Director of Sport, Health and Fitness

Director of Sport, Health and Fitness

Full-time teaching post 

September 2022

Salary of up to £60,000 (including membership of TPS)

Are you an inspirational and experienced leader, looking for your next senior role as a Director of Sport, Health and Fitness?

You will have a clear understanding of how essential school sport and fitness is for today’s young people.   You will take this understanding and deliver demonstrable impact across the Royal Russell community, leading sport, health and fitness across both the Junior and Senior schools.

Responsible for developing, establishing and leading a creative and exciting programme, you will enable all pupils to engage with physical activity at the right level for them.  You will ensure that sport, health and fitness are accessible and welcoming for all, aligning with our vision of being the family school of choice.  

You will be a natural leader, at home with complexity but able to deal with the detail so often needed in a multi-faceted role such as this.  You will be a role-model to students and colleagues alike, demonstrating the values and standards to inspire athletes to be the very best version of themselves.  You will be able to lead outstanding coaching, deliver successful academic outcomes, and plan outstanding competitive and co-curricular activities.  It goes without saying that you will have significant experience in leading staff in various sporting disciplines, of coaching and officiating at the highest levels with a track record of personal sporting success, be a confident communicator at all levels and be an advocate of innovative learning and teaching. 

Our national successes in competitive sports will need to be maintained and expanded upon, specifically within football, netball, hockey and trampoline.  A major focus for the new Director of Sport, Health and Fitness will be embedding a culture of health, wellbeing and fitness in Russellians as part of a healthy lifestyle- one which sets them up for a healthy adult life.

The importance of the four Royal Russell values of ambitious, open, distinctive and courageous should resonate with all those who apply for this role. The new Director of Sport, Health and Fitness will create an environment where pupils participate enthusiastically in school sport, with excellence as standard, whether locally, nationally or internationally, as well as developing outstanding team games provision which will be complemented by meaningful co-curricular activities and an unrivalled academic PE provision.  You should also consider the opportunities for pupils who do not naturally gravitate towards sports, health or fitness activities to feel personal achievement within the academic or co-curricular programme.

We are a co-educational school with over 1100 pupils between the ages of 3 and 18, situated on a beautiful green campus of 110 acres in the Shirley Hills near Croydon. We have over 180 boarding students in the Senior School, and are proud of our state of the art day and boarding facilities as well as the warm pastoral provision provided by our Housemasters and Housemistresses.  Our pupils, parents and staff experience a warm and friendly environment with strong pastoral care for every pupil alongside a comprehensive co-curricular and enrichment programme. Our vision is to provide an outstanding co-educational experience for children as the family school of choice.  

Royal Russell offers excellent benefits including a competitive salary on our own salary scale which is above SNS. Teachers automatically join the Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) or you may opt into an alternative defined contribution pension scheme with free life cover on a promoted salary scale. As part of the vibrant community of the historic Royal Russell School, you will join a friendly and dedicated team working in our beautiful green parkland estate with easy access to transport links (Coombe Lane tram stop served by the New Addington tram is opposite the School entrance). In addition you will have access to free car parking, free meals, a discount of up to 50% on School fees, (85% discount for wrap around care before and after school during term-time and 25% discount with the Royal Russell Holiday Club which operates during School holiday periods), free life insurance cover and access to a pension scheme with employer contributions and the use of our sporting and gym facilities (on-site tennis courts, swimming pool and gym), free of charge.

Full details of our staff benefits and recruitment procedures can be found on our School recruitment page at https://www.royalrussell.co.uk/discover/vacancies. You can also contact us by email at hr@royalrussell.co.uk or telephone HR on 020-8657-4433. 

Applications will be considered on receipt and should arrive no later than 9.00 am on 17 January 2022. Interviews are expected to take place the week beginning 24 January 2022. We reserve the right to interview at any point during the recruitment process so early applications are encouraged. If you have not heard from us by 31 January 2022 you should presume that you have not been successful on this occasion.   

The School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and all appointments are subject to a satisfactory enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check (including a check against the Children’s Barred List), and other pre-employment screening including a check on the Secretary of State list of prohibited staff.