Regional Safeguarding Lead, Orchard Hill College Academy Trust

What skills and experience we're looking for

We are seeking an experienced and driven Regional Safeguarding Lead to join OHCAT and drive excellence in safeguarding and child protection practice across our academies. The successful candidate will provide strategic leadership, expert guidance and robust support to safeguarding teams, ensuring the highest standards of safeguarding culture, compliance and learner wellbeing across their region.

Key Responsibilities

• Lead, support and challenge Designated Safeguarding Leads (DSLs) across your region to ensure high-quality safeguarding practice.
• Provide expert leadership, advice and guidance on safeguarding and child protection matters across academies.
• Ensure compliance with KCSIE, safeguarding legislation and statutory requirements, maintaining robust systems, policies and procedures.
• Lead safeguarding audits, quality assurance and continuous improvement activity, using data and insight to strengthen practice and identify risks.
• Build strong partnerships with external agencies and deliver training, coaching and support to school safeguarding teams to promote a consistent culture of safeguarding excellence.

Key Requirements

• Strong experience of managing complex safeguarding and child protection cases
• Excellent knowledge of KCSIE, safeguarding legislation and statutory guidance
• Confidence working strategically, influencing practice and building effective partnerships
• Experience delivering training, coaching and mentoring to support safeguarding excellence
• A commitment to supporting children with SEND and vulnerable learners, with strong communication, resilience and professional integrity
• Full UK driving licence and willingness to travel across a designated region

What the school offers its staff

OHC&AT is an exciting, forward-thinking organisation, and we offer many benefits to attract and keep our staff, contributing towards maintaining and improving wellbeing, and encouraging our required behaviours, achievements, values, and skills. Below is just a selection of the benefits available to our employees:

Rewards & Benefits

• Pathways for progression within the Trust, ensuring you can grow and thrive in a supportive and inclusive environment.
• Pension Scheme - you will be enrolled in the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS).
• Salary Sacrifice Schemes (Cycle Scheme, Employee Car Lease Scheme and Home Electronics Scheme)
• Employee Wellbeing - We support employee wellbeing with access to counselling, mental health support, generous leave, flexible working, and enhanced parental leave including Employee Assistance Programme, MyGym Discounts, Corporate Eyecare Scheme
• Employee Discounts (Blue Light Card, Costco Membership, Discounts for Teachers, and more)
• Other (Season Ticket Loan and Employee Referral Scheme)

Commitment to safeguarding

Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff, volunteers and trustees to share this commitment. Our recruitment process follows the keeping children safe in education guidance. Offers of employment may be subject to the following checks (where relevant): childcare disqualification Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) medical online and social media prohibition from teaching right to work satisfactory references suitability to work with children You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.