SENCo

Do you have experience supporting students with SEN? Harris Academy Rainham is seeking to appoint an exceptional, experienced qualified teacher as SENCO. You will work across both Harris Academy Rainham and Harris Rainham Sixth Form and oversee the running of the additional resources base working closing with the Vice Principal.

For the right candidate, this role could be at Associate Assistant Principal level and paid on the Leadership scale.

About Us

Harris Academy Rainham is a very popular and oversubscribed 11-16 academy which is part of the Harris Federation. We joined the Federation in September 2016 and there are exciting times ahead. We opened a Sixth Form for 400 students in September 2023 and are looking for ambitious and dedicated staff who wish to be a part of our Academy.

At Harris Academy Rainham we have a dedicated group of staff who are deeply committed to serve our community. We have built a school on our core values of Belong, believe, Become. These values are at the heart of our school and all that we do.

What makes us different:

• Our values are at the centre of our school and aren't simply a slogan on a website.
• We have a firm but fair approach to behaviour. This is built on the use of consistent routines and teaching our students how to behave.
• We deliver a knowledge rich curriculum that is developed by our staff to meet the needs of our students. The knowledge we teach takes our students beyond their everyday experiences and enables them to see the world differently.
• Our leaders are role models, they lead by example, admit mistakes, welcome opinions and love honest conversations.
• We are a staff united against educational disadvantage with a fierce determination to show our students the world beyond Havering.

What we can do for you:

• Great career progression both within our Academy and the Federation.
• Excellent professional development opportunities. As a Leading edge school we have been recognised as being at the forefront of educational thinking and research is central to all we do.
• Meaningful measures to manage workload – no graded observations, early finish on a Friday, no onerous marking requirements but sensible feedback policies.
• Bespoke support and line management from excellent leaders across the school.
• Opportunities for fantastic professional growth as the school develops a sixth from.
• A school where subjects are ‘front and centre' of all we do. The subject determines our pedagogy.

Main Areas of Responsibility

The purpose of your role will be:

• To ensure that Academy practice is compliant with the SEND Code of Practice (2014) and other relevant statutory requirements
• To work with the Academy Leadership team ensuring an ethos of Inclusion within the Academy and a culture of high aspirations for students with SEND
• To work with the Academy Leadership team ensuring the implementation of the Academy SEND Policy
• To ensure that the provision of SEND support is in accordance with the aims of the Academy and curricular policies
• To be responsible for maintaining an accurate and up-to-date Academy SEND Profile
• To be responsible for the accurate identification of SEND need across the Academy, ensuring a rigorous and thorough assessment process
• To be a role model with regard to Quality First Teaching and differentiation within your own teaching practice
• To be responsible for the embedding of Quality First Teaching across the Academy
• To be responsible for the Academy SEND Offer, ensuring high quality targeted interventions enabling students with SEND to make better progress
• In consultation with the Academy Leadership Team, to provide a programme of professional development with regard to SEND, that ensures all staff have the knowledge, skills and understanding to plan teaching and learning effectively and enable students with SEND to make expected progress
• To be responsible for tracking the progress of students with SEND, using a wide range of Academy data relating to progress, attainment, referrals, exclusions, detentions and attendance to identify barriers to learning
• To deploy staff and resources according to the needs of SEND students
• To write a termly report to the Governing body on progress and developments

Qualifications & Experience

We would like to hear from you if you have:

• QTS (or equivalent) and a good undergraduate degree
• Evidence of Continuing Professional Development relevant to the SENCO role or willingness to undertake this training.
• Knowledge and understanding of national priorities, current curriculum development and an ability to design and implement an innovate curriculum based on students' needs
• A thorough understanding of quality assurance techniques
• An appreciation of student motivation
• An understanding of how professional development contributes to the raising of quality
• SEN experience in a secondary school
• Evidence of successful teaching experience
• Evidence of pastoral experience
• Experience of working with key stakeholders such as parents, governors, employers etc

For a full job description and person specification, please download the Job Pack.

Professional Development & Benefits

Our people are at the heart of our success. We have developed a strong culture of collaboration and best practice, with professional development and career planning at its centre. We invest in our staff with support, coaching, mentoring, and a wide range of top-quality training programmes delivered at every level.

In addition to the opportunities for career development and progression, we also offer a competitive rewards and benefits package which includes a Performance and Loyalty Bonus, Pension Scheme with generous employer contributions, a Wellbeing Cash Plan, electric car scheme, 26 days' annual leave (plus bank holidays) for staff who work across the full year, and many other benefits. Learn more about our benefits on our website.

Safeguarding Notice

The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check, references, an online search, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed.

Equal Opportunities

The Harris Federation is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all suitably qualified candidates.

We value the diversity of our staff and students, and everyone at the Harris Federation is equally valued and respected. We aim to be an inclusive employer that reflects the communities we serve. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment.