Executive Headteacher

Mowbray School, North Yorkshire (Two Sites – Bedale and Ripon)

Post: Executive Headteacher

Number on Roll: 289 (152 Primary Pupils, 137 Secondary)

Commencing: September 2022

Contract Type: Full Time 

Salary: L34 – L39 - Relocation Package of up to £5,000 (T&C's apply)

Contract Term: Permanent

Mowbray School is based over two sites in beautiful parts of North Yorkshire, both sites are set in lovely grounds and our main site has its own 5.5 acre on site farm. The main school is situated in Bedale and caters for children aged 3 to 16. The Satellite School is in Ripon and provides an education for children aged 3 to 11, this was opened to pupils in January 2020. We currently have over 290 pupils on role across both sites and are the largest special school in North Yorkshire.

Mowbray School is thriving, caring and extremely popular, educating both primary and secondary pupils with a variety of learning difficulties and specialist needs. The school is an exciting, busy, high achieving, enjoyable and challenging school in which to work. Our young people are wonderfully interesting, caring and capable; engaging to work with and accepting of each other. 

Our school educates and cares for pupils aged three to sixteen years who have an Education Health Care Plan, with a wide range of learning difficulties including:

• Moderate, severe and complex learning difficulties
• Speech, language and communication difficulties
• Physical and sensory impairments
• Dyspraxia
• Social, emotional and behavioural difficulties
• Autistic Spectrum Conditions including High functioning autism
• Pupils are grouped into pathways of learning

We are looking for a new leader who is passionate and committed to preparing pupils for adulthood to become independent, autonomous adults who can make a positive contribution to society. We need someone who can lead and inspire teachers to be aspirational for themselves and their pupils; someone who is able to communicate commitment and passion to staff, parents, pupils, partners, outside agencies and stakeholders, someone who leads the way to possibilities.

Our Opportunity

There are few schools in the country which offer the variety of opportunity as this one. Through this appointment you will be able to lead this unique and highly regarded school on to the next stage of its remarkable journey, working closely with North Yorkshire County Council SEND officers to develop and expand provision. You must exhibit confidence, empathy and a clear focus on building a healthy workplace culture to benefit the wellbeing of the staff and pupils.

It is an exciting opportunity for the new Headteacher to develop and implement effective strategies to raise standards and continually improve pupil attainment and progress. With a meticulous eye for detail, you will must be able to support the diverse needs of pupils with SEND, their progress and attainment and the provision that each individual requires, whilst being able lead us on the journey set out in the vision.

About You

To be successful, you must be able to demonstrate a proven track record of working with children and young people.

• You will have an established understanding of the foundation for working with pupils with SEND
• You will be a passionate champion of equality and diversity in relation to accessing personalised and relevant curriculum for our pupils
• You will be a proactive leader to enable the school to take advantage of opportunities as they present themselves thereby increasing the options available to pupils and improving their outcomes
• You will be an enabler, someone able to delegate, ensure staff are accountable without them feeling over worked, capable of demonstrating how they would manage staff wellbeing whilst everyone’s role is growing, and numbers and complexity of students needs is increasing, whilst budgets continue to shrink
• You will need the tools and strength to adapt and cope positively in order to create improved mental health outcomes for all in the face of significant challenges. You will excel in supporting both staff and pupil resilience, by promoting a sense of belonging, encouraging and modelling help-seeking, ongoing reflections and learning
• You will need a solid understanding of the SEND code of practice and the underpinning legislation in the Children and Families Act to ensure that statutory duties are delivered
• You will need to understand the broader context around Disability and have awareness of the types of support available
• You will need to gather and respond to the voices of all pupils in the school including those who communicate through behaviour, symbols, signs or alternative and augmentative communication
• You will need to have a commitment to enabling each pupil to become a self-advocating, independent adult who uses their full potential to contribute to their community

We can offer you:

• Headteacher induction, strong partnership and support from the SEND hub and access to a variety of support from School Improvement, Inclusion and Special Headteacher meetings.
• A healthy budget, which has been for many years well managed and one which will allow the school further opportunities to continue its development.
• An opportunity to see the huge potential that exists and the time to make Mowbray School a beacon of excellence in SEND education.
• Support from the Local Authority, Governing Body and a staff team who are experienced, committed and passionate about our school.
• A Governing Body committed to providing support on all matters including more sensitive or difficult issues and which include the wellbeing of all staff members.
• A curriculum that aims to give every child a love for learning and enrichment opportunities.
• Project opportunities for continued expansion of the school

If you feel ready to be our next Executive Headteacher and you can bring your passion, commitment and energy to deliver our expansion plans and vision for our delightful children and young people and motivated staff, we would love to hear from you.

For more information about this wonderful opportunity, to view the job description & person spec and how to apply please visit our dedicated campaign site – https://bit.ly/3Ao41Ua

To arrange a school visit and for

an informal, confidential conversation about the role, please call Julie

Crichton who is supporting this recruitment process on behalf of Mowbray School

and can be contacted at North Yorkshire County Council on 07581 143421 or

julie.crichton@northyorks.gov.uk

Key dates:

• School Visit: To arrange a school visit by appointment please contact Julie Crichton on 07581 143421 or @julie.crichton@northyorks.gov.uk
• Application closing date: Midnight, Sunday 21st November
• Shortlisting: Thursday, 25th November
• Interviews: Tuesday 7th and Wednesday 8th December

When applying please take into account the following:

Supporting Information

The supporting information section of your application should clearly evidence your ability to meet the requirements we have outlined in the person specification. This will be used to shortlist applicants for this role and therefore it is imperative that you provide evidence as requested.

References

When completing your application, please provide two employment references.

Safeguarding

Our school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post will be subject to undertaking an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check.