What skills and experience we're looking for
Deputy Headteacher
Salary: L8 - L12
Job start September 2025
An inclusive and welcoming school at the heart of the local community: Join our team as Deputy Head!
Eldene Nursery & Primary School is a large primary school with over 300 children on roll. The school has a Special Resource Provision for KS2 children with complex learning difficulties. The success of this provision this has led to the planned opening of another for KS1 children in September 2025. The school is situated on the eastern edge of Swindon, close to the M4.
Children at Eldene Nursery and Primary School are extremely polite, respectful and friendly – come and see for yourself!
We are looking for a dynamic and inspirational Deputy Headteacher to join our newly appointed Headteacher within a supportive school community. We are part of a vibrant and diverse local community and we pride ourselves on being a genuinely inclusive community school that celebrates difference and promotes equality.
The successful candidate will be an excellent teacher, who has the ability to share, model and demonstrate the characteristics of effective teaching and learning. Leading positively, professionally and enthusiastically you will support the school in maintaining high standards for all of our children whilst creating a safe, fun and nurturing environment to help our children succeed. You will play a pivotal role in creating bonds with the local community and forging and maintaining external partnerships. You will support the Headteacher in the strategic leadership of the school and you will play an integral role in coaching and developing staff.
We are seeking to recruit a Deputy Headteacher who:
• is an outstanding, inclusive practitioner who is able to challenge current practice, build upon excellence and ensure children are at the centre of learning
• is passionate, positive and empathetic. Able to inspire, motivate and lead others to reach the highest possible standards
• is committed to ensuring that all children leave our school with an outstanding education and vital life skills
• is an innovative, creative and strategic thinker, able to turn ideas and opportunities into successful practice and to adapt quickly to new circumstances
• is skilled in monitoring, evaluating and reporting on standards of attainment, teaching and learning and data analysis
• will use their individual skills and unique life experiences to inspire colleagues and establish themselves with families as a knowledgeable and trusted member of the leadership team.
In return, we can offer you:
• a positive, collaborative, and supportive team.
• a genuine commitment to the rights of children to receive an excellent education matching their needs.
• a highly supportive Governing Body and school community.
• a warm and welcoming school community with polite and respectful children, who are eager to learn and proud of their school.
• leadership release time to fulfil the duties of the Deputy Headteacher.
• support and development, with access to the NPQH.
Visits to the school are welcomed. Please email or phone to arrange an appointment.
We encourage you to apply as soon as possible, as this advert may close earlier if a suitable candidate is found.
Includes a 0.5 part time teaching commitment
What the school offers its staff
Dear Applicant,
We are delighted that you are interested in applying for the Deputy Headteacher vacancy at Eldene.
We have high ambitions for our school and we wish to appoint a Deputy with proven skills in raising standards and an excellent track record as a classroom teacher. We are looking for a passionate, positive and innovative leader, who prioritises equity and inclusivity. The successful candidate will take a lead role in building on our achievements, as we strive to continue to raise standards and ensure the children of Eldene receive an outstanding education and vital skills for life.
We hope that you find this information pack informative and useful. We welcome visits to the school, prior to submitting your application. Please contact us via phone or email to arrange an appointment.
The closing date for receiving applications is 12pm on Monday 24th March. Please ensure that your letter of application outlines how your skills and experience make you a suitable candidate for the position, making sure that you use the Person Specification to show how you meet the criteria that we have set out. Interviews will take place during on Thursday 3rd April.
We look forward to welcoming you to Eldene and receiving your application in due course.
Yours sincerely,
Clare Pellew
Headteacher from September 2025
'Pupils are extremely polite, respectful and friendly. (Ofsted, March 2022)'
Vision and Ethos
At Eldene we have high expectations and are incredibly proud of our children, staff and governors, and of all the great things that we achieve together.
We have a very inclusive, purposeful and caring atmosphere, which you can feel the moment that you walk into our school. Within this positive environment, we aim to provide a happy and stimulating place where every child has the opportunity to develop a thirst for learning and achieve to the best of their ability so they can go on to realise their ambitions.
The staff and volunteers in all areas of school life are a committed and hard working team. Parents are recognised as partners in their child’s education and are encouraged to support our aims by taking an interest in the life of our school and in their child’s progress.
School Information
1. General
Eldene Nursery & Primary School is a large primary school with over 300 children on roll. The primary school opened in September 2000 after the amalgamation of the former Eldene infant and junior schools, which were built 50+ years ago. In September 2014, we opened a School Nursery Class (3 years+) using the building vacated by the Eldene Children’s Centre, which is on our site.
The school is situated in a large estate on the eastern edge of Swindon, close to junction 15 on the M4. Approximately half of the children who attend the school live in Eldene, with the remainder coming from neighbouring areas. The school has a Special Resource Provision for KS2 children with complex learning difficulties. The success of this provision this has led to the planned opening of another for KS1 children in September 2025. We run a Breakfast Club and After-school Club with 24/16 places.
Eldene is a local authority maintained school and works closely with 5 other schools in a group of schools called the Compass Collaboration.
2. Context
• Eldene is a larger than average-sized primary school, with the majority of year groups having a Pupil Admission Number (PAN) of 60 per year group but year groups are not full. This leads to our mid-year admissions being high. From September 2024, new cohorts will have a reduced PAN of 45 per year.
• The Nursery accommodates 3 and 4 year olds. The majority of these children transfer to the primary school, with the greater number moving from other pre-schools in the area.
• Currently pupils are taught in single aged or a 2 year mixed year group class.
• The proportion of children with SEN is above average with over 20% on the register.
• The 12 children who attend our KS2 SRP all have Complex Learning Needs and usually make a transition to special school for their secondary phase of education. In September, we will open an 8 place KS1 SRP.
• On-entry assessments to Reception are very low.
• The proportion of pupils eligible for the pupil premium is above average at 36%.
3. Curriculum
Our curriculum is ambitious and well-matched to the needs of the children we teach. It is topic-based using the Cornerstone resources. We use cross-curricular teaching as much as possible to make the curriculum both relevant and engaging, and to put the knowledge into context.
Provision to ensure all children are given equal opportunity to succeed is wide and varied e.g. a full-time family support worker and a non-class based SENCO. Social and emotional support are an integral part of the curriculum. Embedded practices are in place to support both children and their families, offering the support that the children need to meet their potential.
All teachers are subject leaders and work collaboratively in curriculum teams to continually develop teaching and learning and our curriculum offer.
4. The site
There is a single-storey building housing Reception and Key Stage 1 children, and an adjacent two-storey building for Key Stage 2 children. The school has a large site, containing one small and three large playgrounds and a large field.
The single-storey building is open-plan with a hall and three teaching bays, one for Reception children and the others for Key Stage 1 classes. Each Bay contains three ‘classroom’ areas, and a large shared practical area. Currently there are 5 infant classes.
The two-storey building houses Key Stage 2 children and our Special Resource Provision. The building has four main semi-open plan teaching areas, each with a shared practical bay area. There is also a permanent library area, a computer suite, a hall and kitchens. Currently there are 6 mainstream KS2 classes.
The Nursery class is housed in a third building which also provides the accommodation for our school staffed Breakfast and After-school Clubs.
5. Staff
Eldene is a happy place to work, with a positive ethos to which everyone contributes. All staff work together collaboratively and support each other well.
The Leadership Team consists of Headteacher, Deputy Headteacher (with a teaching role but non-class based) and a Business Manager. A team of four Phase Leaders play a vital role in school development, and make up the Middle Leadership Team, along with the SENCo. Class Teachers work hard to ensure the school continues to be focused on ensuring children achieve the very best they can, and to prepare them for their next stage of learning.
The Support Staff (including our Family Support Adviser, Office Staff, Catering Team, Breakfast and After school Club Staff, MDSAs, Caretaker and Cleaners) all play an important role in making Eldene School run effectively.
6. Governors
The Governors are very supportive of the school and its staff. They are knowledgeable about the school’s strengths and areas for development and are focused on helping the school to build on successes.
7. Community
The school actively encourages parental involvement. We have good links with the other schools in the Compass Collaboration, our local Pre-school, other Catchment Primary Schools and Dorcan Academy, to which most of our pupils go in Year 7. Links have been made with local groups and businesses and we have a valued group of volunteers who give their time generously to the school.
8. Ofsted
We were most recently inspected in March 2022 and were judged as a ‘Good’ school.
Deputy Headteacher Job Description
Leadership Scale: Point L8– L12
This Job Description should be read alongside the current conditions of employment for Deputy Headteachers contained in the School Teachers’ Pay and Conditions Document, the 1988 School Standards and Framework Act, the required standards for Qualified Teacher Status and other current legislation.
Main purpose of the post
To assist the Headteacher and Governors with the leadership and management of the school in the drive to achieve the highest standards possible, including:
• Determining the vision and strategic direction of the school to ensure school improvement.
• Playing a major role in formulating and reviewing the School Development Plan and the aims and objectives of the school by:
Ø developing and reviewing the policies through which they will be achieved
Ø leading and managing staff resources to that end based on sound understanding of the data
Ø monitoring and evaluating progress towards their achievement.
• Assisting in the day-to-day running of the school.
• Maintaining a high profile around the school.
• Being a role model for excellent teaching and classroom practice.
• Leading on delegated areas of responsibility.
• Contribute to the safeguarding and promotion of the welfare and personal well-being and care of students.
• Deputising for the Headteacher in the event of absence or other urgent business.
• Becoming an effective addition to the Senior Leadership Team, comprising of Headteacher and School Business Manager.
Currently the post has a 0.5 non-class based teaching commitment.
Main duties and responsibilities:
Strategic Direction and Development
• Ensure the vision and ethos for the school is clearly articulated, shared, understood and acted upon effectively by all.
• To contribute to the formulation, monitoring, evaluation and implementation of the School Development Plan.
• To contribute to curriculum design and development ensuring that it meets the needs of our students, enables continuity of learning and effective progression of achievement, including all related policies.
• To initiate and manage effective staff development.
Leadership and Management
• To inspire, challenge, motivate and empower others to attain challenging outcomes.
• To establish clear expectations and constructive working relationships among staff.
• To initiate and manage change and improvement to develop the school and its staff, ensuring positive staff participation and effective communication and procedures.
• To maintain high expectations of all staff and prepared to challenge poor performance.
• Act as line manager and mentor to designated areas - supporting as appropriate and aiding the development of key documentation, assessment of progress and attainment, data collection and reporting, implementation of policy.
• To demonstrate high professional standards.
• To support and assist the Headteacher in planning, managing and monitoring the use of finances and resources effectively to achieve the aims of the school.
• Promote the reputation of the school with the outside community.
• Keep up to date with current research and educational developments and share this with staff.
• Observe and promote the safeguarding of pupils, exemplary behaviour and observance of health and safety rules.
• Lead on the appraisal of identified staff.
• Deputise in the absence of the Headteacher.
• Maintain strong links of communication with governors, parents and the wider community.
• Lead an area(s) from the School Improvement Plan and/or a curriculum subject area.
• Help recruit and deploy staff appropriately.
• Implementing policies on equal opportunity issues for all staff and students in relation to the protected characteristics.
• Organising and assisting in the delivery of parent consultation evenings
• Contributing to the gathering and collation of stakeholder views.
• Attending school events and functions, as well as appropriate meetings, with colleagues and parents/carers.
• Assisting with the marketing of the school and organising key events as appropriate.
Teaching and Learning
• This post carries 0.5 teaching commitment and 0.5 management time. Teaching will be with specific groups of learners and is not class based.
• Play a major part in securing outstanding classroom practice and outcomes for children across the school.
• To encourage innovation, the development of independent learning, cross-curricular initiatives and the further use of technologies.
• To ensure that the teaching and learning provided by different curriculum areas and teaching teams form a co-ordinated, coherent curriculum which achieves the best possible outcomes for all.
• Ensure that assessment of pupil progress and attainment is carried out accurately and used constructively to improve teaching and learning, informing and motivating children and reported to governors.
• To contribute to the monitoring and development of teaching and learning and our commitment to robust academic improvement.
• To maintain a secure, caring, welcoming, happy, stimulating and challenging learning environment.
• Demonstrate excellent subject knowledge and provide a consistently good or outstanding role model of teaching; set and maintain a high standard of work and behaviour.
• Help sustain a culture for staff to share best practice and support each other in achieving excellent learning in the classroom.
• Model and promote stimulating and challenging learning environments.
• Play a major role in the development of high quality teaching and learning throughout the school, including leading and participating in CPD.
Further details about the role
Please see attached applicant pack
Commitment to safeguarding
Eldene School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Appointment is subject to satisfactory references, enhanced DBS and medical clearances, and proof of legal working in accordance with the Asylum and Immigration Act 1996. Our safeguarding and child protection policy and procedures can be read on our website. For those candidates shortlisted an Online Search Record will be carried out.