People and Culture Officer - Full-time/Part-time

Orchard Academy Trust

• Ref:KCC-F25-16-S
• Posted:24/09/2025
• Pay:Kent Range E (£27,852 - £29,716 FTE)
• Start Date:November 2025
• App Close Date:08/10/2025 at 12:00
• Interviews:13th October 2025

Advert

Make a Difference Where It Matters Most

Are you passionate about people, culture, and making a real impact in education? Orchard Academy Trust is seeking a dynamic People & Culture Officer and Executive Assistant to lead our HR functions and support our central team. This is your opportunity to shape the working lives of staff across our schools, ensuring we recruit, develop, and retain the very best.

What You’ll Do

• Lead Recruitment: Coordinate and manage recruitment across the Trust, ensuring our teams are filled with talented, passionate individuals.
• Drive Engagement: Develop and deliver staff wellbeing and engagement programmes, making our schools great places to work.
• Support Development: Oversee professional development, appraisals, and pay processes, helping every team member reach their potential.
• Champion Safeguarding: Ensure our recruitment and HR practices keep our pupils, staff, and community safe.
• Executive Support: Provide high-level support to the Executive Headteacher and central team, managing projects, communications, and key initiatives.

What We’re Looking For

• Qualifications: Professional HR qualification or equivalent experience.
• Experience: Proven HR experience, ideally in a school or similar environment. Experience leading teams and supporting staff development.
• Skills: Excellent communication, negotiation, and time management skills. Strong understanding of employment law, safeguarding, and HR best practice.
• Personal Qualities: Inclusive leadership style, analytical thinker, flexible, and a true team player with a ‘can do’ attitude.

Why Join Us?

• Impact: Play a key role in shaping the culture and success of our schools.
• Growth: Opportunities for professional development and to lead on exciting projects.
• Community: Be part of a supportive, forward-thinking Trust that values every member of staff.
• Flexibility: Opportunity for hybrid working at times and the option to take some leave during term-time.

This role is for 37 hours a week, term-time only, plus 5 INSET days and 4 weeks to worked during the school holidays.

Visits to the schools are strongly encouraged and can be facilitated during or after the school day.

Information about the federation

Orchard Academy Trust is a multi-academy trust consisting of two large, successful primary schools in Maidstone - Allington Primary School and Barming Pre-School and Primary School.

Our schools act as beacons of learning for children and adults alike, inspiring self-development and nurturing growth with fun and enjoyment. This is not a one size fits all trust; we recognise that our schools have their own identities and needs. Each school has their own Headteacher and autonomy to foster individuality, together with the advantage of working as a team to provide school to school support and share excellence across the Trust.

Orchard Academy Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Applicants for this post will be subject to a DBS check and successful references prior to a start date. Please read the schools' Child Protection Policies which can be found on their websites.

We reserve the right to interview and appoint, prior to the advertised closing date.

Job Contact Information

• Name:Mrs A Crittenden
• Address:Hildenborough Crescent,
  Allington,
  Maidstone,
  Kent ,
  ME16 0PG
• Telephone: 01622 757350
• Email: hr@allington.kent.sch.uk

Fax:

Documents

Below are documents that have been added to this vacancy.

• Job Description and Person Specification