Operations Planning Lead

Applications close: 5pm Friday 16th May 2025

Interview date: Week Commencing: Monday 19th May 2025

Preferred Start date: ASAP

Location: London based at our office in Hoxton (but hybrid working possible within the South East for the right candidate). The successful applicant must be able to reach schools in the London area within an hour.

Hours: Full Time, Monday-Friday with regular weekend and evening work

Requirements: Clean UK driving licence and access to a car

Salary: £25,000 - £27,000

Contract Type: Full time. Permanent

About us

School Space aims to create thriving schools at the centre of thriving communities. We do this by partnering with schools across the UK to hire out their spaces in the evenings and weekends to a range of community groups. The income generated is used by our partner schools to improve educational outcomes and facilities for their students, in addition to building a stronger connection with the surrounding community.

Our culture

Since we were founded as a social enterprise by two school students in 2011, we've grown to become a tight knit team of around 30 people who are united by a goal of changing the education sector for the better. We also have a fabulous remote team of over 200 Community Connectors who work at our partner schools in the evenings and weekends.

You will become part of a team who have generated over £8 million for schools, taken part in prestigious programs by top names such as Techstars and Goldman Sachs, and been recognised as one of Escape the City’s 100 best organisations to escape to, finalists in the UK’s best Social Enterprise award, and winners of Digital Agenda’s Impact Tech award.

From working directly with the founders, to regular training days, daily stand-ups and socials, we encourage all team members to contribute to our culture and aim to develop every team member at School Space. We are a fast paced work place with a friendly atmosphere - working at School Space will expose you to many new learning opportunities and a chance to have a say in the growth and development of a company striving to create a big impact. Our core values are Transparency, Positivity, Initiative, Community, Passion and Learning - and if selected to interview with us we will be assessing whether you evidence these.

Why does this role exist?

Our operation covers 60 schools (and growing), 250+ incredible part-time Community Connectors (the amazing people who open and close our schools) and thousands of events annually.

Working closely with our Operations Managers, the Operations Planning Lead ensures our on-the-ground team are in the right place at the right time, and have the tools to do their job effectively.

What will you be accountable for as the Operations Planning Lead?

Being the ‘team lead’

• Owning the creation of the resource scheduling calendar, based on operational demand, and putting deadlines in place to ensure targets are met.
• Taking ownership to ensure any staffing gaps are addressed and being the first point of escalation for staffing issues .Leading regular meets to address concerns, escalating only where necessary.
• Being an approachable ‘expert’ in scheduling and operational needs, resolving any issues or blockers.
• Always ready to support within the Operational team and internal stakeholders., especially in helping to fill urgent open shifts.

• Working closely with the School Operations Managers (SOMs) to flag any concerns within the operation or recurring issues which need to be addressed and providing solutions on how to overcome them.

• Leading on reporting for staffing, and creating weekly reports for the Senior Operations team to track key metrics.
• Putting measures in place to ensure that staffing costs are kept at a minimum across the board..

Training

• Identifying any knowledge gaps within the wider Operations team and escalating this to the SOMs, in order for training to be completed.
• Supporting the SOMs in the training of any Community Leaders or Community Connectors where required.

• Supporting with training on the scheduling processes and systems within the Operations and wider Head Office team, where required, taking a lead in training sessions covering day to day tasks.

Documentation and processes

• Keeping relevant team documentation (eg. the Staff Handbook) up to date on a regular basis.
• Tracking any potential staffing changes needed, and in consultation with SOMs, provide more effective or efficient staffing. Recognising unnecessary staff spend and reducing it.
• Advising on and optimising the processes around staffing and any other related processes.

How will you know it’s going brilliantly?

• Schedules are created and published to Community Connectors at least 4 weeks in advance
• All open shifts are covered by the Operations Executive team
• Process documentation is always up to date and accurate.
• Escalating any knowledge or training gaps for the operational team to the SOM for action.
• Your line manager has a clear understanding of any blockers or difficulties within the team.
• Resolving day to day scheduling issues, which is owned by you, using points of escalation only as necessary.
• You are consistently looking at what processes can be improved within the Operations Team, using your initiative to advise and take the lead on changes.

What will help you succeed in this role?

• Empathy and excellent people skills.
• Excellent time management and prioritisation skills.
• Excellent verbal communication skills, and comfort using basic tech tools such as Slack.
• The ability and desire to work in a fast-paced, challenging environment.
• Comfortable working evenings and weekends, for training and site visits.

School Space Safeguarding Statement:

School Space believes that no child or venerable person should ever have to experience abuse of any kind. School Space is committed to the safeguarding of children and recognises that as an organisation we have a responsibility to ensure all our staff members are trained and supported to recognise safeguarding concerns and that we promote safeguarding best practice. We aim to foster an understanding in each of our team members of their safeguarding responsibilities, whilst putting in place procedures to support everyone who uses a school space to safeguard children's wellbeing and protect them from harm.
We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, colour, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.