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Head of Learning (Ability to teach History, Geography or Religious Studies)

Head of Learning (Ability to teach History, Geography or Religious Studies)

Waterside Academy

Hackney

  • Quick apply
  • Expired
Salary:
MPS/UPS+TLR1B
Job type:
Full Time, Permanent
Start date:
1st Sept 2024
Apply by:
20 May 2024

Job overview

Waterside Academy is part of Community Schools Trust. We received positive feedback from Ofsted’s recent visit to the school in February 2022 and obtained a 'Good' Ofsted rating with the key points summarised below:


  • Waterside Academy is a small school and a close-knit community. Staff here want pupils to succeed. They want to give pupils the best possible chance of fulfilling their dreams. Staff know pupils well
  • Leaders have transformed the school. They have a clear and ambitious vision to provide a high-quality education for pupils
  • Staff feel valued. They say that leaders are mindful of their workload and well-being. They enjoy working at the school
  • Leaders have developed an effective behaviour policy. Teachers do not tolerate low level disruption in lessons. They manage pupils’ behaviour well
  • Pupils and staff display the school’s values of care, challenge, confidence and courtesy. Staff praise and reward pupils.


We serve a wonderfully diverse community, many of whom face challenges through no fault of their own. It is for this reason we want to level the playing field for all of our students, regardless of their background, by providing a world class education. 


We care about outcomes at Waterside Academy. We know good grades lift life chances and impact health, wealth and even mortality. We know that teachers have the greatest impact on pupil outcomes and so we take professional development seriously, whatever our role in the school. Whether we have taught for two months, two years or twenty years, we believe in our capacity to always improve in the classroom. 


Our CPD provision is comprehensive and fundamental to our commitment to improve. We are invested in our own and each others’ development and use principles of instructional coaching to provide feedback to each other. Our CPD involves deliberate practice, video models of excellent practice and lots of fun! The desire to improve a little bit everyday permeates the culture in our school. 


Our approach to teaching is evidence informed. We avoid ‘discovery learning’ methods and instead, we teach explicitly. Our teachers are experts in the classroom and lead from the front. We focus on perfecting routines for behaviour, like entry into lessons and transitions between tasks so that we can maximise time spent on learning. We have excellent behaviour systems which mean teachers can focus on what we love doing most - teaching


As well as excellent outcomes, we want our students to be well rounded individuals who will thrive beyond school years; that’s why we deliberately teach prosocial behaviours like making eye contact when greeted, listening attentively and showing gratitude. We know these skills will set all of our students up for life, particularly those from disadvantaged backgrounds.


When students fall behind, our teachers run interventions outside of their lessons. We provide an extra session after school for all year 11 students so their families don't have to worry about paying for a tutor. Teachers work hard at Waterside Academy. Our students deserve nothing less and we expect the highest of standards from them because we know they are capable of achieving them.


But we invest in working smart too: we have a 3 week Christmas holiday, no retrospective book marking, no student report writing, no formal lesson observations and a four and half day week!


We recognise talent and impact at Waterside Academy. There are lots of opportunities for promotions within the school and Community Schools Trust. Our staff body at all levels is a true reflection of the makeup of the community we serve - we are proud of this and welcome anyone who will add value to our wonderful school community.


We would love to hear from you if you think this sounds like the right place for you! We welcome visits; come and speak to our Headteacher, our staff and check out our lessons! Get in touch with us: email tracianshayna@watersidecst.org or call 020 3870 7500.


The Community Schools Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. In order to meet this responsibility, we follow the government's Safer Recruiting Guidelines and all appointments will be subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check and satisfactory references. We will also conduct an online search as recommended in the Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance.

Attached documents

About Waterside Academy

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+44 20 7617 7181

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About us

Waterside Academy, formerly Hackney New School opened in September 2013. The school has embarked on a journey to become an outstanding school, under the experienced leadership of Mr Shuabur Rahman. As the new Headteacher, Mr Rahman has outlined a clear vision for the school where students will achieve outstanding outcomes and thrive in their personal development.

We have the aim of making Waterside Academy the best school in Hackney and are already making headway as we work towards this goal.  We received positive feedback from our most recent Ofsted visit to the school in February 2022 which Waterside Academy was rated GOOD in all categories:

  • 'Leaders have transformed the school. They have a clear and ambitious vision to provide a high-quality education for pupils'.
  • 'Leaders have high expectations of pupils’ behaviour. Pupils are polite and courteous. They respect and care for each other'.
  • 'Pupils enjoy the challenge of learning. They work hard in lessons'.
  • 'Staff feel valued. They say that leaders are mindful of their workload and well-being. They enjoy working at the school'.

Waterside Academy’s curriculum focuses on the core subjects of the English Baccalaureate, whilst also allowing students to develop in the creative subjects such as Art, Drama and Music. We were established as a school with an emphasis on Music, and this remains a part of our identity as we are endowed with excellent music facilities.

Our aim is to ensure our students develop into well rounded individuals with excellent qualifications and the skills and qualities required to contribute and participate effectively in society. We want our students to become confident, resilient and responsible citizens.

Who we are

At Waterside Academy we pride ourselves on our highly motivated teachers who are committed to providing the best education to all students. As a small school with an intake of 100 students each year, we are in the position to develop exceptional relationships between teachers and students and get to know our students as individuals,

We have a supportive staff and leadership team, where we all challenge and support each other in our respective roles. We have ten Waterside Academy Values which we don’t just pay lip service to, but are embodied in everything we do.

Our core vision is to provide students with access to the widest range of opportunities in life by fostering academic excellence and developing students to embody the ten Waterside Academy Values which will stand them in good stead for their futures. We want our students to do what’s right, try new things, be kind and work together to improve our community, amongst other key values and attributes. We expect all of our staff team to lead by example in demonstrating these values.

Work for us

We offer you an exceptional workplace to come and develop your teaching career in, with supportive colleagues and bright students who are eager to learn when presented with high expectations and the right level of challenge!

We provide the opportunity to benefit from a comprehensive CPD programme and to work in an environment with an ambitious and experienced leadership team who are determined to make Waterside Academy the best school in Hackney. Alongside the excellent CPD programme, we provide numerous opportunities for staff to develop their leadership skills and progress in their careers across the Community Schools Trust, of which Waterside Academy is a part. We provide our staff with great support, to ensure they are confident and competent in getting the job done to the best standard.

We also focus on ensuring staff well being and that all of our team are supported in their roles, providing a comprehensive induction to all new starters. Being a small school, all of our staff know each other. We hold regular staff socials and recognise the efforts of our staff through a number of means. We have a 4.5 day school week, finishing each Friday at 12.30pm - allowing staff to start their weekend early. Finally our leadership team is approachable and used to “sweeping the sheds”. They won’t ask staff to do something that they don’t do. We also offer our staff a three week Christmas break - meaning you’ve got the time to treat yourself to a long haul flight to get some winter sunshine!

We constantly look for ways to reduce staff workload, so we’ve done away with formal lesson observations and introduced a live marking initiative that cuts down on the need to lug home heavy class sets of books! We have centralised behaviour systems, which again reduce workload and let you focus on what we want our teachers to do - teach the best lessons! We have centralised lesson planning to avoid duplication of work, ensure excellence and again to cut down on teacher workload. We also have clear systems and structures for everything from behaviour to rewards, all to make life easy for our staff.

Finally we’re based in a great location in Hackney, surrounded by great bars and cafes. Ideal for a bite to eat at lunch and a drink after work. Even if you’re not quite a hipster, it’s a trendy location and an easy commute given that our state of the art buildings are located on the canal basin in Haggerston and only a minute walk away from Haggerston Overground Station.

Please note that you are wholly responsible for fact checking in respect of the information provided by schools. Please also check for the latest visa and work permit requirements that may apply. Tes is not responsible for the content of advertisements or the policies adopted by advertising schools. Tes asks that all schools follow Tes' Fair Recruitment Policy.

Applications closed