Head of Governance and Chief Executive's Office

The Head of Governance and Chief Executive’s Office is responsible for effective governance across The Place, compliance with regulatory frameworks and providing effective professional administrative support to the Chief Executive. Specifically, this post holder will:

• Ensure effective governance across The Place and its Board of Governors.
• Provide secretarial services to the Board of Governors.
• Provide effective and professional administrative support to the Chief Executive and wider leadership team.
• Lead on the timely coordination of the Annual Report and Financial Statements.
• Lead and coordinate on special projects as determined in collaboration with the Chief Executive and Board Working Groups.

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: GOVERNANCE

The Place is led by Clare Connor, Chief Executive and Accountable Officer—she has held this role since August 2017. Clare provides visionary leadership across all dimensions of the organisation: academic, artistic, operational, financial and strategic. Under her stewardship, The Place moved through its ambitious 50th-anniversary year and launched a transformative ten-year plan to further “a world with more dance”. During this period, turnover increased by approximately one-third, and London Contemporary Dance School became an independent Higher Education Provider recognised by the Office for Students as a World-leading specialist provider.

The Board of Governors is led by Alan Bishop, who joined as Chair in August 2019. Under Alan’s leadership and guidance, The Place has demonstrated dynamism and growth in dance development through our world-leading status despite an increasingly challenging external context.

Alan has been a passionate advocate for our artistic and educational ambition, championing a culture of thoughtful risk-taking underpinned by strong risk management. He has deeply understood and valued the innovative spirit that has defined The Place since its founding and his leadership has been instrumental in carrying that legacy forward- guiding us from our previous five-year strategic plan to our current vision, with boldness and creativity at its core. The Place expects to welcome a new chair in 2026.

The Governors help us shape our overall strategy and support The Place to fulfil its artistic and educational objectives within a sustainable business model. The Governors work closely with the Chief Executive and senior leadership team, and play a vital role as advocates and ambassadors on behalf of The Place.

As The Place is a company limited by guarantee (company no. 883094) and a registered charity (charity no. 250216), Governors are both charity trustees and company directors.

There are two key departments; Education (comprising Research and London Contemporary Dance School and the Centre for Advanced Training), and Public Programmes (comprising Theatre and Artist Development, Producing and Touring, Creative Learning and Classes and Courses). These departments are supported by Central Services Teams including Communications, Development, Finance and Human Resources.

Key stakeholders and partners include Arts Council England, Office for Students, the Department for Education, Research England alongside the Charity Commission. We also have a partnership with the University of the Arts London (UAL) in support of degree validation and PhD supervision.

SALARY

The salary for this position is £40,000-£45,000 (depending on experience).

Salaries are reviewed in August each year when any cost-of-living increases are made. No salary changes are made until after successful completion of a probationary period.

CONTRACT TERMS

This is an open-ended, permanent contract. This is a full-time position (equivalent to 40 hours per week). These hours are inclusive of a one-hour paid lunch break each day. Your hours of work will be agreed with the line manager. A minimum of 50% of hours must be office-based, with the opportunity for some remote working in agreement with the line manager.

Whilst in the six-month probationary period the notice period will be two weeks. Once this period is successfully completed the post holder will be confirmed in the post and the notice period will be twelve weeks.

CLOSING DATE

The application closing date is Thu 23 Oct 2025 at 12:00pm (noon).We reserve the right to close applications early depending on the volume of applications we receive and so we advise it is better to apply early.

For an informal chat about this role to answer any questions you may have before applying, please email Richard Lawrence-Allen, HR Operations Manager.

INTERVIEW DATES

We anticipate that interviews will be conducted firstly on Mon 27 Oct 2025 and subsequently Tue 04 Nov 2025 either in person at The Place or remotely via Microsoft Teams (or similar platform as necessary). Interview dates may be subject to change.