Director of Education

Director of Education
Liverpool or London
£88,000
Working arrangements:  35 hours per week, with standard working hours between 9am and 5pm, Monday to Friday. The RCP operates a hybrid working model, with staff spending a minimum of six days each month in the office. The role may be based at either our London or Liverpool site.
Contract type:
Permanent

Purpose and scope

The Royal College of Physicians is recruiting a Director of Education to provide strategic leadership for our education and assessment portfolio.

This is a significant senior leadership opportunity for an experienced education professional who can combine educational excellence with strong commercial, financial and organisational leadership. Working within the Professional Development business unit, you will shape and lead a coherent, career-long education offer that meets the changing needs of physicians, healthcare professionals and health systems in the UK and internationally.

As Director of Education, you will be accountable for the strategic leadership, quality, growth and sustainable delivery of the RCP's education and assessment portfolio.

You will lead a substantial education function that includes education development and delivery, assessment-related activity, digital learning, faculty development, educational consultancy and partnerships. Working closely with clinical leaders, staff, members, fellows and external partners, you will ensure that our education is relevant, inclusive, evidence-informed, digitally enabled and financially sustainable.

The role will also make an important contribution to the delivery of the RCP's 2026-30 strategy, particularly our ambitions to ensure excellence in education, support physicians throughout their careers, and build organisational resilience and responsible growth.

Key responsibilities

You will:

lead the development and delivery of the Education Department's strategic and operational plans
develop a coherent, high-quality and inclusive education portfolio for physicians and other healthcare professionals across the UK and internationally
provide senior oversight of education and assessment quality, governance, evaluation and risk
lead financial planning, budget management and the responsible growth of education income
develop new products, partnerships, consultancy opportunities, pricing approaches and routes to market
modernise the RCP's digital, online, hybrid and blended education offer
use data, learner insight, member feedback and market intelligence to improve quality, impact and portfolio performance
build influential relationships with clinical leaders, NHS organisations, universities, medical royal colleges, specialist societies, regulators, commissioners and international partners
lead and develop the Education Department, creating a positive, inclusive and accountable culture
contribute to the wider leadership, performance and strategic development of the Professional Development business unit and the RCP.

About you

You will be an experienced senior leader with a strong understanding of education, professional development, assessment and professional standards. You will have successfully led a substantial department, portfolio or multidisciplinary function through strategic development, organisational change and performance improvement.

You will bring:

substantial senior leadership experience in education, professional development, assessment, healthcare, membership, charity, commercial or professional-body settings
a strong understanding of postgraduate medical education, continuing professional development, assessment, professional standards or health professions education
experience of developing education or professional development services for adult professional learners
strong financial and commercial leadership, including budget management, income generation, business planning and resource prioritisation
experience of quality assurance, governance, evaluation, compliance or risk management
the ability to build credibility and influence with senior clinicians, committees, partners and professional networks
experience of using data, feedback and market insight to inform decisions and improve performance
successful senior-level people leadership, including leading teams through change
excellent written and verbal communication skills
sound judgement, political awareness and the ability to operate effectively in a complex stakeholder environment
a clear commitment to equality, diversity, inclusion and accessibility.

You…