El Viso Infant School Administrator

We support peace and prosperity by building connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide.

We work directly with individuals to help them gain the skills, confidence and connections to transform their lives and shape a better world in partnership with the UK. We support them to build networks and explore creative ideas, to learn English, to get a high-quality education and to gain internationally recognised qualifications.

Working with people in over 200 countries and territories, we are on the ground in more than 100 countries. In 202122 we reached 650 million people.

The British Council School Madrid is currently seeking to appoint an outstanding professional as School Administrative Assistant to support the British Council Infant School in El Viso, starting January 2024. The appointment will be on a full-time, temporary contract covering a parental leave.

This post is being advertised internally as well as externally.

Key Dates

Closing date for Applications: 17th of December 2023 23:59 (Madrid local time) Shortlisting and Interviews: week commencing 18th of December

Please be advised the selection process may include presentations, in-tray and other selection exercises.

ROLE PURPOSE

The School Administrator works with staff and prospective and current school families and students to support stakeholder engagement and operational administration. Responsibilities may include, but are not limited to, communications, administration, secretarial duties, procurement, staff recruitment, events, data management and reporting, support/line management of customer service staff, small/medium project management and other specialist and/or administrative tasks.

This role is pivotal in supporting school teams to maintain the excellent grading achieved in the latest BSO inspection in the areas of education and experience, through excellent administration and communication.

ROLE CONTEXT

The School is uniquely well positioned to meet the British Council core purpose: We build connections, understanding and trust between people in the UK and other countries through arts and culture, education and the English language.

The British Council works with over 100 countries across the world in the fields of arts and culture, English language, education and civil society. Each year we reach over 20 million people face-to-face and more than 500 million people online, via broadcasts and publications. Founded in 1934, we are a UK charity governed by Royal Charter and a UK public body.

The British Council is committed to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with. We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989. Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed; these will include qualification checks, reference checks, identity & criminal record checks in line with legal requirements and with the British Councils Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.

The British Council El Viso Infant School

British Schools Overseas Inspection 2018, 2021 Highest rating in all areas

The British Council El Viso Infant School opened in September 2016 in Madrid city centre, in the peaceful residential district of El Viso. Located in a purpose-built Infant school, children start at 2 years of age and enjoy their Foundation Stage phase there until they join Key stage 1 at the school in Somosaguas. The school currently offers flexible opening hours (8.30- 16.30) to meet the demands of parents and carers working hours, as well as offering after-school clubs in English; staff are given an opportunity to share their skills when delivering clubs.

A unique and exciting centre, the school is a happy, vibrant place where pupils delight in attending and participating in dynamic lessons and activities, delivered through music, sports, language learning, movement classes, arts and play.

The Early Years education in this school forms the firm foundation for the outstanding results, both academic and personal, that are achieved by the older students.

Our intent statement

The British Council School curriculum challenges all pupils to reach their potential. We believe all pupils have the right to an ambitious, rigorous and exciting learning journey and all our pupils experience a deep and broad education inspired by the best of both worlds approach of our bilingual School. Our curriculum provides pupils with the skills, competencies and knowledge to become creative and critical thinkers who are resilient and caring so that they can be successful and valued members of our School community and beyond.

British Council policies, standards and regulations apply to all aspects of this job.

MAIN ACCOUNTABILITIES

This role profile includes generic responsibilities that are common to all School Administrator roles. The balance between areas of work and post specific responsibilities will be assigned and reviewed with the role profile as part of the performance management process while the individual continues in the same position and in the same section of the school. Areas of responsibility may change according to school operational requirements and the need for these key staff to be familiar with all sections of the school and in the interest of their own professional development.

Areas of responsibility and associated duties may include, but are not limited to:

Relationship and Stakeholder Management/ Customer Support
Current and prospective staff (eg HR processes and administrative requirements) support and proactively develop communication strategies for other stakeholder groups such as:
– Current and prospective families (eg school news and events, visits, open days)
– Pupils and Alumni (eg events, school news, network development)
– Share information about the school and school activities
– Support dual language English/Spanish communication, including translations

Development and optimisation of processes and working practices for the stakeholder groups above

Planning and administration of internal and external events (e.g. Open Days, parents evenings, ceremonies and fairs, performances)

Pupil and alumni administration duties (e.g. trips, curriculum activities, exam entries, alumni database)

Finance and Resource Management
Purchasing equipment or services, contract administration, budget reporting, liaison with suppliers to ensure correct service provision
Planning and coordination of small/ medium projects and new recurrent initiatives

Service and Product Delivery Support
Generate reports, prepare statistics and handle data
Manage paper and digital records and maintain clear and effective paper filing records and digital systems, updating in accordance to approved retention schedules
Manage business-specific tools (e.g. MyHR, Concur, etc) and other software packages which will improve the efficacy and delivery

Managing Self and Others (as per school values)
Support and/or management of customer service staff
Teamwork within the section administration team and across sections of the school

General/ Other
To take part in any other duties included in the National Private Schools Collective Agreement as assigned by the line manager and carry out any other reasonable duties related to the job purpose may be required from time to time.

This role profile should be seen as enabling rather than restrictive, and may be subject to review.

PERSON SPECIFICATION

Core Skills

Shortlisting and/or Interview (there may be a task or a short presentation as part of the recruitment process)

Essential

– Planning and Organising Level 2- Plans ahead. Able to organise own work over weeks and months, or to plan ahead for others, taking account of priorities and the impact on other people.

– Communicating and Influencing Level 2- Relates communications to circumstances. Displays good listening, writing and speaking skills, setting out logical arguments clearly and adapting language and form of communication to meet the needs of different people/audiences.

– Using Technology Level 2- Operates as an Advanced User. Able to work as an advanced practitioner in the use of office software and/or British Council standard and social media platforms, and train or coach others in their use

Not used in Recruitment & Selection:

-Managing Risks Level 1- Follows good practices. Demonstrates understanding of risk management policies and procedures and record of following them.

-Managing People Level 2- Supervises a Small Team. Supervises a small team of people doing similar jobs to deliver short term tasks to agreed quality and time standards.

Role Specific Skills

Shortlisting and/ or Interview (there may be a task or a short presentation as part of the recruitment process)

Essential

Presentation skills
Experience of working with Microsoft Office tools (particularly Word, Excel and Powerpoint) and transferrable IT skills to be able to use other programmes and applications

Role Specific Knowledge and Experience

Essential

Proven recent experience of dealing with internal and external stakeholders
Experience creating presentations
Experience working with confidential records/knowledge of GDPR
Experience managing events

Desirable (shortlisting)

Customer facing experience in a sales or business context
Knowledge of the UK National Curriculum and Spanish Curriculum
Extensive knowledge and experience of School processes and tools relating to providers and current/prospective staff/ families

Language Requirements

Shortlisting and/or Interview
Essential

Proficient in Spanish or English (spoken and written level C2 in CEFR or equivalent) and English or Spanish (spoken and written level C1 in CEFR or equivalent).

The British Council systems and global processes operate in English. Written and verbal proficiency in English is required. Relevant language certifications/experience to be indicated in Application Form and CV. Language Tests may be required. If no certifications are available, employee may be hired conditional to the achievement of the Essential level certification within a 12-month period.

Desirable

English and Spanish language ability to the level of, or a level comparable to, first language communicator (Proficient spoken and written level minimum C2 CEFR or equivalent).

Education

Shortlisting
Essential

A good bachelors degree, or CFGS/FP2/Equivalent in a relevant discipline or specialty

Additional job requirements

Proof of Identity requirements/right to work in country: Candidates are expected to have researched whether they have the right to live and work in the country in which the role is based. Given that our offices have different legal status depending on the work we do in those countries, we recommend that you contact HR in country for additional information on the likelihood of securing a visa. Only at its discretion will the British Council provide support so please check first whether visa support is offered.

Background Checks: Initial and continuing employment with the British Council is subject to an annual background check. The job undertaken defines the nature of check(s) and assessment applied.

Other requirements: There are occasional trips and performances locally and members of staff are required to accompany students. Overseas travel sometimes takes place and staff may be asked to accompany groups. Due to the nature of your role, you may be required to work outside school hours during events and performances.

British Council values and behaviours

British council values and behaviours are applicable across our organisation, in all roles and at all levels. They are important because they say what we stand for at the British Council and help us to deliver our strategy. We use them to guide our decision making, as well as guiding how we treat one another and the people we work with. These will be assessed in the selection process. Our values are:

Open and Committed; Expert and Inclusive; Optimistic and Bold.

The behaviours for each values pair can be found on our Intranet SharePoint site for internal staff and at our portal for external applicants.

A connected and trusted UK in a more connected and trusted world.

Equality , Diversity, and Inclusion(EDI) Statement

The British Council is committed to policies and practices of equality, diversity and inclusion across everything we do. We support all staff to make sure their behaviour is consistent with this commitment. We want to address under representation and encourage applicants from under-represented groups, in particular, but not exclusively, on grounds of ethnicity and disability. All disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria are guaranteed an interview and we have Disability Confident Employer Status. We welcome discussions about specific requirements or adjustments to enable participation and engagement in our work and activities.

The British Council iscommitted to safeguarding children, young people and adults who we work with.

We believe that all children and adults everywhere in the world deserve to live in safe environments and have the right to be protected from all forms of abuse, maltreatment and exploitation as set out in article 19, UNCRC (United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child) 1989.

Appointment to positions where there is direct involvement with vulnerable groups will be dependent on thorough checks being completed; these will include qualification checks, reference checks, identity & criminal record checks in line with legal requirements and with the British Councils Safeguarding policies for Adults and Children.

If you have any problems with your application please email askhr@britishcouncil.org

Please note: Applications to this role can only be considered when made through the Apply section of our careers website. Our ASK HR email is only to be used in case of a technical issue encountered when applying through the careers website. Emails with supporting statements and CV/Resumes sent to this email address will not be reviewed and will be deleted.