Deputy SENCO / Aspiring SENCO

Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is seeking to appoint an exceptional, experienced qualified teacher as Deputy SENCO.

About Us

Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is a mixed Academy for 1,300 students aged 11-18, with a large sixth form of nearly 400 students.

The Academy has three consecutive Outstanding judgments by Ofsted, with the most recent inspection in 2014 finding the Academy to be Outstanding in every aspect. We are a consistently high performing school. Our motto, ‘All Can Achieve' encapsulates our vision that all members of the Academy community are supported and encouraged to achieve their absolute potential. We believe that a well-supported and valued staff body is the key to our success.

We are the ‘Teaching School Hub' for Croydon and Sutton and we are able to offer all teachers an extensive programme of first class professional development. Harris City Academy Crystal Palace is part of the Harris Federation and this enables us to offer you a comprehensive induction programme and training and development opportunities to support your career development including Masters and other qualifications.

We welcome applicants at any point in their career and are open to full consideration of part time and job share requests.

Main Areas of Responsibility

The purpose of your role will be to work with the SENCO to:

• establish outstanding provision within SEND. The deputy coordinator will have allocated leadership responsibilities within SEND as their primary focus.
• oversee a coordinated approach to SEND across the academy
• be accountable for student progress and development in line with allocated responsibilities, for example, interventions and/or a subject focus.
• ensure high standards of teaching and learning through continuously, developing and enhancing the quality of SEND support, both inside and outside the classroom.
• Supporting subject leaders in ensuring that curriculum for the subject is well planned, logically sequenced and ensures students who have SEND to build up a deliberate body of knowledge and skills over time
• ensure that all SEND policies and procedures are implemented and applied consistently by the colleagues that the postholder will line manage
• effectively and efficiently manage and deploy support staff, financial and physical resources that fit the SEND remit
• ensure that all students who have SEND develop in confidence, independence and readiness for their next steps.

Qualifications & Experience

The successful candidate will have:

• Undergraduate degree in relevant subject and DfE recognised Qualified Teacher Status (or equivalent qualifications)
• At least one year's teaching experience
• Understanding of theory and practice of effective teaching and learning
• Thorough knowledge of national curriculum requirements at KS3 and KS4
• Successful experience of meeting SEND needs, for example leading on intervention
• Suitable level of ICT skills and experience of how new technologies can be used to raise achievement, including the use of interactive white boards
• Recent experience of involvement in innovative curriculum development
• Ideas of how Language, Literacy and Numeracy can be used across the curriculum to raise standards
• Experience of embedding innovative strategies for improving teaching and learning

Next Steps

If you have any questions about this opportunity, please contact us via e-mail, or call to arrange a conversation.

Before applying, please download the Job Pack for full details on the job responsibilities and person specification. You will need this when completing your application.

Please note: we may hold interviews as and when applications are received and we reserve the right to offer to a candidate prior to the closing date. We only accept applications submitted online via our careers website and which are completed before the closing deadline. With this in mind, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible and advise you check the job information as per the listing on our careers site.

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.