Teacher of Mathematics (Maternity Cover) MPS/UPS

Thank you for exploring this exciting opportunity to join our teaching team at Five Islands Academy. We are looking for an enthusiastic, skilled maths specialist with excellent subject knowledge to teach our engaged, creative students from Year 7 to Year 11. 

Five Islands Academy is a smaller-than-average, voluntary controlled Church of England through school serving the five inhabited Isles of Scilly communities of Bryher, St Agnes, St Martins, St Mary’s and Tresco. Situated 28 miles out into the Atlantic from Land’s End, the Isles of Scilly are designated an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, offering an extraordinary learning environment for our students. There are around 280 students on roll across 4 school sites. Secondary students and the majority of primary students are based on the Carn Gwaval multi age site on St Mary’s. This bright, open, well-resourced new building was opened in 2011. 

Five Islands Academy became an academy on 1 January 2019, joining the Leading Edge Academies Partnership. Significant changes in school leadership, staffing and governance over the last three years have transformed the quality of education, the behaviour of students, their personal development, and provision and outcomes for children with SEND. Average Progress 8 over the past three years is +0.78. We are proud that our students continued to receive a very high standard of education during the recent Covid-19 lockdowns, with over 98% virtual attendance to their full timetable of lessons and almost uninterrupted progress. This has meant we have been able to focus our ‘recovery’ programme on community-rebuilding, wellbeing and opportunities for adventurous learning.

Central to our academy transformation has been the development of a through school curriculum that nurtures curious, collaborative, creative global learners with rich knowledge and confident oracy, underpinned by our commitments to restorative practice, to being wholly inclusive and understanding of a wide range of SEND needs, and by our engagement with our surroundings and heritage. The school takes every opportunity to learn outdoors, while also ensuring that our children have access to as many of the opportunities that their mainland counterparts enjoy in order to support involvement with competitive sport and to boost their cultural capital. 

Please explore our prospectus and short video tour on our website here to find out more.

Our Mathematics department has an excellent track record of successful outcomes at GCSE, with a good proportion of students choosing to continue with Maths and STEM subjects for their post-16 A Levels or vocational courses. Students over the past five years have achieved significantly above the national average in both attainment and progress, with Five Islands Academy consistently at the top of regional results tables. We believe in high aspirations for all, without limits being placed on students based on prior attainment. We have therefore moved in recent years to mixed-ability teaching groups at Key Stage 3, with robust opportunities for small group intervention where children need additional support to catch up with their peers. At Key Stage 4, students are taught in two groups based on current attainment but these are flexible as they progress towards GCSE tiered papers, keeping opportunities to tackle Higher content open for as long as possible.

The successful candidate will have the opportunity to contribute to continuing curriculum development, working closely with our experienced Head of Department and our Primary subject lead teacher for Maths. Our Academies Trust membership offers subject-specific professional support and discourse through regular Subject Research Circles meetings. All our staff are actively supported in curriculum planning and implementation, teaching and learning by our Senior Leadership Team.

What can we offer?

A fully-resourced, successful mathematics curriculum, with flexibility for further development and innovation;

Outstanding technology: a MacBook Air and iPad for each teacher and 1:1 iPads for each child; 

Firefly learning platform and a range of maths apps as rich teaching resources;

Three Project Weeks during the year offering adventure, creativity and deep learning;

Small classes with engaged learners;

Supportive colleagues, committed to professional learning and development;

Mentoring and support for Early Career Teachers within the new 2021 framework if relevant;

Professional collaboration with Primary and strong links with our mainland Trust academies;

Support with finding suitable accommodation on St Mary’s.

The successful candidate will be fully committed to our Five Islands Academy vision for learning without limits for all children. They will be expected to play a full part in the wider life of the school, including taking on pastoral responsibilities within a tutor team and leading extra-curricular clubs and outings. Ability and willingness to teach upper Primary mathematics where needed or a second subject would be valued.

This is a maternity cover role for one year: September 2021 - August 2022. If you would like to discuss the potential for future employment opportunities at Five Islands Academy, please do contact me for an informal conversation. This role would be suitable for an early career teacher seeking experience in a strong maths department or an experienced teacher looking for a new challenge or adventure in learning and life. 

I look forward to reading your application. In the meantime, should you have any questions, please feel free to contact me at school.

Rachel Gibb 

Headteacher