Vice Principal - Pastoral

We are looking for a dynamic, experienced and caring professional to take the lead in wellbeing and welfare issues for 1400 secondary school students. The successful candidate will join our Secondary Leadership Team (SecLT) as Vice Principal Pastoral and will work closely with the Principal and two other Vice Principals and the other 5 members of the SecLT team. The Vice Principal Pastoral leads a team of two Deputy Heads (Pastoral), a Wellbeing Coordinator, 7 Year Leaders, a Careers Coordinator, and a team of 3 mentor programme coordinators. The Wellbeing Coordinator leads a team of 6 counsellors and psychologists whilst the Year Leaders work with 8-10 mentors in each year group.

  

The Role

The key purpose of this role is to lead a culture of personal excellence through the school’s pastoral programmes and by leading a culture of high expectations for behaviour and attendance. The Vice Principal Pastoral will also act as our safeguarding lead. The Vice Principal is expected to impart an approachable, authoritative and visible presence in and around the school to provide support for staff, students, parents and the local community. 

   

Responsibilities:

• Support the vision, ethos and policies of the school and promote high levels of student achievement (academic, personal and social)
• Ensure a supportive and psychologically safe learning environment by providing supportive, creative and inspiring leadership for the school’s pastoral programmes
• Lead a culture of high expectations for behaviour and attendance  
• Support and enable innovative educational projects and approaches in line with our guiding statements
• Lead the professional learning and appraisal process for pastoral staff in accordance with the school’s CPL and Appraisal Policy
• Use data and evidence effectively and appropriately to evaluate the effectiveness of current practice in order to lead whole school improvements
• Provide students with a wide range of high-quality pastoral learning opportunities in line with the
• Guiding Statements and strategic plan
• Lead behaviour for learning across the Secondary school
• Lead safeguarding and child protection
• Lead Professional Learning within the pastoral section
• Oversee and evaluate the continuity of the pastoral programmes across the secondary school including Flourish, Nourish and other preventative programmes

  

A full description of the role is available in the document “Roles and Responsibilities: Vice Principal Pastoral”

  

Candidate Profile

The ideal candidate will be:

• Internationally-minded
• Innovative, committed to learning and up-to-date with current research
• Inspiring, challenging and empowering
• Team player
• Flexible, creative and adaptable
• Methodical, rigorous and resilient
• Diplomatic and culturally sensitive
• Excellent communicator
• Role model for the ISH Community Profile

  

Qualifications and experience:

Essential:

• Bachelor’s / Master’s degree in Education or Post-Graduate Diploma in Education. Please know that in order to work for us, you must be a fully qualified teacher in accordance with the standards required by the Dutch Education Authorities (DUO).  
• Minimum of 5 years’ teaching experience in schools with an international perspective
• Minimum of 3 years successful experience as a pastoral leader responsible for a large team
• Fluency in English (written as well as spoken)
• Knowledge of Dutch, or proven ability to learn languages quickly

    

Preferred: 

• Senior leadership experience 
• Experience as a safeguarding lead
• Experience of working with the complexities of a large school
• Proficiency in Dutch (written and well as spoken)

   

Application Process

All applicants must either be EU citizens or have a valid permit to work in The Netherlands. For any further information, please visit the Government website. 

Applicants are required to complete an online profile, provide a supporting statement, and upload a CV. Applicants must provide details of three referees, of which one must be their most recent supervisor. If shortlisted, we will contact referees prior to interview. For teachers, we require one from the head of school or deputy head. Once shortlisted, interviews will be conducted by Skype or in person, depending on the nature of the position and the applicant's location.

Deadline for applications is Monday, 27 January 2020. Short listed candidates will be interviewed as soon as possible. Please note that the school reserves the right to interview suitable applicants early and make an appointment prior to the deadline. If you have not heard from us within 4 weeks after the deadline, then please assume that, on this occasion, your application has been unsuccessful.

The International School of the Hague is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all the students in our care and expects all applicants to share this commitment. We follow safe recruitment practices which are aligned to the recommendations of the International Task Force on Child Protection. We hold ourselves to a high standard of effective recruiting practices with specific attention to child protection. All appointments are subject to an interview, identity checks, criminal record checks, and successful references.

Furthermore, those who are appointed at The International School of The Hague are required to obtain a Certificate of Good Conduct (in Dutch: VOG). Your appointment with The Rijnlands Lyceum Foundation takes place on condition that you obtain a VOG. Needless to say, Rijnlands will reimburse all costs in relation thereto.

  

What we offer

Please see our Secondary School Recruitment Package (brochure) available as a download below.

In line with local regulations, all appointments are for a fixed term of one year, with a view to extending to a permanent contract after successful appraisal. In addition, we offer excellent professional development opportunities and a pleasant working environment. As a successful applicant, you will be welcomed by an amicable, sociable and thoroughly international team.

If you are internationally-minded and have the desire to help shape the exciting future of our school, we would love to hear from you.