About this role

This is a rare and exciting opportunity to be part of shaping an exceptional comprehensive school in the early stages of its journey. As Assistant Headteacher, you will work closely with the headteacher and rest of senior leadership team to establish an outstanding school, building on the strong foundations that have already been laid, developing and maintaining these high standards to ensure that all students receive an excellent education. In addition to leading on inclusion, you will also have the opportunity to learn about other aspects of whole school leadership as desired.

Your particular focus with be on inclusion - ensuring that vulnerable students (most notably those with special educational needs and disabilities, but also other disadvantaged students) can benefit from all of the opportunities that our school is able to offer and achieve more than they ever believed possible. To achieve this, you will lead a team of Associate SENCOs and other educational support staff, as well as working closely with other curriculum and pastoral leaders across the school. The role will involve both high level strategic leadership and operational management. Our school is not afraid to innovate and we are looking for someone who is open to bringing fresh ideas and trying new approaches.

Although this is ideally a full time role, we are open to conversations around flexible working for the right candidate.

What skills/experience are required?

The successful candidate will share our ambitions for our students. You will relish the challenge of creating a new school that will be different to other comprehensive schools in the city. You will be a highly motivated team player with a proven track record of impactful leadership in a secondary school setting. You will be a creative thinker who is unafraid to try new approaches, and a reflective practitioner, keen to continue learning in order to achieve the best possible outcomes for our students.

Experience of and a keen interest in working with students with SEND is essential for this role. A valid SENDCO qualification is desirable, but not essential - in the absence of a formal qualification, we would expect to see evidence of engagement with other professional development opportunities around inclusion and a willingness to complete the NASENCO or NPQ SENCO in the future.

About our School

The Swan School, part of the River Learning Trust, is Oxford’s first new secondary school for over 50 years, and opened in September 2019. When full, we will have approximately 1,200 students on roll, of whom around 300 will be in the Sixth Form. Our students will be drawn from a local catchment area and the school will be at the heart of the community. Learning from the most successful approaches at the best schools, The Swan School provides a uniquely challenging and structured experience in a caring and disciplined environment. The ethos is academic; we regard an excellent academic education as the entitlement of all young people, no matter what their background or previous experiences of learning. Students are inspired and nurtured, acquiring the knowledge and skills to think critically and creatively. They will learn to be confident, resilient and ambitious, and will have high expectations of their own achievements and their contribution to wider society.

Staff at The Swan benefit from being part of a close-knit team where wellbeing is prioritised. We strive to be exceptional and are proud to be different. We are unafraid to work hard in the best interests of the students but we ensure that staff time is not wasted on time-consuming jobs that have little impact on student outcomes (for example, there are no written reports or school expectations for written marking). Swan staff benefit from excellent professional development opportunities within the school, wider trust, and beyond. Our unique 'cycles' model means that our school terms are predictable and colleagues have a high degree of agency and autonomy over their time.

How to apply

Candidates are invited to visit the school before making an application. An opportunity to tour the school and meet the headteacher will be available on the dates/times below. If you are not able to make any of these sessions, please email headteacher@theswanschool.org.uk to arrange a phone call with the headteacher or one of the deputy headteachers.

• Tuesday 18th March - 2.30pm
• Thursday 20th March - 1.30pm
• Monday 24th March - 9.00am

Applications for this post should be made through the My New Term recruitment portal. Please contact us if you have any queries regarding the application process.

The deadline for applications is Wednesday 26th March, with interviews likely to be held early the following week. The school reserves the right to consider and interview candidates ahead of the closing date if appropriate.

About the River Learning Trust

Education has the power to change lives, communities and society for the better. At RLT we believe that we can achieve more for our pupils, trainees, staff and communities by working together rather than alone. Schools in RLT are united by a common belief in the benefits of working together, and by our commitment to shared principles.

OUR VISION is for our schools and SCITT to improve rapidly, continuously and sustainably: to be better faster together.

OUR ‘WHY?’ is that children and young people ‘only get one go’ in school and therefore as part of RLT we aim to ensure the best possible ‘go’ for our pupils.

OUR ‘HOW?’ is through the highest support and challenge for our schools and each other, underpinned by our principles.

Our employees benefit from a wide variety of support including extensive continuing professional learning and development opportunities, wellbeing and staff networks and access to Defined Benefit Pension Schemes (TPS and LGPS) for all staff. For more information on what it is like to work for the Trust, and the benefits you could access, please see our “Working in RLT” guide.

This role includes regulated activity relevant to children. 

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Safeguarding

The River Learning Trust and The Swan School are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children and preventing extremism. The Trust is required to conduct a variety of checks and online searches about you as part of their recruitment process in accordance with Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance. It is an offence to apply for certain roles within schools if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children.

For all RLT Safer Recruitment Documentation candidates should click on the following link RLT Safer Recruitment Documents for Candidates. Please see our website for up to date policies including our Child Protection and Behaviour Policies. 

This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020. For further guidance for applicants click on this link List of offences that are not filtered