Downland School is a co-educational maintained community special school for pupils aged between 10 and 16 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP).
Our pupils have varying aptitudes and abilities; we are extremely proud of all their achievements and progress. Our pupils have a range of Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) including: Autism (ASC); attachment disorders and Social, Emotional Mental Health (SEMH) difficulties. We seek to ensure that, by the time they leave us, our pupils emerge as self-confident individuals able to manage their own learning; equipped with the skills and competencies to successfully take the next steps in their lives.
We are a friendly, happy and caring school, providing a positive, inclusive and enriching educational experience for our young people. We view each of our pupils as unique and shape our provision to meet their individual needs and accelerate their progress in a variety of areas e.g. personal, social, academic and well-being. Our commitment to supporting the ‘whole’ child and their development is underpinned by our strong pastoral systems and our committed and trained staff. At Downland we promote inclusion and equality and celebrate diversity.
Our mission statement is ‘Aspire, Achieve and Thrive’.
All about the role:
We are now looking to appoint a dynamic and ambitious Leader of English who has a proven record in raising achievement. This is an exciting opportunity to join our enthusiastic, committed and professional team and to teach pupils from year 6 to year 11. We are happy to take applications from primary teachers who have taught KS2 and have a passion for English.
You will have a passion for your subject, a track record of outstanding teaching and the ability to teach pupils with SEND. You will fully participate in developing English across the school and initiatives to secure outstanding teaching and learning in all aspects of school life. You will have a strong commitment to the wider pastoral role and wish to make a significant positive impact on our young people’s lives, securing the very best outcomes.
Can you raise aspirations and rise to the challenge?
Key areas of work will include:
Leading the development of the English curriculum to drive up the quality of English provision at Downland School
Inspiring the quality of teaching and learning within the department
Supporting the implementation of the whole school Literacy strategy
Actively promoting innovation and creativity with a SEN focus across the department and the wider school
Focusing strongly on raising levels of progress and attainment through accurate assessment of data which is used across the school, using a range of evaluation methods which align with the school’s self-evaluation processes
Focusing on developing the needs of the whole child
Teaching mixed ability class groups of pupils with complex SEND
Participating fully in all aspects of pastoral care and wider school life
Enthusiasm and commitment to working with and raising achievement for pupils with SEND is paramount to us; you will be expected to actively demonstrate the school’s core values and embrace ‘The Downland Way’.
Proud member of the Disability Confident employer scheme
Disability Confident
About Disability Confident
A Disability Confident employer will generally offer an interview to any applicant that declares they have a disability and meets the minimum criteria for the job as defined by the employer. It is important to note that in certain recruitment situations such as high-volume, seasonal and high-peak times, the employer may wish to limit the overall numbers of interviews offered to both disabled people and non-disabled people. For more details please go to Disability Confident .