Interim Head of Policy & External Affairs

What it's like working at Skills Builder Partnership

Joining Skills Builder is not like working anywhere else. Our team consistently say they have never worked anywhere as collaborative, supportive or mission oriented. We combine the fun and dynamism of a start-up, the professional development opportunities of a corporate, the innovation of a digital native and the social impact focus of a charity.

We are serious about delivering social mobility through our vision that one day everyone builds the essential skills to succeed. That means we are ambitious and set high standards for ourselves. We are reflective, inclusive and supportive. In practice this means that everyone makes time for others in the team, we get stuck in to solve problems together, we have regular employee surveys where leadership.

About the role

In this role, you will be leading systemic change in policy. To ensure that one day, everyone builds the essential skills to succeed, we need them to be threaded throughout education and skills policy: from schools through extra-curricular and job centres through to employment. It is a role of two parts: working with expert practitioners in our team alongside partners to develop policy, and then getting that policy adopted by government, political parties and policy-making organisations. The Skills Builder approach and framework have serious traction and momentum. With an increasing amount of energy and activity in the skills and education policy space, this is a pivotal opportunity to directly make a lasting impact.

We already have strong relationships with key players in government and leading sectoral organisations from the CIPD to the Careers and Enterprise Company. Our approach is recommended by Ofsted as well as having been built into national curricula and assessment across the globe. There is also growing support for Skills Builder politically. Your role will be to capitalise on this, bringing to bear your policy expertise and network to crystalise our approach in policy. To do this, you will understand how policy making processes work, who to speak to and how.

We have big ambitions and your scope to lead, learn and achieve matches that. If you want to benefit from working with an inspiring team, with potential for growth, lasting change and an interim role you'll love, we want to hear from you.

Key responsibilities

(1) Owning and driving policy strategy:

• Owning the roadmap that works back from our top-level policy and external affairs goals to tangible actions in a structured way
• Delivering against this roadmap and tracking progress

(2) Shaping policy:

• Building sufficiently deep knowledge of the policy environment and subject matter to inform the evolution of our policies
• Effectively combine this knowledge with our strategic aims to come up with policies that are detailed, feasible, plausible and on message.

(3) Influencing through relationships:

• Building on our mapping of the individuals and organisations that we need to influence specific outcomes
• Proactively stewarding and building those relationships
• Developing a clear offer for each of those that is tailored to their goals and messaging in order to secure buy-in
• Maintaining relationships and moving them towards achieving tangible outcomes;

(4) Drafting political communications and consultation responses:

• Consistently identify how to align our mission with the issue at hand
• Make those points accurately and with nuance, drawing on the appropriate research and information
• Draft with attention to detail, so that our communications are of the highest professional standard

(5) Representing Skills Builder:

• Confidently represent Skills Builder with external - and often senior - stakeholders, including on round tables and panels, always being on message, authoritative and upholding our values

Technical Skills and Experience:

• Strong expertise in education, skills and / or government and political policy making.
• Networks across areas like the civil service and policy making that will be an asset in the role.
• Credibility and experience that enable you to be a spokesperson for our work.

Benefits:

Salary: £50,000 per annum

Term: circa 12 months (ending January 2027)

Start Date: flexible but as soon as possible

Working hours: flexible

Travel: you'll be representing us in meetings with stakeholders, for example in Westminster and at conferences, so some travel will be required

Team days: we get together in person in London 6 times a year for strategy, fun and food.

Holidays: 25 days per year, plus bank holidays & potential to buy back up to 5 days

Location: UK remote allowing for regular travel or London (hybrid working with 1+ days in the office per week, free fruit, tea and coffee, 'pastry socials' and £600 London weighting).

Application Process

Applications should be made via our online form - on completion of the online application please also send your CV by email. The application deadline is 0900 on 11th December, with interviews on 17th & 19th December.

Applicants are encouraged to explore our work at before applying.