19 days remaining to apply

  • Start date details

    January 2027 or sooner

  • Closing date

    12 October 2026 at 9am

  • Date listed

    23 September 2026

Job details

Job role

  • Other support role

Visa sponsorship

Visas cannot be sponsored

Working pattern

Part time

Contract type

Fixed term

Full time equivalent salary

£30,023.00 Annually (FTE) SCP salary scale 13-15 depending on experience (actual pro-rata salary based on SCP13 £23,801pa).

Senior Science Technician (temporary maternity contract) job summary

About The Wren

At The Wren, we challenge ourselves to become better day by day: driving our school community forward so that we can offer our students an exceptional education. We are not a school that will sit still. We are restless and will be bold. We share an ambitious and inspirational vision which motivates us, and our students, to be the best we can be, ensuring that;

‘Each child, regardless of background will receive a world-class education and be nurtured, challenged and inspired to aim high.’

Our rich and purposeful curriculum offers an extensive blend of academic and practical opportunities which challenge and inspire our students to explore, discover and learn new things. We have a relentless focus on Quality First Teaching and Learning, with an exceptional team who are committed to creating ‘Inspirational Classrooms.’ To facilitate this, we expect and encourage the highest standards of attitude, behaviour and commitment from staff and students alike.

As part of Excalibur Academies Trust, we benefit from shared expertise and strong governance, whilst maintaining our own unique identity, values and deep community focus.

The Role

We are seeking to appoint a Senior Science Technician who will work closely with the Science department to provide technical support and to help contribute to the students learning experience by assisting with the preparation of materials and scientific apparatus for practical work. The post holder will be able to demonstrate a ‘can do’ flexible attitude, the ability to think ahead and outside the box; this will be important to this role as each day can provide a variety of challenges, from supporting the provision of cover lessons, negotiating the use of equipment between members of the department and preparing complex practical lessons.

This role is central to supporting the Science Department on so many levels. It is a very diverse role and you will have the opportunity to develop many skills and get involved in lots of different aspects of the Science Department.

Please see The Wren's Recruitment Brochure below for full details of the responsibilities and expectations of this role.

Please check the Person Specification for the qualifications that are listed as Essential for this role. You will be required to show these qualifications if you are successful.

Benefits

Support on Continuous Professional Development (CPD)

Supportive colleagues and SLT

Eager and motivated students

Excellent Pension Scheme (Teachers & LGPS for support and Shared Services staff)

Employee Assistance Programme

Free on-site parking & Cycle to Work Scheme

Free Eye Tests

Career development opportunities within school and across the Trust

Flexible Family Friendly Policies

Note: Applicants will be considered as received. Should a suitable candidate be identified, we may close the vacancy early.

In the first instance we would welcome your application via My New Term. However, if you are unable to complete the application on this platform, please contact the team using recruitment@wren.excalibur.org.uk and we will be able to issue a Word version of the application form for completion and return by the deadline. Unfortunately, in line with Safer Recruitment, we are unable to accept CVs.

If you would like to find out more about working at The Wren, please follow this link to the recruitment pages on our website Vacancies - The Wren

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.

View advert on external website (opens in new tab)

About The WREN School

Organisation type
Free School, ages 11 to 19
Education phase
Secondary school
Size
931 pupils enrolled
Age range
11 to 19
Ofsted report
View Ofsted report

The Wren School is a thriving and growing 11-18 secondary school based in the heart of the local community. Reading is a vibrant town with a thriving centre sited on the River Thames and River Kennet. A historic market town with many shops and restaurants and fantastic opportunities to explore a huge number of local and regional attractions. The school is situated in West Reading, with easy access to the M4 and excellent rail links to London and across the country.

Our first cohort of Year 7 students arrived in September 2015 and we moved into our state of the art, modern buildings in September 2018. These fantastic buildings provide us with spacious and well-equipped learning environments that inspire our students to continue to strive for excellence. In September 2020, we were delighted to welcome our first Sixth Form cohort as our school continues to grow and develop. We were very proud that in June 2018, after our first Ofsted inspection, we achieved a ‘Good’ rating; we were described as, “a school that enables pupils to succeed” and it endorsed the journey we are on. You can view a copy of the report here.

As a school, we value community cohesion and are proud to be part of the Excalibur Academies Trust and its excellent network of schools. Founded in 2012, EAT is a multi-academy trust that prides itself on a special blend of independence and collaboration. Their vision is to provide an excellent education empowering individuals to thrive and grow within a caring, aspirational and outward looking culture. They believe in investing in staff to ensure they attract and retain talented, dedicated people who are committed to changing children’s lives for the better. With a strong track record of raising the achievement of disadvantaged pupils across the trust, it is their mission to promote social mobility and personal fulfilment through the transformative power of education.

Our rich and purposeful curriculum offers a wide mix of academic and practical opportunities. We challenge our students to explore, discover and learn new things, and inspire them to dream and think big. We aim to create independent, creative and confident individuals who are skilled and ready for the world, and resilient to the challenges they might face.
We have an unremitting focus on quality first teaching and learning, with an exceptional staff team who are committed to creating our ‘Wren Inspirational Classrooms’. We expect and encourage the highest standards of attitude, behaviour and commitment from staff and students alike.

Our students follow a three year Key Stage 3, studying a wide range of subjects to prepare them for Year 9 - a year of choice and decision-making about GCSE subjects and the next stage of their educational journey. All students will have the opportunity to select a personalised combination of subjects that will allow them to reach for success at the end of Key Stage 4 in Year 11. We hope that each student's journey with us continues into our sixth form where we provide a range of qualifications to meet their needs and open up opportunities as they step into the world of work or continue onto further study at university.

School location

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