Education executive recruitment

Executive recruitment for LA maintained schools and multi-academy trusts.

The roles we recruit for

We run executive search across three senior appointments where each has its own details on process, timeline and what to expect from the recruitment stage. 

• MAT CEO Recruitment

Chief Executive Officer and Executive Headteacher appointments for trust boards including permanent search and interim cover.

• MAT CFO Recruitment

Chief Finance Officer and Trust Finance Director appointments, with full Academies Financial Handbook and ESFA fluency.

• MAT COO Recruitment

Chief Operating Officer searches covering estates, HR, IT, governance and compliance across the trust.

If you're looking to recruit at headteacher level rather than a trust executive, explore our headteacher recruitment and interim headteacher services.

Permanent search and interim cover

Every executive role we recruit is available as a permanent search or an interim appointment depending on what your trust needs.

Permanent search is the right route when you have time to run a proper campaign and you're looking for someone who will shape the next five years of the organisation. Interim cover is for trusts that need experienced leadership within weeks following a resignation, an Ofsted outcome, a DfE concern notice, or a specific change in programme that doesn't warrant a substantive appointment.

We regularly run the two together where interim cover bridges to a permanent appointment with continuity managed across both.

Why trusts choose Propelo for executive recruitment

• Education sector, maintained schools and MATs only.

Our consultants are not splitting their time between commercial sectors and education and we don't recruit into independent or private schools. When a trust board hires us, we prioritise every hour of search time going into the MAT market.

• Regulatory fluency in the detail.

Our consultants genuinely understand the context including trust board governance, DfE quality standards to financial assurance and safeguarding requirements. That means the role specifications, shortlists and interview questions we put in front of you actually reflect the job.

• Permanent and interim under one team.

Some trusts approach us with a clear permanent brief and others need interim cover first while permanent plans are finalised. We handle both routes without handing you off between consultancies and the same safer recruitment standards apply to every appointment.

• Honest conversations about fit and timeline.

If a trust's role specification doesn't match market reality on salary, geography, or the profile of candidates available, we highlight this at the first conversation rather than running a campaign that stalls at shortlist.

• Safer recruitment as standard.

Every candidate we put forward, permanent or interim, goes through DBS, identity, qualification and reference checks aligned to KCSIE guidance. Interim associates are additionally contracted through Propelo on IR35-compliant terms.

A proven track record for recruitment

Last year, around 87% of our permanent executive searches resulted in a first-time appointment. Interim placements through the Propelo Associate Network are typically made within two to three weeks of an initial briefing.

We've supported trusts at every stage including single-academy trusts making their first executive appointment to established MATs replacing a founding Chief Executive. We've also worked with trusts rebuilding their central team after a period of growth and boards that needed to stabilise their leadership following an inspection.

If you'd like to talk through similar appointments we've made in your context, we're happy to share relevant examples on a call.