Principal

Principal - Fir Vale School

Salary: Competitive

Location: Sheffield

Closing date for applications: 12noon Wednesday 7th May 2025

Shortlisting: Thursday 8th May 2025

Interviews: Wednesday 14th & Tuesday 20th May 2025

Dear Candidate,

Fir Vale School is a large 11 to 16 school located to the northeast of Sheffield. It serves a vibrant and diverse community, with almost 1,000 pupils on roll. The school strives to provide every pupil with the opportunity to achieve the best possible outcomes and prepare them well for their future lives. The staffing body are fully committed to their pupils and have an in depth understanding of the communities they serve and want the best for them.

Leaders at the school have worked hard over recent years to improve the climate in the school and to develop a community that work in harmony with one another towards their core goal of improving outcomes and developing happy and healthy young people. The recent focus areas have included strategies to improve attendance and ensuring the learning environment is calm and focused to support all children to learn well. These areas continue to be core priorities, alongside consolidating a whole school approach to teaching and learning and professional development.

With the planned retirement of the current Headteacher at the end of this academic year, we are looking for a new leader with the skills and experience to drive school improvement with energy and rigour. They will need to have the vision to lead the school into a new chapter, building on the foundations already in place and challenging what is possible for the young people entrusted to us.

This is a particularly exciting time for the school as we will soon be joining United Learning, the largest Multi Academy Trust in the country. The school has been supported by the Trust since July 2024, and is set to join formally before the end of the academic year. We believe this move will provide the incoming Principal with the support and infrastructure to accelerate school improvement. The Trust will provide support to the incoming Principal both personally and professionally, benefitting from the strength of a national group supporting your development and that of your staff and school.

For the right person, this is a career defining opportunity to make a real difference in a school that serves a diverse community of young people. You will need to work with staff, the student body and the community to further embed a school culture that is already inclusive, compassionate and inspiring, underpinned by a robust pastoral system, where every child is celebrated and nurtured.

This position will suit an energetic, committed, and collaborative leader with a passion for building and maintaining outstanding learning. We are committed to fairness, diversity and inclusion. Whoever you are, if you have a strong track record of improving young people’s education and a drive to do more, we very much look forward to hearing from you.

With best wishes,

Tina Ball and Usma Saeed Co-Chairs of Governors

For further information, a confidential conversation and to arrange a visit, please contact our retained consultant Neil Massie at Academicis on 07818 875514 or via nmassie@academicis.co.uk.

Completed application forms to be returned to nmassie@academicis.co.uk by Wednesday 7th May 2025 at noon.