Headteacher

Our Lady and St Edward's Catholic Primary School, Birkenhead, Merseyside, CH41 8DU

7 days remaining to apply

Job start date
1 September 2024
Closing date
13 May 2024 at 12pm (midday)
Date listed
11 April 2024

Job details

Job role: Headteacher
Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
Key stage: Early years, Key stage 1, Key stage 2
Working pattern: Full time: 36
Contract type: Permanent
Pay scale: L18 - L24

What skills and experience we're looking for

Headteacher Job Description

Catholic Voluntary Aided Schools

Our Lady and St. Edward’s Catholic Primary School

Introduction

The school has been designated by the Secretary of State as a school with a religious character. Its Instrument of Government states that it is part of the Catholic Church and is to be conducted as a Catholic school in accordance with Canon Law, the teachings of the Catholic Church and the diocesan trust deed. At all times the school is to serve as a witness to the Catholic faith in Our Lord Jesus Christ. The post is therefore reserved for a practicing Catholic who can show by example and from experience that he or she will ensure that the school is distinctively Catholic in all its aspects.

This appointment is made by the governing body of the school and is subject to the terms of the Catholic Education Service contract signed with the governors as employers; the current conditions of service for Headteacher contained in the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions document as well as all other current education and employment legislation and statutory guidance.

This job description is based on the key areas identified in the National Standards for Headteacher (2020). These standards are in turn built upon the Teaching Standards (2012) which apply to all teachers, including Headteacher.

The governing body and the diocese acknowledge the importance of the role of the Catholic Headteacher and will actively offer continuing support, encouragement, affirmation and realistic challenge to the successful candidate.

The governing body is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. The Headteacher must ensure that the highest priority is given to following the guidance and regulations relating to safeguarding and child protection. Appointment is conditional upon receipt of satisfactory Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks in relation to criminal and child protection matters.

A. The Core Purpose of the Headteacher

The core purpose of the Headteacher is to provide professional leadership and management of the school. This will promote a secure foundation from which to achieve high standards in all areas of the school’s work. To gain this success, a Headteacher must establish high quality education by effectively managing teaching and learning and using personalised learning to realise the potential of all pupils. The Headteacher must establish a culture that promotes excellence, equality and high expectations of all pupils. This will include ensuring that religious education is in accordance with the teachings, doctrines, discipline and general and particular norms of the Catholic Church.

The ‘preferred future’, expressed in the strategic vision and development of a Catholic school, stems from the educational mission of the Church, which is reflected in the school’s mission statement and school improvement plan.

The Headteacher, working with the governing body and others, is expected to draw on the person, life and teachings of Jesus Christ to create a shared vision and strategic plan, which inspires and motivates pupils, staff and all other members of the community. The vision should explore Gospel values, core educational values and moral purpose and be inclusive of stakeholders’ values and beliefs.

The Headteacher is the leading professional in the school. Accountable to the governing body, the Headteacher provides vision, leadership and direction for the school and ensures that it is managed and organised to meet its aims and targets. The Headteacher, working with others, is responsible for evaluating the school’s performance to identify the priorities for continuous improvement and raising standards; ensuring equality of opportunity for all; developing policies and practices; ensuring that resources are efficiently and effectively used to achieve the school’s aims and objectives and for the day-to-day management, organisation and administration of the school.

The Headteacher, working with and through others, secures the commitment of the wider community to the school by developing and maintaining effective partnerships with, for example, schools, other services and agencies for children, parishes, the diocese, the local authority, higher education institutions and employers. Through such partnerships and other activities, the Headteacher plays a key role in contributing to the development of the education system as a whole and collaborating with others to raise standards locally.

Drawing on the support provided by members of the school community, the Headteacher is responsible for creating a productive learning environment which is engaging and fulfilling for all pupils.

B. The Headteacher Standards 2020

The Headteacher will:

1. Recognise the authority of the bishop in relation to the provision of education in the diocese and work within the school and parish community to create and promote an educational vision and values for the school which take account of the school’s Catholic mission and of the diversity, values and experiences of the school and the community it serves.

2. Hold and articulate clear Catholic values and moral purpose focused on providing a world-class education for the pupils they serve and reflecting the Catholic foundation of the school.

3. Demonstrate optimistic personal behaviour, positive relationships and attitudes towards their pupils and staff, and towards parents, governors and members of the local church and wider community.

4. Lead by example, with integrity, creativity, resilience, and clarity, drawing on their scholarship, expertise and skills and that of those around them.

5. Sustain wide, current knowledge and understanding of education and school systems locally, nationally and globally, and pursue continuous professional development that reflects the needs of a Catholic school.

6. Work with political and financial astuteness, within a clear set of principles centred on the school's Catholic vision, ably translating local, national and diocesan policy into the school's context.

7. Communicate compellingly the school’s vision and drive the strategic leadership, empowering all pupils and staff to excel thus ensuring a culture of high staff professionalism.

In accordance with the school’s Catholic ethos, the Headteacher will:

1. Demand ambitious standards of achievement and attendance for all pupils, overcoming disadvantage and advancing equality, instilling a strong sense of accountability in staff for the impact of their work on pupils' outcomes. Ensure high quality personal, social, health education and citizenship in accordance with the teachings and doctrines of the Catholic Church. Ensure quality provision for pupils’ spiritual, moral, social and cultural education in line with the distinctive Catholic nature, purpose and aims of the school.

2. Secure excellent teaching through an analytical understanding of how pupils learn and of the core features of successful classroom practice and curriculum design, leading to rich curriculum opportunities and pupils' well-being, taking full account of the school’s Catholic foundation.

3. Establish an educational culture of "open classrooms" as a basis for sharing best practice within and between schools, drawing on and conducting relevant research and robust data analysis.

4. Create an ethos based on Catholic values within which all staff are motivated and supported to develop their own skills and subject knowledge, and to support each other.

5. Identify emerging talents, coaching current and aspiring leaders in a climate where excellence is the standard, leading to clear succession planning. Hold all staff to account for their professional conduct and practice.

In accordance with the school’s Catholic ethos, the Headteacher will:

1. Ensure that the school's systems, organisation and processes are well-considered, efficient and fit for purpose, upholding the principles of transparency, integrity and probity within the Catholic context. Ensure arrangements for the daily Act of Collective Worship and the spiritual life of the school. Ensure the diocesan policy for Religious Education and RSHE are fulfilled.

2. Provide a safe, calm and well-ordered environment for all pupils and staff, focused on safeguarding pupils and developing their exemplary behaviour in school and in the wider society.

3. Establish rigorous, fair and transparent systems and measures for managing the performance of all staff, addressing any under-performance, supporting staff to improve and valuing excellent practice.

4. Welcome strong governance and actively support the governing body to understand its role and deliver its functions effectively – in particular its functions to set school strategy and hold the Headteacher to account for pupil, staff and financial performance.

5. Exercise strategic, curriculum-led financial planning to ensure the equitable deployment of budgets and resources, in the best interests of pupils' achievements, the school's sustainability and its Catholic character.

6. Distribute leadership throughout the organisation, forging teams of colleagues who have distinct roles and responsibilities and hold each other to account for their decision making.

Working in a spirit of collaboration to secure Catholic principles of equity and entitlement, the Headteacher will:

1. Create an outward-facing school which works with other schools, organisations and the local community, in a climate of mutual challenge, to champion best practice and secure excellent achievements for all pupils. Build a school culture and curriculum based on Gospel values, the teaching of Jesus Christ and the Catholic Church, which take account of the richness and diversity of the school’s communities.

2. Develop effective relationships with fellow professionals, colleagues in other public services, parents/carers and the parish community to improve academic and social outcomes for all pupils.

3. Challenge educational orthodoxies in the best interests of achieving excellence, harnessing the findings of well-evidenced research to frame self-regulating and self-improving schools.

4. Shape the current and future quality of the teaching profession through high quality training and sustained professional development of all staff.

5. In the context of the school’s Catholic ethos, model entrepreneurial and innovative approaches to school improvement, leadership and governance, confident of the vital contribution of internal and external accountability.

6. Inspire and influence others, within and beyond schools, to believe in the fundamental importance of education in young people's lives and to promote the value of education especially within a Catholic context.

This job description forms part of the contract of employment of the person appointed to the post. It reflects the position at the present time only and may be reviewed in negotiation with the employee in the future. The appointment is subject to the current conditions of employment in the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document as they relate to Headteacher.

What the school offers its staff

We offer:

A highly inclusive, popular and successful school set in heart of the community
Happy children who love their school and all it offers to them
A hard working, dedicated and highly skilled staff team
Continued professional development for the headteacher and all school staff
An experienced and knowledgeable governing board who are committed to supporting the school effectively

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.