Assistant Director of Sport

The School

Founded in 1432, Sevenoaks enjoys a global reputation as a centre of academic excellence and a flagship school for the International Baccalaureate. A co-educational day and boarding school, it offers a stimulating, intellectually demanding and balanced education for pupils from the age of 11 to 18. 

Inspiring facilities, together with expert, enthusiastic and imaginative teaching, provide rich opportunities for students participating in lessons, and a wide variety of sports and the performing arts. 

In 2013 the Independent Schools Inspectorate (ISI) awarded Sevenoaks School the rare accolade of ‘Exceptional’ for its students’ achievement. In the new style inspection in 2017 pupils’ achievement and personal development were judged excellent, the highest grades. Sevenoaks was also the highest performing fully co-educational school, and the one with the largest cohort, in The Sunday Times Parent Power’s top 50 fee-paying schools for the IB in 2015. In 2017 we were, for the second time in 10 years, awarded The Sunday Times Independent School of the Year for 2018.

Teaching at Sevenoaks School

We want all our pupils to enjoy their subjects, to be inspired by their teachers and to become independent, lifelong learners. We have an exceptionally lively, talented and committed staff body. Teachers are enthusiastic and well-qualified graduates. We welcome applications from experienced teachers and newly-qualified teachers but can also provide training including PGCE for those new to the profession. All new staff undertake a comprehensive induction programme. 

The Physical Education and Games Department 

The school aspires to foster a lifelong commitment to, and understanding of, sport, exercise and well-being. The PE and Games Department is dynamic and ambitious, providing a variety of sports and activities to all students. A diverse PE curriculum is taught covering a range of skills in fitness, athletics and athletic development, net and wall games, invasion games, swimming, striking and fielding. This compliments the performance of our games and fixture programme which run every afternoon including Saturdays. 

The department is very well resourced. The Foundation Trustees and Governors have invested heavily in sports facilities as part of the ongoing school development masterplan. The Sennocke Centre sports building was opened in 2005, providing state of the art facilities including a six-lane swimming pool, double sports hall, three indoor squash courts, three indoor tennis courts, dance studio and fitness suite. Outdoor facilities include two all-weather astro turf pitches, five outdoor netball courts, 6 outdoor tennis courts, seven rugby pitches, eight football pitches, three cricket pitches and an all-weather six-lane tartan athletics track. There are eight full-time PE teachers and a number of part-time coaching staff who, along with many academic staff, support and deliver our games programme.  

All pupils joining the school in Year 7 take two PE plus one swimming lesson per fortnight.  Year 7 and 8 also enjoy two games afternoons which will include their fixtures, as well as after school training sessions. Students in Years 9 to 11 have two games afternoons, including their main fixture programme which takes place on a Saturday afternoon, with the occasional mid-week fixture.   

All Sixth Form students choose their games sports options from the vast and encompassing programme, and this provides two afternoons of training and fixtures or activity. The presence of almost 200 students with international backgrounds enriches the student body and develops awareness in other countries and their sporting interests. There are regular sporting competitions to participate in, and several Sevenoaks sports teams have enjoyed progressing through to Regional and National competitions in recent years. 

The PE department run a series of tours and trips all over the world which provides opportunities for students to enjoy developing their expertise and competing against international students, and include an element of service through fundraising for local charities. 

The Post – Assistant Director of Sport and PE

We are looking for an enthusiastic, able and well qualified teacher to support the Director of Sport. The precise details will depend on the strengths of the successful candidate, but is likely to include: maintaining the current excellence of our sport provision, developing the role of coaches, appraisals, developing our well-being programme as well as administrative tasks to ensure the smooth running of the department.

The successful candidate will inspire real passion for sport and fitness in our pupils, and be capable of coaching a number of the major sports. The ability to lead one of our major sports may be an advantage.  

A commitment to excellent pastoral care, enriching co-curricular activities and outreach is also expected.