Job Title : Learning and Digital Projects Lead
Reports to : Operations Manager
About Garden to Table
We empower tamarikito grow, harvest, prepare and share great food!
Since 2009, the Garden to Table Trust has been supporting schools to teach children how to Grow, Harvest, Prepare and Share kai, building life‑long skills that also have a positive impact on their whānau and community. The Trust recogniseda wide concern that the basic ‘life’ skills of growing and cooking fresh kai are being lost, that many children are disconnected from their food supply, know little or nothing about where food comes from, or how to cook it.Our dream is that all children in Aotearoa New Zealand can grow and cook kai as part of daily life.
The Garden to Table programme is currently run in around 300 schools nationwide. It is a curriculum‑linked food education programme aimed at empowering children at an early age to develop good eating habits, learn where their food comes from, and instill a lifelong love of good food. Learning by doing, children learn the skills they need to grow and prepare food and take these skills home.
We provide schools with support, training, expertise, and resources to enable them to run the programme and maximise the benefit to children. There are so many benefits for children involved in the Garden to Table programme, across education, hauora (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual health), food security and environmental sustainability.
As we grow, we are committed to engaging with schools to ensure the Garden to Table programme can be delivered in line with their learning priorities, in ways that reflect and enhancetheir schoolculture.We want all tamariki to feel like they belong and be able to see their cultures reflected in the programme.
Equitable workplace
Garden to Table Trustis proud to be an equitable workplace, where wewelcome and accept diversity and difference. We will endeavour to support your individual needsandprovide a safe and inclusive environment, to achieve equitable outcomes for ouremployees,schools, and students.
Te Tiriti o Waitangi
We recognise Māori as tangata whenua of Aotearoa. We have begun our work to learn more about te ao Māori and how matauranga Māori can enrich the Garden to Table offering for all New Zealand children. To do this, we want to work with Māori in the spirit of partnership embodied in Te Tiriti o Waitangi.
Primary Purpose
The Learning and Digital Projects Lead is a strategic leader and plays a pivotal role in transforming Garden to Table’s Delivery Model to be scalable, equitable, and digitally enabled. The Learning and Digital Project Lead will lead the strategic development, implementation, and continuous improvement of the Trust’s digital learning infrastructure, member engagement experience, and professional learning systems to support schools nationwide. This role ensures the accessibility and practicality of our education and digital tools, professional development learning and resources with a strong focus on tailored, impactful, and inclusive support for equitable access to resources and meet a diverse range of school needs and educational contexts and settings.
As part of the education leadership team, this role will contribute to the collective strategic leadership of the Education Team, ensuring the development of our multi‑year Education Plan that turns our strategy into action. This is a key role to advance the Trust's Strategic objectives by greater embedding of GTT in the school curriculum in more schools and building the Trust's profile as leader, collaborator and influencer.
The Learning and Digital Projects Lead oversees robust project management and monitoring systems to track milestones, outcomes, and impact, ensuring accountability and continuous improvement, aligned with strategic goals.This role a key strategic leader and translates the Trust’s strategic goals into actionable project and operational plans.
Note - ‘schools’ is a term for Garden to Table (GTT) members including Early Learning Centres and schools.
Key responsibilities
Strategy and Planning
- Together with the Education Projects and Team Lead and Education Content Lead, and with input from the Education Team and across the organisation, lead the development and implementation of a multi‑year Education Plan, with clear milestones and outcomes aligned to the Trust’s strategic objective that enables the growth of Garden to Table membership and supports a school Delivery Model that is a structured, yet flexible, scalable, with an equity‑focused approach.
- Lead development of the Trust’s Digital Strategy and Strategic Projects that will contribute to how we evolve our education support and services into the future to create new ways to engage and create impact for our diverse nationwide community of schools.
- Ensure all educational, learning and digital developments, as part of the Education Plan are focused on proactive, planned and structured school support. Support the team to focus on engaging school leadership at the outset (inquiry stage), with strong focus on onboarding and empowering schools to be running sustainable, embedded and impactful programmes within 1‑3 years through an ongoing commitment to embed the programme more deeply, improving retention and whole‑school commitment.
- Ensure consistent professionalism, timeliness and high‑quality communication and delivery of outcomes across the organisation and with external stakeholders.
Strategic Project Management
Lead the scoping, research, planning and delivery of strategic learning, educational and digital projects. Working closely with the Education Projects and Team Lead, collaborating with the Education and Fundraising and Communications Teams.Translate strategic priorities into actionable and measurable initiatives across all education, learning and digital support and services.Establish and maintain clear project structures and oversight, including timelines, resourcing, outcomes, and success indicators, to ensure effective implementation within scope and budget.Use digital tools to track project progress and maintain transparent reporting for internal and external stakeholders.Facilitate collaboration, clarify roles, and drive alignment across the wider Trust team and external partners involved in project delivery. Monitor risks and proactively manage challenges.Produce timely and targeted project updates for CEO, Operations Manager, Fundraising and Communications team, Board and stakeholders, as required.Digital Learning and Professional Development Design
Lead the development and implementation of our Digital Learning Strategy, as part of Education Plan, aligned with the school membership journey.Develop and continuously improve school member digital learning experiences, including resources, training, Professional Development, peer‑networks, online learning, across multiple platforms and channels, and the Members Website.Supoort the Education Content Lead to lead (together with the Education Team), the design, and curation of bite‑sized, role‑specific, context‑responsive professional learning content (videos, webinars, toolkits, resource kits).Support collaboration across the Education Team to ensure alignment with curriculum integration and learning outcomes.Lead the digital approach and implementation of digital services as part of the structured national calendar of school professional development that includes online, and in‑person offerings tailored to school needs (urban / rural, early childhood, primary, special character, etc.). Work closely with the Education Content Lead to develop and lead this annual PD calendar.Ensure all digital learning is accessible, engaging, equity‑focused and measurable for reach and impact.Members Website and Digital Resource Platform
Co‑lead content development and digital platform upgrades with Operations Manager, with input from Education Team, IT / tech partners, ensuring alignment with school and school leadership needs.Oversee enhancements to the Members Website, improving usability, navigation, searchability, and structure and mobile / tablet friendly (or APP) development.Working closely with the Education Content Lead be responsible for :The development of digital learning systems and platforms and content for members.The curation of digital content collections and learning pathways tailored by school type, context, and roles (e.g. Programme Champions, Principals, CRTs).Ensuring digital learning supports efficient teacher preparation, aligns with school leadership goals, and reflects culturally inclusive practices.Collaborating with the Education Content Lead, and the Education Projects and Team Lead be responsible for the identification of learning needs and trends to inform content development priorities, and preferred platforms for maximum engagement and reach.School Engagement and Support
Build and maintain strong, strategic relationships with key allies in education and community, to help to position the Trust as a credible and relevant leader in education; an influencer, knowledge centre and valued partner in the sector, offering thought leadership unique to Garden to Table's approach to enriching the school curriculum.Design and oversee the digital onboarding journeys for new member schools, with structured, phased content and scheduled engagement touchpoints.Support Education Facilitators and team with responsive digital solutions, advice, and tools to empower localised school support across regions.Stay informed on education sector trends, policies and opportunities. Utilise insights making strategic adjustments to the digital learning approach and Delivery Model.Equity and Accessibility Leadership
Ensure equity access into all digital learning and engagement work, ensuring solutions meet the needs of high Equity Index schools, rural communities, and under‑resourced school environments.Co‑design tools and resources with schools where possible, incorporating feedback loops and continuous improvement.Together with Education Team, provide flexible membership journey content that allows schools to access support in ways and times that suit them.Monitoring, Impact and Continuous Improvement
Together with the Education Team, develop simple, practical mechanisms for capturing school engagement, feedback and learning outcomes from digital platforms.Ensure continuous learning and adaptation through regular data reviews, school feedback, facilitator input and education sector insights.Together with Education Content Lead use analytics and feedback to continuously improve and update resources and learning tools.As part of the Education Team leadership, support a culture of a culture of reflection and improvement, led by Learning and Digital Projects Lead, through implementing structured feedback loops across the Education Team and be a champion of a continuous learning approach across the Trust.As part of the Education Team leadership, role model and ensure collaboration with the Fundraising and Communications team in all areas of learning, education and digital development. including impact reports by demonstrating and communicating the value of learning support with impacts and outcomes.Leadership and Team collaboration
Identify team development needs and deliver targeted professional development, in collaboration with the Education Team.Ensure the Education Team operates within strong systems and practices that support safe, compliant, efficient and collaborative delivery of content and digital learning solutions.Model and champion effective cross‑team collaboration across the wider Trust’s team and external partners to ensure seamless delivery of school‑facing resources and professional development.Coach the Education Team for efficient use of resources and best value to members, stakeholders and funders, maintaining excellence in communication, record‑keeping, and use of fit‑for‑purpose systems and processes.Most frequent interactions
Internal
CEOOperations ManagerEducation Content LeadEducation Projects and Team LeadEducation TeamBusiness Support Coordinator and Communications and Fundraising TeamExternal
Schools and Early Childhood CentresCommunity AlliesGarden to Table Partners and SponsorsQualifications / Experience and skills
Essential
Relevant qualification and minimum 3 years’ experience with proven ability in IT systems and learning platforms and relevant experience and knowledge of the education sector.Minimum 3 years’ proven experience in project management and supervision, including planning, delivery, monitoring, and evaluation within budgets and timelines.Proven experience to lead the strategic approach to developing learning platforms and systems for digital literacy, including experience with virtual facilitation platforms, learning management systems, and digital resource sharing to drive school engagement.Experience leading structured strategic implementation initiatives and processes (e.g., onboarding, coaching, or phased delivery) with measurable outcomes.Demonstrates genuine passion for, and knowledge of, Garden to Table’s kaupapa.Proven ability to oversee a programme of designing and facilitating professional development, training, or coaching, both online and in‑person.Proven ability to lead a team to achieve shared goals with school (or organisation) leadership and staff and in diverse contexts.Strong facilitation and relationship management skills, with the ability to build trust, foster collaboration, and support long‑term engagement.Proven ability to produce clear, engaging reports and success stories that communicate outcomes and impact to diverse audiences (e.g., schools, funders, boards, sector stakeholders).Sector leadership experience, representing an organisation at events, conferences, and sector opportunities, with proven ability to champion the organisation and develop relationships with key allies and influencers.Demonstrated ability to manage competing demands, prioritize tasks effectively, and deliver outcomes on time in alignment with strategic objectives.Highly self‑motivated with strong organisational and time‑management skills, able to work independently with minimal supervision.Excellent verbal and written communication skills, ability to keep clear and accurate records, and to simplify complex concepts and provide clear guidance.Strong organisational skills with the ability to manage multiple schools, projects, and deadlines, while remaining responsive and adaptable.Commitment to equity, diversity, and culturally responsive practice.Ability to work independently and collaboratively within a multi‑disciplinary team.Proven experience in monitoring, evaluation, and reporting processes to demonstrate programme impact.Current driver’s licence and reliable transport.Preferred
Knowledge of, or networks within, the education sector (e.g., principals, teacher networks, education agencies, NGOs).Experience supporting school (or organisation) wide change, programme embedding, or capacity‑building initiatives.Familiarity with resource development across digital and print formats, including lesson plans, guides, or toolkits.Experience in the not‑for‑profit or charitable sector, particularly in roles requiring cross‑team collaboration and stakeholder engagement.Personal Attributes
You will :
Be able to provide strategic leadership in learning and education systems to grow school engagement including digital tools for online facilitation, training, and resource sharing.Be able to provide strategic leadership with a national team, balancing collaboration with the ability to set vision, delegate effectively and drive initiatives to successful outcomes.Champion strategic priorities and inspire teams to align with organisational mission.Be highly organised, able to manage multiple schools, projects, and deadlines with flexibility and a solutions‑focused, thriving on helping schools embed sustainable programmes.Be passionate about education, equity, and Garden to Table’s mission, inspiring others to engage and succeed.Inspire, motivate and influence school leaders, teams, and sector partners, fostering a culture of collaboration, innovation and continuous improvement.Communicate clearly and confidently, simplifying complex ideas and sharing insights effectively.Be adaptable, calm under pressure, and proactive in problem‑solving.Demonstrate professionalism, integrity, and a commitment to continuous learning.Commitment to grow your understanding of Te Tiriti o Waitangi and how this applies to your mahi for Garden to Table.Use of everyday te reo is an advantage, but willingness to learn and grow your reo is essential.Demonstrate cultural responsiveness, tailoring support to diverse school communities.#J-18808-Ljbffr