Chief People & Culture Officer
The Shaw Education Trust, Stoke-On-Trent, ST7 4DL16 days remaining to apply
Job start date
15 September 2025
Closing date
1 October 2025 at 9am
Date listed
15 September 2025
Job details
Job role
- Other leadership roles
- Administration, HR, data and finance
Visa sponsorship
- Visas cannot be sponsored
Working pattern
- Full time
Contract type
- Permanent
Full-time equivalent salary
- SPOT £120,000
Chief People & Culture Officer job summary
We are looking for an inspirational leader to help shape the future of our Trust. This is a unique opportunity for someone who can operate confidently at board level, bringing both strategic insight and the ability to foster a thriving, people-first culture.
The right candidate will be a trusted advisor with strong knowledge of employment law, but equally someone who leads with vision, empathy, and integrity. We want a leader who can empower others, set a clear direction, and embed a culture that inspires staff and pupils alike.
Culture is at the heart of everything we do — we’re seeking someone who understands its power, and who can nurture an environment where people feel supported, motivated, and proud to belong. At the same time, this role requires trust-level experience and the ability to contribute to high-level strategy, ensuring we grow with strength, purpose, and unity.
The ideal candidate will have:
- Proven experience operating at Trust Board or equivalent senior governance level.
- Strong knowledge of employment law and the ability to provide expert advice at a strategic level.
- A track record of driving positive organisational culture and leading change that benefits people and outcomes.
- Experience of leading Talent Management initiatives to attract, develop, and empower a thriving, high-performing workforce.
- Experience of shaping and delivering high-level strategy across a multi-school trust or similar complex organisation.
- Exceptional communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to inspire confidence and trust.
If you’re passionate about people, strategy, and creating lasting positive change, we would love to hear from you.
If you would like an informal discussion about working for Shaw Education Trust in this role, please contact Natalie Turner, Recruitment Manager in the first instance (see attachment for details)
We are a dynamic and growing family of Primary, Secondary, and Special Schools, proudly serving communities from Birmingham to Bury. Our mission is to unlock opportunity for every young person—whatever their background, ability, or starting point.
Our people are our greatest asset, and we are deeply committed to their growth. Through high-quality training, apprenticeships, talent acceleration, and research opportunities, we empower our staff to thrive as skilled, confident professionals and we champion wellbeing, value every voice, and create a culture where you feel supported, motivated, and inspired to make a real difference.
You will join a collaborative network of schools where shared expertise and professional community fuel success. Every academy in our Trust has an equal voice, and every colleague plays a vital part in shaping tailored learning experiences that raise aspirations and build brighter futures.
At the heart of our work is a deep respect for the children and young adults we serve. We are proud to have high expectations of every student, preparing them for adulthood including further education, employment, or training in inclusive environments where integrity, equality, and opportunity thrive.
If you have the moral integrity, passion, and drive to help shape lives and create futures filled with promise, we would love you to join our incredible team.
Together, let’s make the remarkable happen.
Shaw Education Trust offer the following employee benefits with your Teaching or Support Staff employment:
- An excellent Local Government Pension Scheme (Support Staff) / Teachers Pension (Teaching Staff)
- Support Staff only based on working full time, all year - Generous holiday entitlement from your first day of employment (37 days holiday rising to 39 days after 5 years’ service including Bank Holidays)
- Trust Leadership Contacts based on working full time, all year - 41 days holiday including bank holidays, with a maximum of 16 days to be taken in term time and flexible working during school holiday times.
- Access to Medicash Health & Wellbeing Plan: Enjoy health services designed to support your well-being.
- Free DiscountForTeachers Scheme for all staff (Support and Teaching), Exclusive discounts to save money with a wide selection of discounts and exclusive offers from hundreds of the biggest brands.
- Free Eye Tests
- Cycle to work scheme
- Access to our Institute of Education and fantastic opportunities to help you grow, contribute and flourish in your role and in the Trust.
We know our people are the key to our success and so we’re committed to ensuring the employment experience at Shaw Education Trust is a rewarding one.
Working hours: 37 hours a week, full time, all year
Contract type: FTC until December 2025 - (in the first instance, with potential for extension depending on the recruitment of the permanent post)
Location: SET Head Office located at Kidsgrove Secondary School site with School travel if required
Further information about the job
Commitment to safeguarding
Safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children is defined for the purposes of this guidance as:
Protecting children from maltreatment
Preventing impairment of children’s mental and physical health or development
Ensuring that children grow up in circumstances consistent with the provision of safe and effective care
Taking action to enable all children to have the best outcomes
Shaw Education Trust recognises that in order to keep pupils safe, leaders must create where pupils and staff are able to speak freely and share any concerns they have.
Applying for the job
This school accepts applications through their own website, where you may also find more information about this job.
CVs will not be accepted for this application.
View advert on external website (opens in new tab)About The Shaw Education Trust
- Type
- Multi-academy trust
We are in the business of people; we focus on harnessing the power of people to affect positive change for our children and young adults.
We enable children, leaders, teachers and support teams, to create their individual best futures. We are bespoke: one size fits one.
Our approach derives from a mission that education should be an exciting space, buzzing with vibrancy, dynamism and unlimited potential.
Innovation and entrepreneurialism fuel our passion, enabling creativity and mandating agility. We love a pirate!
Our talented people are everything; we focus heavily on workforce development, talent acceleration, and healthy wellbeing. By offering high quality training, apprenticeships, and research opportunities we ensure all our colleagues are well motivated, committed, highly valued, and incredibly driven, skilled professionals.
We are proud of our work family: they create magic for our young people!
Our learning community is enhanced by the mix of academies (primary, secondary and specialist) within our Trust; all with an equal voice. This allows us to create a team of collaborative folk with a wide range of valuable experience and knowledge.
We value and enjoy the privilege of working with our children and young adults; they are precious cargo. We are proud to be ‘exactly like nothing else.’
Our Core Values are:
To Be Pupil And People Centred
To Act With Integrity
To be Innovative
To Be Best In Class
To Be Accountable
Head office location
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