Head of Secondary

Head of Secondary Vacancy 

 August 2024 start 

Job Description for Head of Secondary 

For all staff in school we share a responsibility to ensure that children are safe and properly supervised at all times. Our school is committed to ‘amazing learning’- providing enjoyable and meaningful learning experiences so that every pupil makes as much progress as possible. All staff are expected to adhere to The Aquila Professional Code of Conduct and commit to promoting our vision – ‘A happy community school with amazing learning at its heart where pupils are empowered to make choices, engage in meaningful learning experiences and make exceptional progress’. Our focus is providing children with amazing learning and to be the school of choice for the community we serve. 

The Aquila School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All post holders are subject to appropriate vetting procedures and satisfactory Criminal Background Checks or equivalent covering the previous 10 years’ employment history. 

Key qualities and skills: 

• To be able to teach in an enjoyable, creative, and inclusive way, promoting independence, so that every child makes as much progress as possible
• To be an inspirational leader
• To be able to contribute and lead on significant areas of school improvement and management
• To be able to develop positive working relationships and gain the confidence and respect of all members of the school community
• To be incredibly well organised with an eye for detail and an ability to work quickly and accurately
• To be able to use initiative, be flexible, fun, proactive and positive
• To understand the importance and notion of “one school”       

Core purposes: 

• To share the leadership of the school to ensure it remains a successful, stimulating and inclusive learning community
• To be accountable for ensuring that children are inspired, motivated and equipped to make as much progress with their learning as possible through ‘real learning’.
• To work collaboratively with colleagues and families to make The Aquila School the school of choice within the community.

Key duties include:

Key Duties for all teachers: 

• To ensure children are safe and well cared for at all times
• To plan and deliver creative and engaging lessons, ensuring that children are actively learning throughout each lesson and that every child makes as much progress as possible
• To ensure effective communication and direct the work of others, as appropriate
• To lead CAS activities, participating and leading staff training and contributing to the establishment and development of the school community
• To comply with our agreed policies and Aquila Ways
• To actively engage with our school community e.g. through newsletters, informal dialogue, reporting, supporting school functions and contributing to community and marketing activities
• To actively participate in the performance management process of self and others
• To be involved in improving learning across the school as a subject leader

Key qualities and skills for Head of Secondary: 

• To be a credible leader with a wide range of secondary teaching and leadership experience
• To be able to lead learning so that lessons across secondary are engaging and relevant, involve pupil choice and enable every child to make as much progress as possible and achieve high outcomes
• To be able to plan and implement the future for secondary in our school to ensure the highest possible outcomes for pupils

Key Duties for Head of Secondary 

• Building relationships and showing credibility as a leader – especially of teaching and learning
• Ensuring outcomes for all children are as high as possible
• Improving teaching – especially for teachers who are not yet consistently good.
• Making sure that the pathways and curriculum on offer for all year groups in secondary are aligned with pupil interest, local requirements and the school budget
• Ensuring the staffing and leadership structure is appropriate to enable us to raise standards and improve outcomes so that there can be a significant number of uplifts in the next DSIB inspection
• To minimize the number of leaving pupils and to maximize the number of joiners – working alongside the marketing and admissions team
• To ensure a smooth transition into the new secondary building
• To get to grips with The Aquila Way
• To be visible and high profile.
• To plan a proper INSET week for next and existing staff with a focus on raising standards
•  Further develop enrichment activities for the pupils and work with us to develop the   calendar for the year 
•  Lead on events such as sports evening, family workshops, presentations etc.
•  Make sure the SEF and SIP etc. is complete and up to date – completed under your 

 guidance by members of your team. In addition, all staff are required to carry out any tasks required by the school or the regional office to facilitate the smooth day to day running of the school