School business professional

Key information

Reference: ST0575
Date updated: 31/05/2022
Level: 4
Route: Business and administration
Regulated occupation: No

Details of the occupational standard

Higher Technical Qualification

Higher Technical Qualifications (HTQs) are designed to be delivered within a course of education. Some Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours may be more safely and reliably delivered in workplace settings, so may not be fully covered by the HTQ. Some qualifications will deliver additional content or added depth and breadth through, for example, use of specialist learning environments, work placements or innovative teaching methods. Check with the qualification provider if you require further information on coverage.

Occupation summary

School Business Professionals (SBPs) perform a role which is unique to schools, administering and managing the financial, site and support services within the school context. They provide essential support to school leadership teams, implementing their financial and business decisions. SBPs may work in any school phase (primary, secondary, special) and in different school structures: single academy trusts, multi academy trusts (MATs), local authority maintained schools and federations, etc. Consequently, they can work in very different settings with varying numbers of people that they report to including the headteacher or School Business Director (SBD). Within this context, SBPs have a shared number of roles which shape their day-to-day activity to make this a homogeneous role in schools.

Administering and managing financial, site and support services within the school context.

Typical job titles include:

Bursar Business support officer Finance manager Hr manager Office manager School administrator School business manager

Occupation duties

Duty	KSBs
Duty 1 Drafting and monitoring the school budget, setting up financial controls and reporting on performance to ensure best value for money is achieved; managing payroll, maintaining accounts and financial reporting to the headteacher and governors.
Duty 2 Management of the school site to ensure that it provides a safe and suitable learning environment; procurement of goods and services to achieve best value and oversee contract management, e.g. staff, catering and maintenance contracts.
Duty 3 Identification of income generation opportunities on a small scale, supporting the SBD in larger opportunities.
Duty 4 Preparation of marketing materials and lead a range of marketing activities to add value and promote the school externally.
Duty 5 Responsibility for managing office and other support staff and for developing and maintaining effective administrative systems, e.g. student record-keeping systems; implementation of school HR processes.
Duty 6 Ensuring compliance with and implementation of safeguarding and Health & Safety policies so that all stakeholders work in a safe and healthy.

KSBs

Knowledge

K1: Understands the range of educational funding streams available which are applicable to their educational setting. Has a working knowledge of accounting practices and understands how to apply business principles to the optimum use of funding to support learning outcomes. Understands school compliance issues. Recognises business efficiency and knows the range of data required to inform school business decisions. Back to Duty

K2: Knowledge of school procurement regulations and requirements and how to achieve value for money, including collaborative procurement. Back to Duty

K3: Understands how to manage collaborative processes with other schools in order to share good practice and secure financial efficiencies. Has an awareness of the complexities of procurement law. Back to Duty

K4: Understands the complexities of teaching and support staff contracts, terms & conditions of employment and payroll. Understands educational HR policies, safer recruitment, and compliance with safeguarding priorities and equality legislation. Has an awareness of when to seek legal advice. Back to Duty

K5: Knows the impact of educational policies at an operational level in order to support the school development plan. Understands the influence of educational regulatory bodies (DfE, Ofsted, etc). Is aware of Ofsted requirements and the implications these have for the workforce and planning in a school. Knows how to manage the DfE pupil and workforce census and their impact on the school. Back to Duty

K6: Has practical knowledge of the supporting documentation governors need. Understands the process of risk management and procures and manages insurance cover for the school to mitigate risks as appropriate. Has relevant knowledge enabling compliance with charitable status and education law. Understands the impact of, and how to implement, safeguarding policy in a school environment. Back to Duty

K7: Understands how marketing can be used to underpin school funding. Knows the marketing priorities of their school and the impact marketing activities can have. Understands marketing activities to promote their school and takes into account e-safety when doing so. Back to Duty

K8: Awareness of the optimum deployment of resources targeted to raise pupil attainment. Understands the significance of physical facilities and digital processes in an educational setting, e.g. facilities repair logs, student data analysis, data security and safe use of social media. Has knowledge of relevant legislation that schools must comply with, such as Health & Safety, Freedom of Information, Employment and Data Protection policies. Back to Duty

K9: Understands and demonstrates the highest standards of personal and professional conduct, and applies statutory regulations and provisions. Back to Duty

Skills

S1: Manages strategies set by senior personnel and drafts budgets that reflect them. Manages the accurate recording and reporting of the school’s finances to inform the senior leadership team who set the priorities for school spending. Completes pre-audit checks. Produces reports that present information and data using a range of analytical processes. Back to Duty

S2: Plans, organises and manages processes to ensure value for money for the school whilst supporting education delivery, e.g. contract management, payroll, building maintenance and small development projects. Uses multiple IT packages and specialised schools MIS (management information systems) platforms. Prepares and collates reporting data. Back to Duty

S3: Embraces change in a school and influence others in a positive manner. Back to Duty

S4: Works constructively within a team environment. Back to Duty

S5: Communicates appropriately and effectively with a range of stakeholders including students, parents, governors/trustees, staff, government and local government departments, e.g. DfE/ ESFA, to gain positive outcomes. Has the confidence to question or seek clarification of aspects of school practice when unsure or unclear. Back to Duty

S6: Manages support services across an entire school whilst also providing guidance to colleagues on the most appropriate use of school funding. Effectively line manages small teams to drive efficiencies. Back to Duty

Behaviours

B1: Keeps up to date with educational policies and embraces change. Self- motivated and supportive of others in working through change. Back to Duty

B2: Demonstrates a confident approach to decision-making and prioritisation, thus gaining the confidence of others. Back to Duty

B3: Open, approachable and is able to build trust with others. Consults and seeks the views of others and values diversity. Back to Duty

B4: Behaves in a collaborative way with other internal and external stakeholders. Promotes a team spirit and actively demonstrates professional competence in all settings and situations. Back to Duty

B5: Has the ability to adapt to different, changing and challenging situations whilst promoting the highest professional standards. Back to Duty

B6: Is willing to ask difficult questions whilst demonstrating an ethical, fair and consistent approach. Offers a business perspective and supports discussion and debate with professional knowledge and evidence. Back to Duty

Certificate of Higher Education in School Business Professional

Qualification type: HTQ

Qualification level: 4

Applicant: University of Greenwich

Awarding body: University of Greenwich

Approval date: 01/01/0001

Occupational pathway: N/A

Placement: No

Aligned occupational standards

ST0575 School business professional

End-point assessment (EPA plan)

Rigorous robust and independent assessment undertaken by an apprentice at the end of training to test that the apprentice can perform in the occupation they have been trained in and can demonstrate the duties, and knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs) set out in the occupational standard

End-point assessment organisation (EPAO)

An organisation approved to deliver end-point assessment for a particular apprenticeship standard. EPAOs must be on the register of end-point assessment organisations

Holistic or synoptic

Assessment of an apprentice’s knowledge, skills and behaviours in an integrated way i.e. assessing several KSBs at the same time

Knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSB)

What is needed to competently undertake the duties required for an occupational standard

Valid

Referred to in relation to assessment methods; fit for purpose

Change request policy

Most changes to an apprenticeship are made as a result of a holistic review of it. We prioritise the need for such reviews based on a range of factors. These include:

the time since the apprenticeship was developed or last reviewed (taking account of its typical duration)
the existence of any known problems with it (e.g. lower than expected starts, low achievement rate, high withdrawal rate, any issues with the availability of training or end-point assessment provision)
whether the apprenticeship is currently subject to a dispensation
the relative significance of the apprenticeship based on how many users it has

The availability of an employer group to support a review and its potential impact on any related technical education product also inform the timing of a review.

Details of apprenticeships that are currently being revised or adjusted are available in our revisions and adjustments status report.

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