Director of Secondary Education

de Stafford School, Caterham, Surrey, CR3 5YX

19 days remaining to apply

• Job start date

  1 September 2026

• Closing date

  27 April 2026 at 9am

• Date listed

  8 April 2026

Job details

• Job role:
  • Other leadership roles
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Working pattern: Full time
• Contract type: Permanent
• Full-time equivalent salary: Up to £140,000 (dependent on experience)

Director of Secondary Education job summary

Please note this is a Trust role, and not solely for de Stafford School.

Ready to make a difference at scale? Step into a role where your leadership will shape secondary education for GLF.

Your Opportunity

As Director of Secondary you will shape a coherent and ambitious strategy for all secondary schools in GLF, prioritising the development of our headteachers and their staff ensuring that each of our individual school community's flourish. You will motivate and equip school leaders to raise standards consistently and pursue excellence in every aspect of school performance.

Your role is to shape education strategy and provide line management to the 8 secondaries in GLF - developing leaders and talent at all levels, strengthening school performance, fostering collaboration, and ensuring our values of Respect, Inclusivity, Integrity and Kindness are lived every day. Through close collaboration and partnership with Trust colleagues, including the primary REDs, Directors of inclusion and curriculum, you will help translate Trust strategy into delivery.

If you are ready to scale your leadership impact and make a lasting difference in the communities we serve, this is your moment.

What we are looking for

We need an experienced secondary leader who has experience of leading across multiple schools, either as a regional director, director of phase or equivalent scale. The successful candidate will have a strong track record of developing strategy and be ready to scale their systems leadership. Core to the role is developing others, improving teaching, building collaborative communities of practice and raising standards to deliver improvement at scale.

We need someone who will:

• Shape the deliver the secondary education strategy for the secondary phase
  
• Build leadership and staff capacity, nurturing Headteachers and fostering a culture of collaboration, accountability and continuous improvement
• Use data and evidence intelligently to constructively challenge, securing consistently high‑quality outcomes for every pupil
• Champion the classroom, ensuring high quality teaching is at the heart of all our schools
  
• Line‑manage Headteachers, offering coaching, mentoring underpinned by high expectations
• Work closely with operational and central teams to ensure schools are well‑run, efficient and able to focus on delivering great education
• Champion inclusion and equity, ensuring every school is a centre of excellence at the heart of its community

Contribute to Trust‑wide strategy, taking ownership of a designated portfolio area and applying contemporary evidence and best practice for cross phase working

This role requires a highly motivated, self‑driven senior leader who can communicate with clarity, build trust, and inspire others to achieve ambitious goals for children.

Join Our Community

As a part of GLF Schools, you will join a community of staff dedicated to transforming education. With regular progression discussions, there will be a wealth of opportunities for you to grow your career, whether in one of our 43 academies or in our central team.

• A growing Multi Academy Trust with over 2,000 colleagues and over 17,000 pupils
  
• Founded upon the values of Respect, Inclusivity, Integrity and Kindness
  
• 43 primary and secondary schools across 7 Local Authority areas across the south of England
  
• We work as a community whilst ensuring each school maintains its own unique identity
  
• Committed to ensuring all children and young people receive the best possible education
  

Our Employment Offer

GLF Schools has a generous employment offer, which allows all our colleagues to Grow, Learn and Flourish

• Access to our highly competitive pension scheme (LGPS)
  
• Generous holiday allowance
  
• Work life and family friendly policies
  
• Employee wellbeing initiatives
  
• Access to a staff benefits portal
  
• Community and collaboration working model
  

The Details

Salary: Up to £140,000 (dependent on experience)

Location: One of the central office locations in GLF, or nearest secondary school

Contract: Permanent. Please note this is an Associate contract, and not Teaching Terms and Conditions

Start Date: September 2026

Closing date for applications: Monday 27th April at 9am

Interview Date: Wednesday 6th May & Friday 8th May 2026

Should you wish to arrange a telephone call with our Chief Education Officer, please contact Recruitment Partner Laura Rice using the details provided in the job description.

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

Our organisation is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. We expect all staff, volunteers and trustees to share this commitment.

Our recruitment process follows the keeping children safe in education guidance.

Offers of employment may be subject to the following checks (where relevant):
childcare disqualification
Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS)
medical
online and social media
prohibition from teaching
right to work
satisfactory references
suitability to work with children

You must tell us about any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975.

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.

About de Stafford School

• School type: Academy, ages 11 to 16
• Education phase: Secondary school
• School size: 813 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 11 to 16
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report
• School website: de Stafford School website
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/de-stafford-school-caterham

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