Join Our Network

Most people who contact us about associate work say a version of the same thing. They have spent years leading, inspecting or advising, they are not ready to stop, but they no longer want the whole weight of a substantive post. What they want is to keep using the expertise, in settings where it makes a difference, alongside people who understand the work.

If that sounds familiar, this page sets out how our associate network operates, who we look for and what happens after you apply, so you can judge whether it is a fit before you send us anything.

What is an associate consultant at Jarvis Education?

An associate consultant works with schools and settings under the Jarvis Education name, on assignments we bring to you. You stay self employed. You are not on a rota, you are not required to take work you do not want, and we do not ask for exclusivity.

What we do ask is that the work carries our standard. Every associate is vetted before they take an assignment, and the way you conduct a review reflects on every other consultant in the network. That is the whole basis of the arrangement, and it is why we are careful about who joins.

We are a network of 45+ vetted associate consultants rather than an agency with a database. Most of our associates work with us on a handful of assignments a year, alongside their own commitments.

What consultancy work is available?

Assignments come from independent special schools, alternative provision, SEND settings, maintained schools, academies, trusts and local authorities. The most common are:

• Independent reviews and audits, giving a school an honest external read on where it stands
• School improvement partnerships, working alongside a leadership team across a term or a year
• Safeguarding audits and reviews, including single central record and record keeping work
• SEND and inclusion reviews, covering EHCP oversight, provision mapping and annual review cycles
• Independent school standards and registration support for independent special settings
• Quality Mark assessment, carrying out reviews against our accreditation frameworks
• Governance reviews for boards, proprietors and trustees
• Coaching and leadership development, one to one with heads and senior leaders
• Training delivery, in person and online, on safeguarding, SEND, behaviour and attendance
• Investigations and complaints, where a setting needs somebody genuinely independent

Who are we looking for?

The people who do well in the network share something that is hard to put on a CV. They can walk into a setting they have never seen, work out quickly what is really going on, and say it in a way a leadership team can act on without feeling judged.

In practice that usually means current or recent experience as a headteacher, principal, head of centre, executive leader, designated safeguarding lead, SENCO or senior local authority officer. Many of our associates have inspected, either for Ofsted or for an independent inspectorate. Some come from social care, clinical or therapeutic backgrounds and bring specialisms our school leaders do not have.

We are particularly interested in people with real depth in independent special schools and alternative provision. That is where most of our work sits, and where good consultants are hardest to find.

Every consultant’s circumstances are different. If you are not sure whether your background fits, it is worth an application and a conversation rather than assuming it does not.

What do we ask of our associates?

• Substantial and recent experience in education, care or a closely related specialism
• An enhanced DBS on the update service, or willingness to obtain one
• Verifiable references, and no prohibition order or section 128 direction
• Self employed status, with your own tax and national insurance arrangements in place
• Reports written to deadline, in a form the school can actually use
• Honesty with us about your availability, so we do not put you forward for work you cannot take

What you can expect from us

Work reaches you rather than the other way round. Enquiries come to us, so you are not marketing yourself, chasing schools or writing proposals for work that never lands.

You get an honest brief before you say yes. We tell you what the setting is really dealing with, including the awkward parts, before you agree to anything. We would rather you turned an assignment down than took one that was misdescribed.

You get the frameworks. Review frameworks, report templates and the Quality Mark criteria, so you are not building the structure from scratch every time.

And you get somebody to think it through with. Independent work can be isolating, and when a review turns up something difficult it helps to have people who have seen it before.

How does joining the network work?

1. You apply. Send us your CV and a short note about the settings you have worked in and the kind of assignments that interest you.
2. We read it properly, and we come back to everyone. If there is no fit we will tell you why rather than leaving you wondering.
3. We talk. A conversation about your experience, how you work with leaders, and what you would want from the arrangement.
4. Vetting. References, DBS, qualifications and the statutory checks. This is the same standard a school would apply, and we do not shorten it.
5. Onboarding. Access to the associate portal, our frameworks and report templates, and we agree the areas you want to be put forward for.
6. Your first assignment. We match you to work that suits your experience, and we stay close through the first one.

From our experience

The associates schools ask for again are rarely the ones with the longest list of qualifications. They are the ones who leave a leadership team clearer than they found it. A report naming three things a school can genuinely change is worth more than one listing thirty it cannot.

A common misconception

Many people assume consultancy is what you do once you have finished leading. In our experience it works the other way round. The associates who are most useful to a school are the ones still close enough to the job to remember what a Monday morning actually feels like, and who have not lost the instinct for what is realistic in a setting that is already stretched.

Joining a network is not a step back from the work. For most of our associates it is a way of staying in it.

Questions worth asking yourself first

• How many days a term could you realistically commit, alongside everything else?
• Which parts of school practice would you be confident reviewing for somebody else?
• Are you comfortable telling a leadership team something they would rather not hear?
• How far are you willing to travel, and would you take residential assignments?
• Do you want consultancy work, interim leadership work, or both?

How do I join?

Send us your CV and a short note using the form below, telling us the settings you have worked in and the kind of assignments you are looking for. We will come back to you either way, and if there is a fit we will arrange a conversation.