Director of Finance

About Global Schools Forum  
 
Global Schools Forum (GSF) is a collaborative community of non-state organisations working to improve education outcomes for disadvantaged children in low and middle-income countries. 
 
Our vision is that all children can realise their potential through safe access to quality education.  
 
Since our establishment in 2017, we’ve grown our community to 230+ community members spanning 70+ countries from India, to Uganda to Brazil, collectively running or supporting over 1.5m schools and centres and providing education to well over 160 million children.  
 
Our community comprises standalone schools, such as MAIA Impact working with Mayan girls in Guatemala; school networks working within or across countries, including organisations like Hippocampus working in India or United World Schools working in Cambodia, Myanmar, Nepal and Madagascar; and organisations providing core support services to non-state schools, such as EdPartners Africa that provides financial services to schools in Kenya or Instill Education that provides a variety of teacher development offers across Africa. 
GSF’s strategy currently covers these core areas: 
 
Knowledge Accelerator: We focus on creating, codifying and sharing evidence and best practices to enhance member knowledge and capabilities. Our efforts also include providing thought leadership and influencing policy on a global scale.  
 
Funding Catalyst : We are focused on sub-granting to facilitate testing and scaling initiatives. This includes creating new on-granting vehicles for our members, such as financing low-fee private schools and advocating for foundational learning. Additionally, we aim to connect our members with funders and vice versa 
 
Partnership Builder: We facilitate partnerships among our members, connect them with global actors, and foster collaborations with governments to scale innovations. Additionally, we broker research partnerships to enhance our collective impact. 
 
Community Convenor: Fostering connection, trust, and relationship building among GSF members is essential for creating a vibrant and supportive community. By encouraging open communication and collaboration, we can strengthen the bonds between members, ensuring that everyone feels valued and included. This sense of belonging not only enhances individual experiences but also fortifies the GSF community as a whole, paving the way for shared growth and success. 
 
We are at an inflection point in our journey, having grown five-fold over the last five years. Our 2025-2028 strategy marks an ambitious next chapter, with a deepening commitment to early years, foundational learning, secondary education, and leveraging technology. Our vision remains that all children realise their potential through safe access to quality education. 
 
We are a small, fully remote global team with colleagues based in the UK and across Africa and Asia, reflecting the communities in which we work.   Our values are central to everything we do as a team, as a global community and in our engagements with partners, funders and the global education community: 
 
Collaboration: We leverage each other's strengths and knowledge to drive and amplify purpose driven collective action. 
Intentional Inclusivity: We cultivate and celebrate diversity of backgrounds, culture, perspectives, and approaches promoting inclusivity and mutual respect. 
Continuous Improvement: We commit to continuously learning, improving, and innovating, while sharing best practices and failures. 
Honesty and Transparency: We conduct ourselves with integrity, openness, accountability and kindness.  
Role Purpose 
 
This is a rare opportunity to help shape the future of a fast-growing, mission-driven organisation. As Director of Finance, you will sit on our Senior Management Team (SMT), act as a trusted advisor to the CEO and Board, and take strategic ownership of the functions that allow GSF to deliver its mission effectively and sustainably. The role works hand-in-hand with GSF's programme teams to understand what they need, and remove whatever stands in the way of great work happening. 
Financial leadership sits at the heart of this role. You will provide the financial insight and strategic challenge that lets the CEO, SMT, and Board make decisions with confidence, building robust systems and strong internal controls along the way. You will lead on financial risk, reserves, and long-term planning, and take ownership of the wider organisational systems, legal compliance, and governance that keep GSF running smoothly.  Technology, including artificial intelligence (AI), is an increasingly important part of how we work giving colleagues the tools they need to do their jobs well, distinct from GSF's programmatic work on AI in education. As part of your remit, you will provide strategic oversight of our technology environment, working with our external IT vendor to keep our systems secure, effective, and ready for what’s next.  This role is about systems-level thinking connecting finance, grants, and compliance as one coherent system, and building the infrastructure that lets GSF’s portfolio scale with confidence.    Responsibilities  Financial leadership (60%) 

• Lead the financial strategy and long-term financial planning for the organisation, working closely with the CEO and board. 
• Oversee the preparation and monitoring of the annual budget, forecasts, and multi-year financial plans. 
• Ensure robust financial controls, risk management, and statutory compliance, including charity financial reporting requirements. 
• Review and update GSF’s finance policies and procedures on an ongoing basis, ensuring they remain fit for purpose, proportionate, and support a strategic, compliant approach to the finance function as GSF grows. 
• Manage cash flow, and reserves strategy in line with board-agreed mandates. 
• Oversee the finance function, line managing the Finance Manager and Grants and Compliance Associate. 
• Ensure accurate and timely financial reporting to the board, SMT, funders, and auditors. 
• Lead the annual audit process and ensure compliance with charity accounting standards. 
• Provide financial analysis and modelling to support strategic decision-making. 
• Design and embed organisational systems and processes that are proportionate, effective, and able to scale as GSF grows. 
• Lead on organisational risk management, developing and maintaining the risk register and reporting to the board accordingly.

 Grant management and compliance (20%) 

• Grant-making - selecting grantees and providing technical support - sits with Programmes. This role owns grants finance and compliance, due diligence, disbursement, financial reporting, and compliance monitoring, in close partnership with Programmes. 
• Own the grant compliance framework end-to-end across GSF’s multi-funder portfolio, ensuring donor terms, financial reporting deadlines, and audit requirements are met at every stage of the grant lifecycle. 
• Line manage the Grants and Compliance Associate, and scope the right level of grants finance capacity in your first 60–90 days based on actual sub-grantee volume and risk, bringing recommendations to the CEO and Treasurer. 
• Oversee due diligence and the financial stewardship of restricted funds, including fraud and donor-eligibility risk across a multi-currency, multi-funder portfolio. 
• Oversee office management, legal compliance, insurance, and supplier contracts - light-touch governance and vendor oversight rather than hands-on delivery. 

 Technology oversight (5%) 

• This part of the role is about sound oversight and governance not building or running technology yourself. 
• Provide strategic oversight of IT infrastructure and data management, working with our external IT vendor to ensure our systems serve a remote-friendly, globally distributed organisation. 
• Ensure robust data security, cybersecurity practices, and GDPR compliance. 
• Maintain oversight of GSF’s approach to AI adoption, ensuring any tools we use are evaluated responsibly and align with our values, data privacy standards, and operational needs. 
• Bring practical, informed recommendations on technology and AI to the SMT, drawing on developments relevant to the international education and non-profit sectors. 

Senior leadership (15%) 

• Serve as a full and active member of the Senior Membership Team (SMT), contributing to organisational strategy and decision-making beyond your direct portfolio. 
• Build strong relationships with programme leads, resolving operational friction and enabling smooth, confident delivery. 
• Support the CEO and board in governance matters, including preparation of finance and risk materials for board meetings. 
• Act as a trusted advisor to the CEO on all matters relating to finance, grants, and technology. 
• Build a high-performing, motivated team across the finance, IT, and grant management functions. 
• Represent GSF externally with auditors, legal advisors, banks, insurers, and other external partners. 
• Deputise for the CEO where appropriate. 

 
Person Specification  
We’re looking for someone who combines financial rigour with real curiosity about how programmes work on the ground together with someone who brings energy, warmth, and creative problem-solving to everything they do. Essential 

• Financially qualified senior leader with significant experience in finance and grant management, ideally in a charity or non-profit context. 
• Strong financial management skills, including charity accounting, budget management, reserve management, and financial reporting. 
• Significant experience of grant management and compliance within a multi-funder, restricted-funding environment, including donor reporting, budgeting, and financial stewardship of restricted funds. 
• Demonstrable experience of managing donor compliance requirements and audits, and of overseeing due diligence and compliance monitoring of sub-grantees or delivery partners. 
• Demonstrable track record of building and leading effective teams across different functions in a global context. 
• Experience of working closely and collaboratively with programme or delivery teams to improve operational effectiveness, understanding their work deeply, not simply servicing requests. 
• Experience in overseeing and building a full range of systems and processes designed to ensure a robust, future-focused operating model aligned to our strategic priorities. 
• Strong analytical and problem-solving skills, with the ability to translate complex information into clear decisions and practical actions. 
• Excellent communication skills, able to explain financial and operational matters clearly to non-specialist colleagues and stakeholders. 
• Experience working at or preparing materials for board level. 
• A genuine commitment to GSF’s mission and values. 
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, small-team global environment with a high degree of autonomy and initiative. 
• Comfortable overseeing IT and technology arrangements, including working with external vendors, even without a technical background. 
• A can-do attitude and a natural instinct for creative, practical problem-solving - energised by finding a way through rather than raising obstacles. 
• A genuine listener, who takes the time to understand colleagues’ challenges and perspectives before proposing solutions. 

 Desirable 

• Experience working in or with organisations operating in low- and middle-income countries. 
• Familiarity with international payroll, multi-currency accounting, and working with global teams. 
• Genuine interest in and practical working knowledge of AI tools and their application in an organisational context. 
• Experience of leading or supporting a technology or AI adoption programme within a charity or similar organisation. 
• Familiarity with charity law and regulatory frameworks in both the United Kingdom and Kenya, including the compliance requirements that apply to organisations registered or operating in each jurisdiction. 

 Employee Benefits Include: 

• 35 fully flexible holiday days (including flexible national holidays) and generous family friendly policies 
• Flexible working arrangements 
• Generous employee pension scheme 
• Co-working space allowance  
• Personal learning and development budget  
• Volunteer leave 
• Access to GSF events  
• Access to Learning Platform iHasco  
• Annual in person team retreat  

 
Terms and Conditions 
 
Location
GSF is a fully remote organisation. We welcome applications from the UK, where we are headquartered, and the global south where we work, with a preference for candidates within a time zone of GMT-2 to GMT+5:30. Local work authorisation in your country of residence is required. Please note that we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. 
Some international travel may be required. 
 
 
Salary  
GSF uses location-based salary bands to ensure fair and equitable pay across regions. Our baseline compensation is anchored to the UK market salary range. As we hire globally, your final offer will be adjusted to reflect local market data of your country of residence. 
 
Examples of localised salary expectations for this role: 
 
United Kingdom £80,080 – £86,320 
Kenya* £60,060—£64,740 
India* INR 7,095,922 – INR7,645,157 
*The final package will include health insurance 
 
ContractTwo-year fixed term contract with expectation of extension.  
 
HoursFull Time, typically 9am-5pm in your time zone, but with significant flexibility. Given that we work across different time zones, some non-traditional hours for early or late calls may be required. 
 
 
Responsible to: CEO 
Responsible for: Finance Manager and Grants & Compliance Associate 

 
How to Apply 
Applications are to be submitted through Global Schools Forum recruitment portable. Please upload your CV and a supporting statement setting out how your skills and experience match the criteria for this role (max of two pages.) 
Recruitment Process:  
Application Deadline: Thursday 5th November    
First-round interviews: w/c 9th November 
Second-round interviews: w/23rd November 
 
We are committed to inclusive recruitment and welcome requests for reasonable adjustments at any stage of the recruitment process. Please email info@globalschoolsforum.org to let us know how we can help. 
 
If you apply, we will process your personal data for recruitment purposes only and in accordance with our Data Privacy Policy.  
 
Please note that we accept applications from those who have the right to work in their country of residency, we are unable to offer visa sponsorship for this role. 
  Equal Opportunities 
 
GSF is committed to a fair and inclusive workplace, where everyone can be themselves and thrive. We welcome applications and do not discriminate on the basis of age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race or ethnicity, religion or belief, gender identity, or marriage and civil partnership.