School Business Manager
Orion Eden Park, Beckenham, Kent, BR3 3RD10 days remaining to apply
Start date details
January 2026
Closing date
7 November 2025 at 12pm (midday)
Date listed
6 October 2025
Job details
Job role
- Administration, HR, data and finance
Visa sponsorship
- Visas cannot be sponsored
Working pattern
- Full time
Contract type
- Fixed term
Full-time equivalent salary
- £58,459.00 - £62,765.00 Annually (FTE) NJC scale 10, points 44-48
School Business Manager job summary
Based at Orion Eden Park
Orion Education is a values-led organisation, driven by a determination to create welcoming and open schools for the local community, where every person thrives, makes excellent progress, and succeeds. We are committed to improving outcomes and transforming lives, realising social mobility, and the transformative power of education. We value the difference in all of our schools while seeking to bring them together around a framework that delivers an enriching experience and a great education for the young people within our care.
We want the very best for all of our young people. Our plan to ensure that we deliver great schools is underpinned by our shared values of trust, kindness, and endeavour. Our schools and our staff are collaborative and we seek to create consistency and quality throughout.
Our leaders create improvement in schools that is robust and sustainable. We are as enthusiastic about developing and nurturing our staff, as we are about developing our young people. Our professional development programs and our approach to school improvement provide quality and rigor while creating a depth of experience and learning for our staff.
About the role
We are seeking a dynamic and highly organised individual to join our leadership team as School Business Manager on a fixed-term basis. This pivotal role offers the opportunity to make a meaningful impact on the strategic and operational success of our vibrant secondary school. You will lead on finance, HR, premises, and administration, ensuring that resources are managed efficiently to support the best possible outcomes for our students. Orion Eden Park is a forward-thinking school with a strong sense of community and a commitment to excellence. If you are a proactive professional with a passion for education and a talent for business management, we would love to hear from you.
Key Accountabilities
MAIN DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES
Work alongside the Principal to ensure effective management of operational functions and finances
Ensure that actions and decisions within finance and operations are coherent with the Orion backbone
Liaise with the trust Finance team on budget setting, budget monitoring and fundraising and ensuring the software system is being effectively used within the school
Liaise with the Chief Financial Officer (CFO) on trust-wide and school contracts, and SLAs with suppliers, to ensure effective delivery of services and obtain value for money
Oversee and deliver the recruitment processes for staff, ensuring that safer recruitment is adhered to
Oversee general personnel matters; seek advice from the Director of HR for more complex employment matters
Ensure contract changes are correctly authorised, payroll details are submitted accurately and checked to correct timescales
Act as the school’s Health and Safety Co-Ordinator
Act as the school’s point of contact for GDPR compliance
Line manage the Office Manager (where the role exists) and Site Manager, and other relevant staff
Be responsible for oversight of all associate staff, and accountable for their performance management
Ensure all actions have a positive impact on improving school performance and outcomes
GENERAL
Attend leadership team and local advisory body meetings as requested by the Principal to contribute to discussions and present financial and Operational reports.
Work alongside the Principal to ensure financial diligence, seek value for money and support in spending decisions.
Support the Principal in writing the school’s strategic development plan.
Lead on staff working parties relevant to area of management and responsibility.
To liaise with and complete contract monitoring for external contracts in conjunction with the CFO for trust wide contracts.
Line manage the Office Manager (where this role exists) and Site Manager.
Attend regular and relevant CPD.
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
Understand and adhere to the agreed Trust financial processes
Working with the central finance team, set a balanced budget that supports all school activities: implement the new budget at the beginning of the year, ensuring the balances reconcile with the GAG statement.
Ensure that the budget software is kept up to date and monitor the budget monthly
Be able to articulate the budget position to Principal and Local Advisory Body at any point.
Manage a lettings strategy ensuring the buildings are professionally marketed and lettings income is maximized.
Working with the CFO, ensure contracts adhere to financial regulations and deliver value for money, leading on specific tendering exercises and contract monitoring as appropriate.
Work with the school leadership team in generating and moderating curriculum financial planning models.
Working with the CFO, ensure the correct levels of authority are included within the software system
Maintain the Fixed Asset Register
Work alongside the leadership team to complete DfE census to ensure maximum funding is allocated to the school (pupil and workforce), including NTP and other programmes
Work with the leadership team to complete the catch-up funding and Pupil Premium funding statements.
Be responsible for the administration of the P16 bursary and Free School Meals
Manage collection of payments from parents via Arbor Pay or equivalent system
Identify additional financial incomes to support the school: funding sources, writing bids for grants
HR & PAYROLL
Oversee and deliver the recruitment and induction process for all new staff following the recruitment “How to” Guide
Support the leadership team with the induction of new staff
Liaising with the Director of HR, ensure Safer Recruitment systems are followed - insist upon the highest standards within the recruitment process, administration checks and reference paperwork.
Oversee general personnel matters; seek advice from the Director of HR for more complex employment matters.
Monitor absence and ensure return to work meetings are carried out
Act as link between School and Director of HR to Lead on investigations: complaints and grievances, disciplinaries and capabilities.
Ensure that contract changes are authorised and payroll details are submitted correctly and checked to correct timescales
Conduct associate staff exit interviews and collate information for the Principal
ADMINISTRATIVE MANAGEMENT
Line manage the Office Manager (where role exists) and support all Associate Staff.
Design and maintain administrative systems that deliver outcomes based on the school’s policies.
Ensure timely returns to DFE and Trust as required.
Oversee and manage the Single Central Register, liaising with the Director of HR, Central HR team and the Trust DSL, providing reports to the School and LAB.
Ensure high response rates for the annual Edurio staff, parent and pupil surveys
Support the school’s implementation of all current statutory requirements e.g. DDA, Access to work, Equal Opportunities and Child Protection.
Ensure that Civica and Arbor are kept up to date with staffing changes
FACILITIES MANAGEMENT
Line manage the Site Manager to ensure the security of the school site.
Ensure that the Site Manager conducts a weekly walk of the school site and reports any issues/progress.
Play an integral part in ensuring furnishing and decoration of the school is kept to a high standard.
Work with the Head of Estates school building management and development.
HEALTH AND SAFETY
Act as the school’s Health and Safety Co-ordinator
Accountable for compliance to all Health and Safety standards, for example PAT testing.
Accountable for Fire Safety, overseeing the work of the Site Manager who is the responsible Fire Officer.
Ensure any serious accidents are reported to the Trust H&S Officer within stated timescales.
Ensure the school’s written health and safety policy statement is clearly communicated to stakeholders, readily available and put into practice. Assess this policy regularly.
Coordinate the creation and collation of risk assessments across the school to include Health and Safety, and Educational Trips.
Regularly review and update critical incident/business continuity plan.
Regularly review and update the school risk register
ICT MANAGEMENT
Liaise with the IT engineers on site to ensure that
all school functions are operating smoothly every day
school priorities are reflected in the work of the IT engineers
Liaise with CFO and IT support company to plan and deliver a rolling programme of upgrading IT infrastructure and devices
To complete the relevant documentation to assist in the tracking of students
To track student progress and use information to inform teaching and learning
DATA PROTECTION
Acting as point of contact for the school in relation to GDPR. Ensure the School processes all data in compliance with data protection rules as set out in GDPR guidance. Report any data breaches to the Trust lead and complete any follow-up actions.
Liaise as appropriate with the GDPR lead from the Trust in relation to GRPR queries. Support the GDPR training needs for the school staff.
Manage any Subject Access Request (SAR) and ensure the school adheres to SAR timeframe.
Manage and respond to Freedom of Information requests, liaising with GDPR lead at the Trust.
Further information about the job
Commitment to safeguarding
Education for the 21st Century is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an Enhanced DBS check, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed for all applicants. Education for the 21st Century is fully committed to equality and to valuing diversity as an employer and a provider of education.
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 Orion Eden Park
- School type
- Free School, ages 11 to 19
- Education phase
- Secondary
- School size
- 1274 pupils enrolled
- Age range
- 11 to 19
- Ofsted report
- View Ofsted report
- School website
- Orion Eden Park website
Education for the 21st Century is a values-led organisation, driven by a determination to create welcoming and open schools for the local community, where every person thrives, makes excellent progress, and succeeds. We are committed to improving outcomes and transforming lives, realising social mobility, and the transformative power of education. We value the difference in all of our schools while seeking to bring them together around a framework that delivers an enriching experience and a great education for the young people within our care.
We want the very best for all of our young people. Our plan to ensure that we deliver great schools is underpinned by our shared values of trust, kindness, and endeavour. Our schools and our staff are collaborative, and we seek to create consistency and quality throughout.
Our leaders create improvement in schools that is robust and sustainable. We are as enthusiastic about developing and nurturing our staff, as we are about developing our young people. Our professional development programs and our approach to school improvement provide quality and rigor while creating a depth of experience and learning for our staff.
In joining Eden Park High School and the family of schools within E21C you will gain access to an unparalleled level of support and development in a forward-thinking school and trust.
Eden Park High School is a new school in Beckenham. We opened in 2017, moved into our purpose-built new premises in 2019, celebrated our first ever GCSE results in 2022 and have opened our new Sixth Form this September. With a new and expanded leadership team, this young school is starting an exciting new chapter as we build the culture, systems and teams that will see us expand further over the next two years and deliver an outstanding quality of education for the community.
We are currently recruiting exceptional teachers and support staff who want to be part of our journey of transformation. We want people who will share in our ethos and values and set a new standard of excellence and inspire young minds.
School location
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