Ministers are searching for “exceptional” senior leaders to head school improvement work as part of the government’s new northeast and coastal “missions”. The flagship scheme, announced in the schools white paper, aims to turn around outcomes in left-behind areas from September. Three school leaders are being offered the chance of a part-time, two-year secondment to become “place missions lead educationalists”, paid £600 a day. In a job advert, the Department for Education said the leaders would play a “key role” in delivering the school improvement strand, working directly with schools, trusts, councils and dioceses. They will support clusters of schools to diagnose “shared challenges”, strengthen leadership and teaching practice and build the capacity of local systems so that improvement is “rapid, embedded and sustained”. Schools in the northeast, Hastings and Scarborough will be grouped by defined geographical areas where outcomes have been persistently below national average. School improvement work will include targeting leadership, curriculum quality, behaviour and attendance, inclusion and enrichment opportunities. The appointees will work alongside regional directors, RISE teams and national policy teams to ensure that “place mission activity compliments existing school improvement arrangements”. They will also feed into DfE’s new test, learn and grow initiative, which will test key policies from the white paper. Applicants must be school leaders who are currently employed in a leadership position with an “exceptional track record of supporting schools to improve rapidly and sustainably”. They must have a “deep understanding” of evidence-informed school improvement, “excellent” interpersonal skills, and a strong understanding of the challenges faced by disadvantaged communities. Applications close on July 14.