Appointment details

Chair, Oak National Academy

Summary

• Organisation: Oak National Academy
• Sponsor department: Department for Education
• Location: Various
• Sectors: Education
• Skills: Audit and Risk, Communication, Technology / Digital, Major Projects, Education
• Number of vacancies: 1
• Time commitment: 1 day per week
• Remuneration: £500 per day
• Length of term: 3 Years
• Application deadline: Midday on 27 March 2026

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Timeline for this appointment

1. Opening date

   27 February 2026

2. Application deadline

   Midday on 27 March 2026

3. Sifting date

   31 May 2026

4. Interviews expected to end on

   30 June 2026

Timeline dates are only an estimate and can change

About the appointment

Introduction from the Minister

Thank you for your interest in becoming the Chair of the Board of Oak National Academy.

The Department for Education is leading delivery of the Government's Opportunity Mission, seeking to break down the barriers to opportunity for every child and young person, at every stage of their education. A high-quality curriculum is critical to this mission. Every child should benefit from a broad, ambitious curriculum, taught by highly skilled teachers, so that they can achieve and thrive at school and in their future lives.

As Chair of Oak National Academy, you will make a real and lasting positive difference in education. You will lead an organisation that is exploring the potential of technology and AI to transform learning, supporting teachers to teach brilliant lessons, and demonstrably improving teacher workload. AI is changing the face of education, and the power of technology is being harnessed to equip teachers with innovative teaching tools which support strong pedagogy. Oak is playing its part in this landscape, developing AI and ed tech tools which draw on assured content, which are crafted and tested by teachers and subject experts, and which meet the highest standards of AI safety.

We are seeking to appoint an outstanding individual with senior leadership experience in either the education or education technology sector, to lead the Oak Board. You will be a strong strategic thinker, who is committed to, and understands the importance of, a high-quality, knowledge-rich curriculum and who can shape Oak’s future direction, particularly though continued technological innovation. You will also be an exceptional communicator, who can build strong working relationships with Oak’s executive and with organisations across the education landscape.

Through our commitment to equality of opportunity, my Department wants to ensure that its public appointments reflect a better representation of the communities which we serve. Diversity is very important, and we are committed to recruiting actively from a wide range of backgrounds, cultures, and experiences creating an atmosphere that nurtures talent and different perspectives. Whether you're from an underrepresented group, or you have achieved success through non-traditional education routes, I encourage candidates from all backgrounds and professions to apply for this role.

Thank you for your interest and for taking the time to read through this pack. If you have the skills and experience that we are seeking and want to support Oak in delivering its aim to help schools and teachers deliver a high-quality curriculum, I hope that you will apply. If you wish to have an informal and confidential discussion about the role before doing so, please contact Jenny Oldroyd, Director of Curriculum, General Qualifications and Digital Strategy at jenny.oldroyd@education.gov.uk

Yours sincerely,

The Rt Hon Bridget Phillipson MP

Secretary of State for Education

Appointment description

The Oak Board provides governance to the organisation. It provides leadership and direction to the executive, setting strategic aims and standards. The Chair will have the opportunity to work with a high-performing executive team. They will work closely with the Board, the executive and Ministers to set Oak’s direction, ensure strong oversight and accountability, supporting Oak to deliver its remit. Oak is strategically aligned with, but operationally independent from government.

The Oak Chair will:

• Alongside the Chief Executive and Ministers, shape Oak’s next phase by setting the organisation’s purpose, strategy and direction, ensuring that Oak achieves its objectives as agreed by the Secretary of State whilst balancing this aim with operational independence.

• Promote the efficient and effective use of staff and other resources.

• Represent Oak and its Board both internally and externally, maintaining the confidence of the education sector and sustaining a broad range of stakeholder relationships. This includes acting with propriety, being politically impartial and consideration of conflicts of interest.

• Act as a point of contact between ministers and the Board.

• Maintain an effective working relationship with the Chief Executive to help inform Oak’s decision-making process, with consultation on all significant, strategic or potentially contentious issues as they arise. This will involve supporting, guiding, and where necessary providing challenge to the Chief Executive in their leadership of Oak.

• Provide leadership to the Board and executive, ensuring that the organisation operates effectively and efficiently, within its remit, and meets its objectives; and that all activities are conducted both lawfully and ethically.

• Provide the induction, training, objectives and performance assessment of all members of the Board so that it has the knowledge and expertise to direct the Oak’s business effectively.

• Ensure that the Board Operating Framework is in place and adhered to, setting out the role and responsibilities of the Board consistent with and adhering to the Government Code of Good Practice for Corporate Governance.

The Board comprises at least five and not more than eleven members (currently ten, including two Executive Directors). There will be a minimum of four Board meetings per year. Board meetings will normally be held in person. Meetings are usually held during normal working hours, Monday to Friday. Meeting length will vary according to the agenda, but meetings are usually between 2-3 hours in duration.

The Chair will also be expected to be in regular contact with the executive between Board meetings.

Organisation description

Oak National Academy

The opportunity

This is an exceptional moment to lead the Board of Oak National Academy. As Chair, you will shape the direction of the organisation, provide governance oversight, and maintain Oak’s unique ‘by teachers, for teachers’ ethos while ensuring it can remain at the forefront of educational technology and curriculum design.

Oak’s framework agreement sets out its strategic aims and role in the education system. Oak provides free, open licence, optional curriculum materials through its digital education platform, covering all subjects for pupils aged 4 to 16. Its resources are now used by around 200,000 teachers in more than 3 in 4 of all schools in England, with especially high use amongst schools in disadvantaged areas. Oak’s materials include fully adaptable curriculum plans and digital resources covering the whole of the national curriculum to support teachers to develop their skills in long-term curriculum planning as well as with their immediate teaching needs. As part of everyday school life, digital tools can support collaboration, creativity, and independence in ways that complement strong teaching. Oak has developed an AI lesson planning tool, Aila - the first publicly funded and publicly available generative AI tool of its kind in the UK. This tool enables teachers to be firmly in control, supporting them in developing lessons that are tailored to the needs of their classes, and reducing workload, whilst maintaining high standards of quality and safety.

Over the next two years Oak will redevelop its resources to reflect the refreshed curriculum and GCSEs following the independent Curriculum and Assessment Review, helping teachers with their implementation. Oak will also create new high-quality resources designed specifically for reception teachers. Oak’s new resources will also align with the Review’s recommendations on embedding of applied knowledge and skills in financial, media and digital literacy and improving climate and sustainability education in the relevant subjects. The resources will reduce workload for teachers who want to use them, giving them more time to identify and invest in supporting pupils with learning gaps, particularly in literacy and numeracy. They will help close the disadvantage gap as well as helping teachers to support pupils with SEND.

Oak will continue to place itself at the forefront of educational technology, providing teachers with products which support tailored lesson planning, reduce workload and help raise quality standards. Its resources, data and expertise will also be shared with industry to support the curriculum alignment and quality of edtech and AI tools available from other providers.

The Oak platform also continues to provide a national contingency for remote education should it be needed in the event of disruption.

You will chair a Board overseeing groundbreaking work at the intersection of education and technology. Oak has established itself as a leader in the safe development of AI tools for education, having become one of the first public sector organisations to launch a generative AI service to the public, whilst setting new standards in quality and safety. This work is attracting attention from around the world.

Board composition

Under the terms of Oak’s Articles of Association, the Secretary of State appoints the Chair of the Board and up to four non-executive Board members. The Oak Board can then co-opt up to four additional non-executive Board members. To date, the Secretary of State has appointed the Chair and three non-executive Board members, and four additional non-executive members have been co-opted by the Board.

Person specification

Essential criteria

• A proven track record of exceptional leadership resulting in successful delivery of strategic outcomes, demonstrating the ability to play a key role in the leadership of the English education system and to provide strong and inspirational leadership to Oak and to the wider education sector.

• Senior Board level experience of providing strategic direction, facilitating effective decision-making, driving delivery and governance oversight in a high-profile and complex environment.

• Outstanding communication skills, with the ability to influence and build effective relationships with the Oak Board and staff and with stakeholders across the education and education technology landscape, including ministers.

• Strong understanding of the education system, the direction of education reform, and how to drive education outcomes.

• Experience overseeing technology-enabled transformation, including managing risk and public trust.

If a large number of applications is received, preliminary sifting will be carried out using only the following two essential criteria: 

• A proven track record of exceptional leadership resulting in successful delivery of strategic outcomes, demonstrating the ability to play a key role in the leadership of the English education system and to provide strong and inspirational leadership to Oak and to the wider education sector.
•  Strong understanding of the education system, the direction of education reform, and how to drive education outcomes.

You should be aware that in this situation, your application might not be considered in full by all members of the panel.

Desirable criteria

• Experience as a non-executive Board member or Chair of an Arm’s Length Body Board or equivalent. 

Application and selection process

How to apply

In order to apply you will need to create an account or sign in.

Once you are logged into your account, click on 'apply for this role' and follow the on-screen instructions To apply, all candidates are required to provide:

• equality information
• information relating to any outside interests or reputational issues
• a Curriculum Vitae (CV)
• a supporting statement using the template provided at the bottom of this advert (maximum 300 words per criterion - if this is exceeded only the first 300 words will be considered)
• a short professional biography (maximum 150 words)

We will ask you to check and confirm your personal details to ensure your application is accurate.

You will also have the opportunity to make a reasonable adjustment request or apply under the disability confident scheme before you submit your application.

Should you need a reasonable adjustment to enable you to submit your application, please contact Oak.PUBLICAPPOINTMENTS@education.gov.uk.

Overview of the application process

Public appointments are made on merit following a fair and open competition process which is conducted in accordance with the Governance Code for Public Appointments. We will deal with your application as quickly as possible and will keep you informed at key stages. We aim to conclude the appointment process within three months of the deadline for applications – this is in accordance with the Governance Code.

The assessment process

1. Ministers are responsible and accountable to Parliament for the public appointments made within their department. As a result, they must be consulted at every stage of the appointments process.

2. An Advisory Assessment Panel (“Panel”) is appointed by Ministers to assist them in their decision making. The role of the Panel is to decide, objectively, which candidates meet the eligibility criteria for the role.

3. At the shortlisting meeting the Panel will assess applications against the eligibility criteria and decide which candidates have best met the criteria, who should be recommended for interview. Ministers will then be consulted on the Panel’s recommended shortlist. If you have applied under the Disability Confident Scheme and you meet all the essential criteria, then you will also be invited for an interview.

4. Once the shortlist has been agreed by Ministers, you will be advised (by e-mail) whether you have been shortlisted. Those shortlisted will be invited to an interview.

5. The Panel will meet again to interview candidates and determine who is appointable to the role. The Panel may invite you to make a brief presentation at the start of the interview and will go on to question you about your skills and experience, including asking specific questions to assess whether you meet the criteria set out for the post. The Panel will also explore with you any potential conflicts of interest or any other issues arising from your personal and professional history which may impact on an appointment decision.

6. Details of the panel’s assessment of interviewed candidates are provided to Ministers, including whether they have judged a candidate to be appointable to the role. It is then for Ministers to determine merit and decide who should be appointed. In some circumstances, Ministers may choose not to appoint any candidates and re-run the competition.

7. Ministers may choose to meet with candidates before deciding the outcome. Candidates should therefore be prepared for a short time gap between interview and a final appointment decision being made. Candidates who have been interviewed will be kept informed of progress.

8. Once the decision on the appointment has been made, interviewed candidates will be advised of the outcome of their application, including whom they may approach for feedback. Successful candidates will be issued with their Terms & Conditions and a letter of appointment should they agree to take up the position.

Further information about appointments, including tips on applying, can be found on our guidance pages on gov.uk.

Advisory Assessment Panel (AAP)

Jenny Oldroyd - Curriculum, General Qualifications and Digital Strategy Director at DfE - Designated Departmental Official and Panel Chair. 

No political activity to declare.

Sir Mufti Hamid Patel CBE - CEO of Star Academies - Independent Panel Member.

No political activity to declare.

Sir Kevan Collins - Lead non-executive board member at the Department for Education - Panel Member.

Sir Kevan Collins is a member of the Labour Party.

Alex Jones - Interim Director of the government's Incubator for Artificial Intelligence - Panel Member.

No political activity to declare.

.

Advisory Assessment Panels (AAP) are chosen by ministers to assist them in their decision-making. These include a departmental official and an independent member. For competitions recruiting non-executive members of a board (apart from the Chair), the panel will usually include a representative from the public body concerned.

AAP’s perform a number of functions, including agreeing an assessment strategy with ministers, undertaking sifting, carrying out interviews in line with the advertised criteria and deciding objectively who meets the published selection criteria for the role before recommending to ministers which candidates they find appointable. It is then for the minister to decide who to appoint to the role.

Eligibility criteria

To be eligible to apply for this role you should have the right to work in the UK.

The Government expects all holders of public office to work to the highest personal and professional standards. 

You cannot be considered for a public appointment if:

• you are disqualified from acting as a company director  (under the Company Directors Disqualification Act 1986);

• have an unspent conviction on your criminal record;

• your estate has been sequestrated in Scotland or you enter into a debt arrangement programme under Part 1 of the Debt Arrangement and Attachment (Scotland) Act 2002 (asp 17) as the debtor or have, under Scots law, granted a trust deed for creditors.

When you apply, you should declare if:

• you are, or have been, bankrupt or you have made an arrangement with a creditor at any point, including the dates of this. 

• you are subject to a current police investigation.

You must inform the sponsor department if, during the application process, your circumstances change in respect of any of the above points. 

When you apply you should also declare any relevant interests, highlighting any that you think may call into question your ability to properly discharge the responsibilities of the role you are applying for. You should also declare any other matters which may mean you may not be able to meet the requirements of the Code of Conduct of Board Members (see Outside interests and reputational issues section below)

If you need further advice, please contact  Oak National Academy Sponsorship Team: Oak.PUBLICAPPOINTMENTS@education.gov.uk

Please include ‘Oak National Academy Chair application’ in the subject box

Security clearance

The successful candidate will be required to undertake Baseline Personnel Security Standard checks in line with the Civil Service guidelines. Additional Security Clearance may also be required for certain roles. However, where this applies, candidates will be notified during the appointment process. Further information on National Security Vetting can be found on the Gov.uk website here.

Additional information for candidates

Equality and diversity

We encourage applications from talented individuals from all backgrounds and across the whole of the United Kingdom. Boards of public bodies are most effective when they reflect the diversity of views of the society they serve.

We collect data about applicants’ characteristics and backgrounds, including information about people’s educational and professional backgrounds, so that we can make sure we are attracting a broad range of people to these roles and that our selection processes are fair for everyone. Without this information, it makes it difficult to see if our outreach is working, if the application process is having an unfair impact on certain groups and whether changes are making a positive difference.

When you submit your application, your responses are collected by the Cabinet Office and the government department(s) managing your application. The data is used to produce management information about the diversity of applicants. You can select “prefer not to say” to any question you do not wish to answer. The information you provide will not be seen by the Advisory Assessment Panel who review applications against the advertised criteria and conduct interviews.

Disability confident

We are a member of the Government’s Disability Confident scheme. We use the Disability Confident scheme symbol, along with other like-minded employers, to show our commitment to good practice in employing people with a disability. The scheme helps recruit and retain disabled people. As part of implementing the scheme, we guarantee an interview for anyone with a disability whose application meets the essential criteria for the role, set out in the advert, and who has asked that their application is considered under the scheme. Indicating that you wish your application to be considered under the scheme will in no way prejudice your application. By ‘essential criteria', we mean that you must provide evidence which demonstrates that you meet the level of competence required under each of the essential criteria, as set out in the job-advert. When you apply you will have the opportunity to select if you would like your application considered under this scheme.

Reasonable adjustments

We are committed to making reasonable adjustments to make sure applicants with disabilities, physical or mental health conditions, or other needs are not substantially disadvantaged when applying for public appointments. This can include changing the recruitment process to enable people who wish to apply to do so.

Some examples of common changes are:

• ensuring that application forms are available in different or accessible formats;
• making adaptations to interview locations;
• allowing candidates to present their skills and experience in a different way;
• giving additional detailed information on the selection / interview process in advance to allow candidates time to prepare themselves;
• allowing support workers, for example sign language interpreters;
• making provision for support animals to attend.

When you apply you will have the opportunity to request reasonable adjustments to the application process. Should you need a reasonable adjustment to enable you to submit your application, please contact Oak.PUBLICAPPOINTMENTS@education.gov.uk.

Principles of public life

The Seven Principles of Public Life (also known as the Nolan Principles) apply to anyone who works as a public office-holder.

1. Selflessness

Holders of public office should act solely in terms of the public interest.

2. Integrity

Holders of public office must avoid placing themselves under any obligation to people or organisations that might try inappropriately to influence them in their work. They should not act or take decisions in order to gain financial or other material benefits for themselves, their family, or their friends. They must declare and resolve any interests and relationships.

3. Objectivity

Holders of public office must act and take decisions impartially, fairly and on merit, using the best evidence and without discrimination or bias.

4. Accountability

Holders of public office are accountable to the public for their decisions and actions and must submit themselves to the scrutiny necessary to ensure this.

5. Openness

Holders of public office should act and take decisions in an open and transparent manner. Information should not be withheld from the public unless there are clear and lawful reasons for so doing.

6. Honesty

Holders of public office should be truthful.

7. Leadership

Holders of public office should exhibit these principles in their own behaviour and treat others with respect. They should actively promote and robustly support the principles and challenge poor behaviour wherever it occurs.

Code of conduct for board members

The Government expects all holders of public office to work to the highest personal and professional standards. In support of this, all non-executive board members of UK public bodies must abide by the principles set out in the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. The Code sets out the standards expected from those who serve on the boards of UK public bodies and will form part of your terms and conditions of appointment.

Management of outside interests and consideration of reputational issues

Holders of public office are expected to adhere and uphold the Seven Principles of Public Life and the Code of Conduct for Board Members of Public Bodies. Before you apply you should consider carefully: 

• any outside interests that you may have, such as shares you may hold in a company providing services to government; 
• any possible reputational issues arising from your past actions or public statements that you have made; 
• and/or - any political roles you hold or political campaigns you have supported; 

which may call into question your ability to do the role you are applying for.

You will need to answer relevant questions in relation to these points when making an application. Many conflicts of interest can be satisfactorily resolved and declaring a potential conflict does not prevent you from being interviewed. If you are shortlisted for an interview, the panel will discuss any potential conflicts with you during that interview, including any proposals you may have to mitigate them and record that in their advice to ministers. Alongside your own declaration, we will conduct appropriate checks, as part of which we will consider anything in the public domain related to your conduct or professional capacity. This may include searches of previous public statements and social media, blogs or any other publicly available information. The successful candidate(s) may be required to give up any conflicting interests and their other business and financial interests may be published in line with organisational policies. 

Details of declared political activity will be published when the appointment is announced, as required by the Governance Code (political activity is not a bar to appointment, but must be declared).

Status of appointment

As this is an office holder appointment, you will not become a member of the Civil Service. You will not be subject to the provisions of employment law.

Appointment and tenure of office

Appointments are for the term set out in this advert, with the possibility of re-appointment for a further term, at the discretion of Ministers.  Any re-appointment is subject to satisfactory annual appraisals of performance during the first term in the post. There is no automatic presumption of reappointment; each case should be considered on its own merits, taking into account a number of factors including, but not restricted to, the diversity of the current board and its balance of skills and experience. In most cases, the total time served in post will not exceed more than two terms or ten years in any one post. 

Remuneration, allowances and abatement

£500 per day for a maximum average time commitment of one day per week.

Remuneration for this role is treated as employment income and will be subject to tax and National Insurance contributions, both of which will be deducted at source under PAYE before you are paid. 

You can claim reimbursement for reasonable travel and subsistence costs which are properly and necessarily incurred on official business, in line with Oak National Academy's expenses policy. However these payments are taxable as earnings and will be subject to tax and national insurance, both of which will be deducted at source under PAYE before you are paid. 

Pension and redundancy

This is an office holder appointment and does not attract any benefits under any Civil Service Pension Scheme. You will not be eligible for redundancy pay as you are not an employee. No other arrangements have been made for compensation upon the end of your term of appointment because an office holder who is appointed for a limited duration would have no expectation of serving beyond that period.

Application feedback

We will notify you of the status of your application. We regret that we are only able to offer detailed feedback to candidates who have been unsuccessful at the interview stage.

How to complain

We aim to process all applications as quickly as possible and to treat all applicants with courtesy.

Please contact the Oak National Academy Sponsorship Team:

Oak.PUBLICAPPOINTMENTS@education.gov.uk

Please include ‘Oak National Academy Chair application’ in the subject box.

Data protection

The Cabinet Office will use your data in line with our privacy policy.

Personal data collected as part of this exercise will be processed in accordance with the Department for Education Privacy Notice. 

Attachments

• Candidate Pack

• Supporting statement template

Contact details

Oak National Academy Sponsorship Team:

Oak.PUBLICAPPOINTMENTS@education.gov.uk

Please include ‘Oak National Academy Chair application’ in the subject box