Location: Duration: Reports to: Preferably UK or other location if aligned to business need and the demands of the role. Union 37

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1 Posting opportunity: Role: Senior Schools Advisor, Engagement operational information Regions supported Number of staff working in Education & Society by region SBU overview: Education & Society strategy: Grade & salary range: Senior management broad band (Senior managers and professionals) Location: Duration: Reports to: Preferably UK or other location if aligned to business need and the demands of the role IDC Schools Lead (Head of Schools Programmes) Scale of global operations (Approximate total staff numbers by each region covered working in the Education & Society space) East Asia These posts do not report to the Schools Lead but are integrated 138 into Regional structures or delivery functions. They are linked to European the Head of Schools Programmes through a network of Regional leads for Schools, normally one per Region but with additional Union 37 representation in China and India. MENA 43 Schools team - 8 staff South Asia out of around staff in the UK SBU SSA 68 Wider Europe 34 SBU Strategy The Education and Society Strategic Business Unit (SBU) is one of 3 SBUs. The others are Arts and English and Examinations. The Schools strategy forms part of the Education & Society 2020 strategy, which in turn aligns to the British Council s Corporate Plan. The E&S strategy is itself in the process of being updated through the Building Education & Society Sustainability (BESS) programme which started in the second half of 2016/17. Schools Strategy Within this framework the core purpose of the British Council s work with school systems is to enrich teaching and learning learning through: providing and enabling consultancy on system improvement on a continuum from access to quality to innovation providing services that support practitioners to deliver high quality education in line with the direction of the Sustainable Development Goals building a body of research and insight which is publically available on effective international practice The current Schools strategy covers the period although the intention is to refresh and update it in The British Council is committed to providing an offer to the schools sector that includes expertise and products from all three strategic business units. This is fundamental in order to: meet the demand for whole system improvement, especially from Ministries of Education improve and clarify communication, messaging and marketing materials of the Schools offer from the

2 British Council build a sustainable business that delivers both impact and income and in doing so, contribute to the targets and objectives of the Education & Sustainability 2020 Strategy Those shortlisted can request a copy of the Schools Strategy in full, if they wish to obtain further details. (Note: the strategy will be updated during 2017/18 to respond to the changing internal and external context) Products and services: The main strands of the Schools portfolio fall into three broad categories: Research and practitioner-informed insight generated through learning from our schools programmes and engagement with key policy makers, stakeholders and researchers in the field. We seek to move the debate from reflection to action via conferences, policy dialogue, study visits, cross UK education department meetings and dissemination of our research/insight through events and various traditional and digital media. School-system consultancy which aims to demonstrate and market the UK s sector expertise in school system improvement and reform through the provision of a suite of consulting services, including: provision of technical advice from leading experts (in-house and from across the UK); conducting needs analyses and scoping reviews; sharing global best practice and thought leadership; and the development of new methodologies and toolkits to support system improvement. Capacity-building i.e. supporting school improvement by creating market opportunities for the UK (and, as part of that, the British Council) through: development of skills assessment tools; delivery of training workshops and seminars; digital engagement; arranging placements and study visits; developing collaborative professional partnerships 1 between individuals or institutions (including HE); facilitating access to UK examinations; creating opportunities for international lesson study; and managing intercultural credits. Key products and services within that overarching offer are as follows: Curriculum development including collaborative problem solving, ICT for learning, global citizenship and subject areas such as English, language learning, CLIL, STEM, arts education and PE and sport Teaching and Learning methodologies including learner-centred curriculum, pedagogy shift, early years teaching, Special Educational Needs and inclusion, Professional and personal development including core skills training, (21 st century skills), governance and whole system management, school leadership, innovative teacher trainer methodology, community engagement and student leadership Supporting learning including inclusion, assessment for learning, lesson study, collaborative creation of resources, soft skills and life skills Management systems including use of data to support student achievement, quality assurance, child protection, financial modelling, and managing school improvement grants. Markets & Customers: The Schools portfolio is and will continue to be a mix of consultancy, paid services, grant-funded work and contracts. In all regions and areas including the four countries of the UK, government will be our key customer and, in many cases, our key stakeholder. Our capacity-building work will be with multipliers and those who interact directly with young people. E&S Portfolio scale: (to be updated by HR team before recruitment) The scale of participation in our activity In , across the whole Education and Society portfolio we created opportunities for over 200 million people to engage with the UK s cultural assets: 1 Collaborative professional partnerships are partnerships between professionals focused on international benchmarking and improving pedagogy

3 over 6 million people took part in face to face activities (Education 78%, Society 22%), 1.9 million attended fairs and exhibitions (Education 82%, Society 18%), 20 million through websites and online communities (Education 70%, Society 30%) and 190m through radio, TV broadcasts and publications (Education 66%, Society 34%). Feedback on the quality of these opportunities is consistently positive with 94% positive responses that the activity was high quality and meeting expectations and 91% that they had had a positive learning experience. Our net promoter score is 60% which benchmarks with some of the strongest global brands. Our ambition over the next 5 years is to maintain and increase this level of participation, especially through digital means, and maintain these high levels of delivery quality. The scale of income In our income plan was: Client- funded income target of: 173m Paid-service income target of: 12.5m Partnership income target of: 43m Combined with the FCO grant allocation of 104m, the total portfolio value will be 333m. When considering the total contracted work we have over the next 5 years, this total portfolio value rises to approximately 1bn. In , this total income is split across the 8 platforms in these proportions Education 37% (Higher Education 21%, Schools 7%, Science and Research 7%, Skills 2%) Society 30% (Access to Justice 6%, Civil Society (including Sport) 21%, Social Enterprise 2%, Gender and Inclusion 1%) Erasmus+ 33% (with links to Schools, Skills, Youth and Sport). At any one time we are in pursuit of new opportunities for partnerships and contracts and developing new services. Our ambition over the next 5 years is to have slow growth of income with improved surplus generation. Internal operating context Corporate A new Operating Model was implemented in 2014/15 with E&S led through its Leadership Team to deliver its 2020 vision and targets targets have yet to be agreed but will include increased impact and sustainability. The Business Education & Society Sustainability programme (BESS) is now taking forward the next stage of the SBU s development in the globally. The role holder will need to ensure that the Schools team continues to work closely with and alongside the three other sector teams within Education: Skills, Science and Higher Education, and also with a number of colleagues working in the area of education engagement and UK stakeholder relationship management, to develop an integrated client and beneficiary-focused approach. The role holder will continue to develop and champion cross SBU working within the team to develop new multidisciplinary opportunities that meet clients needs and maximize the full scope of the British Council offer. Regional An important part of this role is close working with Education colleagues in the Regions. The role will need to articulate a clear and compelling vision for the Schools portfolio to the regions and provide strong and support them in delivering their part in the overall E&S strategy. The British Council s schools strategy recognises the importance of flexibility in order to support needs based programme development. The role holder will need to work with regional SBU leads and country teams to support and shape regional business and implementation strategy. Country plans need to be informed by the market opportunity and programme sustainability.

4 Main opportunities/challenges for this role: 1. Implementation of global Schools strategy to enricj teaching and learning - Leading on the global implementation of the Schools programme range and, where necessary, further development of the offer. This includes working with senior colleagues in Regions and Countries to help them to use and tailor our range of paid services and partner funded activities. Actively engaging with the regions to support the development of regional and country strategies through the provision of high quality expertise and advice. Supporting the shaping and developing of major programme opportunities and proposal building through the provision of expert content and quality assurance. This forms part of the Schools response to the Building Education & Society Sustainability project (BESS) which requires more impact, come and surplus across the SBU. 2. Cross-SBU working - Leading the operational partnership with English for Education Systems to implement the audience led cross-sbu schools strategy. This includes responsibility for the Schools team contributions to the Teacher for Success framework for teacher training. 3. Maintaining and developing partnership this includes both existing partners such as Microsoft but also finding new partners for both programme development and research/insight. 4. Insight and research ( Thought leadership ) programme lead and coordinate a programme of gathering and commissioning insight and research which will deepen and demonstrate the British Council s professional knowledge of improving learning outcomes through system improvement. Lead the dissemination of our insights internally and externally. Role profile Job purpose: The Senior Schools Adviser will be part of a small central team working with colleagues in over 100 countries who are focused on enriching teaching and learning in schools an essential contribution to a secure and prosperous world. International collaboration in education and offering programmes that enhance young people s opportunities is at the heart of the British Council s work. Working directly to the Head of Schools Programmes, this role will play a major part in this work and will provide senior level expertise to shape much of our portfolio of Schools work. Within the context of our overarching British Council strategy, the role will develop a set of priorities, objectives and plans to ensure that our work with schools systems builds mutually beneficial relationships between the UK and the countries where we operate. The postholder will work with our teams around the world to implement the Schools strategy, extending our paid offer to schools and developing existing and new partnerships. It also has responsibility for coordinating a programme of insight and research. Main accountabilities: Strategy and planning Contribute to the refresh and ongoing development of the global strategy for school systems, aligned to the global Education Strategy and wider corporate priorities and targets, with a particular focus on ensuring that benefit to the UK is addressed and delivers optimal cultural relations impact in a financially sustainable way. As a senior member of the Education SBU, be highly visible in and contribute actively to effective decisionmaking and planning across the global business, and lead specific corporate initiatives and projects, as required. Leadership & management Support the development of a clear and compelling vision for the contribution of work with schools and

5 school systems globally, to ensure that all staff have clarity about medium-term strategy and direction, and are committed to achieving a set of shared goals. Support the Head of Schools Programmes to provide professional leadership to the Schools Team and regional teams. Providing advice and guidance from own area of expertise for effective staff development opportunities which build understanding and capability in the UK education systems policies, trends and best practice, to ensure that the British Council is seen as an authority on school system, that clients needs are met and that staff have the opportunity to develop with the appropriate sector knowledge and skills. Deputise for Head of Schools Programmes as necessary. Relationship, stakeholder and key account management Build, develop and manage stakeholder, partner and client relations to maintain an up-to-date understanding of trends and practice and position the British Council as a recognised authority in education systems policy and practice. Build a compelling vision with stakeholders and partners, of the impact of our work in the schools portfolio in region and the benefits for the UK. Build and maintain excellent relationships with other key stakeholders internally and particularly with English for Education Systems, Society, Exams and Arts to ensure effective, integrated and joined-up delivery of agreed business objectives. Sector/subject expertise Represent the British Coincil as a recognised, credible authority to external stakeholders and audiences. To positon the British Council as a respected and effective organisation in the field of international school education. Build and maintain external networks to access, absorb and apply professional best practice back into the Schools portfolio. Lead the development or commissioning and implementation of high quality thought leadership collateral to share practice and build long-term capability and skills within the Schools arena, with a particular focus on raising awareness of UK education system policies, trends and best practice, across the UK and overseas. Market building, business development & brand positioning Lead the development of new schools products, services, client groups, channels and ways of working (in the UK, regionally and globally), based on robust analysis of market/ competitor/ stakeholder trends, that will deliver impact, maintain the British Council s competitive edge in the medium-term and add demonstrable value to the UK. Champion work to operationalise a cross SBU framework to allow targets (impact, audience, income) to be shared between business units. This will include work with English for Education Systems around the Teaching for Success framework. Liaise with Business Delivery in order to provide and analyse reports on performance of the Schools business to enable effective decision-making and planning at UK national, regional and SBU level

6 Threshold requirements: Diplomatic status n/a Security clearance required Passport requirements Permission to work in the UK Accompanied by partner n/a Notes DBS certificate required Accompanied by children n/a Language requirement n/a Qualifications Qualified to degree level, or equivalent by experience. Knowledge & experience Minimum / essential Desirable Previous experience in education policy or programme development at a strategic level advising partners in policy review and change. Broad knowledge and understanding of the different education systems in school level education internationally and in the four nations of the UK - and the politics associated with this. Track record in building and developing credible high profile relationships with senior stakeholders in the Education sector, on a consultancy basis helping to shape direction and influence policy. n/a Broad awareness of the differing situations relating to schools and school systems in the different regions of the world. Strong consulting skills and a track record of product and service innovation in the education sector space. A recognised authority in the schools education sector with a broad and deep knowledge and understanding of the education systems and policies in the four nations of the UK and the politics associated with this. British Council Skills & Behaviours: Skills Planning & organising Develops annual plans: able to develop and review the implementation of annual plans for a work group or function, taking account of business and customer requirements and reconciling competing demands. Communicating & influencing Uses influencing techniques able to employ formal and informal negotiating and motivation techniques to influence others behavior and persuade them to think and act differently. Account & partnership development Shapes strategic relationships - experience of setting overall direction for the formation and management of strategic relationships, collaborations and contracts with stakeholder, customers and partners in a significant market. Analysing data and problems Solves complex problems Able to apply or devise specialized concepts and methods of analysis or commission them from others and consume the results to understand and solve complex business, market or policy problems. Managing risks Develops the culture Track record of analyzing potential risks, promoting risk awareness, and holding others to account for their practices.

7 Behaviours Creating Shared Purpose (MOST DEMANDING): creating clarity internally and externally about strategy and direction and inspiring others to play their part in it. Connecting with Others (MOST DEMANDING): showing a drive to understand and build connections with people beyond immediate need or task. Shaping the Future (MOST DEMANDING): changing the nature of what we do and the benefits we gain by thinking & planning with creativity. Working Together (MOST DEMANDING): working with others to achieve shared benefits/common goals.