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Headteacher

Oxford Gardens Primary School, London, W10 6NF

18 days remaining to apply

• Start date details

  As soon as possible

• Closing date

  6 March 2026 at 8am

• Date listed

  13 February 2026

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: Monday to Friday. Full Time
• Contract type: Permanent
• Pay scale: L16 to L20

What skills and experience we're looking for

HEADTEACHER – SKILLS & EXPERIENCE PROFILE

1. Strategic Leadership & Alignment

We are looking for someone who:

• Can articulate and enact a clear educational intent • Understands system leadership within a federation model • Can align school-level priorities to partnership pillars • Is comfortable operating within shared non-negotiables • Can balance autonomy with collective accountability

Experience:

• Successful senior leadership in a complex setting • Evidence of leading improvement through clarity, not initiative overload • Experience of working beyond a single-school mindset

2. Quality of Education & Curriculum Coherence

Skills:

• Deep understanding of curriculum design and sequencing • Ability to evaluate curriculum beyond surface outcomes • Confidence leading professional dialogue and challenge • Understanding of progression, inclusion and knowledge entitlement

Experience:

• Leading curriculum development and evaluation • Driving improvement in teaching quality • Preparing for or leading successful inspection

3. Inclusion, SEND & Early Intervention

Skills:

• Strong grasp of graduated approach and adaptive teaching • Belief in inclusion as aspiration, not deficit • Ability to balance high SEND demand with strategic capacity • Confidence working with external agencies

Experience:

• Leading SEND provision or overseeing complex inclusion • Managing high EHCP or disadvantaged cohorts • Demonstrable impact on vulnerable learners

4. People, Culture & Distributed Leadership

Skills:

• Builds relational trust • Develops others deliberately • Clarifies roles and decision rights • Reduces person-dependence • Coaches rather than rescues

Experience:

• Growing middle leaders • Leading staff through change • Evidence of sustainable workforce practices

5. Governance & Accountability

Skills:

• Comfortable with governor challenge • Understands line-of-sight without over-reporting • Can communicate complex information clearly • Uses leading indicators, not just outcomes

Experience:

• Reporting to governing boards • Managing risk and escalation • Demonstrable financial awareness

6. Community & Partnership Orientation

Skills:

• Sees school as part of a wider ecosystem • Builds purposeful partnerships • Engages community voice • Understands deprivation and social context

Experience:

• Community engagement initiatives • Cross-agency collaboration • Family engagement strategies

7. Personal Qualities

You want someone who is:

• Calm under complexity • Ethically grounded • Values-led • Comfortable with transparency • Strategic but not abstract • Reflective and open to challenge

What the school offers its staff

1. Partnership, Not Isolation

You will not lead alone.

As part of Connected Futures Partnership, you will work within a values-led federation where:

• Executive leadership provides strategic clarity and direction • Heads of School collaborate regularly, not competitively • Subject and inclusion networks operate across settings • Professional dialogue replaces silos • Shared principles reduce duplication and noise

You will lead your school with autonomy, but within a coherent partnership that strengthens decision-making and reduces fragility.

2. Strategic Support with Clear Guardrails

We provide:

• A clear three-horizon strategy • Defined decision rights and governance structures • Shared non-negotiables that reduce initiative overload • Disciplined systems for evaluation and early warning • Executive coaching and challenge

You will not be left to firefight in isolation. You will be supported to lead strategically, not reactively.

3. Strong Inclusion Infrastructure

In a high-SEND and high-complexity context, we offer:

• Established graduated approaches • Federation-wide SEND collaboration • Strong links with Family Hub and early intervention services • Expertise that can be drawn upon across settings • A culture that frames inclusion as aspiration, not deficit

This reduces person-dependence and builds sustainability.

4. Professional Growth and Leadership Development

We invest deliberately in talent.

You will benefit from:

• Access to cross-federation leadership networks • Coaching culture embedded at senior level • Opportunities to lead beyond your own setting • Structured succession pathways • Exposure to strategic system-level thinking

For ambitious leaders, this is a platform — not a ceiling.

5. Governance That Is Strategic, Not Performative

We offer:

• Clear committee structures aligned to pillars • Governors who understand early years and inclusion • Line-of-sight reporting without excessive data burden • Strategic challenge rooted in shared language

This creates accountability without bureaucracy.

6. A Values-Led Culture

You will join a partnership that prioritises:

• Children and families first • Relational trust • High aspiration in challenging contexts • Transparency and integrity • Sustainable workload and workforce wellbeing

We deliberately avoid initiative overload. We sequence improvement. We build capacity rather than dependency.

7. Opportunity for Responsible Growth

Connected Futures is entering a disciplined growth phase.

For the right leader, this means:

• Opportunity to influence federation-wide practice • Scope to shape system development • Exposure to partnership and community strategy • Potential future executive pathways

This is a leadership ecosystem, not a single-site role.

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

Please complete the online application.

CVs will not be accepted for this application.

About Oxford Gardens Primary School

• School type: Local authority maintained school, ages 3 to 11
• Education phase: Primary school
• School size: 225 pupils enrolled
• Age range: 3 to 11
• Ofsted report: View Ofsted report
• School website: Oxford Gardens Primary School website
• Email address: head@queensparkschool.co.uk
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/oxford-gardens-primary-school

Oxford Gardens Primary School – London, W10 6NF
Are you a passionate and innovative KS2 teacher ready to make a meaningful impact? Join Oxford Gardens Primary School, a vibrant and inclusive learning community in the heart of North Kensington, where creativity, high standards, and pupil wellbeing are at the core of our ethos.

About Us
At Oxford Gardens, we are committed to nurturing confident, independent, and successful learners. Our rich and varied curriculum encourages creativity and innovation, enabling our pupils to achieve their aspirations. We pride ourselves on our inclusive environment, where every child is supported to thrive academically, socially, and emotionally.

Arranging a visit to Oxford Gardens Primary School

To arrange a visit and increase the chance of a successful application email head@queensparkschool.co.uk.

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