Head of Art and Photography

Whitstone, Shepton Mallet, Somerset, BA4 5PF

11 days remaining to apply

• Job start date

  1 January 2027

• Closing date

  20 November 2026 at 12pm (midday)

• Date listed

  9 November 2026

Job details

• Job role:
  • Head of department or curriculum
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Key stage: Key stage 3, Key stage 4
• Subject: Art and design
• Working pattern: Full time
• Contract type: Permanent
• Pay scale: MPS/UPS
• Additional allowances:

  TLR2B

What skills and experience we're looking for

Main Duties and responsibilities:

The duties and responsibilities outlined in this job description complement those covered by the latest School Teacher’s Pay and Conditions document and the Teachers Standards document. Whilst every effort has been made to explain the main duties and responsibilities of the post, each individual task undertaken may not be identified. Elements within job descriptions may be subject to change, but all duties associated with this role will be achievable within directed time and reasonable additional hours, consistent with STPCD expectations. The role will be supported by appropriate timetable allocation, administrative support, and leadership time commensurate with the responsibilities outlined.

Leadership and Strategic Direction

The postholder contributes to whole-school improvement but is not accountable for whole-school operational or strategic leadership decisions reserved for the Senior Leadership Team. A culture of shared leadership is a core part of our mission as a school, but colleagues are accountable only for the outcomes within their subject/department. The postholder has responsibilities:

• To provide strategic leadership for your department, ensuring high standards of teaching, learning, and student outcomes across both key stages.
• To establish and articulate a clear, ambitious vision for your subject, aligned with whole-school priorities and improvement plans.
• To ensure a strategic departmental commitment to the progress of all students, particularly those students who are vulnerable, for example through SEND or because of experiencing disadvantage.
• To lead the development and regular review of schemes of work and curriculum planning, ensuring full coverage of national curriculum and the qualifications of chosen specifications
• To have regard for Key Stage 2 curricula in partner primaries, and to plan for transition based on this knowledge, and knowledge of the onward learning in Key Stage 5.
• Ensure that curriculum planning takes account of the necessity of regular opportunities for reading, extended writing, and for developing oracy.
• To model outstanding teaching and promote a culture of continuous improvement across the department.
• To lead departmental meetings effectively, ensuring that priorities are clearly communicated, actioned, and reviewed
• To with work colleagues across the school, exploring opportunities for collaborative working to enhance pupil learning.
• To lead the development of a rich ranges of experiences alongside the curriculum, that build cultural capital and enrich the taught curriculum for all.
• To ensure outcomes across both key stages are carefully analysed and appropriate plans are created responsively.

Staff Development and Line Management

• To be a visible leader, who knows, understands and values their team, and who creates a respectful, collaborative culture of mutual trust.
• To line manage staff within the department, providing support, guidance, and challenge to ensure high performance.
• To identify and address training needs within the department, supporting the professional development of colleagues through mentoring, coaching, and CPD.
• To carry out regular appraisals and provide high-quality developmental feedback.
• To ensure that departmental colleagues are consulted in creating and supported in implementing, the curriculum across both key stages.
• To lead the induction of new staff and trainee teachers within the department.
• To work collaboratively with the department, undertaking regular 360 evaluations of your leadership and responding to this feedback.

Quality Assurance

• To ensure the curriculum is inclusive, coherent, and sequenced to support knowledge retention and progression for all learners, with a particular focus on the progression of vulnerable learners.
• To monitor and evaluate the quality of teaching and learning within the department through coaching drop ins, book looks, student voice and to implement improvement strategies where required.
• To ensure the consistent implementation of school policies, such as behaviour management, assessment, homework and marking across the department.
• To oversee homework completion across the team, managing behavioural interventions, parental contact and departmental detentions. Tackle repeat offenders by meeting with parents and carers to reinforce shared expectations
• To lead the effective use of assessment within the department, ensuring that formative and summative data informs teaching and intervention.
• To analyse departmental data regularly to monitor progress and attainment, identifying underperformance and leading timely, evidence-based interventions.
• To ensure accurate and timely completion of data drops and reporting in line with school assessment policy.
• To report on departmental performance to SLT, Trustees and other stakeholders as required.

Resource Management

• To work with the AHT responsible for the timetable to ensure an effective and fair timetable allocation for the department.
• Ensure equal distribution of classes, particularly ensuring that vulnerable learners receive the highest quality teaching.
• To oversee the efficient deployment and use of departmental resources, ensuring value for money and equitable access for all students.
• To manage the department’s budget, making informed decisions to enhance teaching and learning.
• To lead the development and maintenance of high-quality learning environments, including providing suggested content or work examples for displays as well as managing digital resources including Google Classroom and, as appropriate, the Sparx suite. There is no expectation that leaders should create corridor displays themselves, but collaborating in the provision of resources to display would be valuable.
• To ensure that all department resources are compliant with health and safety requirements

Contribution to Whole-School Life

• To contribute to the wider development of the school, supporting whole-school policies, initiatives and events.
• To plan and deliver enriching curriculum experiences, both within and beyond school. There is no expectation that leaders deliver trips beyond directed time if they do not wish to, however enriching in school opportunities should be sourced instead, or team members identified and supported who could support an enrichment activity that is overnight or after school hours.
• To play a key role in curriculum development at a whole-school level where appropriate.
• To support school improvement priorities, including literacy and numeracy strategies, attendance and behaviour.
• To represent the department in middle leader meetings and work collaboratively with other subject leaders to promote cross-curricular links.

Planning, Teaching, and Classroom Management

• To ensure that lessons are well planned, adapting the department’s shared planning when appropriate to meet the needs of all learners, with particular emphasis in ensuring that all learners, particularly vulnerable learners, experience success in lessons.
• To teach consistently high-quality lessons, adhering to the principles set out in ‘The Whitstone Way’ & utilising the ‘Excellent Whitstone Lesson to allow all students to make good or better progress.
• To ensure that students are set appropriate but challenging tasks, while providing appropriate scaffolds as necessary to allow all students to experience success.
• To ensure high standards of behaviour from students both inside and outside of the classroom, following the school’s behaviour policy consistently.
• To ensure the effective and efficient deployment of classroom support, including teaching assistants
• To ensure that homework is set regularly in accordance with the school’s homework expectations, that completion of this is monitored and that non-completion is followed up, using the departmental detention system.
• To ensure that effective planned cover is set in line with the school’s absence policy and placed onto Google Classroom.
• To provide work for classes to cover illness when possible. When this is not possible, to provide the necessary information for the Subject Leader to set meaningful cover work.
• To work as an active member of the subject team, seeking to implement its aims and objectives, extending knowledge and understanding of the curriculum, recognising the need for change and contributing where necessary to the writing/development of new material and schemes of work.
• To ensure that learning resources, including opportunities for stretch and challenge, are regularly to enable students to continue their learning during their own time.

Assessment, Recording and Reporting

• To utilise regular formative assessment to allow lessons to be responsively adapted, to help meet the needs of all learners.
• To ensure that student work is regularly marked, in accordance with the school’s feedback policy.
• To undertake summative assessments in line with the school’s assessment policy, ensuring these are accurately marked and generate realistic grade projections.
• To maintain accurate records of pupil attainment, and to be aware of the standards achieved, enabling effective and timely interventions when necessary.
• To complete formal data drops in a timely manner, meeting the deadlines set out in the school’s assessment policy.
• To discuss with the relevant colleagues those aspects of pupils’ performance which are a cause for concern, and to seek advice, guidance or support when appropriate.
• To record and log all behaviour sanctions, achievement events and interventions in an accurate and timely manner in line with the relevant school policies.

Pastoral Duties

• To be an effective form tutor to an assigned group of students.
• To deliver high quality tutor time sessions, as directed by the Head of Year.
• To promote the progress and wellbeing of individual students and of the tutor group as a whole.
• To register students in a timely and accurate manner, accompany them to assemblies, encourage their full attendance at all lessons and their participation in other aspects of school life.
• To communicate, as appropriate, with parents of students and persons or bodies outside the school concerned with the welfare of individual students, after consultation with appropriate staff.
• To promote the personal development and social wellbeing of all pupils by delivering the school’s tutorial and Character Curriculum.

Other Professional Requirements

• To consistently implement the vision and values of Whitstone School, as set out by the Headteacher.
• To have a working knowledge of teachers' professional duties and legal liabilities, adhering to these at all times.
• To actively participate in performance management, identifying areas for development and accessing appropriate training, support and professional development.
• To contribute to the school’s wider development programme, including trips, after school activities and enrichment opportunities.
• To communicate with the families of pupils in a timely and professional manner, through attendance at parents’ evenings, making regular use of phone calls home, particularly in working with parents to overcome challenge.
• To co-operate with other staff to ensure a fair and effective usage of resources to the benefit of the school, department and students.
• To attend all lessons, meetings, duties and other-directed events punctually.
• To have strong digital literacy and confidence in using technology, to allow you to effectively engage with the school’s IT systems and to support the use of these consistently within your professional practice.
• To model high standards of professional conduct and dress at all times when representing the school.
• To operate at all times within the policies and practices of both the school and academy trust
• To promote and safeguard the welfare of all of our students.
• Perform all other reasonable requests from the Headteacher, or members of the Senior Leadership Team.

This job description will be reviewed at the end of each academic year or earlier if necessary. Substantial changes to responsibilities will be subject to consultation and formal review. In addition, it may be amended at any time after consultation with you.

What the school offers its staff

We are committed to the ongoing development of our staff at all career stages:

• Early Career Teachers (ECTs): We provide tailored mentoring, reduced teaching timetables, and

structured support to ensure a successful start to your teaching career.

• Experienced Teachers: CPD opportunities include access to National Professional Qualifications

(NPQs), evidence-based training such as through our tailormade CPD strategy, and collaborative

networks with local and national schools through our commitment to the Challenge Partners network.

• Leaders: Leadership development is supported through apprenticeship opportunities, NPQs, and

access to leadership resources like Leadership Matters, as well as opportunities to visit and learn from

local and national partner schools.

Our approach to CPD is designed to build expertise, foster collaboration, and improve outcomes for

our students.

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

Whitstone School 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
Section 128 Check
Disclosure and Barring Service
Medical questionnaire
Online & social media presence
Prohibition from Teaching
Right to work in the UK
Satisfactory references

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

Apply for the job by following the link below.

CVs will not be accepted for this application.

About Whitstone

• Organisation type: Academy, ages 11 to 16
• Education phase: Secondary school
• Size: 545 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 11 to 16
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report
• Website: Whitstone website
• Email address: hr@whitstoneschool.org
• Phone number: 01749 345555
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/whitstone-shepton-mallet

Thank you for your interest in joining Whitstone School. Whitstone School is a thriving secondary school committed to delivering a broad, balanced, and ambitious curriculum. We serve a diverse student body and are dedicated to ensuring every student succeeds, regardless of background or circumstance.

Our school improvement priorities focus on:
• Embedding our values through all aspects of school life.
• Becoming a true community hub and the school of choice locally.
• Growing an expert staff through targeted CPD and evidence-based practice.

We believe in a collaborative and respectful working environment where openness, tailored support, and professional empathy enable both staff and students to thrive.

We serve a diverse community with 25% Pupil Premium, 22% Free School Meals, 22% SEND, and 5% EAL students.
Our aim is to be the school of choice for all residents in our local towns and villages, and we are passionate
about being both champions of and championed by our community. We have recently approved a programme of
volunteer and charity funded works to our school hall, in order to improve the facilities for both the school and local
community. Our ambition for our school and community is boundless.

As a member of our staff team, you will be supported to grow professionally through excellent CPD, be part of a
collaborative culture, and contribute to a school where every student is encouraged to reach their full potential.
You will be supported by talented and capable middle and senior leaders, you’ll have a chance to get to know,
to inspire, and to grow alongside fantastic students, and you’ll be supported by a t alented and committed
board of trustees.

Arranging a visit to Whitstone

To arrange a visit and increase the chance of a successful application email hr@whitstoneschool.org.

School location

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