience and how you approach the work.

Next steps

You’ll answer some questions – a few quick admin ones and three discipline-related ones. After the task closes, your answers will go through our sifting process: all answers will be anonymised, randomised and then reviewed by a panel of reviewers.

If you are shortlisted, we’ll invite you to an interview remotely over Zoom. 

We are experiencing really good responses to our freelancer adverts. This may lead us to closing the role early, so if you are considering applying, please get your application in early to avoid missing out.