21 days remaining to apply

  • Start date details

    January 2026 (or earlier by agreement)

  • Closing date

    13 October 2025 at 1am

  • Date listed

    18 September 2025

Job details

Job role

  • Deputy headteacher

Visa sponsorship

Visas cannot be sponsored

Key stage

Key stage 3, Key stage 4, Key stage 5

Subject

Social sciences

Working pattern

Full time

Contract type

Permanent

Full-time equivalent salary

Leadership Pay Scale Range 20-24 (FTE: £82,654 - £91,158 per annum)

Additional allowances

N/A

Deputy Headteacher (Quality of Personal Development) job summary

Thomas Gainsborough School

Deputy Headteacher (Quality of Personal Development)

Salary: Leadership Pay Scale Range 20-24 (FTE: £82,654 - £91,158 per annum)

Contract: Full time, permanent 

Start date: January 2026 (or earlier by agreement) 

At Thomas Gainsborough School, part of Unity Schools Partnership, we are proud to say this is a place where excellence is not just a goal but a lived reality – for each, for all. With over 1,600 students, including a thriving sixth form, we serve our local community with ambition, care and determination. We are seeking to appoint an outstanding leader to join our team as Deputy Headteacher (Quality of Personal Development). This is a pivotal role, central to our mission of delivering a personalised, aspirational and inclusive education that unlocks the potential of every young person. 

As Deputy Head, you will have strategic responsibility for: 

  • SEND and Inclusion – ensuring that every student is known, valued and supported, removing barriers so all can thrive.
  • Behaviour and Attendance – creating a calm, safe and respectful environment where students can flourish academically and personally.
  • Safeguarding – leading with vigilance and care to ensure the highest standards of protection and well-being for every child. 

Your work will embody our three pillars of Culture, Character and Currency: enriching students’ experiences, shaping confident and principled young people, and securing the outcomes they need for future success. We are looking for a leader who is: 

  • Passionate about equity, inclusion and opportunity for all.
  • Skilled in building strong, trusting relationships with students, families and staff.
  • Committed to creating a culture of high expectations, compassion and accountability.
  • Able to inspire colleagues and contribute to the wider improvement of the school and Trust. 

In return, you will join a talented and supportive senior leadership team, a forward-thinking Trust, and a school community united by values of respect, resilience, honesty, happiness, confidence and positivity. If you are ready to make a lasting difference to young people’s lives, we would love to hear from you. How to apply Please see the full job description and person specification attached. 

Visits to the school are warmly encouraged and can be arranged by contacting the HR Manager Mrs M. Griss at mgriss@tgschool.net or 01787 375232. 

Closing date: Wednesday 13th October 2025, 09:00am 

Interviews: Wednesday 22nd October 2025

Please note: we may hold interviews as and when applications are received and we reserve the right to offer to a candidate prior to the closing date. We only accept applications submitted online via our careers website and which are completed before the closing deadline. With this in mind, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible and advise you check the job information as per the listing on our careers site.

In line with safer recruitment, we are unable to accept CVs.  Failure to complete an application form satisfactorily may result in not being shortlisted for the post.

Unity Schools Partnership is committed to safeguarding, safer recruitment and promoting the welfare of pupils. Our comprehensive recruitment and selection processes aim to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants. Successful candidates are subject to rigorous pre-employment checks. We are equally committed to eliminating discrimination and encouraging diversity. We aim for our workforce to be representative of society and that each employee feels respected and able to give their best. We are committed to providing equality and fairness in our recruitment and employment practices and not to discriminate on any grounds. We oppose all forms of unlawful and unfair discrimination.

We care deeply about inclusive working practices and diverse teams. If you’d prefer to work part-time or as a job-share, we’ll facilitate this wherever we can – whether to help you meet other commitments or to help you strike a great work-life balance. We’re keen to ensure we’re designing an organisation that works for everyone, so we particularly encourage applications from different under-represented groups.

Further information about the job

The candidate will be required to undergo a full enhanced DBS check and must be eligible to work in the UK.
Visas cannot be sponsored.
If you're interested in teaching or training to teach in England as an international citizen, we can help you understand your next steps.

Commitment to safeguarding

Unity Schools Partnership is committed to safer recruitment, equal opportunities, safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. An enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check will be required.

Applying for the job

This school accepts applications through their own website, where you may also find more information about this job.

CVs will not be accepted for this application.

View advert on external website (opens in new tab)

About Thomas Gainsborough School

School type
Academy, ages 11 to 18
Education phase
Secondary
School size
1615 pupils enrolled
Age range
11 to 18
Ofsted report
View Ofsted report
School website
Thomas Gainsborough School website
See more jobs
teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/thomas-gainsborough-school

Thomas Gainsborough School invests in high quality professional development and provides a range of employee benefits. We are closely linked to the Unity Research School and lead the way in many local and national initiatives including being an EdTech Demonstrator School and being an ArtsMark platinum school. We provide excellent support care and support for our staff and students. There are Lead Practitioners to support colleagues in continually improving their practice. As a large, successful and popular school their are opportunites for colleagues to develop at every stage of their career.

In September 2015 the school moved into an award-winning new building, where subjects are taught in specialist rooms either in our Sixth Form block or alongside other History classrooms. The team is very supportive and expectations for students are high.

Thomas Gainsborough School is a consistently high performing, well resourced, and truly comprehensive school, with a firm belief in excellence for each and every student, placing students at the heart of their curriculum. You can find out more about the school at www.tgschool.net

The school continues to invest in high quality professional development and provides a range of employee benefits. This is an excellent opportunity for any teacher to develop their practice and continue their career progression.

The school is located just south of Sudbury in Suffolk and is within easy reach of Colchester, Ipswich and Bury St Edmunds. There are also many delightful and affordable villages in the surrounding area, which also make travelling to London, Cambridge and Norwich a possibility.

Many of our staff work flexibly in different ways including part-time working. For this role we are open to discussing the possibility of reduced hours of flexible start and end times. Please talk to us at the interview stage about the flexibility you would like and we will explore what’s possible for specific roles.

School location

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