This role presents a unique opportunity in the curriculum job market. As Head of Curriculum, you will oversee the design and development of an entire two-year programme of study that develops our participants into transformative prison officers and leaders. You will lead a team to produce curriculum (in-person, digital and online) which will empower our participants with the knowledge and capabilities to work with prisoners to dismantle the damaging cycles of reoffending that are so costly to those individuals and broader society.

For Unlocked, the mission is central. You will work closely with our recruitment and programme teams to ensure a seamless transition from their blue-chip recruitment experience, through their initial six-week training (Summer Institute) and onwards through the two-year leadership development programme. This includes their Master’s degree in Applied Custodial Leadership and their ongoing training throughout the two years. The goal of the programme is to enable Unlocked officers to maximise impact on the frontline in prisons and to drive change at an individual, prison and system-wide level.

You do not need prior knowledge of prisons or prison officer training to successfully take on this role. You will be supported by current and former prison service staff and have access to all the information and resources you require to build your knowledge-base quickly. You will be required to have a strong understanding of up-to-date research and evidence on how people learn and how to build practice into training.

It’s important that our resources are thoughtfully sequenced and research-informed. You’ll be in charge of designing and implementing approaches to training that maximise learning and embody the Unlocked mission. This includes design of all of our online and face-to-face training suites, an online preparation unit, and required pre-reading. Another key element will be developing the train-the-trainer programme so our experienced prison officers can teach effectively. Upskilling these staff requires expert understanding of teaching and learning and an ability to work with people who are novice trainers.

You will play a key role in the broader management of the MSc qualification, working closely with our university partner and ensuring quality and ongoing improvements take place. You will also line manage two full-time roles as well as one secondment and be responsible for motivating and developing these staff members.

Key responsibilities

• Develop and implement a vision for curriculum: lead curriculum design, strategy and implementation for in-person, digital and online learning

• Embed research-informed pedagogy throughout all content including the Unlocked Master’s Degree (with our partner university), through-year training and Summer Institute

• Plan the timetable and scheduling for Summer Institute

• Provide strong leadership to a team of trainers during Summer Institute

• Lead and design facilitation training and coaching for teams of trainers and mentors (‘train the trainer’)

• Build a network of internal and external experts and partners, from governmental and non-governmental organisations, for curriculum content purposes, including identifying new training opportunities, and collaborating to design and deliver face-to-face, digital and online learning

• Lead and develop feedback and quality assurance systems, and evaluation mechanisms for curriculum content and delivery, including reporting to HMPPS

• Work closely with curriculum, data, programme and recruitment teams to measure impact of face-to-face, online and digital learning in order to inform iterative improvements to all curriculum content iteratively

• Develop the capabilities and expertise of the curriculum team

Person specification

• Curriculum expertise with substantial knowledge of learning design theory, pedagogy and curriculum design principles

• Experience of curriculum and training design (online and in-person)

• Experience of working on complex projects with challenging timescales

• Experience of effectively managing a varied workload with competing priorities

• Experience of designing policies and systems that maximise impact and minimise unintended consequences and bureaucracy

• Teaching experience, preferably including teaching trainers and educators

• Master’s degree in relevant subject (desirable)

Characteristics and skills

• Focused on what works

• Excellent leadership qualities

• Able to respond productively to constructive feedback

• High level of personal resilience

• Collaborative, can-do attitude, actively looking for solutions in the face of adversity and troubleshooting swiftly and effectively

• A genuine and demonstrative commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion in the workplace and in prisons

• Able to galvanise a team and hold them to account

• High attention to detail

• Clear communicator, including to larger groups, in spoken and written context

• Fast learner, willing to seek support where expertise is missing

• Able to navigate between execution (the detail) and strategy (bigger picture)

For further information, please see the full job description here.