Receptionist and Admin Assistant

Harris Professional Skills Sixth Form is currently looking to appoint a Receptionist and Admin Assistant to join its thriving sixth form community.

About Us

Harris Professional Skills Sixth Form is a unique new sixth form, established to provide an outstanding vocational education and preparation for skills-based work or transition to university for students in Croydon and the surrounding boroughs.

Harris Professional Skills Sixth Form caters for students who may not suit the traditional pathways at post-16. With small class sizes and strong pastoral support, we offer excellent, focused vocational options as well as the opportunity to take or resit GCSEs that you need to progress further – whether you choose to progress into a career or higher education.

Our new academy will offer a choice of construction, manufacturing, business or media for students choosing a vocational pathway, and a curriculum that will challenge and inspire you to develop the skills and confidence you need to compete successfully for jobs in your chosen vocation.

Croydon, like much of London and the South East, is undergoing a huge programme of construction and regeneration with the potential to benefit the area for generations to come. With a focus on hard skills and employability, Harris Professional Skills Sixth Form will help you develop the skills you need to be who you want to be – and be part of that success. 

Main Areas of Responsibility

As Receptionist and Admin Assistant, your responsibilities will be:

• To present the professional and welcoming face of the Academy to all visitors, staff and students, including telephone callers;
• To manage queries from parents/ carers and the general public with exemplary professionalism, ensuring that any messages or complaints are immediately forwarded to the appropriate member of staff;
• To ensure that all visitors to the Academy are signed in and out accurately and are issued with an appropriate Visitor’s Badge as well as any relevant health and safety and safeguarding information;
• To attend and manage Reception for events such as Parents Evenings
• To maintain an exemplary professional environment at all times;
• To exercise complete discretion when dealing with issues of confidentiality and sensitivity;
• To ensure that the Academy outgoing mail is in order and picked up daily by the post office and to ensure all correspondence received
• To keep the Academy telephone extension directory up to date;
• To ensure that the Principal fully briefed on any matters that have been brought to attention via the reception;
• To attend to such duties on a daily basis as requested by the Principal and the Rsources Manager, to enable the smooth running of the Academy;
• To take messages from Academy answer phone and advise relevant parties.
• To complete such clerical duties, telephone calls & admin tasks as may reasonably be expected in the course of duties

Qualifications & Experience

We look for talented individuals who want to be a part of transforming education in London, and helping create exceptional places of learning. The successful candidate will have: 

• Qualifications to degree standard or equivalent
• Sound knowledge of Microsoft software, in particular Excel
• At least 2 years experience of a school office in particular reception
• Basic knowledge of first aid; e.g. emergency first aid course (training will be offered)
• Good communication skills
• Excellent telephone manner
• Commitment to equlaity and diversity
• Experience of working with young people, including those with challenging behaviour 

Next Steps

If you have any questions about this opportunity, please contact us via e-mail, or call to arrange a conversation.

Before applying, please download the Job Pack for full details on the job responsibilities and person specification. You will need this when completing your application.

Please note: we may hold interviews as and when applications are received and we reserve the right to offer to a candidate prior to the closing date. We only accept applications submitted online via our careers website and which are completed before the closing deadline. With this in mind, we encourage you to apply as soon as possible and advise you check the job information as per the listing on our careers site.

Rewards & Benefits

Our people are at the heart of our success. We have developed a strong culture of collaboration and best practice, with professional development and career planning at its centre. We invest in our staff with support, coaching, mentoring, and a wide range of top-quality training programmes delivered at every level to senior leadership.

We look for talented individuals who share our vision for creating exceptional places of learning, and are committed to ensuring that every child in London has access to the best possible education.

In addition to the opportunities for career progression, training and development, we also offer a competitive rewards and benefits package which includes our Harris Allowance, a Performance and Loyalty Bonus, Pension Scheme, a Wellbeing Cash Plan and many other benefits.

Safeguarding Notice

The Harris Federation and all our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share in this commitment. All offers of employment are subject to an Enhanced DBS check, references, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check will be completed for all applicants. Before applying, please review our Policy Statement on the Recruitment of Ex-Offenders.

Equal Opportunities

The Harris Federation is an equal opportunities employer and welcomes applications from all suitably qualified candidates.

As a provider of employment and education, we value the diversity of our staff and students, and all our staff are equally valued and respected. We are committed to providing a fair, equitable and mutually supportive learning and working environment for our students and staff.