Subject Leader – PE (Male)
Heckmondwike Grammar School, Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire, WF16 0AHThis job expired on 13 March 2026
Job start date
1 September 2026
Closing date
13 March 2026 at 9am
Date listed
27 February 2026
Job details
Job role
- Head of department or curriculum
Visa sponsorship
- Visas cannot be sponsored
Key stage
- Key stage 3, Key stage 4, Key stage 5
Subject
- Physical education
Working pattern
- Full time
Contract type
- Permanent
Pay scale
- Commensurate with skills and experience
Additional allowances
TLR 2c (£8,611)
What skills and experience we're looking for
Are you an innovative, enthusiastic, and passionate PE Teacher and Leader?
Then this will be the job for you.
This post provides a unique opportunity to work within a high-performing and growing 11 to 18 grammar school with a large sixth-form and exceptionalstudents.
We are proud to be Secondary School of the Year for Academic Excellence 2025, Ranked No 1 in the North of England - The Sunday Times Schools Guide 2025.
Due to the nature of this role, there is a Genuine Occupational Requirement for the post holder to be male, in accordance with the Equality Act 2010. This is to ensure that the supervision of changing facilities are fulfilled appropriately, within a relatively small team and ensure there is enough capacity/contingency when the other male team member is absent.
Department Information
Physical Education is a thriving and successful curriculum area within the school. The Physical Education Department consists of three full-time and two part-time specialist teachers, in addition to a member of the Senior Leadership Team who teaches within the department, all working under the direction of the Subject Leader. We aim to be reflective practitioners, delivering lessons that are varied and engaging, with high standards of teaching and learning.
The department makes use of excellent indoor and outdoor facilities including a sports hall and a dedicated table tennis activity space. We also benefit from a fully functional, state-of-the-art fitness gym with a mezzanine level, with plans for this area to be further developed to support wellbeing-based physical activity and exercise.
The school site includes a full-size Multi-Use Games Area (MUGA) astro turf pitch which is used for a range of activities including hockey, football and netball, as well as hard-court areas for netball and tennis. Our tennis courts are currently in the process of redevelopment and will include a covered area to further enhance provision. A short distance from the school are extensive playing fields with three football pitches, one rugby pitch and a training area. In the summer term, a 400m track and throwing areas are marked for athletics.
The department is well resourced with suitable equipment for a range of activities and excellent ICT resources are available across the school, including interactive whiteboards in every classroom.
In Key Stage 3, pupils follow a customised curriculum organised over a two-week timetable covering the national requirements for Physical Education. In Years 7 and 8, pupils receive a 2-hour lesson every week taught in single gender and mixed ability groups covering dance, gymnastics, orienteering, multi skills, invasion games, badminton, fitness, athletics, tennis and striking/fielding games.
In Key Stage 4, all students receive three hours of Physical Education over two weeks and also have the option to take GCSE Physical Education following the AQA GCSE full course specification.
In the Sixth Form, the department offers A-Level Physical Education following the OCR specification. Results at both GCSE and A Level are excellent.
The department also runs an extensive programme of extra-curricular activities, fixtures and trips during the school year. School teams and individual performers achieve regular success at District, County and National level, as well as regular internal House competitions in major sports. These include a House athletics sports day and swimming gala. The Duke of Edinburgh’s Award is very popular, with Year 10 students completing the Bronze Award and Sixth Form students undertaking the Silver and Gold Awards.
We take great pride in providing our students with a first-class education and instilling them with a love of learning.
We would like to appoint an outstanding Subject Leader of PE. The department is always looking at ways of developing its curriculum and widening the experience for students so expert subject knowledge and a passion to lead extra-curricular activities in PE are highly desirable.
You will need to:
- believe in our school values of Respect, Responsibility and Excellence and follow our school ethos embedded in our motto of ‘Nil Sine Labore’ - Nothing Without Work
- be a reflective practitioner wanting to develop and hone your craft to the highest level
- be an inspirational teacher who builds excellent relationships and motivates students
Responsibilities
Specific responsibilities are outlined in a detailed job description.
In addition to this, teachers at Heckmondwike Grammar School are expected to be effective and reflective professionals who challenge and support all pupils to achieve their best. They should:
- Inspire confidence, build team commitment, and engage and motivate students.
- Think analytically about their work and take positive action to improve the quality of pupils’ learning.
- Encourage high standards of academic and personal achievement.
- Act as positive role models for students.
- Contribute actively to the policies and aspirations of the school and the PE department.
What You Will Bring to the Role
- A degree in a relevant discipline and a recognised teaching qualification.
- Up-to-date knowledge of the11-18 curriculum and educational best practices.
- Detailed knowledge of pedagogical practice in relation to Teaching and Learning.
- Skilled classroom practitioner.
- Highly effective communication skills.
- Ability to lead, manage and inspire colleagues.
- Ability to form good working relationships and influence others.
- Capacity to evaluate and improve.
- A strong classroom presence with the ability to inspire and motivate students from KS3 to KS5.
- High level of skill in dealing with issues relating to student behaviour.
- Ability to analyse performance data.
- Effective ICT skills and an understanding of how technology can enhance teaching and learning.
- A willingness to contribute to extracurricular activities and the wider school community.
- Confidence in contributing to curriculum development, including schemes of work and teaching materials.
- Passionate belief in the ability of every student to achieve.
- A clear educational vision and sense of direction.
- Good organisational skills and high levels of self-motivation.
- Ability to work under pressure and to meet deadlines.
- Energy, enthusiasm, and a passion for PE.
- A suitability to work with children, with a commitment to safeguarding and student well-being.
Why Should You Apply?
Heckmondwike Grammar School is a unique learning environment, home to students who are eager to learn, ambitious in their aspirations, and keen to make the most of their educational experience.
We take pride in:
- Our diverse school community, which consistently achieves exceptional results.
- A school culture that supports students' academic success and personal development.
- Strong relationships between staff and students, creating a positive learning environment.
- High expectations, which drive students to excel.
What the school offers its staff
What We Offer
- Motivated, ambitious studentswho are eager to learn and succeed.
- A supportive and creative teamdedicated to student progress.
- Well-equipped, specialist classroomsto enhance teaching and learning.
- A learning-centred schoolwhere best practice is a priority.
- Comprehensive CPD opportunitiesto support professional development and career progression.
- A vibrant, collaborative communityof like-minded professionals.
We also offer:
- A competitive salary.
- Membership of the Teachers’ Pension Scheme.
- A range of well-being benefits.
We look forward to receiving your application
Further information about the job
Protection of children:
Disclosure of criminal background of those with access to children.
All posts involving direct contact with children are exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. However, amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975 (2013 & 2020) provide that certain convictions and cautions are ‘protected’. These are not subject to disclosure to employers and cannot be taken into account. Guidance and criteria on the filtering of these cautions and convictions can be found on https://www.gov.uk/government/organisations/ministry-of-justice.
Shortlisted candidates will be asked to provide details of unspent convictions and those that would not be filtered prior to the date of the interview. You may be asked for further information about your criminal history during the recruitment process. If your application is successful, this self-disclosure information will be checked against information from the Disclosure and Barring Service before your appointment is confirmed.
Safeguarding Statement:
Heckmondwike Grammar School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of its students and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
Full details regarding our Safeguarding Procedures can be found on our website in the
Safeguarding section, alternatively, please contact Recruitment to obtain a copy.
Commitment to safeguarding
Safeguarding Statement:
Heckmondwike Grammar School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of its
students and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment.
Full details regarding our Safeguarding Procedures can be found on our website in the Safeguarding section, alternatively, please contact Recruitment to obtain a copy.
Additional documents
If you need these documents in an accessible format, please contact the school.
About Heckmondwike Grammar School
- Organisation type
- Academy, ages 11 to 18
- Education phase
- Secondary school
- Size
- 1522 pupils enrolled
- Age range
- 11 to 18
- Ofsted report
- View Ofsted report
- Email address
- djepsonnorth@heckgrammar.co.uk
Heckmondwike Grammar School is a unique school, with students who are eager to learn, keen to know more and want to enjoy their educational experiences. It is exceptional in many ways: a very diverse school community that produces results of the highest quality. We work effectively with our young people, really care about them and their futures and have an ultimate success measure of enabling them to proceed to where they want to go. Excellent relationships between staff and students are the norm, expectations are high and students perform very well as a consequence.
We are delighted to have been named “Secondary School of the Year”, in the North of England, for 2024 and 2025 in the Sunday Times Parent Power Guide. This is a measure of school performance for GCSE and A level outcomes.
At GCSE our students typically exceed government set target grades by more than 1 grade in each subject and we are ranked second nationally for state coeducational schools.
At A level, we rank in the top 20% of providers nationally for grades AAB or above and typically 3 times the national average of our students attend Oxbridge universities.
We are very proud of our academic heritage.
Misbehaviour is rare; and excellent relationships between staff and students are the norm: teachers are able to ‘get on and teach’. Working here is still challenging, however, but in different ways: expectations are high and potential applicants will need to be able to operate effectively in a top performing environment. However, one of the principal joys of working at this school is our eloquent and motivated students. Consequently, outcomes are amongst the very best in the country, and this is the result of able cohorts being provided with high quality teaching that is supported by strong pastoral care for each student. The school is justifiably proud of the focus on academic attainment and knowledge of each individual that enables education to be tailored to every student’s needs; but also prioritises the support it provides to enable any barriers to progress to be addressed. The focus is and will always remain teaching and learning in the classroom, with staff training and development being the main means of achieving this end.
The school is very popular and heavily oversubscribed, with well over 1500 students applying for entry into Year 7 each year, competing for one of 210 places. Post 16, we are similarly oversubscribed with around 800 applications for one of approximately 225 places in year 12. The majority of our year 11 students continue into the sixth form and are joined by a number of similarly aspirant students from across the region.
We work in partnership with an extensive group of schools, including the Northern Grammar School Alliance (NGSA), and have a significant reputation both locally and nationally. This means we offer our staff opportunities to be involved in professional development on a larger scale and see it as a sign of our high quality when members of our community are promoted to posts elsewhere, or progress internally. As a result, all staff feel very privileged to work here and to work with our young people.
Further information about the school including main school and sixth form prospectus may be found on the school website at www.heckgrammar.co.uk
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