The Opportunity

Peterborough is a rapidly growing cathedral city at the heart of the East of England, driving major economic development through sustainable environmental technology, digital engineering, and extensive multi-million-pound urban regenerations. We are seeking a highly organized, legally minded, and strategically focused School Office Manager to join a dynamic academy. In this vital leadership support role, you will lead our administrative operations, oversee the frontline support team, and manage the essential compliance frameworks that keep our school running with absolute precision.

The School

Operating as an independent academy within a forward-thinking multi-academy trust, our school combines innovative educational practice with robust operational support. We benefit from centralized administrative and estates networks, freeing our frontline staff to focus entirely on maintaining an exceptional site environment. We implement explicit, highly consistent, school-wide behaviour routines that keep our campus quiet, respectful, and orderly. This structured environment ensures that our main office remains a calm, highly productive, and professional workspace where support staff are valued, respected, and fully integrated into the school's long-term success.

The Administrative Team & Management Culture

• You will line manage and inspire a highly collaborative, dedicated Main Office and Reception team where efficiency, professional discretion, and meticulous accuracy are celebrated.

• The department operates within a contemporary, well-resourced administrative hub equipped with modern school information management systems (MIS) and advanced digital compliance tracking software.

• Our office structure explicitly prioritizes streamlined workflows and clear delegation, ensuring that daily administrative metrics and statutory timelines are consistently met.

• Staff benefit from shared operational protocols and standard operating procedures, allowing you to manage team performance and school correspondence while maintaining a sustainable individual workload.

Core Responsibilities

1. Administrative Line Management: Leading, line managing, and scheduling the daily duties of the school administrative, reception, and data support teams—conducting regular performance reviews and identifying training needs.

2. Management Information Systems (MIS): Overlooking the school's internal database (such as SIMS, Arbor, or Bromcom) to ensure student records, admissions data, and statutory census submissions are executed with absolute precision.

3. Compliance & Policy Administration: Assisting the School Business Manager in maintaining the school’s Single Central Record (SCR), coordinating health and safety compliance documentation, and managing standard GDPR data protocols.

4. Executive Communication Management: Overseeing the production and distribution of high-quality school correspondence, parent newsletters, and website compliance updates, ensuring absolute grammatical clarity.

5. Office Finance & Resource Procurement: Managing the main office budget allocations, overseeing the ordering of school supplies, and authorizing invoices in close collaboration with the centralized finance team.

The Successful Candidate We are looking for a proactive, highly authoritative, and solution-oriented professional who loves organization, excels at systems management, and possesses the leadership skills to guide a busy team. Your profile should include:

• Proven Office Management Experience: Strong previous experience managing a busy office, reception, or administrative team—ideally within an educational setting, though corporate backgrounds with strong transferable operational leadership are highly valued.

• Advanced Technical Proficiency: Exceptional ICT capability, with deep experience operating school MIS platforms, managing spreadsheets, and mastering database architectures.

• Exceptional Interpersonal & Leadership Skills: A calm, professional, and commanding demeanour, with the ability to motivate staff, manage parental escalations, and advise senior leaders confidently.

• Meticulous Eye for Detail: The ability to prioritize a varied operational workload independently, multi-task effectively under tight statutory deadlines, and maintain strict confidentiality at all times.

Why Join Our Support Staff?

• The distinct satisfaction of working within a progressive academy setting where your operational leadership directly impacts the safety, smooth running, and atmosphere of the whole school community.

• Comprehensive internal induction and continuous professional development (CPD) focusing on advanced school facilities management, safeguarding compliance, and strategic school operations.

• The exceptional lifestyle benefits of living and working in Peterborough—offering highly affordable housing, historic riverside parks, vibrant multicultural shopping hubs, and unrivalled rail connectivity providing direct access to London in under 50 minutes.

• A supportive School Business Manager and senior leadership team that respects support staff workload, provides a structured schedule, and deeply values your vital role in the school's daily operational success.

How to Apply

Please submit your current CV to begin the application process.