Primary Deputy Headteacher

Are you an ambitious, committed teacher with good leadership skills? Do you want to help transform the futures of children who are unable to sustain a place in mainstream education? Here’s an outstanding opportunity to shape the success of an Alternative Education Provision (AEP) at an exciting new academy in Northamptonshire.

At Catch 22, we believe that all children and young people have the capacity to learn, regardless of their life situation – and it’s our role to unlock that learning potential. We’ve built an impressive reputation in the alternative education provision sector by providing them with high quality teaching and learning based on strong, effective relationships. We believe this will, in turn, enable them to build life skills and achieve meaningful qualifications. Our Catch22 Multi Academies Trust is an approved Academy Sponsor, focusing on learners who can benefit from small, supportive alternative education centres.

In this multi-faceted post, you’ll work closely with the Headteacher to formulate the aims, objectives and strategic plan of the new academy at primary level - which involves responsibility for up to 32 pupils in maximum class sizes of 8. Our aim is that children are challenged and enabled to study at the pace and stage they would in the mainstream. Set in a nurturing context, our tailored primary curriculum includes significant amounts of play with an additional emphasis on numeracy, literacy, science, ICT, PE and art. It ensures a strong focus on equality, diversity and understanding the community, as well as using circle time to explore behaviour and encourage children to talk openly about their feelings and difficulties. We also offer a way of starting slowly on a part-time timetable to help very young children build confidence and feel secure.

As well as supporting the training and development of staff, you’ll help ensure the correct systems are in place to review the school’s performance, standards and progress accurately.

You’ll also focus on the progression each young person makes in terms of changes to their behaviour, academic performance, ability to engage in the community and capacity to live an independent life through employment and further education. This means maintaining high standards to set them on a track of aspiration and achievement. We’ve built our curriculum around national requirements to enable pupils to integrate back into the mainstream as soon as they’re ready, and ideally at the same key stage as their peers.

With a background that includes senior or mid-level leadership in a primary school, you must have a track record of managing change, plus the ability to make a positive contribution to curriculum development and devise clear strategies for working with challenging pupils who have complex needs.
On a personal level, you must bring the communication skills to forge and maintain strong, appropriate professional relationships with pupils, parents, carers, governors and other community partners. We’ll also be looking for an energetic, flexible approach and the capacity to cope with emotionally demanding situations. But most importantly, you’ll need to share our passion to transform the prospects of vulnerable children.
For further details about this post and to apply, please visit our website.

Deadline for applications is Wednesday 5th October 2016