The Girls’ Day School Trust (GDST) is delighted to welcome applications for the position of Chief Financial Officer (CFO).
Founded in 1872, the GDST is proud to educate some 20,000 girls across twenty-three independent schools and two academies the length and breadth of the UK. With a gross income of c. £300M, it is one of the twenty largest charities in the UK. As global leaders in girls’ education, we remain fearless in fulfilling that mission and the GDST provides unrivalled opportunities and resources for students, staff, and alumnae, as well as support and training for its senior leaders.
The CFO is a key member of the Trust’s Leadership Team and has both strategic and operational responsibility for all aspects of Trust finance. They ensure that immediate and wider teams have the skills and expertise to maintain financial rigour and controls, whilst at the same time demonstrating the flexibility and creativity to provide schools with excellent financial guidance and challenge. Crucially, the CFO has overall responsibility for ensuring financial systems, processes and reporting are robust. They play a key role in developing the Trust’s longer-term financial strategy, in alignment with the Trust’s values and standards and in partnership with the Trust’s CEO, Cheryl Giovannoni.
The CFO also provides advice and evidence-based insight to support macro and micro decision-making, both at Trust and school level, in light of upcoming challenges independent schools are likely to face. As such, this is a crucial strategic appointment for which applications will be welcomed from experienced finance professionals, both from the education sector and beyond, who have successfully managed significant financial resources in a multi-site operation of comparable scale. They will have a proven record of leading high-performing finance teams, will be an accomplished strategic financial thinker, and will hold a chartered accountancy qualification or equivalent. Most significantly, their work will be underscored by a genuine belief in the power of all girls’ education, and in the mission, values and standards of the GDST.
Further information on The Girls’ Day School Trust can be found at https://www.gdst.net/.
A candidate brief is available from http://www.odgers.com/90934
Letters of application and CVs should be submitted via the Odgers Berndtson website by 09:00 GMT on the closing date, Monday 11 March 2024.
The Girls’ Day School Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS).