Description Proposed Interview Date: Wednesday 02 July 2025 Closing Date: Monday 30 June 2025 Contract Type: Temporary for 1 year Salary: £57,429.00 - £62,022.00 Working Pattern: 35 hours per week Location: Fife House Proposed Start Date: Monday 18 August 2025 Purpose and Values of Education & Children’s Services Directorate The Education Directorate is committed to Improving Life Chances for All through a wide range of direct services which support our children, young people, families and the wider Fife community. Our approach to improvement is rooted in our core values: Compassion, Ambition, Respect and Equity which reflect the ethos, culture and practice principles of all staff across the directorate. We strive to ensure that our attitudes and behaviour reflect these core values in all our dealings with children, young people, their families, and the wider community in partnership with those who support them. Supporting Statement As part of your application, you must provide us with a Supporting Statement which outlines to us how your skills and experience make you a good candidate for this vacancy. For more information, check out the How to Apply section of our Career Site. Without a Supporting Statement, your application will not be progressed. Please upload your Supporting Statement at the section marked ‘upload resumé’. Your Supporting Statement must not be a CV. More information is available on our Career site at www.fife.gov.uk/jobs/supportingstatement. With consideration to the specific remit of the ESO role for which you are applying, please consider the following when completing your Supporting Statement: Ways you have modelled and promoted the GTCS Professional Values (social justice, trust, respect and integrity) and Professional Commitment in your current and previous roles. Consider the following: how have you ensured equity of opportunity for all; how you have developed relationships built on trust and respect that enable others to take responsibility; how your moral and ethical principles inform your practice and how your own professional learning underpins your development as a leader and the development of others? How have you demonstrated your knowledge, skills and understanding when contributing to the leadership of change? Consider the following: how have you developed and promoted an informed and critical stance which focusses on improvements; how have you promoted and enhanced collaboration and leadership at all levels; how have you promoted and modelled your organisation’s vision, values and aims? How have you supported and sustained colleagues in creating a positive environment? Consider the following: how have you inspired and motivated others to have high expectations; how have you encouraged and facilitated participation of others? How have you inspired confidence, enthusiasm and innovation which support high-quality learning, teaching and assessment? Ways in which you have you built and developed approaches to increase and promote positive partnerships. Consider the following: how you have contributed to change at operational and strategic level; how have you demonstrated supporting colleagues, families and partners? Ways in which you have used self-evaluation to make changes at operational and strategic level. Consider the following: how have you used self-evaluation to improve; how have you supported the professional learning of others, how have you ensured a wide variety of stakeholders are involved in decision-making processes and how have you made best use of resources and data to support development? Job Details The ESO is a hybrid working role. Working from home with a base at Fife House, Glenrothes. There is also a requirement to work flexibly at locations throughout Fife as required. The role is contracted on SNCT terms for Education Support Officers on 52-week terms. This is 35 hours per week, with 40 days paid holiday (including public holidays) for those with 5 years or more of continuous service. This is a temporary, full-time contract for a period of 12 months, reporting to the Quality Improvement Officer; Professional Learning & Leadership. Initial salary grade of ESO1. As this is a temporary post, applicants are required to discuss this with their current line manager prior to applying to ensure that they can be released for the period of the temporary contract should they be the successful candidate after interview and other required employment checks being completed. Education Support Officer with the Professional Learning Team The Education Support Officer: Leadership (ESO) lead and develop sustainable improvement in their strategic lead area and collaborate widely to develop their area of lead responsibility and key aspects of improvement support. Working collaboratively with practitioners in school, with the directorate, local and national partners, the ESO assists the raising of standards in line with national priorities, enabling the Education Directorate to satisfy legislative, Scottish Government, Education Scotland and Care Commission criteria on performance monitoring and continuous improvement. The Education Support Officer will: work in co-operation with Education Managers, Quality Improvement Officers and others in the Directorate to raise standards in schools, teams and services; provide a lead role in an area of expertise; identify good, effective practice. keep abreast of local and national developments in content and methodology related to their area of expertise; contribute to collaborative quality improvement /self-evaluation activity in schools; co-ordinate the production of materials and identify resource needs; be involved in the initiation, organisation and evaluation of development priorities and ensure that these meet the needs of schools, teams, services and staff through direct personal contact; liaise with external agencies as approved by the Executive Director of Education and within council guidelines; advise on and, as required, participate in, the recruitment and deployment of staff; advise on the provision of supplies and the design and furnishing of resources; be familiar with all aspects of Fife Council and the Education Directorates policy and be seen as a representative of the Executive Director of Education in all aspects of involvement with the Directorate, schools, external agencies and local and national partners. be knowledgeable about local and national priorities and help to ensure that these are being taken forward appropriately by the Directorate and schools. Qualifications, Registration and Skill Requirements Educated to degree level, ordinary degree or equivalent (SCQF level 9), you will have an In-depth knowledge of current policy and practice, demonstrating a strong understanding of the current evidence-base and the ability to use this to influence others. You are required to have high levels of interpersonal skills and abilities which will enable you to lead and manage, both at strategic and operational levels, to ensure continuous improvement. Strong IT skills from an organisational perspective and as part of high-quality Learning and Teaching. Before confirming your appointment, you will be required to obtain Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme membership through Disclosure Scotland and become a member of the relevant PVG scheme. GTCS Registered. The Person The Fife Professional Learning Team works collaboratively within the team and across the Fife Council Education Directorate, local and national organisations to lead and develop sustainable improvement in key strategic areas. The team supports impactful approaches to improvement in leadership, curriculum and learning, teaching & assessment with practitioners across settings and at all stages of their career. We are recruiting for a dynamic, enthusiastic and solution focused Education Support Officer to lead the support for practitioners in schools across Fife to develop sustainable approaches to leadership development, supporting those aspiring to or currently in school leadership roles to develop and improve their skills, knowledge and understanding of leadership and management necessary for achieving our ambition to Improve Life Chances for All. The post holder will lead on the development and direction of approaches to evaluating the impact of professional learning activity on practitioners and outcomes for all of Fife’s children and young people, support the development of leadership skills in those aspiring to and currently in middle leadership roles, contribute to and support schools with self-evaluation for self-improvement activity, act as a coach and mentor for those currently in middle leadership roles and those aspiring to middle leadership, support the development of online, self-directed learning approaches for leadership and review the impact, of all approaches on leaders at all levels. They will also lead and support on other developments pertaining to leadership locally and nationally. The person will: have been in a current substantive promoted post within a school environment for more than three years. work collaboratively to develop, share, deliver and review Directorate strategies to improve the quality and of leadership and management across all educational establishments ensuring it leads to improved outcomes for all learners. have current knowledge and understanding of leadership of change, leadership of learning and self-evaluation for self-improvement to be able to ensure that school leaders are supported and challenged to develop systems and processes that reflect up-to-date research, best practice, national legislation and local and national guidance, playing a lead role in developing skills, knowledge and understanding of school leadership within and across the directorate in liaison with central leaders, school leaders, local and national partners. have a sound understanding of quality assurance and be able to support schools with systems and processes to evaluate the work of their school in line with How Good is Our School 4? research, develop, quality assure, deliver, and review impactful professional learning programmes in a range of areas pertaining to leadership, which meet the development needs of those aspiring to or currently in middle leadership positions across settings. develop a wide range of self-directed professional learning opportunities for those in aspiring to or currently in a middle leadership role. support school leaders to develop the knowledge, skills and understanding of leadership of learning to deliver our aspirations for Transforming Learning. support with quality improvement/assurance activity within schools and education establishments, including participation in learning partnership / extended learning partnership / reviews. provide school leaders with coaching and mentoring supports in relation to operational and strategic elements of their role. develop directorate approaches to evaluating the quality and impact of all professional learning offers in line with current reading and research. create opportunities for leaders to come together to work collaboratively in networks/groups to share good practice and learn with and from each other. be able to deliver effective self-evaluation and improvement through an “inwards, outwards, forwards” approach to help schools, the Service and partners determine how we are doing, how do we know and what we are going to do now. be able to think strategically and apply critical analysis and have a high level of report writing skills. Before confirming to your appointment, you will be required to obtain Protection of Vulnerable Groups (PVG) scheme membership through Disclosure Scotland and become a member of the relevant PVG scheme. Further Information Role Profile - When preparing your supporting statement, review the role profile and think about how you meet the essential criteria Role Profile How We Work Matters - Our employees are expected to display and promote certain behaviours in the workplace. See our How We Work Matters behaviour framework for more information. Employee Benefits - Employees have access to a benefits package that offers discounts on a wide range of products and services. Directorate Information - Council Department information Social Media - Search for more 'Fife Council Jobs' on Facebook or follow us on X @FCJobsOfficial. Alternative Formats - Job information can be made available in alternative formats, to make a request please email: transactions.recruitment@fife.gov.uk We are currently shaping our future workstyles however, in light of current advice, we are introducing blended home/office working that will include office access days each week with homeworking for the remainder of your working time. For more information, please contact: Lesley Henderson, lesley.henderson-edu@fife.gov.uk