Head of English

Part of the Outwood Family since 2017, Outwood Academy Redcar is an 11-16 academy, based in the coastal town of Redcar in the north-east, near Middlesbrough, Ofsted rated Good in 2021.

We are a welcoming and supportive academy, with a relentless determination to provide the very best education for every child. We place students at the centre of everything we do, with a focus on creating a culture of success, a positive climate for learning, and increased attainment, achievement and social and emotional development.

Since becoming part of the Outwood Family, GCSE results have improved and we will work tirelessly to ensure our progress continues. 

We have won numerous awards as a school and we have been accredited with the prestigious IQM Award, which highlights that inclusion at all levels is of paramount importance to us. We are also proud to have been awarded Silver Status by the Carnegie Centre of Excellence for Mental Health Award.

We work hard to ensure we reduce workload on staff, allowing more time in the classroom to put our vision of students first, raising standards and transforming lives into practice. 

The English Department at Outwood Academy Redcar is seeking to appoint a Head of Department. We have a friendly, welcoming and supportive team made up of seven teachers and a one-to-one tutor. There is a range of experience within the team with three colleagues on the senior leadership team and an experienced second in department.

Teaching takes place in the department’s seven classrooms with every teacher having their own dedicated room. Every classroom has a visualiser and these are used extensively by the team. All classrooms have interactive whiteboards. There is a library with a wide range of fiction to support students’ reading needs which is run by a full-time enthusiastic librarian.

The curriculum has been redesigned for knowledge to be developed almost fully through the study of texts, and there has been great investment in new books. Chosen novels and plays are culturally interesting, ambitious and engaging, including The Breadwinner and Ghost Boys taught in years 7 and 8. A wide range of poetry is embedded in all units in years 7 and 8, and in year 9. 

There is a strong whole-school literacy strategy which aims to ensure that all students can gain the educational and personal benefits of reading. This includes Accelerated Reader and a variety of reading interventions for readers who are not yet proficient. The specialist literacy teaching assistant uses the Ruth Miskin phonics programme to support emergent readers. 

As in all OGAT secondary academies, the department prepares students for Eduqas GCSE English Language and English Literature qualifications. The programme of study is fully resourced with high-quality materials produced by staff across the trust who know this specification well. We aim to make all our teachers ‘experts’ in preparing students for GCSE examinations, using our thorough and systematic methods devised over many years. We have the benefit of support from the trust’s team of expert English directors, who provide support, materials, advice, coaching and who model and team-teach in lessons alongside us to develop our expertise.

If you share our vision, join our family!

For further information regarding the role, to arrange a visit to the Academy or for an informal chat, please email Sophie Cole, Associate Director of English - s.cole@outwood.com

To view the Person Spec for this role, please click here

To view the Job Description, please click here

For more information and to apply online, please click the apply button.

Closing date: 8.00am on 29 April 2024.

We reserve the right to close advertisements early. Advertisements will therefore close the day the decision has been taken to close the advertisement early.

Outwood Grange Academies Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. All appointments are made in accordance with safer recruitment practices and the statutory guidance in Keeping Children Safe in Education. Online checks will be carried out on all shortlisted candidates, and all appointments are subject to an enhanced DBS check, satisfactory references and checks regarding suitability to work with children.