French Language Assistant

The Vacancy

An exciting opportunity has arisen for a fluent French speaker to join our vibrant and dynamic French Department as a full-time French Language Assistant from September 2024. This position is offered as a full-time, fixed-term, term-time only contract from 1 September 2024 to 5 July 2025, with a possible extension in September 2025 for a further academic year.

The Languages Faculty at Whitgift is one of the largest in the country, with over thirty staff teaching French, Spanish, German, Japanese and Chinese. Nine French teachers and two assistants make up the French Department, and French is a popular choice at all levels within the School. There are currently over 30 pupils studying French in the Sixth Form and we regularly send boys to University to read French. We offer a broad co-curricular provision in which the assistants are instrumental. Students have the opportunity to take part in several trips and exchanges, including a residential trip to Brussels, an exchange trip to Toulouse and a Sixth Form work experience trip.

As a full-time language assistant, the successful candidate will be pro-active and enthusiastic about promoting French and Francophone Culture across the School. They will play an important role in preparing students for examinations, working with students in small groups, assisting teachers in the classroom and tailoring individual support for native-speaker pupils. They will be able to produce stimulating resources and lead enjoyable discussions that challenge students while simultaneously building their confidence and ability to converse in both a natural and articulate manner. In addition to preparing resources for their own teaching, the successful candidate will work with the Head of French to assist in the production of high-quality and innovative resources to support classroom teaching. A high level of accuracy in both spoken and written French and English will be essential, and the ideal candidate will excel in encouraging our students to engage with current Francophone issues, drawing inspiration from the media and other authentic sources. Flexibility and a willingness to engage with the broader life of the school is a prerequisite. An ability to teach French literature would be an advantage.

The successful candidate will:

• Be fluent in French and knowledgeable about Francophone Culture
• Be excited to work in an environment where global mindedness, tolerance and linguistic diversity are front and centre
• Be proactive and enthusiastic about promoting French across the School
• Have excellent verbal and written communication skills
•  Have an excellent command of the English Language
• Be in possession of outstanding IT and administrative skills
• Be professional, confident and well-organised
• Have the ability to meet changing deadlines and work under pressure
• Have the ability to work independently and also as part of a team
• Possess high levels of flexibility and co-operation

In return, we offer a generous salary and benefits package including a money purchase pension scheme (plus Life Assurance cover), Employee Discount Club, discounted school fees for the Foundation Schools, off-peak access to our on-site gym, membership of BUPA cash plan scheme, a range of family-friendly benefits and season ticket loan.

We welcome applications from all parts of our community as we aspire to attract staff that match the social and cultural diversity of our student intake.

For further information and an online application form, please visit www.whitgift.co.uk/vacancies. For any queries, please telephone the Human Resources Department on 020 8688 9222 or email SchoolHR@whitgift.co.uk .

Applications will be reviewed daily, and interviews may occur at any stage after applications are received so we invite interested candidates to apply as soon as possible.

Whitgift School (part of the John Whitgift Foundation) is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of young people. Applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening including checks with past employers, the Disclosure & Barring Service and on-line media checks (including personal, professional and other online activities). 

The Company

For more than 400 years, Whitgift has been transforming boys’ lives through education.

Whitgift 2025 was created as a result of the input and imagination of staff and students and the next few years will represent an exciting time of evolution for the school, both in terms of our site development plan and the educational partnerships we are embarking on.