Trust Vice Principal

Heartwood Learning Trust, York, YO30 6ZS

42 days remaining to apply

• Start date details

  1 September 2026

• Closing date

  27 April 2026 at 12:59am

• Date listed

  16 March 2026

Job details

• Job role:
  • Other leadership roles
• Visa sponsorship: Visas cannot be sponsored
• Working pattern: Full time
• Contract type: Permanent
• Full-time equivalent salary: £76,772.00 - £82,654.00 Annually (Actual) Leadership Points 17 to 20

Trust Vice Principal job summary

We have exciting new roles for leaders who want to make a difference. Heartwood Learning Trust has fourteen academies located within York, Hull and North Yorkshire. Our Trust comprises six secondary, six primary and two alternative provision academies.
We are seeking to appoint three Trust Vice Principals who are aligned with our mission to provide environments where children and young people can thrive and our values Respect, Teamwork and Kindness. We are very excited to offer the opportunity to play a key role in ensuring that we support our pupils, colleagues and school communities to be given opportunities so that they can live life in all its fullness, now and in the future.

We particularly welcome applications from colleagues with:

• a successful track record in pastoral leadership and/or improving outcomes

• experience of SEND/inclusion leadership

• experience of leading teaching through deliberate practice

The job holder will be appointed to one or more of our schools to enhance the existing senior leadership team and will work on projects across the Trust. The duration of placements will be based on the school/academy needs. Job holders will work in accordance with the requirements of the placement assigned by the Executive Director of Education and will provide strategic and operational support to the Principal of the assigned school by providing strong leadership and management, promoting the vision for the Trust and helping to develop and communicate a clear strategic vision.
You will be given the opportunity to develop your leadership experience over a variety of schools and within the central school improvement team to prepare you for future headship opportunities.

Part-time working will be considered

We would strongly recommend, prior to application, an informal chat about this role with our Chief Executive Officer, Helen Winn. Visits to the schools can be arranged. To schedule a call and/or a visit, please email your request to recruitment@hlt.academy to arrange this.

We are seeking to appoint experienced senior leaders with:

• A proven track record of securing school improvement;

• A proven track record of positively impacting disadvantaged pupils

• Experience of using relevant data to drive school improvement and leading school initiatives or staff teams

• Experience of working and bringing about positive change in a challenging context.

• High expectations when managing, developing, inspiring, challenging and motivating staff.

• Exceptional people skills with a positive “can do” attitude

• Evidence of applying safe recruitment practices and developing a safe culture in school

• An understanding, awareness and empathy for the needs of the pupils

• Evidence of continuing professional development and/or personal development.

• Ability to travel freely across all schools within the Trust

Successful candidates when not assigned to one school/academy will be required to travel across our schools, to work in key areas. This agility and the breadth of our Trust Vice Principal role enables us to place the successful candidate into a school/academy based on emerging needs and combine this with the skill set of the candidate to drive rapid improvement.

We can offer:

• Experienced and supportive leadership with a collaborative approach and an appreciative culture

• An established, experienced and strong central team that works closely with stakeholders across our schools/academies.

• A commitment to continuing professional development

• Structured support to unlock talent, backed by a collaborative approach and an appreciative culture,

• Teachers Pension Scheme

• Employee Assistance Programme

• Cycle to Work scheme

Job Details

Hours of Work: 1.0 FTE

Position Type: Permanent Post

Line Manager: Executive Director of Education or Designated Principal

Travel Required: Yes

The salary is dependent on current qualifications and experience, please see the attached job description for more information.

Application Process

Please complete the online application form to apply for this role. All candidates are advised to refer to the job description and person specification before making an application. You should use the information supplied with in the Job Description & Person Specification to make the best of your application by identifying some specific pieces of work you may have undertaken in any of these areas. Your application may be viewed in regard to some or all of the skill specific areas over the course of the selection process. Applications via agencies will not be considered.

Interviews will take place on 30th April & 1st May 2026

We are committed to safeguarding and protecting our children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All posts are subject to a safer recruitment process which includes enhanced criminal records and barring checks, scrutiny of employment history, robust referencing and other vetting checks.

Our safeguarding system is underpinned by a range of policies and procedures which encourage and promote safe working practice across the Trust. On joining you will be required to undergo continuous professional development to maintain safe working practice and to safeguard our children and young people.

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

Hope Sentamu Learning Trust is committed to safeguarding and protecting our children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All posts are subject to a safer recruitment process which includes enhanced criminal records and barring checks, scrutiny of employment history, robust referencing and other vetting checks.

Our safeguarding system is underpinned by a range of policies and procedures which encourage and promote safe working practice across the Trust. On joining you will be required to undergo continuous professional development to maintain safe working practice and to safeguard our children and young people.

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 Heartwood Learning Trust

• Type: Multi-academy trust
• See more jobs: teaching-vacancies.service.gov.uk/organisations/hope-sentamu-learning-trust

Thank you for showing an interest in joining our community of schools at Hope Sentamu Learning Trust.

Our vision is really very simple. We aspire to provide a place children and young people can thrive - life in all its fullness, a place to thrive. Our values are Kindness, Respect and Teamwork.

Here are our commitments:
A respectful and inclusive community, with a culture of thankfulness and appreciation, where we celebrate equality and diversity.
High quality first teaching across all of our schools, in every learning session, without exception.
A broad and balanced educational offer which develops all pupils academically, practically, emotionally, socially and spiritually, leading to great outcomes.
Resilient, sustainable and ethical leadership at all levels of the organisation.

Our Trust comprises of primary and secondary schools as well as alternative provisions. We are a community of fourteen schools, located across York, Hull and North Yorkshire. Our schools are supported by a central operations team and a central school improvement team.

Each one of our schools has its own distinctive character, identity and strengths which it brings to the table so that we all benefit from each other. Collaboration is at the heart of the way that we work across the Trust as every school has something to give and every school needs some help. This resonates with our Trust vision and values.

We are a new Trust, following a recent merger between Hope Learning Trust and Sentamu Academy Learning Trust in September 2021, so this is a very exciting time in our development. I am a big believer in building strong foundations so that we can concentrate on providing the best possible experiences and provision for the children and young people. It makes sense for us to do some things consistently so that we can do the basics really well. Colleagues from across the Trust have the opportunity to get involved in the development of Trust strategy so that our consistent ways of working and areas that we have alignment are developed at grass roots level. We see the alignment of key strategies across the Trust as an ever growing strength and way forward. This approach will get stronger and stronger as we develop and provides excellent career development opportunities for colleagues in all roles at all levels. Our school leaders play an important role in promoting a positive and collaborative culture across the Trust whilst delivering on the key Trust strategies within their schools.

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