The role

Are you a senior leader or school improvement professional who is passionate about supporting and helping schools to develop?  If you want to make a difference as a system leader, and are looking for a new opportunity, we would like to hear from you.

We are looking to recruit a School Effectiveness Adviser to work with secondary schools.  This post will be high profile and focused on system leadership to improve outcomes for all students

We are looking for an excellent leader, with a successful background within a school, local authority or multi-academy trust. The successful candidate will be hard working and dynamic, have a proven track record of success in raising achievement and the ability to lead and inspire others. For this very important role, excellent interpersonal skills and the ability to work effectively as part of and across teams are essential. 

You will join an experienced team of secondary school advisers who work alongside headteachers and senior leaders to support their self-evaluation, quality assurance and continuous improvement planning. As part of our team, you will utilise your skills and experience to develop new products, services and training that meet the needs of the range of schools that we support. You will be self-motivated, flexible and be prepared to travel to schools throughout Hertfordshire and neighbouring areas (travel allowance paid).

This is a great opportunity to join a highly regarded and successful team and have a significant impact on large numbers of students across a range of settings. 

Would you like to know more information about this opportunity? If so, further information can be found in the job outline. You can also contact Liz Shapland (Director of Education Services) at Liz.Shapland@hfleducation.org or Becky Cox (Head of Secondary Leadership) at Becky.Cox@hfleducation.org.

Benefits
  • 28 days annual leave (rising to 31 following five years’ service)  plus bank holidays
  • A range of additional leave (compassionate, emergency, pregnancy related sickness, and disability leave for appointments)
  • Pension scheme (10% employer contribution)
  • Life assurance
  • Cycle to Work scheme
  • Annual company bonus opportunity
  • Learning and development opportunities including academic sponsorship
  • Occupational sick/maternity/adoption pay
  • Access to HFL Extras, our online platform with a wide range of savings, discounts and cashback opportunities
  • Paid leave entitlement to undertake voluntary work; we especially encourage school governors
  • Hybrid flexible working with support on commuting expenses
  • Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), which provides advice and support, including a counselling service
  • Access to Mental Health First Aiders
  • Modern office facilities with secure parking
How to apply

To apply, please download and complete the HFL application form along with the supporting statement (maximum 2 sides of A4), explaining how you meet the requirements of the job outline and person specification.

Please also complete and submit the HFL Equal opportunities monitoring form.

As part of our move towards eradicating unconscious bias within the recruitment process, we ask that you follow the guidance stated in the application forms.

We would also love to hear why you are interested in becoming part of the HFL team. Please email your completed application to hfl.recruitment@hfleducation.org or apply via our website:

Apply for this position

At a glance

  • Contract: Permanent (starting January or April)

  • Hours: Fulltime, 37 hours per week

  • Salary: £75,000 p.a. (FTE)

  • Location: Hertfordshire, with the flexibility to be able to work in schools and trusts within surrounding counties as required

  • Closing date: Friday 25th September 2026

  • Screening interview date: Friday, 2nd October 2026

  • Formal interview date: Friday, 16th October 2026

Job outline

Secondary School Effectiveness Adviser - job outline
PDF
291.84 KB

Contact us

hfl.recruitment@hfleducation.org

We are a committed Disability Confident employer and a signatory of the BITC Race at Work Charter reflecting our continuing commitment to be unbiased across our recruitment and workplace practices.

We actively encourage suitably qualified applicants from all backgrounds to apply and to join us. We use an anonymous application process to ensure we always select candidates based on their skills and competencies. When two or more candidates have equal merit, the candidate with protected characteristics will have an advantage over others. This tie-breaker approach is described as positive action in the Equality Act 2010 and we believe strongly in the power of overcoming disadvantage.

If you are invited to interview, please be prepared to discuss the subject of unconscious bias with us. These conversations are extremely useful in giving us an idea of what working together will be like.

HFL is an equal opportunities employer, committed to building and celebrating an environment that is inclusive and equitable, in which everyone can flourish, regardless of race, age, sexuality, gender, disability, or status.