Salary:        £27,095 per annum

Hours:        Full time 37 hours per week

Location:   London and hybrid working - we require all staff to attend our office in London or be present at an event at least two days per week 

Contract:    Permanent

Benefits:    25 days annual leave, plus bank holidays and up to 3 days Christmas leave / Employer-matched Royal London Pension Plan of up to 5% of basic salary / Private health plan

Who are Challenge Partners

Challenge Partners works nationally with over 500 schools and 100 trusts, delivering programmes and networks to support school and trust improvement and leadership development. Our programmes for schools include the Quality Assurance Review, Growing the Top, Extending Leading Practice, and the SEND Developmental Peer Review. Our collaborative networks for school leaders operate locally (hubs), regionally (Jubilee Networks), and nationally. You can read more here. 

We also offer Trust programmes such as the Trust Peer Review and Trust Leaders’ Network. You can read more here. 

As we expand our National Network of Excellence, this is an exciting time to join our central team and contribute to our partnership's success.

Job Purpose

The Partnership Coordinator role is varied, offering the chance to develop a wide range of skills. Responsibilities include delivering programme and network activities, managing local hubs, supporting events and meetings, and participating in recruitment and retention activities led by the Partnerships Team.

Working closely with school and trust leaders and hub managers, you will need excellent relationship management skills, attention to detail, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

This position requires individuals who are self-motivated, organised, detail-focused, and strong communicators. 

We are looking for new colleagues to focus on delivering our programmes and networks, ensuring a great experience for our partner schools (about 60-80% of your time). The remaining time will be spent on hub account management, supporting knowledge exchange and network growth, and handling general partner queries.

Key Responsibilities

Programme and Network Delivery:

- Support the planning and delivery of programmes and networks, including scheduling dates, organising training sessions, and other activities.

- Support the organisation and delivery of programme-specific and national events.

- Maintain relationships with key stakeholders, including resolving operational issues and escalating as needed.

- Provide year-round support to local Hub Managers to ensure schools receive necessary support.

- Monitor programme, network, and hub data to identify risks and/or trends, providing regular reports and updates to support the continuous improvement of our activities. 

Partner Relationship Management:

- Work with the Challenge Partners Central Team to ensure an excellent experience for partners and help schools maximise their partnership value.

- Support the induction and onboarding of new schools to their hubs and the National Network of Excellence.

- Troubleshoot and respond to school or trust queries through internal customer care systems.

- Utilise and update our CRM system (Salesforce).

Communications:

- Respond to email and phone queries about Challenge Partners, programmes, networks, and hubs professionally and promptly.

- Collaborate with programme, network, and partnership leads to provide high-quality communications to partner schools, including renewals, induction, onboarding, engagement emails, and hub updates.

Recruitment and Retention:

- Support year-round recruitment of schools to the Network of Excellence, working with hubs to deliver introductory events.

- Provide updates on schools in your hub to inform retention campaigns.

- Manage leads within your hubs, connecting schools with local hubs and Jubilee Networks.

Other Tasks:

- Perform other tasks as appropriate for the role.

Person Specification

• Excellent organisational skills, with the ability to manage your time effectively.

• Ability to balance competing priorities whilst working across multiple areas of work.

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to deal with people diplomatically and appropriately, building rapport with those at varying levels of seniority.

• Solutions-focused approach to problem-solving, demonstrating the ability to identify issues and develop effective strategies to overcome them.

• High computer literacy - confidence and competence in using GSuite, Microsoft programmes and Salesforce (or similar CRM system) would be an advantage

• Positivity, optimism and flexibility - we are a small organisation and all staff are expected to contribute across the organisation (and sometimes beyond their specific job role) to ensure our success and sustainability. 

• A willingness to learn and give and receive feedback.

• A passion for education, and a desire to make a difference.

How to apply

We would really welcome your application via https://www.beapplied.com/

All employees at Challenge Partners will be subject to an enhanced DBS check as part of our commitment to safeguarding.

Challenge Partners is committed to diversity, equality and inclusion and we are working towards a goal where our team fully reflects the diversity and difference in lived experiences. We strongly encourage applications from under-represented groups including: people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds, LGBTQ+ people, and those with disabilities.

As part of our commitment to fairer recruitment, all applications must be made through Applied. The information you provide will be treated as strictly confidential.

No agencies please.

Closing Date: 7th October

Shortlisting: 8-9th October

Interviews: w/c 14th October