Trust Safeguarding Director Vacancy

Cheshire Academies Trust is seeking to appoint an experienced and compassionate Trust Safeguarding Director. This pivotal role offers the opportunity to lead safeguarding across our community of schools, ensuring that every child is safe and that statutory requirements are met consistently. The successful candidate will act as the Trust's central point of safeguarding expertise, challenge, and support for school-level Designated Safeguarding Leads. This position involves working closely with the CEO, the Safeguarding Trustee, and other executive team members to embed a culture where safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and where staff feel confident to raise concerns.

Key Responsibilities:

·         Strategic Leadership: Develop, review, and maintain the Trust's overarching safeguarding and child protection policy, ensuring alignment with KCSIE, Working Together, and local safeguarding partnership requirements across Cheshire, Wirral, and Liverpool.

·         Compliance and Assurance: Conduct at least annual safeguarding audits in every Trust school, oversee the Single Central Record across all schools, and quality-assure safer recruitment practices Trust-wide.

·         Training and Culture: Facilitate and lead termly DSL professional learning and supervision networks, ensuring designated safeguarding leads remain up to date with statutory guidance, emerging risks and best practice.

·         Operational Support: Act as the first point of contact for complex safeguarding cases escalated by school-level DSLs, liaise with local authority children's services, police, health services, and local safeguarding partnerships, and manage support referrals to the DBS, TRA, and LADO as required. Provide professional supervision, challenge and support to DSLs and Headteachers in relation to complex safeguarding decision-making / Support schools with safeguarding aspects of Ofsted inspections, complaints, allegations management and serious safeguarding incidents.

·         Governance and Reporting: Produce a termly safeguarding report for the Board of Trustees covering compliance, training completion, audit findings, and emerging themes; advise the CEO and Board on safeguarding matters; and support the named Safeguarding Trustee in their role.

·         Lead the review and development of wider safeguarding-related policies and procedures in response to legislative and sector developments.

·         Lead Trust safeguarding reviews and quality assurance activities, identifying strengths, areas for development and opportunities for improvement across schools.

·         Maintain an up-to-date understanding of safeguarding legislation, emerging risks, national developments and best practice, ensuring that Trust policy and practice remain current and effective.

The Ideal Candidate Will Possess:

·         A proven track record of safeguarding leadership, ideally as a Designated Safeguarding Lead or senior safeguarding professional in education, social care, or a related setting.

·         A thorough understanding of child protection procedures, referral pathways, and multi-agency working, with experience ideally across more than one school or setting.

·         The ability to engage, influence, and challenge individuals and teams at every level, including senior leaders.

·         An absolute commitment to the safety and welfare of children, with a keen focus on our most vulnerable pupils.

·         Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to analyse data, identify trends, and produce clear written reports for governors and trustees.

·         Working knowledge of KCSIE, Working Together, and relevant legislation, with the ability to translate statutory guidance into effective practice.

·         Professional integrity, resilience, and sound judgement under pressure, particularly when responding to complex or sensitive cases.

·         The ability to work autonomously, manage competing priorities within a part-time role, and travel flexibly across the Trust's geographical footprint.

We Offer:

·         The opportunity to build an overall educational experience for pupils which is world-leading

·         A supportive, committed Trust community

·         A culture that values and nurtures leadership, professional growth and career opportunity

·         A temporary one year contract (subject to a successful 6-month probationary period) with the expectation to continue beyond this time period.

·         Annual salary progression within a national pay scale (performance-related)

·         Membership of the Teacher Pension Scheme

·         An annual flu vaccination

·         Access to our ‘green schemes’ including cycle to work, electric cars and white goods

Application Process:

Interested candidates are invited to speak to the CEO and School Improvement Director as well as tour some of our schools ahead of submitting an application on MyNewTerm.

Join us in shaping an ethical, courageous and innovative future at Cheshire Academies Trust.

Cheshire Academies Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Appointments will be subject to an enhanced DBS check and satisfactory references.