Interim Deputy Head of School – Creative Industries

Fixed Term Contract Maternity Leave from August 2026

Please note that this post is funded for the 2026/27 academic year onwards so the successful candidate would not be expected to commence in post prior to August 2026.

Kingston College is seeking an Interim Deputy Head of School to support the Head of School in leading and managing curriculum provision within the School of Creative Industries.

The role is focused on delivering outstanding education and training across study programmes, adult learning and higher education, ensuring students achieve excellent outcomes, develop employability skills and progress into further study or employment. As a member of both the School Management Group (SMG) and College Management Group (CMG), the successful candidate will contribute to the strategic and operational leadership of the College. They will support the implementation of College policies and procedures, including quality assurance, target setting, compliance, and staff and student management.

The role has a strong focus on improving programme performance through high-quality teaching, learning and assessment, effective curriculum leadership, and the monitoring and support of curriculum teams. The Deputy Head will also promote employability and progression opportunities through work experience and industry-related learning.

We are looking for someone who holds relevant professional qualifications, with a proven track record of successfully leading and managing large teams including teachers, technicians and support staff at a senior level. The successful candidate will have an excellent understanding of the work of Ofsted, OfS, awarding bodies and other relevant regulators, alongside strong knowledge of Government policy and emerging developments influencing the curriculum, particularly in relation to local and regional economy.

You will have a strong record of identifying interventions for improvements and executing these effectively with a demonstrable record of working with subjects/courses that required improvement and achieving improvement. You will also possess excellent staff appraisal and training skills, together with significant experience of dealing effectively with issues through relevant HR processes. In addition, you will have highly developed information management skills and a proven ability to use College systems effectively, while maintaining a thorough understanding of College policies and procedures.

The successful candidate will be eligible for any increase in salary as a consequence of the annual cost of living review that will be implemented in the new academic year.

Closing date for the return of completed applications is 5th June 2026.

The benefits package includes generous annual leave of 37 days plus up to 8 additional days over Christmas/New Year as well as an additional 5 days Wellbeing leave to enhance employees’ physical and mental health. There is an excellent pension scheme that receives a significant financial contribution from the employer (Teachers Pensions or Local Government Pension Scheme), subsidised sports facilities and professional development and training plus a salary sacrifice cycle to work scheme.

As part of our due diligence checks on prospective employees, successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced DBS check, satisfactory references, an online search and proof of eligibility to work in the UK.

As outlined in the Public Sector Equality Duty of the Equality Act 2010, we are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.

The South Thames Colleges Group is made up of Carshalton College, Kingston College, Merton College and South Thames College, which merged on 1 August 2017. South Thames Colleges Group is one of London’s largest providers of post-16 education and training and is an ongoing and significant contributor to its local communities. We aim to put students’ success at the heart of everything we do.

We are looking for hard-working and collaborative people who can join our team and help challenge our students to achieve and progress.

When you click on ‘Apply’, you will be forwarded to the application page which sits on a platform hosted by an external partner called Blue Octopus who support STCG throughout the recruitment process.