Chief Finance and Operations Officer

Skinners’ Academies Trust is a collaborative, values-driven Trust of six high-performing schools across London and Kent. We are seeking a strategic Chief Finance & Operations Officer (CFOO) to shape the next stage of the Trust’s evolution by ensuring financial efficiency and operational excellence – supporting our headteachers to deliver the highest quality of education across […]

Skinners’ Academies Trust is a collaborative, values-driven Trust of six high-performing schools across London and Kent. We are seeking a strategic Chief Finance & Operations Officer (CFOO) to shape the next stage of the Trust’s evolution by ensuring financial efficiency and operational excellence – supporting our headteachers to deliver the highest quality of education across all our schools.

Closing date: 9 a.m. Monday 1st December

Who we are

Skinners’ Academies Trust is a collaborative family of six schools in Kent and London, united by a shared commitment to providing every young person with the best possible education and the opportunity to fulfil their potential. Our Trust brings together both primary and secondary schools, selective and comprehensive, serving over 4,500 students across diverse communities.

Our Trust was founded in 2023, on a clear belief: that our schools are stronger together. By learning from one another, sharing expertise and resources, and building collective capacity, we are creating an educational community that combines excellence with inclusion, aspiration with support, and tradition with innovation.

Our schools each have their own distinct identity, culture and history. We are proud to preserve this individuality while benefiting from the collective strength that comes from being part of one Trust. This balance of autonomy and collaboration lies at the heart of who we are. Together, we strive to ensure that every pupil, regardless of background or starting point, has access to a rich, ambitious curriculum and the pastoral care they need to thrive.

The Trust is sponsored by The Skinners’ Company, one of the Great Twelve Livery Companies of London and a historic charitable organisation with a proud 700-year tradition of supporting education. Besides the Trust, the Company sponsors three non-academy schools in the state and independent sectors. The Company’s involvement brings a legacy of philanthropic investment, strong governance and a deep commitment to social purpose.

Our shared strategy focuses on achieving greater quality, efficiency and value for money in all aspects of our operations, ensuring that every decision we make supports teaching, learning and student outcomes. We are an ambitious and forward-looking Trust, proud of our heritage but focused on the future; working collaboratively to give our young people the education, opportunities and confidence they need to succeed in life.

About the role

As Chief Finance & Operations Officer (CFOO), you will shape the strategic direction of the Trust from a finance and operations perspective. Working closely with the Senior Executive Leader and Trustees, you will lead on financial strategy, compliance, and operational excellence, ensuring every pound spent delivers maximum educational impact.

Our Trust was founded to allow our schools to retain their local identity and deliver education in the way that is right for their school, while benefiting from collaboration within a larger group. Our new CFOO must recognise and support this philosophy – but in the difficult fiscal environment facing all academy trusts, we now need to challenge ourselves to make the best use of our resource base. You will be tasked with identifying and delivering new ways of working that generate efficiencies, improving the quality of service our schools receive and better managing risk and compliance.

This is a leadership role that requires someone to be both rigorous in managing financial operations, and also able to think strategically both at Trust and school level. You will oversee audit and reporting, ensuring that the Trust’s finances are carefully and transparently managed. You’ll also support schools with their financial planning, enabling school leaders to make evidence-based strategic decisions that are right for their individual context and advising them on the investments in infrastructure and people necessary for long-term success.

Crucially, however, this is broader than a simple finance role. You will design and deliver an operational strategy that enhances quality and efficiency without compromising each school’s distinctiveness. The scope of this will include strengthening procurement, risk management, and compliance frameworks; developing shared IT and estates strategies; and fostering a culture of professional excellence across non-teaching teams. You will need to manage change carefully, bringing stakeholders with you and balancing strategic coherence against a variety of local needs.

You will line manage central finance and operations leads, and work collaboratively with headteachers, school business managers, and governors. You’ll also act as the Trust’s key adviser on strategic growth, supporting decisions around expansion, partnership, and risk management.

This role will suit an adaptable, forward-thinking leader who thrives on building trust, shaping systems, and making an impact through collaborative leadership.

Who we are looking for

We are seeking a strategic, values-driven leader with the expertise, integrity, and imagination to shape a sustainable future for the Trust. The successful candidate will be able to work collaboratively with leaders to translate resources into opportunity, ensuring our children and young people have the best possible environment to learn and succeed.

You will be a qualified accountant (ACA, ACCA, CIMA or equivalent) or working towards the same, with substantial experience leading finance and/or operations in a complex, multi-site environment, whether in a private or public-sector organisation. You will combine technical mastery with strategic vision, able to see the bigger picture while ensuring compliance and accuracy.

We are looking for someone who can:

• Lead collaboratively. You’ll build strong relationships with headteachers, governors, trustees and central colleagues that allow you to deliver change with broad support.
• Bring rigour and clarity. You’ll ensure sound financial management, accurate forecasting and transparent reporting, strengthening trust-wide financial sustainability.
• Think strategically and creatively. You’ll be able to design ambitious, multi-year operational solutions for a diverse, complex group of schools, drawing on good practice but adapting to local dynamics.
• Drive efficiency and innovation. You’ll modernise systems where necessary, streamline operations and unlock collective benefits across schools.
• Champion compliance and governance. You’ll ensure the Trust operates in line with the Academy Trust Handbook, managing audit, risk and regulatory assurance with confidence.

You will be emotionally intelligent, politically astute, and resilient. You’ll bring warmth and credibility to your relationships and a thoughtful approach to managing change.

This is an opportunity to make a lasting impact in a Trust with a powerful sense of purpose, rooted in heritage, driven by collaboration, and committed to transforming lives through education.

Peridot Partners and the Skinners’ Academies Trust are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and our client expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. The successful candidate will be subject to an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references before any final offer can be made.

Please click ‘Apply on website’ to be redirected to the Peridot Partners website, where you can find full details of the job description and register your interest to apply.

Applications for this role close at 9 a.m. Monday 1st December.