Role Purpose
To lead the successful planning, development, registration and opening of new Compass schools — ensuring each school is fully operational, staffed, compliant and ready to deliver exceptional outcomes for the target number of learners from day one. You will play a central role in helping us scale our education provision from 365 to 1,500 learners by 2029.
Qualifications and Experience
Essential
- Proven experience in opening new educational provisions, ideally in special or alternative settings.
- Strong track record of delivering complex, multi-stakeholder projects on time and on budget.
- Demonstrated ability to work strategically with regulatory and government agencies.
- Deep understanding of Ofsted school regulatory frameworks and DfE registration processes.
- Experience working with Local Authorities and commissioners.
- Experience of driving brand awareness and enrolment pipelines with target parent audiences.
- Exceptional interpersonal and communication skills with the ability to influence and lead across diverse stakeholder groups.
- High standards of planning, organisation, and execution.
Desirable
- Knowledge of property and facilities development in an educational context.
- Project Management qualification or similar.
Key Responsibilities
1. End-to-End School Development
- Work with the Compass Development team to help identify, evaluate and progress new school sites aligned with Compass’s national and regional strategic priorities.
- Lead and own the “school start-up” process from planning to registration and launch.
- Ensure all buildings meet internal design standards and statutory regulations (safety, SEND compliance, accessibility, educational readiness).
- Work with the Development team to oversee site build, refurbishment and fit-out — including furnishings, signage, and classroom readiness.
- Embed Compass’s therapeutic and education models pre-opening, ensuring alignment with REACH ethos and curriculum goals.
2. Staff Attraction & Recruitment
- Work with Compass Recruitment team and external vendors to plan, forecast and execute high impact hiring campaigns for school leadership, teaching and support staff.
- Champion Compass as an employer of choice within the SEND/alternative provision education sector.
- Ensure staffing levels are met to deliver full operational capacity from Day 1.
- Support Head Teacher recruitment and onboarding prior to handover.
3. Marketing, Admissions & Parent Engagement
- Collaborate with Marketing to deliver compelling campaigns that resonate with prospective parents and carers.
- Ensure each school has a clear identity, narrative, and visual presence ahead of launch.
- Working with the Admissions & Transitions Managers, oversee the parent experience journey, ensuring a positive, high-conversion experience from first contact to enrolment.
- Track and optimise learner recruitment against agreed targets and fill rates.
4. Local Authority Relationship Building & Placement Planning
- Build and maintain strong working relationships with commissioning teams in priority Local Authorities.
- Engage early to align school development with placement needs and strategic demand.
- Ensure LAs are kept informed, engaged, and supportive throughout the development lifecycle.
- Secure commitments or early placements in line with each school’s phased opening plan.
5. Cross-Functional Leadership & Collaboration
- Lead cross-departmental coordination (Estates, IT, HR, Governance, Quality, Therapeutic Services) to deliver seamless school launches.
- Drive operational readiness across policies, systems, compliance, and resourcing.
- Collaborate with Regional Directors to ensure smooth post-opening handover and leadership continuity.
- Maintain excellent communication across all stakeholder groups to support alignment and accountability.
6. Regulatory & Compliance Management
- Own the full registration process for Ofsted and DfE approvals and with other relevant bodies to facilitate smooth school registration and approval processes.
- Lead compliance inspections, application submissions, and evidence-gathering proactively and professionally.
- Ensure each school has the required policies, frameworks, and governance infrastructure in place pre-opening.
7. Project Leadership & Delivery
- Act as the central point of leadership for each new school project, coordinating across internal divisions and external partners.
- Work in close partnership with the Regional Director to ensure smooth transition and handover at the end of each development phase.
- Develop, track and report against a comprehensive Development Scorecard for all projects.
- Monitor key milestones including site works, staffing, compliance, marketing and enrolment.
- Identify and mitigate risks quickly; escalate issues where needed to ensure pace and quality.
8. “School in a Box” Playbook Development
- Build a robust and detailed playbook for opening new Compass school to deliver a repeatable model of growth.
- Cover every aspect of the launch process: from site identification to handover, including capital works, staffing, systems, regulatory steps, parent comms, and LA engagement.
- Embed tools, templates, checklists and timelines to drive consistency and scale.
- Continuously improve the playbook based on live project feedback and lessons learned.
- Champion this as the gold standard model for future school openings across Compass.
Key Deliverables
- Schools opened on time and within budget.
- Staffed schools with full leadership and teaching staff pre-Day 1.
- Full regulatory approvals and operational sign-off before opening.
- All enrolment targets met on Day 1.
- Fully codified “School in a Box” playbook, embedded and in use across the group.
Leadership Expectations
- Lead with pace, purpose and professionalism.
- Model Compass’s REACH ethos and values.
- Balance strategic oversight with hands-on delivery.
- Act as a system-builder and problem-solver across the national Education team.
- Leave behind the conditions for long-term success.