Principal & Chief Executive at Ayrshire College

Take a look at the role…

Welcome Note

Thank you for your interest in the opportunity to become Ayrshire College’s new Principal and Chief Executive.

The role provides a great opportunity to make a difference to the lives of our students, our community, to Ayrshire’s economy and to Scotland. Over the last nine years, the collective talent and commitment of our students, staff and partners has enabled us to be a highly successful and inclusive college which is reflected in our performance and student outcomes.

This is an exciting and dynamic strategic role, and applications are now invited from inspirational leaders who can deliver transformation to drive forward our future ambitions.

Your leadership and clear direction will enable a highly innovative and exciting place of learning where individuals can excel and achieve their full potential, a place where businesses and communities can access skills, expertise and creativity that supports local and national economic development and inclusive growth. You will embody our values of being respectful, supportive, and open and honest and ensure constant focus on putting students at the centre of everything we do.

As our new Principal you will have the support of an outstanding staff team and a fully committed Board of Management.  We have also invested significantly in our college estate, and continue to do so, to provide flexible, state of the art facilities in which to learn and work and ensure access to the best resources and technology, to enable skills development and innovation.

This is a very exciting time to join our College and lead us towards our future vision.  Please take the opportunity to review our information resources and explore the life and work of the College and our culture in more detail. I hope you will be inspired to apply for this role.

Willie Mackie, Chair, Board of Management

Ayrshire College is one of the largest colleges in Scotland, formed in 2013 from the merger of the former Ayr and Kilmarnock Colleges and the Ayrshire campuses of the former James Watt  College.  The College has circa 900 (headcount) staff who work across three large campuses in the towns of Ayr, Kilmarnock and Kilwinning supporting 13,000 students and with an associated activity target of circa 125,000 credits. A new ‘Future Skills Hub’ in Kilwinning is planned to open in 2023. The College serves a population of 370,000 people and provides more than 700 courses to a student population made up of 11% under 16s, 45% 16- 17s, 18% 20-24s and 26% over 25s.

Partnership and collaboration are at the heart of what we do. The College recognises its unique position as a regional college and the responsibility it has to the communities across Ayrshire. Working with our community and business partners, the College is focused on improving employability, supporting economic development and widening access to education, skills and training. The College works with universities, employers, other providers and partners to ensure our students have the highest level of knowledge, skills and attributes to succeed. This includes identifying where we can transform how we do things and improving the outcomes for our students, creating new capacity and expertise, or making better use of our resources.

As outlined in the College’s Statement of Ambition 2030, the three key strategic objectives are:

  • To be an accessible, inspirational and inclusive place to work and learn
  • To support, empower and inspire our staff and students
  • To be a high performing, environmentally responsible college recognised for excellence, equality and integrity

Reflecting these current strategic objectives, the College aims to:

  • Provide an inspirational college experience which supports and enables students to overcome the disruption to learning caused by the pandemic and to successfully progress on their learning journey
  • Embed diversity and inclusion in all decisions, and support staff and students by providing accessible opportunities to learn, work and develop
  • Embed a culture of open leadership and empowerment where staff and students feel valued, their voices are heard, and they are involved in decisions that affect them
  • Work with partners, including businesses, to co-create and deliver a portfolio of learning and skills that is relevant, dynamic, flexible, and responsive to employer and industry needs, to current and future skills requirements and contributes to social and economic recovery
  • Focus on being a high-performing college underpinned by excellence in stewardship, effective risk management and the highest standards of corporate governance
  • Respond to the climate change emergency by being environmentally responsible, embedding sustainability in our learning and teaching and business opportunities
  • Develop and support staff and students to work and learn in new and innovative ways to enable excellence in all aspects of learning and teaching and service delivery

The College supports students to develop and progress at whatever stage they are at in their lives with blended learning and work-based learning opportunities as well as alternatives to full-time study. As we begin to emerge from the pandemic, there will be a significant increase in demand for upskilling, reskilling, and retraining and the College will need to ensure that our curriculum, including our short course provision, aligns to regional skills demands and employment opportunities. As a partner in the Ayrshire Growth Deal, we will be able to gain insight into these skills demands.

Click here to download Ayrshire College Statement of Ambition

Click here to download Ayrshire College Strategic Objectives and Measures of Success 2021 – 2024

Click here to download Ayrshire College Refresh and Renew Plan 2021 – 2024

Click here to download Ayrshire College Board of Management Report and Financial Statements

Click here to download Ayrshire College Learning, Teaching and Student Engagement Strategy 2021-24

Click here to download Ayrshire College Mainstreaming Equality 2019-21 and Equality Outcomes 2021-25

As Principal and Chief Executive, you will lead a vibrant and dynamic College which inspires students and staff to be successful, delivers outstanding performance and is regarded highly by stakeholders, employers and the wider community.

Providing inspirational leadership in a complex and multi-faceted regional environment you will ensure the delivery of national imperatives and enable the College to deliver against our key strategic and operational aims whilst also supporting employers, partners and communities to move forward positively during the post-pandemic period and beyond.

Click here to View the Position Profile

Interested candidates should provide a tailored CV and supporting covering letter (max. 1000 words), outlining your suitability and motivation for applying to [email protected].

You will also be asked to complete an Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form.

Recruitment Timetable

Closing Date for Applications – Monday 14th March
Shortlist meeting (Livingston James & Ayrshire College) – Thursday 14th April
Formal Panel Assessment – TBC (21st or 29th April)

Ayrshire College is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates regardless of sex, race, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender reassignment, religion or belief, marital status or pregnancy and maternity.

The recruitment of this position is managed by Livingston James