Job Description

Thurstable School is seeking a new member of its Senior Leadership Team.

The successful applicant would lead the English Faculty and join the Senior Leadership Group as part of the Student Progress Team or Learning and Teaching Team. Our new Senior Leader - English will be given substantial additional non-contact time to take part in senior leadership activities which will be agreed with the new Headteacher.

This post represents an excellent opportunity for an outstanding teacher of English with a strong track record of improvement work as a middle leader to take their first step into Senior Leadership. Previous post holders at this level have gone on to secure Assistant/Deputy Headships, and we would expect the successful applicant to do the same within three to five years. The English department at Thurstable is well resourced, and contains committed and talented teachers who will support your leadership with enthusiasm.

This is a superb opportunity for the successful applicant to really make their mark on the department as well as the wider school community, and through their leadership demonstrate their positive impact that will help prepare them for Assistant and Deputy Headship. We would expect the successful applicant to be enthusiastic to continue their own learning and receptive to evidence based research. We genuinely believe that leaders develop leaders and we are absolutely committed to supporting your own development as you begin your journey into senior leadership. Just as we expect you to coach and mentor staff within the English team, we will also provide you with the same support and opportunity for professional growth as you develop your own leadership identity.

Information about the School

Thank you for taking an interest in joining us as at Thurstable School.

Thurstable School is an ambitious and successful 11-19 academy with 1209 students, located in Tiptree near Colchester in Essex. We are a school on a journey as seen by our excellent outcomes at KS4 in 2022 and our vision is to be a school of character and excellence. Our three guiding values are Aspire, Respect & Endeavour and our mission is to build knowledge and grow character so that as well as flourishing as scholars our students will thrive in life and be the best versions of themselves.

Why join us?

● Every minute counts and our classrooms are disruption free. To enable this we have a simple and centralised approach to behaviour centred on a warm/strict philosophy and shared routines. All detentions are centralised and overseen by senior staff. It is these routines that allow the positive student-staff relationships to flourish.

● We believe that you are the expert. We promote the importance of teacher led lessons based on brilliant subject knowledge, great explanations and skilful questioning. We are committed to helping you continue to develop your subject knowledge and pedagogy.

● We take CPD seriously and we are one of just 8 Steplab Hub schools in England for the quality of our Instructional Coaching model which is based on Rosenshine and Lemov’s Teach Like A Champion. All staff receive one to one coaching for at least and we believe in improving not proving so our appraisal process is linked to engagement in CPD not student grades.

● We are committed to staff wellbeing and adopting sensible approaches to workload. We recognise the efforts and achievements of all our staff on a weekly basis and never take anyone’s work for granted.

● We are on a journey of which you can be a driving part. Our school improvement groups, led by non-SLT members, are crucial to driving change in the school and this year played a key role in shaping our behaviour policy, uniform and staff development model.

We believe this is an exciting time to join the school and help our students reach their undoubted full potential. If you can dream big, work hard and also have a sense of fun, I genuinely believe that you will really enjoy working at Thurstable. Our website provides a clear picture of our aspirations and our vision; however, please do not hesitate to contact us to seek further information.

We very much look forward to receiving applications from candidates whose personal qualities, values and experiences support and reflect ours. We welcome visits or conversations with prospective applicants.

We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people therefore this appointment will be subject to vetting, including an enhanced DBS disclosure.

We look forward to hearing from you soon