Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance
Dear Candidate,
Thank you for your interest in joining Rambert School as our new Chief Operating Officer.
Rambert School is a remarkable place. We are one of the world’s leading centres of ballet and contemporary dance training, with a history stretching back more than a century and a continuing determination to pioneer and explore new creative territory. We are intentionally small, highly specialist and deeply ambitious. This enables us to know and support our students as individuals, while creating work and partnerships with an influence that reaches far beyond our home in Twickenham.
This is an exciting moment to join us. In the autumn, we will launch our new strategy focused on innovation, collaboration and navigating change. As Chief Operating Officer, you will play a central role in turning those ambitions into reality. Working alongside me and as a key member of our Executive Leadership Team, you will lead all the School’s operational and professional services, ensuring that our people, resources, systems and infrastructure enable our artistic and educational work to flourish.
Finance leadership and governance will sit at the heart of your remit. We are looking for a qualified accountant who combines rigorous financial stewardship with strong commercial instincts: someone who can help us build resilience, diversify income and make confident, well-informed choices about our future. You will also bring a sophisticated understanding of governance, risk and accountability, working closely with our Board of Trustees and serving as Company Secretary.
I am looking for a leader with a broad range of skills and experience who can provide executive leadership across the professional services at the heart of our School, including finance, governance, human resources, estates, IT and digital infrastructure, development and communications, participation and outreach. You will bring these functions together around a shared purpose, building confidence, encouraging collaboration and supporting colleagues to do their best work, while ensuring that our communications and brand reflect Rambert School’s distinctive voice and ambitions.
You do not need to come from a dance background, but you will need to understand what makes a small, specialist and creative institution different. We value excellence, innovation, community and learning, and we believe that excellence comes in many forms. I am looking for someone who shares those values: someone thoughtful and strategic, commercially alert, willing to be hands-on and genuinely excited by what operational excellence can make possible.
If that opportunity speaks to you, I very much hope you will consider joining us.
Rambert School is a world-leading centre of ballet and contemporary dance training and a pioneering specialist higher education institution. For more than a century, we have nurtured distinctive, versatile and enquiring dance artists, equipping them to shape the future of dance and the wider creative industries.
Our story began in 1920, when Marie Rambert established a school founded on creativity, innovation and individuality. A dancer and teacher who had worked with the Ballets Russes, Marie Rambert became one of the defining figures in the development of British dance.
We bring a distinctive approach to training, combining the disciplines of classical ballet and contemporary dance with an emphasis on creativity, performance, intellectual curiosity and artistic independence. Our students develop strong technical foundations while discovering their own voices as artists. They are encouraged to question, experiment, collaborate and take creative risks, preparing them for a profession that is continually evolving.
We have deliberately chosen to remain small. Our community comprises approximately 150 undergraduate students, alongside postgraduates and a growing number of young people participating in pre-vocational programmes, short courses and outreach activity. Our scale allows us to provide intensive, individualised training within a close-knit and supportive environment. Students are known as individuals and encouraged to develop as performers, creators, collaborators and people.
Our student body is international and culturally diverse, with more than 20 countries represented in recent undergraduate and postgraduate cohorts. We are committed to creating a welcoming and inclusive community in which talent can flourish, irrespective of background. Widening participation is fundamental to our mission. Through bursaries, scholarships, outreach, partnerships and our expanding programme of courses for young people, we work to break down barriers to high-quality dance education and contribute to a richer and more representative profession.
Rambert School’s graduates have made an extraordinary contribution to dance. Our alumni include some of the most influential dancers, choreographers and artistic leaders of their generations, from Sir Frederick Ashton and Antony Tudor to Christopher Bruce CBE. Today, our graduates perform with leading ballet and contemporary companies in the UK and internationally, work across theatre, film, television, music and fashion, and establish careers as choreographers, educators, researchers and creative entrepreneurs.
Performance and collaboration are central to the Rambert experience. Students create and present their own work, engage with influential artists and perform repertoire and new commissions by leading choreographers. Recent and current collaborations extend across continents and art forms, including work with The Juilliard School, Studio Wayne McGregor, École des Sables and the Royal College of Music. These partnerships expose students to different artistic practices and cultures while extending the School’s international reach and influence.
Our landmark partnership with the Royal College of Music provides degree validation from the 2026/27 academic year and creates exciting opportunities for artistic and research collaboration between two world-renowned specialist institutions. It reflects our belief in the power of disciplines and organisations coming together to create something new.
We are also extending our impact through Rambert Grades, our joint venture with Rambert. Its progressive and inclusive contemporary dance syllabus is now delivered by hundreds of teachers across approximately 40 countries, giving children and young people around the world the opportunity to experience contemporary dance. Alongside its educational reach, Rambert Grades represents an important element of the School’s future resilience and income diversification.
As an independently registered higher education provider and a charity with an annual turnover of approximately £3.5 million, Rambert School combines creative ambition with significant organisational responsibility. Our Gold rating in the Teaching Excellence Framework recognises our exceptional student experience and outcomes. We continue to invest in the quality of our teaching, professional partnerships, people, buildings and digital infrastructure, while navigating the financial and regulatory pressures facing higher education and the arts.
In autumn 2026, we will launch a new institutional strategy centred on innovation, collaboration and navigating change. It will build on everything that makes Rambert School distinctive while preparing us confidently for the future: strengthening our resilience, embracing new ideas and technologies, deepening partnerships and creating even more opportunities for our students and wider communities.
At heart, Rambert School is a community united by a belief in dance’s power to transform lives. We honour an extraordinary heritage by continuing to evolve, always looking ahead and always seeking new ways to be a force for good.
Our vision is to lead the world in dance education shaping bold, versatile artists who redefine the artform, drive innovation and create lasting change across the global dance landscape.
Our mission is to empower exceptional dancers and creative artists to realise their full potential through world-class training, fearless creativity and a culture of excellence, care and collaboration. We champion diversity, expand access and cultivate adaptable, entrepreneurial graduates ready to transform the dance landscape and make a lasting impact worldwide.
To realise our vision and mission, we are dedicated to upholding the following core values that form the foundation of all our endeavours:
Innovation: We champion creativity and forward-thinking, driving meaningful change through pioneering ideas and practices.
Excellence: We pursue the highest standards in every aspect of our work, continually striving for outstanding quality and performance.
Community: We cultivate a spirit of collaboration, inclusion, and shared success, fostering a supportive and united environment.
Learning: We are committed to continuous growth, embracing curiosity, knowledge, and self-improvement to empower ourselves and inspire others.
You can read more about the School here.
You can read our most recent financial statement here.
Post: Chief Operating Officer (COO)
Reporting to: Chief Executive, Principal & Artistic Director (CEPAD)
Direct Reports:
Key working relationships:
The Chief Operating Officer (COO) is a key member of the Executive Leadership Team, reporting directly to the Chief Executive, Principal & Artistic Director (CEPAD). The role provides strategic leadership across the School’s finance, operations, corporate and charitable governance functions, ensuring the organisation is financially sustainable, operationally effective and governed to the highest standards in support of its academic, artistic and commercial ambitions.
The COO has executive responsibility for Finance, Human Resources, Corporate and Charity Governance, Buildings and Estates, Development and Communications, Participation and Outreach, IT, and organisational infrastructure. Managing the Heads of these departments, the postholder ensures that the School’s people, resources, systems and professional services are aligned to deliver organisational priorities, enable innovation and support long-term resilience and growth.
As executive lead for finance, risk, and charity and corporate governance and compliance, and serving as Company Secretary, the COO is responsible for maintaining robust financial management, effective internal controls, statutory, charitable and regulatory compliance, and organisational accountability. Working closely with the Board of Trustees, Executive Leadership Team and external stakeholders, the postholder plays a central role in strategic planning, risk management and the delivery of sustainable organisational performance.
The COO has overall executive responsibility for all finance and accounting functions across the School, which comprises approximately 150 undergraduate students, 10 postgraduate students and a growing cohort of pre-vocational and short-course learners, with an annual turnover of approximately £3.5 million. The role provides strategic financial leadership, using strong commercial and analytical expertise to develop and implement financial strategies that inform decision-making, optimise resources and support both operational delivery and long-term organisational objectives.
The postholder leads the annual budgeting and financial planning processes, oversees the production of accurate and timely management accounts, statutory financial statements and financial forecasts, and provides high-quality financial reporting and advice to the Board of Trustees, its committees and the Executive Leadership Team. They are responsible for maintaining effective accounting systems, cash flow management, investment oversight, financial risk management and robust control frameworks that ensure compliance with statutory obligations and internal policies.
The COO also oversees the finance and accounting functions for Rambert Grades, an independently registered joint venture with Rambert, working closely with its Joint Chief Executive Officers. In addition, the role is responsible for all financial matters relating to the Rambert School of Ballet and Contemporary Dance Trust, reporting to the Trust’s Trustees and liaising with its auditors and professional advisers to ensure effective financial governance and compliance.
Operational Leadership
Financial Leadership & Strategy
Financial Management, Compliance & Control
Budget, Procurement & Value for Money
Financial Governance, Risk & Reporting
Corporate & Charity Governance, Risk & Compliance
Estates, IT & Digital
Stakeholder Engagement
Executive Leadership & People Management
As a member of the Executive Leadership Team, the postholder will:
Additional Responsibilities
Essential Qualifications & Knowledge
Essential Experience
Desirable Experience
Essential Skills
Desirable Skills
Leadership Attributes
The above serves as a guide and is not exhaustive; all professional staff are expected to undertake other duties and projects as may be reasonably required by the Chief Executive, Principal & Artistic Director, in accordance with the grade of the post.
Rights to work in the United Kingdom
Applicants for this position must be eligible to work legally in the United Kingdom. If you do not have the necessary permissions to do so, unfortunately we are unable to consider your application.
DBS checks
This role meets the requirements in respect of exempted questions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. All applicants who are offered employment will be subject to a criminal record check from the Disclosure & Barring Service (DBS) before the appointment is confirmed. This will include details of cautions, reprimands, or final warnings as well as convictions.
Contract type: Full-time – 40 hours a week – permanent.
Location: Hybrid – at least three days onsite. The School is based at Clifton Lodge, St. Margarets Drive, Twickenham TW1 1QN.
Salary: Up to £85,000 per annum.
Other benefits:
Anderson Quigley is acting as an employment advisor to Rambert School. An executive search process is being carried out by Anderson Quigley in addition to the public advertisement.
The closing date for applications is noon on Friday 11 September 2026.
Applications should consist of:
Should you wish to discuss the role in strict confidence, please contact:
Elliott Rae on +44 (0)7584 078 534, elliott.rae@andersonquigley.com; or Imogen Wilde on +44 (0)7511 607 522, imogen.wilde@andersonquigley.com
www.rambertschool.org.uk 