Job Description

Are you the kind of teacher who believes that relationships come before readiness to learn?

Do you want the freedom to teach creatively, respond to the child in front of you and make a genuine difference to children who may not previously have experienced success in education?

Would you like your classroom to extend beyond four walls - into woodland, onto the beach and across our unique rural environment?

If so, The Haefen could be the school for you.

About The Haefen
LIFE Education Trust has opened The Haefen Independent Special School, a specialist provision for primary-aged pupils whose lead area of need is Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH).

The Haefen is not a mainstream school with additional support added around the edges. Everything we do has been designed around the needs of children with SEMH.

We provide a small, nurturing and highly personalised learning environment where relationships, emotional regulation, safety and belonging provide the foundations for learning.

Our children may have experienced significant challenges within education. Some arrive with gaps in their learning, low confidence or a belief that school is simply not a place where they can succeed.

Our job is to change that story.

We are looking for an exceptional SEMH Teacher who wants to be part of that journey.

Teaching Differently
At The Haefen, we recognise that progress does not look the same for every child.

Our curriculum takes a stage-not-age approach, enabling teachers to identify children's starting points, secure essential foundations and build learning from there.

We want our teachers to be creative.

Learning might take place around a table, in our woodland, on our private beach, through practical activities, in the garden or allotment, through cooking, technology, physical activity or a carefully structured individual intervention.

What matters is that the learning is purposeful, ambitious and accessible to the child.

We have high expectations for our pupils, but we understand that children need to feel safe, regulated and connected before they can consistently access those expectations.

That means recognising that sometimes the most important first step towards completing a piece of writing is helping a child regulate enough to sit alongside you.

The Role
As an SEMH Teacher at The Haefen, you will lead learning for a small group of pupils with complex SEMH and associated SEND.

You will:

Build strong, consistent and trusting relationships with pupils.
Create a classroom environment where children feel safe, valued and that they belong.
Plan and deliver an ambitious, engaging and highly personalised curriculum.
Adapt teaching according to pupils' developmental stage rather than simply their chronological age.
Identify and address gaps in foundational knowledge while maintaining high aspirations for every child.
Use creativity, practical experiences and our exceptional outdoor environment to bring learning to life.
Understand behaviour as communication and respond using relational and trauma-informed approaches.
Explicitly support pupils to develop emotional regulation, resilience, independence and positive relationships.
Work closely with SEMH Learning Support Assistants to provide consistent, high-quality support.
Use assessment meaningfully to understand pupils' starting points, identify progress and determine appropriate next steps.
Ensure pupils' EHCP outcomes and individual needs are embedded within everyday teaching and provision.
Contribute to One Plans, reviews, annual reviews and other SEND processes.
Work collaboratively with families, professionals and the wider school team.
Contribute ideas and expertise as we continue to develop and grow The Haefen.
Who Are We Looking For?
We are looking for someone who understands that being an excellent SEMH teacher is about far more than managing behaviour.

You will be someone who is curious about what sits behind a child's behaviour and is prepared to ask "What does this child need from me?" rather than simply "How do I stop this behaviour?"

You will:

Hold Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
Be an enthusiastic and skilled classroom practitioner.
Have experience of SEND, SEMH or working successfully with pupils who have found mainstream education challenging.
Have a strong understanding of trauma-informed, relational and inclusive practice.
Be able to build relationships with pupils who may initially find trusting adults difficult.
Understand the importance of regulation and readiness for learning.
Be able to adapt teaching creatively while maintaining ambition for pupils.
Be calm, consistent and resilient when situations become challenging.
Understand that progress for children with SEMH can be academic, social, emotional and developmental.
Work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary and highly supportive team.
Communicate positively with families and external professionals.
Be reflective, open to learning and willing to adapt your practice.
Share our values of Courageous Optimism, Boundless Creativity and Heartfelt Compassion.
Most importantly, you will genuinely believe that every child can succeed when we create the right environment around them.

Why Teach at The Haefen?
This is an opportunity to teach in a very different kind of school.

At The Haefen you will have:

Small class groups, allowing you to genuinely know and understand the children you teach.
A highly supportive team of SEMH Learning Support Assistants working alongside teachers.
The freedom to be creative and responsive in your teaching.
A curriculum designed specifically around the needs of children with SEMH.
A stage-not-age approach that enables you to teach from pupils' actual starting points.
Access to an exceptional learning environment including woodland, private beach access, extensive outdoor space and developing growing and allotment areas.
Opportunities to incorporate outdoor, practical and experiential learning into the school day.
Specialist professional development in SEMH, SEND, trauma-informed and relational practice.
Support from a leadership team that understands the complexity of working with children with SEMH.
The opportunity to help shape practice within a growing specialist school.
The chance to work within LIFE Education Trust and contribute to its wider vision and values.
And perhaps most importantly, you will have the opportunity to see children begin to believe in themselves as learners again.

A Different Kind of Success
There will be days when success is a child completing a piece of work they previously believed they couldn't do.

There will be days when it is a child returning to learning after becoming dysregulated.

Sometimes it will be reading a new word, solving a problem, exploring the beach, building something in the woodland, managing a disagreement or trusting an adult enough to ask for help.

At The Haefen, we notice those moments. We build on them. And we know that, for our children, they can be transformational.

If that is the kind of teaching that motivates you, we would love to hear from you.

Safeguarding
LIFE Education Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All appointments will be subject to an enhanced DBS check, satisfactory references and appropriate pre-employment checks.

Come and Meet Us
We strongly encourage prospective applicants to visit The Haefen Independent Special School.

Come and see our school, meet our team, explore our woodland and outdoor spaces, visit the beach and discover what makes The Haefen different.

We believe you will quickly understand why this is not just another teaching position.

It is an opportunity to help create a different experience of education for children who need it most.

Please complete all sections of the application form. Incomplete application forms will not be considered.

Information about the School

LIFE Education Trust is opening a new independent special school to support pupils with Social, Emotional and Mental Health (SEMH) needs. The Haefen, set in a beautiful open location, on farmland, with access to woodland and a private beach area, aims to create a nurturing, structured and inclusive learning environment where every young person feels safe, supported and able to achieve their full potential. Subject to DfE approval, we hope that this incredible school will be ready to welcome pupils in the Autumn Term.

Our school will provide a highly supportive setting with small class sizes, a strong pastoral approach and a dedicated team committed to improving outcomes for children who may have experienced barriers to learning in mainstream education.

We aim to inspire and nurture every child so that they can live, believe, and achieve their true potential.