Head of People and Culture The Education Village Academy Trust

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Head of People and Culture The Education Village Academy Trust

Lead and strengthen people services at an ambitious academy trust, shaping a positive working culture where colleagues and schools can thrive.

• Location: Darlington

We are seeking an experienced Head of People and Culture to lead and strengthen our people service during an important period of growth and change.

Reporting to the Executive Director of Shared Services, you will lead a team, build confidence in people service delivery and ensure school leaders receive consistent, high-quality support. Combining hands on people expertise with strong leadership, you will improve systems and processes, support staff wellbeing and help create a positive working environment across the trust.

We welcome applications from experienced HR and people leaders across education and other sectors who bring sound employment law knowledge, sound judgement and a practical, collaborative approach to improving services and developing people.

Who we are

At The Education Village Academy Trust, we believe that learning has no limits. Our unique combination of mainstream and specialist provision means we support children and young people with a wide range of needs, abilities and aspirations, from early years through to adulthood.

Our values of excellence, values-driven, ambition and teamwork underpin everything we do. We are proud of our commitment to delivering high quality education and creating an environment where every child and young person has the opportunity to achieve their potential.

Inclusion is at the heart of our approach. We recognise that every school and every pupil is different, and we work collaboratively across the trust to share expertise, support one another and provide the best possible education for the communities we serve.

About the role

As Head of People and Culture, you will lead the delivery and improvement of our people service, strengthening consistency, building confidence and ensuring colleagues and school leaders receive responsive, professional HR support.

Reporting to the Executive Director of Shared Services, you will lead an established team, balancing day to day operational demands with longer term service improvements.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Leading and developing the People Team, establishing clear standards and improving service delivery.
• Providing hands on advice on complex employee relations, employment law and organisational change.
• Strengthening HR systems, payroll processes, workforce reporting and compliance.
• Working with school leaders to address staff absence, workload pressures and wellbeing.
• Supporting recruitment, workforce planning and the integration of new schools.
• Delivering agreed initiatives that improve staff engagement, culture and the employee experience.

You will help build a trusted, resilient People Service that makes a genuine difference across our schools.

Who we are looking for

This is an opportunity for an experienced HR leader who enjoys developing teams, tackling complex people challenges and making a real difference to how an organisation operates.

You may already be a Head of HR or People, or an experienced HR Manager or senior HR Business Partner ready for your next step. We welcome applications from education and other sectors, including the NHS, local government, housing, charities and similarly complex, multi site organisations.

You will bring:

• Strong operational HR leadership experience, with a track record of developing teams and improving services.
• Excellent employment law and employee relations expertise, with the confidence to handle complex and sensitive cases.
• Experience strengthening HR processes, systems, payroll oversight and workforce reporting.
• The ability to advise and challenge senior leaders, build relationships and work constructively with trade unions.
• A practical understanding of staff wellbeing, absence management and supporting managers through difficult situations.

You will be a Chartered Member of the CIPD and hold a CIPD Level 5 qualification or equivalent relevant professional HR qualification.

Above all, we're looking for a visible, approachable and resilient leader who combines sound judgement with a hands on, solutions focused approach. You'll recognise that different schools have different needs and be able to adapt your approach while maintaining consistent standards across the trust.

About The Education Village Academy Trust

The Education Village Academy Trust (EVAT) is entering an ambitious new phase of development. With new executive leadership, a clear strategic plan for and plans for further growth, we are focused on building an organisation that is strong, sustainable and equipped for the future.

Our seven schools bring together mainstream and specialist education, each with its own community, opportunities and challenges. We recognise that supporting excellent education starts with supporting the people who deliver it, and we want EVAT to be a place where colleagues feel valued, supported and able to develop their careers.

Our strategic priorities

Our strategic plan focuses on four key areas:

• Exceptional learning experiences: Strengthening educational outcomes, inclusive practice and opportunities for every child and young person.
• A stronger, more resilient trust: Developing our people, systems, governance and shared services to support our schools effectively.
• Sustainable growth: Expanding our family of schools, developing specialist provision and building partnerships that extend our reach and impact.
• Environmental responsibility: Reducing our environmental impact through more sustainable buildings, operations and procurement.

Looking ahead

As EVAT grows, we are strengthening our central services to ensure our schools have the expertise, systems and support they need. With a further primary school expected to join in January 2027, this is an important time to develop a People Service that can respond to the needs of a growing and increasingly complex organisation.

Our people priorities include strengthening leadership capability, improving staff wellbeing and engagement, developing recruitment and retention, and creating a more consistent employee experience across our schools.

We are also focused on building a resilient and responsive People Service, with clear standards, better workforce information and more effective HR systems and processes. Supporting school leaders to manage their teams confidently and consistently will be central to this work.

For our new Head of People and Culture, this is an opportunity to bring stability, develop the existing team and deliver practical improvements that colleagues and school leaders can see and value.

Ultimately, our ambition is to create a positive, inclusive working environment where our people can thrive, enabling them to provide the very best education and support for our children and young people.

Accessibility information

We understand that different members of the community have different access needs and have made some modifications to the way we do business to accommodate people from diverse communities and abilities.

We offer the following amenities:

• Step free access to the building, all key meeting rooms and bathrooms, and an accessible workstation
• Accessibility dogs are welcome
• Papers and materials can be presented in different formats
• Working patterns and locations can be adjusted

Timetable

Closing date: 9 a.m. Tuesday 1st December 2026
Candidates informed of outcome: Friday4th December 2026
Interviews: Thursday 10th December 2026

Peridot and The Education Village Academy Trust are committed to promoting equality and diversity. To help us raise awareness and support a culture that is diverse and recognises and develops the potential of all, we need to appreciate the profile of candidates who apply for positions.We will send you an equality monitoring survey at the point of receiving your application and at the time of placement. This ensures that our processes remain inclusive and equitable throughout, and provides us with important data to help us showcase our impact.

The information will be treated confidentially and anonymously and will help us to support our commitment to fair recruitment practice. All information provided will be held in the strictest confidence and will not be shared with anyone, in line with the Data Protection Act 2018.

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