Head of Faculty: English

Paxman Academy, Colchester, Essex, CO2 9DB

15 days remaining to apply

• Start date details

  Negotiable

• Closing date

  19 November 2025 at 11:59pm

• Date listed

  4 November 2025

Job details

• Job role:
  • Head of department or curriculum
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Working pattern: Full time
• Contract type: Permanent
• Full-time equivalent salary: £58,569.00 - £64,691.00 Annually (Actual) Leadership Pay Scale, L6-L10

Head of Faculty: English job summary

Join a Team That is Committed to ‘Building Brighter Futures’ at Paxman Academy

Are you a collaborative professional who thrives in a supportive community? Ready to help students fulfil their full potential?

At Paxman Academy, we're dedicated to creating an ordered, stimulating learning environment where every student is valued, respected, and encouraged to achieve their best. We are looking for an inspirational Head of Faculty: English to take a key leadership role in our academy. You will be instrumental in shaping the vision and strategy for English, ensuring sustained high levels of student attainment and progress, and nurturing a culture of excellence within the subject area.

Key Responsibilities:

You'll be responsible for bringing your passion and expertise to the following areas:

• Driving High Attainment: Being accountable for overall student progress and development across the English department, ensuring the curriculum is broad, balanced, and promotes high achievement.
• Curriculum and Strategic Leadership: Formulating the strategic vision, objectives, and operational plans for the department, in line with the School Improvement Plan, and overseeing the development of high-quality schemes of work and resources.
• Leading Teaching & Learning Excellence: Developing and enhancing the teaching practice of others through collaborative planning, instructional coaching, staff development, and acting as a role model for innovative and effective teaching methods.
• Staff Management and Development: Leading, managing, and deploying department staff (including conducting Performance Management Reviews), managing the department budget, and ensuring the effective induction and professional growth of the team.
• Quality Assurance and Monitoring: Establishing and implementing quality assurance standards for teaching, learning, and assessment, and using data analysis to monitor student progress and implement targeted intervention strategies.
• Extended Leadership Team (ELT) Contribution: Contributing to the wider operational and strategic planning of Paxman Academy as a member of the Extended Leadership Team.

What We're Looking For:
You are the perfect fit for our team if you have:

• UK Qualified Teacher Status (QTS)
• A relevant degree
• Substantial, recent, and successful experience of teaching in Key Stage 3 and 4
• An understanding of and the ability to model the characteristics of effective teaching, learning and assessment strategies
• The ability to lead, develop, share and realise strategic plans for the department.

Please see the attached Job Description and Person Specification for full details.

Why Choose The Sigma Trust?
We believe in investing in our staff and fostering a culture of collaboration. We offer a competitive salary and a comprehensive package designed to support your professional and personal life.

Professional Development:

• A robust CPD training program that empowers you to flourish.
• Unrivalled opportunities to collaborate with colleagues across the Trust, sharing ideas and building strong professional relationships.

Employee Benefits:

• A competitive salary and excellent pension scheme.
• A Health Cash Plan to help manage your everyday healthcare costs.
• Access to a confidential Employee Assistance Programme to support your well-being.
• Exclusive perks like the Cycle to Work scheme, access to discounts via free membership to Perkbox, eligibility for a Blue Light Card, and more.

Commitment to Safeguarding & Diversity

The Sigma Trust is committed to safeguarding and protecting the children and young people that we work with. As such, all posts are subject to safer recruitment processes, including the disclosure of criminal records, online checks and other vetting checks. We ensure that we have a range of policies in place which promote safeguarding and safer working practice across our schools.

The Sigma Trust is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunities regardless of any protected characteristics. This is embedded in our vision ‘To Be Greater Than The Sum Of Its Parts’, where we believe we are strong and more successful working together, creating a workplace which celebrates diversity.

To Apply:

Ready to take the next step? Find out more about the role and apply by Midnight on Wednesday 19th November via My New Term.

Interviews are scheduled to take place week beginning Monday 24th November.

Please note that we reserve the right to close this advert early should we receive an overwhelming response. Candidates may be invited to interview prior to the closing date, so an early application is advised.

We are unable to provide sponsorship for this position, so please ensure you have the right to work in the UK before you apply.

We are managing all current recruitment directly and kindly request that agencies do not contact us regarding open positions.

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 Paxman Academy

• School type: Free School, ages 11 to 16
• Education phase: Secondary
• School size: 886 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 11 to 16
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report
• School website: Paxman Academy website
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/paxman-academy

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