National AI Awards 2025Discover AI's trailblazers! Join us to celebrate innovation and nominate industry leaders.

Nominate & Attend

Head of IT

Sale
1 month ago
Applications closed

Related Jobs

View all jobs

Head of IT

Head of IT - Hands-On - IT Manager - 3rd/4th Line Engineer

IT Security Manager

IT Security Manager

IT Security Manager

IT Operations Manager - Fixed Term Contract

Your new company
Are you ready to lead digital transformation at a senior level within a values-driven educational organisation?
This dynamic and expanding Catholic Multi-Academy Trust, with a strong and growing presence across Greater Manchester, is seeking to appoint a visionary
Head of IT. This is a pivotal strategic role, offering the opportunity to shape and lead the Trust's digital infrastructure and innovation as part of a well-established, ambitious senior leadership team.
With a current network of 23 schools and an ambitious growth plan to reach 60 schools by 2030, the Trust is entering an exciting phase of development. The successful candidate will play a key role in supporting this expansion, ensuring robust, future-ready IT systems that enhance teaching, learning, and operational excellence across all academies.
What sets this Trust apart is its deeply embedded culture-described by staff as "healthy," collaborative, and purpose-driven. There is a strong ethos of mutual respect, transparency, and teamwork, with a shared commitment to delivering outstanding education for pupils across the region.
This is more than just a job-it's a chance to make a lasting impact on the lives of young people while working in a supportive, forward-thinking environment.Your new role
Reporting to the Director of Operations, the Head of IT will play a vital role within the Trust's leadership team, driving the development and execution of a forward-thinking IT strategy. This role is central to ensuring that both individual schools and the central IT function are equipped to deliver outstanding educational outcomes through robust, innovative, and secure digital infrastructure.
As Head of IT, you will lead and inspire a dedicated IT team, fostering a culture of excellence and service. You will be responsible for both strategic planning and day-to-day operational management, ensuring the Trust's IT systems are resilient, scalable, and aligned with its ambitious growth plans.
Key Responsibilities Include:

Strategic Leadership: Shape and implement the Trust-wide IT strategy in collaboration with senior leaders.
Project Management: Lead major IT initiatives, including system migrations, cybersecurity enhancements, helpdesk improvements, and other specialist projects.
Team Leadership: Manage and develop the IT team, including recruitment, training, and oversight of the apprenticeship programme.
Onboarding New Schools: Oversee the integration of IT systems and infrastructure for schools joining the Trust.
Policy & Compliance: Develop and communicate IT policies, ensuring consistent implementation across all schools.
Training & Innovation: Design and deliver IT training programmes, supporting the adoption of new technologies.
Procurement & Installation: Manage procurement processes and oversee the installation of new hardware and software.
Systems Management: Maintain and enhance third-party applications, as well as CCTV, telephony, and printing systems.
MIS Implementation: Work closely with the MIS team on current systems and future implementations.
Budget Oversight: Prepare and manage IT budgets, ensuring cost-effective and value-driven solutions.
Vendor Management: Liaise with external suppliers regarding contracts, renewals, and service delivery.
Stakeholder Engagement: Communicate effectively with schools regarding IT usage, needs, and expenditure.
Culture & Collaboration: Promote a collaborative, service-oriented IT culture across the Trust.What you'll need to succeed
To thrive in this role, you will bring substantial IT leadership experience in a multi-site environment-ideally within the education sector, such as a school, college, or multi-academy trust. You will be a proactive and strategic thinker, with a proven track record of successfully managing and evolving IT infrastructure to meet the needs of diverse stakeholders. Collaboration is at the heart of this role. You'll be an effective communicator who works seamlessly with cross-functional teams and school leaders, ensuring IT is not only operationally sound but also a key enabler of educational excellence. Your ability to engage with individual schools, guiding them in the effective use of technology in teaching and learning, will be essential. This opportunity is ideal for an experienced IT leader who has overseen multiple sites and is now looking to take the next step in their career within a forward-thinking, mission-driven organisation. If you are passionate about using technology to support education and want to be part of a growing, values-led trust, we would love to hear from you.
What you'll get in return
In return, you will be joining a growing organisation where you will be offered further growth and development, with the opportunity to learn about new technologies and changes in the IT world in education. You will be joining a collaborative senior leadership team, who all work passionately to deliver the highest level of education to pupils in the Greater Manchester area. You will receive a salary of between £59,000 and £63,000 dependent on experience, as well as receiving an attractive benefits scheme. This includes 26 days annual leave (plus bank holidays, plus Christmas closure), access to the local government pension scheme and access to an employee assistance programme.
What you need to do now

If you're interested in this role, click 'apply now' to forward an up-to-date copy of your CV, or call us now.
If this job isn't quite right for you, but you are looking for a new position, please contact us for a confidential discussion about your career.

Hays Specialist Recruitment Limited acts as an employment agency for permanent recruitment and employment business for the supply of temporary workers. By applying for this job you accept the T&C's, Privacy Policy and Disclaimers which can be found at (url removed)

National AI Awards 2025

Subscribe to Future Tech Insights for the latest jobs & insights, direct to your inbox.

By subscribing, you agree to our privacy policy and terms of service.

Industry Insights

Discover insightful articles, industry insights, expert tips, and curated resources.

Cyber Security Jobs Employer Hotlist 2025: 50 UK Companies Actively Hiring Right Now

Bookmark this guide—refreshed every quarter—so you always know who’s really expanding their cyber security teams. Ransomware payouts broke records in 2024, the UK’s new Cyber Security Bill imposed mandatory breach disclosure, and the National Cyber Force’s move to Samlesbury has super‑charged the northern skills market. Result? Demand for security architects, SOC analysts, penetration testers, cloud‑security engineers, threat hunters & GRC specialists is at an all‑time high in 2025. Below you’ll find 50 organisations that have posted UK‑based cyber security vacancies or announced head‑count growth during the past eight weeks. They’re organised into five quick‑scan categories. For every employer you’ll see: Main UK hub Example live or recent vacancy Why it’s worth a look (tech stack, culture, mission) Search any company on CyberSecurityJobs.tech to view current ads, or set a free alert so fresh openings land straight in your inbox.

Return-to-Work Pathways: Relaunch Your Cyber Security Career with Returnships, Flexible & Hybrid Roles

Re-entering the workforce after a career break can feel especially challenging in a fast-moving field like cyber security. Whether you stepped away for parenting, caregiving or another life chapter, the UK’s cyber security sector now offers a range of return-to-work pathways—from structured returnships to flexible and hybrid roles. These programmes value the transferable skills and resilience you’ve developed during your break, pairing you with mentorship, upskilling opportunities and supportive networks to ease your transition back into cyber security. In this article, tailored for parents and carers, you’ll discover how to: Understand the growing demand for cyber security talent in the UK Translate your organisational, communication and problem-solving skills into cyber security roles Tackle common re-entry challenges with practical solutions Refresh your technical knowledge through targeted learning Access returnship and re-entry programmes specific to cyber security Find roles that accommodate family commitments—whether hybrid, flexible or full-time Balance your career relaunch with caring responsibilities Master applications, interviews and networking in cyber security Draw inspiration from real returner success stories Whether you aim to return as an analyst, penetration tester, security engineer or compliance specialist, this guide will equip you with the steps and resources to reignite your cyber security career.

LinkedIn Profile Checklist for Cybersecurity Jobs: 10 Tweaks to Supercharge Recruiter Engagement

In the ever-evolving realm of cybersecurity, having a LinkedIn profile that reflects both your technical prowess and threat-hunting acumen is vital. Organisations are on the lookout for professionals skilled in penetration testing, incident response, security architecture and compliance. With hiring managers scanning dozens of profiles daily, your profile needs to not just rank in searches but convey your expertise in safeguarding digital assets. This step-by-step LinkedIn for cybersecurity jobs checklist offers ten practical tweaks to supercharge recruiter engagement. Whether you’re an aspiring security analyst, a seasoned penetration tester or a chief information security officer aiming for board-level roles, these actionable optimisations will sharpen your LinkedIn presence and position you as a top infosec candidate.