Head of Geography

This is an exciting opportunity for an enthusiastic and motivated person to join our friendly and hardworking Humanities team. We are an inclusive school where every student is valued and has the opportunity to shine.

The school is a popular and successful all through comprehensive situated in the beautiful North Essex countryside with good communication links to London and the South East and is approximately 7 miles from Stansted Airport. The school is currently located adjacent to the town’s leisure centre and we have ample on-site parking. We are proud to offer our staff a 50% discount on wraparound care for their children in the primary school, helping to support work-life balance. This benefit provides significant savings on before and after school care for children, ensuring that our team can feel confident and supported both at work and at home. Staff wellbeing is at the forefront of SLT’s agenda and training and support are always designed with this at the core.

This is an exciting time to join the school:

• It is confirmed that Bowmer & Kirkland will commence our new school building shortly, funded by the Department for Education. This building will be to the highest specification with brand new equipment. The school is set to open to the primary phase in the academic year 2025-26, with the secondary phase following shortly after.

• Helena Romanes has made excellent progress with the support of Saffron Academy Trust towards being judged by Ofsted as a Good school (Oct 2023). Working with the talented senior leadership team that is in place across all phases of the school, and drawing on the commitment from staff to provide the best possible outcomes for the pupils.

The Humanities Faculty at HRS

The Humanities Faculty consists of History, Geography and Religious Studies. We are a large team of teachers, with experience ranging from ECTs to seasoned professionals. All of whom are dedicated to raising the achievements of the learners at HRS while keeping a good sense of humour.

Located in C block, we have nine Humanities classrooms and a shared office which supports communication of ideas and the sharing of good practice. There is a large designated space for each department to store a range of resources and equipment.

Teachers are equipped with their own laptop/Chromebook for use in the department and there are a number of shared visualisers. The use of Iris Connect is encouraged and we have several tablets in the school which make using this technology easy.

The curriculum across the subjects is in an exciting state of rejuvenation as HRS moves away from a three year KS4 and to a three year KS3. Humanities is popular at both GCSE and Sixth Form, with the number of students attending the Sixth Form growing each year. This role gives the successful candidate a chance to really shape the learner's futures and bring the global society into a rural village in Essex. In conjunction with this is the developing primary phase of our all through-school, which will give future opportunities to work closely with our primary colleagues to ensure the Humanities curriculum is sequenced throughout all key stages.

We are seeking to continue our success by appointing an outstanding and dynamic Head of Geography to our successful Humanities Faculty. Someone with energy and innovation with a passion for Geography. As HoD your role would be varied, dynamic and strategic. It is a chance to shape the curriculum for students at Helena Romanes School so they become confident Geographers of the future. You will also be expected to lead the fieldwork demands of the GCSE and A Level course ensuring the safety of students at all times.

The successful candidate will:

• Be an outstanding teacher.
• Raise achievement through high quality teaching and learning.
• Be passionate about teaching and learning.
• Have excellent communication and interpersonal skills.
• Be an enthusiastic professional committed to providing our students with an outstanding education.
• Be able to inspire commitment and enthusiasm for different subject areas.
• Be a positive team player with a strong commitment to professional development.
• Have a commitment to the safeguarding of all students in the school.
• Have an interest in the pastoral side to teaching including Form time responsibilities.

As a HoD, you will provide strategic leadership to your team, with a clear focus on continuing to drive improvements in teaching, curriculum design and students’ progress across the department. such this role will prepare candidates for onward progression to senior leadership positions.