Your job and career questions answered
I am looking at deputy head posts and was wondering how the leadership scale worked. Should I be looking at L1 posts, or am I able to jump on at L4?
Each school decides the salary range for the post it is advertising. The range for a deputy is normally five points on the leadership scale, but usually the larger the school the higher the range. This means that small primary schools pay less than large secondary schools for jobs with the same title. Schools can increase the range offered where there are likely to be recruitment difficulties. These days, that means almost anywhere in the country. You can apply for a post starting at any point on the scale and, where a range is specified in the advert, you can negotiate to start above the bottom of the range. However, that will mean the possibility of fewer increments in years to come.
If you have a question for John Howson, please email susan.young@tes.co.uk