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Head of Data

Remote (UK-based) | Full-time - £104,496 + benefits (including 4.5-day week and 11% employer pension)

Do your best work, for the right reasons.

We're looking for a strategic data leader to define Oak's technical data roadmap and data strategy, and shape how we use, govern and open up our data across our products, our AI and the wider education sector. 

You'll lead our data department end-to-end, own data compliance and security, steer our data architecture, and build the open data products and standards that make Oak genuinely useful beyond our own platform. 

This is a leadership role with real breadth and impact, grounded in a mission that matters.

Oak is a fully remote, mission-driven organisation offering high levels of flexibility, autonomy, and purpose. We're a national not-for-profit working in partnership with teachers to create high-quality, sequenced curriculum and lesson resources for pupils across all subjects and age groups.

Our culture has been independently recognised through:

• Flexa verified (93% overall score, including 95% for working hours and 97% for role modelling)

• Escape the City's Top 1% Employers – based on anonymous colleague reviews of culture, development, and impact

• Investors in People Gold - through external accreditation and colleague feedback

💡What you'll be doing:

• Develop and manage a high-performing data department, leveraging internal and/or external relationships.

• Lead the development of our data products (AI assets, open educational resources and datasets), collaborating with external partners including DfE Digital to develop high-impact, transparent datasets and standards.

• Manage the data department budget (minimum 6 figures), covering data tooling, cloud infrastructure, and contractor spend.

• Responsible for all decisions relating to the performance and function of the data department.

• Lead on data compliance, including GDPR and related regulation with copyright and third-party rights the priority alongside data protection, through end-to-end systems we can audit and evidence.

• Maintain specialist expertise in data and analytics and be an authority across Oak and more widely across the sector.

• Own the quality and integrity of the AI and algorithms we build, so they are accurate, fair and safe to put in front of teachers and pupils.

• As a member of the leadership team, contribute to the strategy, planning and model the culture of the organisation.

• Deputise for the Director of Engineering and take on other general responsibilities as required.

🌱 What we're looking for

• 5+ years holding responsibility for data and analytics systems across a department, including at least 2 years defining strategy across multiple cross-functional teams.

• Experience of recruiting, developing and managing a high-performing data or analytics team.

• Experience of managing a six-figure budget.

• Experience of building data and AI/ML infrastructure, including training data pipelines, model evaluation, access control and data classification.

• Deep understanding of copyright and content licensing, and of data protection (GDPR and related regulation), with direct experience of owning compliance end to end.

• Experience building public-facing open data products and collaborating with external partners to develop high-impact, transparent datasets and standards.

• Experience of data security practices in a software engineering context, including access control, data classification and incident response.

• Familiarity with modern data stack tooling and the ability to make sound architectural decisions across a data estate.

• A good understanding of education policy and the UK education system (desirable, not essential).

The successful candidate will have a desire to contribute across all areas to ensure Oak's success. You will be comfortable moving quickly and with agility, and be confident working with a range of digital systems (including proprietary ones, as required). You will continually look for ways that the team can keep getting better. You will be excellent at working as part of a remote team, building relationships and managing your time effectively.

💛 Our Benefits

• 25 days annual leave, plus one extra day for each year of service (up to 28)

• Additional Oak closure days over Christmas/New Year

• 11% employer pension contribution (with no minimum employee contribution, which can be varied as you choose). Please note this is a workplace pension rather than the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.

• A 36-hour working week, with half-days on Fridays or every other Friday off.

• Fully remote working — we’ll support your home set-up and offer coworking options if preferred

• Twice-yearly in-person whole Oak offsites to collaborate, connect, and have fun (with other occasional team events in person)

• A culture that genuinely supports flexibility, autonomy, and trust

🌈 Inclusion and Belonging

We believe diverse teams build better products. We warmly welcome applicants from all backgrounds, particularly those who are underrepresented in the tech and education sectors. 

If you're from an underrepresented group, there's a good chance you're discounting yourself before you've even started. That's more common than you'd think, and it means we may miss out on brilliant people. If you're excited by this role but don't meet every requirement, please apply anyway.

We use the Applied platform to help reduce bias in our hiring process. Answers are anonymised and reviewed by a panel of humans.

📌 Key Info

• Location: Remote, but you must be based in the UK with the legal right to work here

• Sponsorship: Unfortunately, we’re unable to offer visa sponsorship at this time

• Closing date: We’ll be reviewing applications as they come in and may close the role early

If this sounds like the kind of role and team where you could do your life’s best work, we’d love to hear from you.

Next steps

You’ll answer a few admin questions and some questions related to your day-to-day job. Your answers will go through our sift process: all answers will be anonymised, randomised, and then reviewed by a panel of reviewers (real humans), so it's your thinking that gets assessed, not your CV.

If you're shortlisted, we'll invite you to interview. We give everyone feedback at the end of the process.

Interview dates:

• Interview 1: Wednesday, 2 September and Thursday, 3 September 2026

• Final interview: Monday, 7 September 2026

If this sounds like somewhere you could do your life's best work, we'd love to hear from you.

We are receiving excellent responses to our job advertisements. This may lead us to close the role early, so if you are considering applying, don't leave it too long to avoid missing out.

We are an equal opportunity employer.

We are committed to a policy of Equal Employment Opportunity and are determined to ensure that no applicant or employee receives less favourable treatment on the grounds of gender, age, disability, religion, belief, sexual orientation, marital status, or race, or is disadvantaged by conditions or requirements which cannot be shown to be justifiable

Role Overview
We are seeking an ambitious, commercially minded, and relationship-driven Charity Partnerships Lead to establish and grow our corporate and strategic partnerships programme. This is a newly created role, offering an exciting opportunity to shape our partnerships strategy, develop a robust new business pipeline, and secure sustainable income that enables us to deliver greater impact for the players Beyond the Game. The successful candidate will be responsible for identifying, cultivating, securing, and managing high-value partnerships with businesses and individuals and other entities. They will work collaboratively across the Foundation to develop compelling partnership propositions that align organisational priorities with partners' corporate social responsibility (CSR), environmental, social and governance (ESG), employee engagement, and community investment objectives. This role is suited to an experienced charity partnerships professional, who has a proven track record of winning new business and delivering significant income growth within the third sector.

Job Title: Charity Partnerships Lead
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Location: Home Based with travel into London and overseas, when required. There is likely
to be a need to travel to Hong Kong and Australia once or twice per year.

Salary: £60,000 pro rata
Hours: Part Time - 3 days per week (or equivalent)
Contract: Fixed Term Contract until December 2027 with potential to extend beyond this and/or convert to full time.
Start date: September 2026

Who We Are
The Global Rugby Players Foundation is a registered charity set up to support players’ smooth transition into their life Beyond the Game. The Foundation was created by our eleven Founders (Alicia Lucas, Conrad Smith, Census Johnston, Dan Carter, Jonny Wilkinson, Kristine Sommer, Richie McCaw, Rachel Burford, Sharni Williams, Siya Kolisi and Thierry Dusautoir), in partnership with World Rugby and International Rugby Players.

Our Ambition
By the players, for the players; the Global Rugby Players Foundation seeks to empower rugby players, who shaped and contributed to the success of our sport, to achieve their full potential Beyond the Game. It sets out to reframe the perception of leaving the game as a positive challenge and an opportunity to forge new careers, build new connections and expand players’ identity.

Our Purpose

• Support players in navigating their transition from rugby while empowering them to face the challenges associated with the loss of identity that accompanies leaving the game.
• Promote the physical, mental, and social wellbeing of players after rugby, by offering comprehensive support services and proactive mental health programmes.
• Prevent the social exclusion of the most vulnerable players, including those facing challenges such as unemployment, financial difficulties, physical or mental illness, substance abuse, or dependencies, by providing necessary support and resources.
• Encourage players to use their capacity as role models to create positive change in their communities.
• Advocate the importance of supporting players throughout their entire life, and not just their playing careers.

Our Services
Transition out of professional rugby can be one of the most challenging and transformative periods in a player's life. Moving beyond the structure, routine and identity of professional sport often means finding a new purpose, career, and sense of self. The Foundation provides much needed support to players facing these challenges, wherever they are in the world.

Local
We provide grant funding to official Player Associations around the world, enabling them to deliver tailored support that meets the needs of former players in their communities. Programmes span career transition, mental wellbeing, financial wellbeing, education, and lifelong connection.

Global
Working alongside our programme partners, World Rugby and the International Rugby Players Association, we develop global initiatives that complement local support and benefit former players worldwide. This includes the continued development of the Beyond the Game Platform, providing accessible learning, resources, and opportunities wherever players are based. Together, our local and global programmes empower, connect and champion former players as they build their lives Beyond the Game.

Responsibilities

Partnership Development

• Develop and implement a proactive new business partnerships strategy aligned with the Foundation's fundraising objectives.
• Build and maintain a strong pipeline of prospective corporate and strategic partners, and individuals to support our mission.
• Identify and research potential partners whose values align with the Foundation's mission.
• Develop tailored partnership proposals and compelling cases for support.
• Lead negotiations and secure mutually beneficial partnership agreements.
• Represent the charity at networking events to generate new opportunities.

Relationship Management

• Develop strong relationships with prospective and existing partners.
• Deliver exceptional stewardship throughout the partnership lifecycle.
• Collaborate with internal teams to ensure partnership commitments are fulfilled.
• Identify opportunities to grow existing relationships through additional fundraising, sponsorship, employee engagement, volunteering, and strategic collaborations.

Income Generation

• Achieve agreed annual income and partnership targets.
• Produce accurate income forecasts and pipeline reports.
• Monitor partnership performance against agreed objectives and impact KPIs.
• Maximise long-term value from partnerships through renewals and strategic account growth.

Strategic Development

• Help establish and embed partnership processes, systems, and best practice.
• Contribute to the wider fundraising strategy.
• Monitor market trends and competitor activity to identify emerging opportunities.
• Ensure all partnership and major donor activity complies with fundraising regulations and charity governance requirements.

The Ideal Candidate

Essential Experience

• Significant experience securing and developing corporate partnerships and grants and trusts within the charity or not-for-profit sector.
• Demonstrable success in generating new business and achieving income targets.
• Experience managing high-value partnerships from prospecting through to stewardship.
• Experience preparing compelling partnership proposals and presentations.
• Strong understanding of corporate fundraising, CSR, ESG, and employee engagement programmes.
• Experience using CRM systems to manage pipelines and reporting.

Essential Skills and Abilities

• Outstanding relationship-building and influencing skills.
• Excellent negotiation and presentation abilities.
• Strong commercial awareness with the ability to identify mutually beneficial opportunities.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Highly organised with strong project management skills.
• Confident working independently while collaborating effectively across teams.

Essential Knowledge

• Thorough understanding of the charity sector and partnership fundraising.
• Knowledge of fundraising regulations and ethical fundraising principles.
• Understanding of corporate decision-making and partnership development.

Personal Attributes

• Passionate about the Foundation’s mission and values.
• Entrepreneurial, proactive, and resilient.
• Results-driven with a focus on achieving measurable impact.
• Creative thinker with strong problem-solving abilities.
• Professional, credible, and confident engaging with senior stakeholders.
• Collaborative and committed to continuous improvement.

Desirable

• An understanding of the rugby ecosystem and existing relationships within the sport.
• Membership of the Chartered Institute of Fundraising or other relevant professional body.
• Experience working in a newly established fundraising or partnerships function.
• Experience developing multi-year strategic partnerships and securing six-figures.
• Knowledge of impact measurement and social value reporting.

Success Measures
Within the first 12 months, the Charity Partnerships Lead will be expected to:

• Establish a qualified pipeline of prospective corporate partners.
• Secure new partnership income in line with agreed targets.
• Develop a clear partnership strategy and proposition.
• Build strong internal relationships to support partnership delivery.
• Create a sustainable framework for future partnership growth.

Equality and Diversity

• At GPRF we champion diversity and inclusivity in our workforce and values, and welcome applications from candidates from diverse backgrounds.
• We are happy to consider any reasonable adjustments candidates may need during the recruitment process and will ask whether you require any during the recruitment process at the application stage.

Reasonable Adjustments
We will endeavour to make any reasonable adjustments that are necessary to support applicants during the recruitment process. Please let us know if you require any of the following adjustments during the recruitment process:

• Extra time during tasks or video applications.
• Assistance if the test or assessment is on a computer, such as closed captions.
• Option to interview without the camera on.
• Sharing interview questions on screen (or on paper if interviewing in person).
• Have an accessible car parking space reserved.
• Hold the interview at a specific time of day (please suggest during the application stage).
• A British Sign Language interpreter.
• Anything else (please describe during the application stage).

Working Conditions
We do not have a central office and our workforce is remote. This role is fully remote; therefore, you must be comfortable working effectively as part of a virtual team.

What We Offer

• A senior standalone role at the heart of a new, high-profile international foundation.
• The opportunity to shape and lead the Foundation’s partnerships from the ground up.
• A dynamic, mission-driven environment with global reach.
• Flexible remote working arrangements.
• Competitive salary and benefits package.
• 27 days annual leave.
• Pension.

Closing Date – 11pm on Sunday 23 August 2026