Assistant Principal - Creative Industries & Digital

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If you’re ready to join a Group that has the resources to develop the talents of both students and staff, you can find more information on this role and details on how to apply by visiting our dedicated recruitment microsite.

Alternatively, you can e-mail us for more information, quoting the job reference.

Please note that we may close the application prior to the listed date should sufficient applicants be received.

The College is an equal opportunities employer and is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment. Successful applicants will be subject to full-vetting procedures including an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Services Check.

United Colleges Group is committed to fostering a culture of respect, inclusion and belonging, where everyone is valued and supported. We welcome applications from individuals of all backgrounds and are happy to make reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

Assistant Principal – Creative Industries & Digital

Full Time, Permanent
£72,246.00 (inc. London Weighting Allowance)

We are seeking an ambitious and outstanding candidate to join our teaching staff at United Colleges Group. We are a forward-thinking education provider, and our mission is to deliver outstanding, world-class education and skills.

Who we are

UCG provides education to over 11,000 learners a year, including 16–18-year-olds, adults, apprentices and students with high needs.

With an annual turnover of over £50m, we are one of the top 20 largest college groups in the UK. We offer education and training across almost all vocational areas, at a variety of levels, for a wide range of learners of all ages and starting points.

Our students come from a diverse range of backgrounds. In the academic year 2022–23, we enrolled more than 3,500 full-time 16–18 students, 8,000 adult learners and over 450 apprentices across our Group. UCG currently enrols 250+ HE students per year across four campuses, offering programmes across a range of STEM, creative, business, and professional subject areas.

We have around 1,000 dedicated, skilled, and enthusiastic staff who always put the needs of our students first. We are now looking for an Assistant Principal for Creative Industries and Digital to join our cohort of dedicated staff.

Our mission is to provide all our learners with the very best knowledge and to break down any barriers to learning. We pride ourselves on enabling our learners to meet their individual needs and aspirations, delivering a learning experience that is unique, enjoyable, and rewarding.

About You

The Assistant Principal for Creative Industries and Digital will contribute to the strategic and operational management, development, and performance of all aspects of college operations.

The role will mainly be based at Paddington, with a requirement to travel to all sites as necessary.

You will deliver the implementation of the College Group’s quality improvement strategies for elements of the Education Inspection Framework and maintain a culture of continuous improvement through self-assessment and other quality initiatives. You will work with the SLT, CLT and College Manager to develop the College’s strategic and operational objectives into approved strategic plans and annual performance targets.

A key element of this role will be responsibility for the high-quality delivery of a diverse Creative Industries and Digital curriculum portfolio, encompassing Art, Music, Media, Performing Arts and Computing. This includes responsibility for ensuring a coherent and ambitious curriculum offer across the relevant levels and programmes, with a strong focus on high-quality teaching, learning and assessment.

The role will hold responsibility for the Creative Industries and Digital curriculum offer, ensuring consistently excellent teaching, learning and assessment across all programme areas. You will ensure that curriculum development is responsive to learner needs, industry and employer requirements, and the changing skills demands of the creative and digital sectors.

You will also review the Curriculum Delivery Plan (CDP) and associated processes and drive improvements across achievement, attendance, retention, progression, and overall student outcomes, ensuring performance targets are met and exceeded.

The successful applicant will lead, manage, and develop a team of staff, with direct line management responsibility for Curriculum Managers, as agreed with the Group or Deputy Principal. You will also hold responsibility for staff performance, identifying and facilitating development needs and training requirements.

You will develop and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders, including employers, industry partners, universities, awarding organisations and other relevant organisations, ensuring that the curriculum remains current, relevant, and aligned with progression and employment opportunities.

The Assistant Principal for Creative Industries and Digital will:

• Be educated to degree level or equivalent, with a record of continuous professional development and a recognised teaching qualification.
• Have an excellent understanding of curriculum development and achieving high standards of innovation and delivery in teaching and learning.
• Have a strong understanding of the policy context for education, including further education, higher education, adult and inclusive learning, employer engagement, the student learning experience, and relevant policy and funding matters.
• Have experience of initiating and managing significant cultural change, with a track record of shaping and developing management teams to achieve planned outcomes.
• Have the ability to communicate and explain complex issues, data and reports clearly and effectively.
• Have the ability to present information confidently and to take feedback constructively.
• Be highly organised and able to manage specialist, complex projects with excellent attention to detail.
• Have experience of motivating, developing, and managing the performance of effective, multi-disciplinary teams across multiple sites.
• Have the ability to communicate effectively with key senior stakeholders, manage and delegate workload effectively in a challenging environment, and build positive internal and external relationships.
• Demonstrate proven success in improving student achievement, attendance, retention, and progression outcomes, and in implementing strategies to raise performance across curriculum areas.
• Have experience of using data, quality assurance and performance information to identify priorities and drive continuous improvement.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the creative and digital sectors and the importance of industry engagement, employability, and progression within curriculum development.
• Have a strong commitment to equality, diversity, inclusion and removing barriers to learning for all students.

What you will bring

As an Assistant Principal, you will provide visible and inspirational leadership across the Creative Industries and Digital curriculum area. You will combine strategic thinking with strong operational management, ensuring that curriculum teams are supported to deliver an outstanding experience and excellent outcomes for all learners.

You will be an ambitious and collaborative leader who can motivate and develop staff, build high-performing teams, and create a culture of continuous improvement.

This is an exciting opportunity to play a key role in shaping the future development and performance of Creative Industries and Digital across United Colleges Group, encompassing Art, Music, Media, Performing Arts and Computing, and to make a significant contribution to the experience, achievement, and progression of our learners.