Faculty Lead

On-site in Wokingham +1·Added today (last checked 9 Nov)

Barnardo's

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Our summary

Work mode: On-site, Wokingham +1
Contract: Permanent
Closing date: Apply by Monday 30 November

Skills

Leadership

Nice to have

Special Educational Needs

Requirements

What we're looking for

Previous experience of working with young people in a special educational needs setting is desirable. However, applications are welcomed from qualified teachers with relevant leadership experience, a strong understanding of SEND, and a passion for supporting vulnerable learners.

The role

High Close School is a successful Non-Maintained Special School providing education and care for young people with complex Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs.

Our skilled team of education and care professionals works collaboratively to support every young person throughout their journey with us. Through individualised education plans, support plans and personalised timetables, we seek to remove barriers to learning, promote positive outcomes and enable every pupil to experience success.

Our Creative Faculty incorporates Drama, Music and Art and Expressive Arts, providing engaging and therapeutic opportunities for pupils to develop confidence, creativity, communication skills and emotional expression. The faculty plays a vital role in supporting pupils to re-engage with learning, build positive relationships and experience success in education.

Our approach recognises that every young person is unique. We are committed to providing the support, encouragement and flexibility needed to help pupils build positive relationships, overcome challenges and achieve their full potential.

We are seeking an inspirational and committed leader who is passionate about supporting pupils with SEMH needs to thrive. The successful candidate will have a strong understanding of how emotional wellbeing impacts learning and engagement, alongside the vision, drive and leadership skills needed to further develop our Creative Faculty.

The Faculty Lead will be responsible for creating and delivering a clear vision for Drama, Music and Expressive Arts, leading a talented team to bring that vision to life, and ensuring that the faculty makes a significant contribution to whole-school improvement priorities and pupil outcomes.

Applications are welcomed from leaders with expertise in one or more areas of the Creative Faculty; specialist knowledge across all disciplines is not essential.

What you'll do

Key Responsibilities

Develop and articulate an ambitious vision for the Creative Faculty that reflects the needs of our pupils and the strategic priorities of the school.
Lead the ongoing development of Drama, Music and Expressive Arts across the school, ensuring a high-quality, engaging and innovative curriculum.
Provide a calm, nurturing and supportive learning environment that promotes emotional wellbeing and academic engagement.
Plan and deliver high-quality learning within the Creative Faculty, adapting content and approaches to meet the diverse needs of pupils.
Deliver lessons to classes of up to eight pupils with a range of abilities, learning needs and personalised pathways.
Differentiate teaching approaches, resources and lesson content to meet individual pupil needs, learning styles and personalised timetables.
Line manage a team of teachers and Learning Support Assistants, providing support, challenge and professional development opportunities to ensure high standards of practice.
Monitor, assess and record pupil engagement, attainment and progress, using this information to inform future planning and interventions.
Contribute to, and deliver against, whole-school priorities, supporting the school's continued development and improvement.
Work collaboratively with colleagues, families and external professionals to develop and implement effective strategies that support positive outcomes for pupils.
Promote creativity, participation and achievement through a range of enrichment, performance and showcase opportunities.

About Barnardo's

Industry: Children's charity

In their own words

Additional information

When completing your application, please refer carefully to the Job Description and Person Specification, providing detailed evidence of your knowledge, skills and experience within the sections entitled Experience/Knowledge and Skills/Abilities. Strong communication skills, including written communication, are essential to this role. We therefore ask candidates not to use AI-generated responses when completing these sections of the application form.

For an informal discussion about the role, please contact Wendy Gosling on 0118 978 5767.

We warmly welcome and encourage prospective candidates to arrange a visit to the school prior to interview.

Barnardo's Schools are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects all staff and volunteers to share in this commitment.

Our safer recruitment processes mean that the safety and welfare of the child is paramount at every stage of the process and therefore we adopt rigorous scrutiny in our pre-employment checking. Applicants must be willing to undergo relevant pre-employment checks, including references being taken up prior to interview and for the successful candidate, an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, and online checks being completed in line with the Keeping Children Safe in Education Statutory Guidance. It is an offence to apply for a role if the applicant is barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children.

As part of your application, you will need to provide full details of your employment since leaving secondary education, starting with your current or most recent employment first and then by working backwards, including reasons for leaving. Please also include any periods of voluntary work and/or training, providing reasons for any periods not in employment, education or training.

Read further about our commitment to safeguarding and our pre-employment checks in our applicant information sheet below.

Please note due to the high volume of applications for some posts, this advert might close before the displayed closing date. We recommend that you apply for this role as soon as possible.

At Barnardo's we believe in children - no matter who they are, what they have done or what they have been through. Please read about our basis and values following the link below. You will be asked questions relating to them as part of the recruitment process for this role.

Barnardo's is committed to having a diverse and inclusive workforce for staff and volunteers. Our commitment to Equality, Diversity and Inclusion (EDI) is reflected in our values and our practice, and we have invested in this area of our work to ensure that we can deliver on our commitments to be an inclusive employer. EDI is a key enabler of our purpose as a charity and we want to ensure that the diversity of our teams is reflective of the communities we serve and that we continue to learn and develop our work with a focus on inclusion. We particularly encourage applications from candidates from Black, Asian and Minoritised Ethnic Communities, candidates who are LGBT+ and Disabled candidates.

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