Director of Innovative Design and Visual Arts

An outstanding Director of Innovative Design and Visual Arts is required for September 2022. This exciting new role reflects the School’s strategic desire to ensure that creativity, design and art lie at the very heart of a holistic curriculum. It also recognises the potential of technology to broaden the ways in which pupils can engage with design and art. The postholder will lead a faculty of design and visual arts specialists, and they will have the potential to influence the way in which these disciplines are embedded within the school’s curriculum through the years to come. They will be supported, as required, by individual subject coordinators.

The Director of Innovative Design and Visual Arts will have overarching responsibility for the School’s hugely successful Art Department: the subject is popular throughout the Lower School, with many pupils electing to study either Fine Art or Art and Design as a choice at both GCSE and A-Level. The subject is offered with a strong emphasis on pupil decision; enormous flexibility is provided in the media that is utilised across the course. There is a rich supra-curricular programme as well, and there is a strong track record of admission to various Art Schools, both for their Foundations Programmes and other undergraduate courses.

Alongside this, the postholder will be responsible for the teaching of Design Technology and IT & Computing (taught to pupils up to Year 8), and then for the continued development of a bespoke new course in Design, Computing and Robotics (DCR) for pupils in Year 9 and above. The course, first introduced in September 2021, has been developed in collaboration with leading industry experts and aims to build pupils’ understanding in the design cycle from inception to delivery, supported as appropriate by a range of computational, robotics and traditional approaches. It is designed to be project- and team-based, and relevant to the diverse backgrounds of the school’s pupil body. The first year of the course has seen extremely high uptake, and the course will build in profile over the coming years, as we develop it for delivery at HPQ level from September 2022 for the GCSE years, and then beyond. It is anticipated that the subject will be of interest to a broad range of pupils as they move through the school, whether their higher-education aspirations lie in the fields of Art and Design, or Engineering, Computer Science, Architecture or Mathematics.

In short, this role provides a unique opportunity for the postholder to embed the School’s commitment to design and the visual arts, and to do so in a creative and cross-curricular way. Whilst applicants should have relevant experience and excellent subject knowledge in their field, there is flexibility over their specific academic background (across the fields of art, design, technology and computing). The School wishes to appoint an experienced, thoughtful, creative and ambitious leader, who will enjoy working alongside a committed and forward-looking team. A strong sympathy with the school’s values – as articulated in the Strategic Vision – is essential.

The school has a long-standing record of high academic achievement (92.5% of A-Level and Pre-U entries gained A* to B/D1-M1 grades in 2019). There is also much happening in terms of co-curricular activities, and all staff are expected to be fully involved in School life. The school takes its environmental responsibilities very seriously; it is committed to operating in an increasingly sustainable way.

We aspire to attract a staff that matches the social and cultural diversity of the CLS community. We welcome applications from anyone with the relevant skills and abilities, and particularly from those who may not previously have thought of applying to a school such as ours. 

CLS was named by The Sunday Times as London Independent Secondary School of the Year 2020, and occupies fine, modern buildings near St. Paul’s Cathedral overlooking the Thames, opposite the Tate Modern. There are impressive off-site sports facilities in south-east London. 

Salary: CLS scale (£34,460 to £56,510 plus two progression points to £60,250 pa 2021-2022). There will be an allowance for the role and a nominal allocation.

City of London School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Further information about the school and a copy of the most recent ISI Inspection report is available on the school website (https://www.cityoflondonschool.org.uk/about).

Closing date: 25th January 2022, 9 am.

Interviews will be held on Friday 4th February 2022.