Procurement Specialist

Salary: Grade 6/SO1 £34,487 - £39,268 per annum Location: Copthall House, 9 The Pavement, Grove Road, Sutton, Surrey, SM1 1DA Working Pattern: 36 hours per week, Monday – Friday, all year round. 2 or 3 days per week at Copthall House and also supplier visits necessary. Orchard Hill College & Academy Trust (OHC&AT) is a family of specialist education providers for pupils and students from nursery to further education. We operate across academies and college centres in London, Surrey, Sussex and Berkshire. Supporting our academies and college, OHC&AT also operates learning support services, such as nursing and therapy, and a central business support team which includes HR, finance and IT. Pupils and students within the OHC&AT family have a wide range of learning abilities and additional needs. These include autistic spectrum disorder; speech, language and communication difficulties; social, emotional and mental health needs; profound and multiple learning disabilities; and physical disabilities including multi-sensory impairment and complex health conditions. We are looking for a proactive and commercially minded Procurement Specialist to join our dynamic Procurement Team. In this pivotal role, you will help support the delivery of our Procurement Strategy through effective supplier relationship management, robust compliance reporting, and high-quality procurement support across the organisation. This is an exciting opportunity for someone with strong analytical skills, excellent stakeholder engagement abilities, and a genuine passion for procurement to make a real impact. If you are driven, detail-focused, and ready to take ownership within a growing and supportive team, we would love to hear from you. Key Responsibilities: • Lead supplier relationship management, including implementing SLAs/KPIs and conducting regular supplier performance review meetings. • Manage end-to-end procurement exercises (RFQs, tenders, benchmarking) in line with the Procurement Act 2023 and organisational procedures. • Provide accurate reporting and data analysis to support compliance, cost-saving identification, and strategic decision-making. • Maintain and optimise procurement systems, including e-tendering and contract management platforms, ensuring data accuracy and efficient processes. • Drive category management improvements, including ownership of the utilities category, purchase order scheduling, and delivering value-for-money outcomes. Key Requirements: • CIPS qualification (or working towards) with strong knowledge of the Procurement Act 2023 (PA23). • Proven experience leading supplier relationships and monitoring performance against SLAs and KPIs. • Strong analytical and reporting skills, able to interpret data and present insights confidently. • Excellent stakeholder engagement abilities, with the confidence to work across teams and build productive supplier relationships. • Proactive, reliable and adaptable, able to balance reactive tasks with planned work while maintaining accuracy and attention to detail. OHC&AT is an exciting, forward-thinking organisation, and we offer many benefits to attract and keep our staff, contributing towards maintaining and improving wellbeing, and encouraging our required behaviours, achievements, values, and skills. Below is just a selection of the benefits available to our employees: Rewards & Benefits: • Pathways for progression within the trust, ensuring you can grow and thrive in a supportive and inclusive environment. • Pension Scheme - you will be enrolled in either the Local Government Pension Scheme (LGPS) or the Teachers' Pension Scheme (TPS), both offering life cover and financial protection for your family. • Salary Sacrifice Schemes (Cycle Scheme and Home Electronics Scheme)• Employee Wellbeing - We support employee wellbeing with access to counselling, mental health support, generous leave, flexible working, and enhanced parental leave including Employee Assistance Programme, MyGym Discounts, Corporate Eyecare Scheme • Employee Discounts (Blue Light Card, Costco Membership, Discounts for Teachers, and more)• Other (Season Ticket Loan and Employee Referral Scheme) Find out what makes OHC&AT a truly rewarding place to work - visit our ‘Work for us’ page to hear from our Chief Executive Officer, John Prior, and watch inspiring messages from students and parents about the difference our staff make every day. Working together to transform lives is what we do and across the whole organisation we have a range of experts and practitioners who advocate for children and young people with SEND to ensure they receive the best possible opportunities to achieve their full potential. As a large specialist education provider we employ over 1500 people across our schools, college and central support team. There is a wide range of job roles available, ranging from teaching and therapy to business support roles and significant career progression opportunities. It is an exciting time to be part of OHC&AT and we are keen to recruit talented people who can play a key role in realising our mission and who want to make a difference. In return, we offer training and development, competitive pay and benefits in a positive and inclusive working environment. We are committed to promoting and advancing equality of opportunity by attracting and retaining the most diverse range of students, staff and partners. To ensure a fair opportunity for all applicants, candidates who have applied for this position in the past 6 months will not be considered. Closing Date: 19th December 2025 Interviews will take place on: The week commencing 5th January 2026 Safeguarding Statement Orchard Hill College and Academy Trust are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Appointments made will be subject to an Enhanced Disclosure via the Disclosure and Barring Service. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020. Orchard Hill College and Academy Trust is proud to be a Disability Confident Employer, committed to creating an inclusive and supportive workplace for all.