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Post :Office Administrator
North East Education Development Services (NEEDS) Ltd
North East Education Development Services Ltd (NEEDS) is a trading company jointly owned by Newcastle Diocesan Education Board and Durham Diocesan Board of Finance. It was set up in 2007 to assist the dioceses to support the work of Christian education, particularly in Church Schools. The two dioceses together cover the area from the Tweed to the Tees and the Pennines to the sea. There are currently 61 voluntary aided CE schools spread across 10 local authority areas.
‘Building NEEDS’ is the active division of the company, and its main business is offering Church of England Voluntary Aided schools support with the management, design and procurement of capital building works, and providing advice and support to the dioceses in managing the annual capital works programmes. Each governing body of a voluntary aided school is responsible for ensuring that the school premises are in good order, and a major part of the work of NEEDS is in assisting with asset management planning, providing a client adviser service to head teachers and chairs of governors, and negotiating and recommending programmes of work to the Diocesan Boards of Education, who are required by statute to give express consent to all capital works.
In addition to working closely with individual schools, Building NEEDS staff liaise with and work closely with, education and finance staff in both the diocese of Newcastle and the Diocese of Durham. The team consists of a Senior Buildings Surveyor, two Buildings Surveyors and an Office Administrator. Support with the financial management of the business is provided through the dioceses.
The Office Administrator is a key member of the team, responsible for providing comprehensive administrative support for all aspects of the work of Building Needs. The postholder will be the first point of contact for schools, consultants, local authority and DCSF colleagues and others, and good communication and organisational skills are essential. As the sole administrator in a growing business, the range of duties is very wide, and efficient electronic and paper filing is as crucial to the smooth running of the organisation as the preparation of specifications, the issuing of invoices or the preparation of reports for the NEEDS Board or the dioceses. The ability to work independently with close attention to detail will be essential.
The Building NEEDS team is currently located in offices owned by Durham Diocese at Carter House, Pelaw Leazes Lane, Durham, but relocation (north of Durham but south of the Tyne) is under active consideration by the Board. From September 2010 the diocesan education team will be based in Church House, Percy Main, North Shields. The Office Administrator will work closely with the Bursar in this team, and the Diocesan Accounts Staff, based in Percy Main, Bishop Auckland and the Building NEEDS office.
NEEDS is a comparatively new company and there is potential to develop Building NEEDS further, and to offer other services to schools. This is an exciting opportunity to help the company move forward under the leadership of the Schools Buildings Manager. For further information or an informal conversation, please contact Mark Thompson by e-mail:
or telephone: 0191 374 6020.
For further information about the work of the Dioceses, please go to and
Salary:£20,000 plus 10% non contributory pension
Hours:37.5 per week,
Holidays: 25 days, plus statutory holidays, plus additional days granted by the Company (currently 3 days between Christmas and New Year
Expenses:mileage reimbursed according to the guidance of HM Revenue and Customs, currently 40p/mile up to 10,000 miles and 25p/mile thereafter.
Please give the names, addresses and contact details of two referees. One of these must be your present or most recent employer. Shortlisting will take place on 16th March 2010. If you are invited for interview, we will be seeking references beforehand. Please confirm that this is acceptable.
Please return completed applications to Meagan Ziegenhagel,
either by e-mail: or by post:
Carter House, Pelaw Leazes Lane, Durham, DH1 1TB
by midday on 15th March 2010.