SECOND DEPUTY HEAD (PASTORAL) - The King's School

REGIA SCHOLA
VIGORNIENSIS
Details of the post of
SECOND DEPUTY HEAD (PASTORAL)
at The King’s School, Worcester
www.ksw.org.uk

REGIA SCHOLA
The King’s School, Worcester
The character of the school, and some recent achievements
The Senior School
King’s is an academically selective co-educational school, with two Junior Schools as part of its Foundation. There are 930 pupils in the
Senior School, which is situated next to the Cathedral and the River Severn on a peaceful and attractive site in the centre of Worcester. In
the last few years, entry at 11+ has increased from four to six forms of between 20 and 25. Up to 15 pupils join the school at 13+ and up
to 25 at 16+.
Our two Junior Schools
King’s St Alban’s is adjacent to the main site and has 175 boys and girls from 7-11 with two forms in Years 3 and 4 and three forms in Years
5 and 6. It shares many of the facilities of the Senior School. St. Alban’s celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2002. It has a new library and
reception area. The purchase of a pub opposite the school in 2006 allowed us to build and open a Pre-prep department (Reception, Year
1 and Year 2) for the school in 2009. It has made a very successful start.
King’s Hawford is just north of Worcester in spacious grounds and currently has about 320 children from Kindergarten age up to 11. The
school was acquired by King’s in 1996, at which time it was a free-standing Preparatory School. King’s Hawford has two forms from Years
3 to 6 as well as thriving infant and junior sections. There have been major improvements to the site in recent years. The latest completed
projects have been new classrooms and Music facilities, and a new scheme for the landscaping of the centre of the school. The restoration
of the Droitwich Canal, which runs by the school, has opened up some excellent new opportunities for water-based activities at King’s
Hawford.
The great majority of Year 6 children from both Junior Schools proceed to the Senior School by means of an 11+ entrance exam. They
are joined in Year 7 by between and 40 and 50 children from local Primary Schools. Each of the Junior Schools has its own Head, who is
responsible to the Head of the Senior School.
Some history, ancient and modern
The oldest building at the King’s Senior School is College Hall, once the twelfth
century monks’ refectory, subsequently the School Room and now the Assembly
Hall. It stands for an enduring relationship with the Cathedral and the Dean
and Chapter, from whom we rent it and other buildings around the Green. It
recalls the refounding of the school by Henry VIII in 1541 when the monastery
was closed and there began the grammar school tradition that has been an
important part of the school’s character, particularly in the last hundred years
or so, when the fortunes and size of the school have steadily increased.
Two important decisions in the 1990s have had an important part in shaping
the school into its present form. In 1991, girls were admitted to St Alban’s and
at 11+ in the Senior School (following 20 years of admission of girls to the Sixth
Form). Girls now make up well over 40% of the numbers in all three schools. In
1999, boarding came to an end. This opened up considerable opportunities to
develop some of the school’s finest buildings and offer proper departmental
areas to all subjects.
Development of the school site
A development programme costing more than £10 million over the last 10 years
has produced a new administrative centre, a centre for English and Classics
with a large additional ICT room, a new base for Maths, with three additional PE
rooms in the basement, a new Music School, a new Library and Careers Centre, a new Art School, an expanded and refurbished Design
and Technology Department, the refitting of all 13 science laboratories, a Languages Computer Centre with the latest software for the
teaching of French, German and Spanish, a new Reception area and major improvements to our 306 seat John Moore Theatre. We have
greatly improved our playground provision for all ages. The recent purchase of a second (larger) pub on the perimeter of the senior school
site will enable us to build an additional sports hall with a drama/dance studio and a range of other facilities. Initial work has already
begun on this project. A substantial gift from a former pupil will cover the entire cost of a new Boathouse on site (in the same location as
the current Boathouse) with accompanying social and changing facilities. Work on this building is already underway.
Other facilities on the main site include a sports hall and indoor swimming pool. The school has extensive playing fields across the river
within walking distance.
Academic provision and success
The school has had considerable (and growing) academic
success in recent years. In summer 2010, 77% of grades at
A level were A*, A or B (with 21.5% at the new A* grade). At
GCSE, 68.5% of grades were A* or A. These results mean that
we maintain our record for some years as being the top school
in Worcester at A Level and in the county as a whole at GCSE.
24 different subjects are offered at A level including a choice of
two different courses in each of Maths, English and Chemistry.
In Year 7, French, German and Spanish taster courses lead to a
free choice of language in the second term. We run language
exchanges and work experience programmes in France,
Spain and Germany and have developed special links with
the Cathedral School in Magdeburg. The school is currently
involved in a two-year EU-funded Comenius project which links our students with students in five other EU countries for a programme of
conferences and activities. All pupils take up a second language in Year 8 which many take on to GCSE as part of an option system that
includes 10 subjects. Pupils choose three of these options in addition to the core curriculum. Most pupils take three separate sciences at
GCSE. We currently enter all pupils for the IGCSE Maths course and have just introduced IGCSE courses in English and Physics as well.
Critical Thinking AS level is taken by a number of our Upper Sixth students. All Lower Sixth students take part in our own ‘King’s Certificate
for Skills and All-Round Achievement’ which we have devised jointly with the University of Worcester and the local Chamber of Commerce.
The pastoral system
The pastoral system in the Senior School is a particular strength, based on Forms (with a Pastoral Head) in Years 7 and 8 and a House
System from Years 9 to 13. There are eight parallel Houses with about 85 pupils and six staff in each. Each year group within a House has
its own tutor but strong emphasis is also placed on the vertical grouping and the mixing of ages within a House. There is a well established
programme of inter-Form and inter-House competitions. The high quality of our pastoral care was noted in the last inspection as was the
strong moral code amongst the pupils.
Sport, outdoor activities and trips
King’s has a proud tradition of breadth in extra-curricular activities. Sport is very
strong among both boys and girls. Our Rugby 1st XV is among the best in the
region and, as in all sports, we have experienced coaches for all ages. Our Rowers,
boys and girls, have, over recent years, won many medals in international events
and at the National Schools Regatta and the National Championships and many
have been chosen to row for their country. Between 2008 and 2010, seven of
our pupils were selected to represent their country (in Rowing, Cricket, Hockey,
Netball and Kayaking). One former King’s pupil played senior international Rugby
for England (Luke Narraway) and another (Zac Purchase) won an Olympic Gold
Medal in Rowing. Two of our Netball teams (U19 and U16) reached the National
Finals in 2010.
Cricket, Netball, Hockey (girls) and Athletics are all currently strong and soccer
(boys) is developing well. Other sports include Tennis, Rounders, Basketball,
Swimming, Sailing, Kayaking, Sub Aqua, Judo, Cross-Country Running and
Fencing. The school achieved the Sport England Sportsmark Gold Award in 2005.
We have just completed the construction of our Astroturf pitch. Outdoor activities
are very popular and often based on our Outdoor Activities Centre in the Black
Mountains which all pupils visit in Years 5, 6 and 9. Duke of Edinburgh Award
and Army and RAF contingents of the CCF are voluntary but well subscribed.
Our Orienteering teams, both boys and girls, are currently national champions.
A Himalayan Club sends a party of between 20 and 40 Lower Sixth students to
the Himalayas, Africa or South America each year. Similar opportunities are on
offer to those in Years 10 and 11. There is a climbing wall in the school. There is a
very large number of trips open to pupils across the whole age range each year.
An Art Trip to China, Classics Trip to Greece, Music tour to Spain, History Trip to
France, Rugby Tour to South Africa and Netball Tour to Australia, Cricket Tour to
the Caribbean and Religious Studies Trip to the Netherlands are just a few recent
highlights. We also make sure that there are many value-for-money trips within
this country each year across a wide range of subjects and activities.
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The creative and performing arts
The creative and performing arts are exceptionally strong. Large numbers of pupils study Art at GCSE and A level and achieve outstanding
results. Music is an historic strength, particularly in the areas of orchestra and choir. We have a distinguished record of producing music
scholars at Oxford and Cambridge and players for the National Youth Orchestra. The Cathedral (boy) choristers are all pupils at King’s
and five members of the new girls’ choir are from this school. There are
many drama productions each year (Noyes’ Fludde, Guys and Dolls,
Les Misérables, King Lear, Pillars of the Community, Me and My Girl,
Oklahoma, West Side Story, The Lion The Witch and the Wardrobe and
Macbeth being recent triumphs) and more than 80 pupils choose to have
speech and drama lessons. One of our pupils recently won a place at the
Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. Dance is popular at all ages. We hold a
major themed week each year in the Autumn which is either ‘Words Alive!’,
‘Arts Alive!’ or ‘Science Alive!’. These, along with an annual ‘Creative and
Performing Arts Day’ for Year 7, are some of the many opportunities each
year to bring experts and professionals (in these areas and many others)
into the school.
Charitable work
There is a Sixth Form Charity committee which
oversees and plans a good variety of fundraising
(and awareness-raising) events each
year. A recent Charity Walk by the whole school
raised £20,000. Three interesting annual events
are a summer garden party for all the children
and staff at a local special school, a Christmas
show and entertainment for residents of
sheltered housing in Worcester and the
collecting of shoe boxes full of presents (almost
200 this year) under the auspices of Operation
Christmas Child. A number of Houses and
Forms have chosen their own particular
charities to support throughout the year. Two
local hospices and a trust for bereaved families
have been a particular focus of our attention.
Our Christian tradition
The school maintains its Christian tradition
through assemblies (many of which are in
the Cathedral), the teaching of RE, a Christian
Union and a weekly Eucharist in the Cathedral crypt for pupils, staff and parents.
Other extra-curricular strengths
These include Young Enterprise, taken up by over 50 pupils in the Lower
Sixth each year (we have had the Best Company in the region in five of the
last seven years and were national finalists in 2000 and 2002), Debating
(Oxford Union finalists), Public Speaking and General Knowledge (national
finalists in 2004, 2005, 2006 and 2007), and producing a newspaper
each year for ‘The Times Newsday’ competition (in which we were
second nationally in two of the last three years). Our ‘Maths Challenge’
team has reached the national finals in five of the last six years, and our
‘Chemistry Quiz’ team reached the regional finals. We enter
‘Model United Nations’ competitions. There are many clubs and other
activities. There is also a Community Service Group. A number of our
pupils volunteer to read with local primary school children or to assist as
scribes at the local school for blind and partially sighted children. We are
developing an interesting partnership with a local maintained secondary
school which includes joint activities in a range of curricular and extracurricular
areas. We put on a number of events each year for children in
local primary schools.
The Senior Management Team at King’s
King’s currently has a Senior Management Team of five: the Headmaster, the Bursar, two Pastoral Deputies and the Director of Studies.
A new Academic Deputy (appointed already for September 2011) will expand the team to six. The Deputy Bursar works closely with
this team, particularly in respect of the budget. The SMT works closely with the Heads of the two Junior Schools. We meet twice a week,
once (usually) on a Tuesday morning for about 90 minutes with a full agenda and once on a Thursday morning for a similar time but to
include looking at the events of the week ahead. Other staff (particularly Heads of Department and leaders of pastoral areas) often join
the SMT for parts of their Thursday meetings in order to contribute to discussions that touch on their management areas.
There is a strong team ethos among the senior managers at King’s. We are all very busy people who have to make many decisions
and work under considerable pressure at times. It is therefore important that we support each other well, that we offer each other
the opportunity to discuss issues and decisions, that there is a strong sense of shared cabinet responsibility and that we enjoy each
other’s company. At the same time, we do our very best not to be exclusive but to work closely in partnership with middle-managers at
the school and to take them into our confidence, to listen to and embrace their ideas and involve them in decision making whenever
possible.
Involvement with the governors
The Headmaster, Bursar, Deputy Bursar and Senior Deputy attend full governors’ meetings and meetings of the Finance and General
Purposes (F&GP) Sub-Committee each term. The Headmaster, Bursar, Second Deputy, Academic Deputy and Director of Studies will
be members of the Governors’ Education Committee which also meets once a term. All members of the SMT are invited to lunch with
governors before main governors’ meetings and F&GP meetings and get to know the governors well. The Senior Deputy writes a brief
outline of the discussion at governors’ meetings for the benefit of the staff.
Committees
King’s has an effective committee structure which enables a large number of staff to be part of the discussion of whole-school issues.
Correspondingly, it is also very helpful in offering guidance to SMT and in allowing important issues to be thoroughly aired. This enables
good decisions to be made.
The recent evolution of the Senior Management Team
Until the appointment of Sue Hincks, the current Senior Deputy, there had been for some years a Second Master (i/c the day-to-day
running of the school) and a Senior Mistress who was originally appointed to prepare the school for the smooth introduction of full
coeducation in 1991. Thereafter she had a particular responsibility for the welfare of staff, for Child Protection and for supporting the
pastoral staff in respect of any difficult issues involving girls that might arise. When the Senior Mistress retired, we felt that we were at
a stage where we needed to have two pastoral deputies whose job descriptions overlapped to a much greater degree. This led to the
creation of two posts- that of Senior and Second Deputy Head. The school was larger, coeducation was well established and there were
clear advantages in having two senior staff sharing between them the day-to-day running of the school and important aspects of
discipline whilst each also had a set of responsibilities for particular areas of school life.
The first Director of Studies at King’s was appointed in 1997. He established the role very effectively before being promoted to the
Headship of an HMC school in 2002. His successor has held the post during a time when the scope of the role has increased considerably
as the public exam system has become much more complex and the opportunities to develop the uses of ICT in a wide range of areas,
but especially in the monitoring of pupils’ progress, the development of a new school’s management system including a new reporting
sytem and the development of a parents’ and pupils’ “gateway” have convinced us that there are now two roles where there used to be
one. We need one person (The Academic Deputy) to oversee all aspects of the curriculum and the work of academic departments in the
school (and to work closely with those involved in these areas in the two Junior Schools) and to be a strategic thinker in all matters of
academic policy and preparation for Higher Education, and another (The Director of Studies) to oversee all aspects of the tracking and
analysis of pupils’ progress, the timetable, options, reporting, public and internal exams, the website, the school database and, in short,
all the systems and structures that support teaching and learning in our three schools.
The Senior Deputy is the person who is the first to deputise for me in my absence. He/she is also in charge of the Pastoral System and
of Child Protection. In most respects, however, there is no strong sense of hierarchy between the two Pastoral Deputies. They do very
similar jobs of equal importance and both report directly to me. They work very closely with each other, particularly over pastoral
matters and the organising of events, to ensure the smooth running of the school.
The appointment of the Second Deputy
In general, it is expected that the Second Deputy will be an experienced pastoral teacher, a confident and effective communicator, a
good team player, command the respect of staff and pupils and demand high standards, uphold the best traditions and ethos of the
School and have the imagination and vision to help the school to meet the challenges of a rapidly changing world in education and
employment . We therefore seek someone who will be an active force for good in the management of change. The role will also require
the ability to take a whole school view on all important issues, and the courage to act sensitively but decisively when difficult situations
arise with parents, pupils and staff. A sympathy with the Christian tradition of the school is important. A knowledge of and/or interest in
educational law is useful. A sense of humour is essential.
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How to find out more
If it would be helpful to find out more about the role before or after applying, please feel free to contact one of us at school by email or
phone.
Headmaster (Tim Keyes): tkeyes@ksw.org.uk; 01905 721740
Senior Deputy (Sue Hincks): shincks@ksw.org.uk; 01905 721779
Second Deputy (Richard Chapman): rchapman@ksw.org.uk 01905 721708
Director of Studies (Russell Baum): rbaum@ksw.org.uk; 01905 721728
Bursar (Galen Bartholomew): jgb@ksw.org.uk 01905 721720
Headmaster’s Secretary (Christina Swainston): headmaster@ksw.org.uk; 01905 721740
Tim Keyes
Headmaster
January 2011
Committee Structure at King’s
Committee Chaired by Role
Academic
Education Committee Governor A joint governor/staff committee to oversee the development of academic policy
and curriculum, and to receive reports and presentations on different aspects of
the academic, pastoral and extra-curricular life of the school.
Heads of Department Headmaster To consider a range of internal & external academic issues affecting the academic
life of the school.
Academic Academic Deputy To discuss particular academic issues (internal and national) in depth, ideally one
per meeting; it is timed so that the conclusions can then be fed, if appropriate, to
the next Heads of Department meeting.
Higher Education Academic Deputy To support the work of the Head of Sixth Form in overseeing the UCAS process
and to help to ensure that we are well briefed on all mattes of Higher Education
and in a position to give our pupils the best possible advice about HE and careers.
Library Second Deputy To support the Librarian in her work and to discuss the impact of the Library on
the academic life of the School.
ICT Director of Studies To provide a forum for all three schools to discuss non-curriculum matters
relating to the use of ICT and training, with an emphasis on forward planning.
Pastoral
Tutors Senior Deputy To consider any pastoral issues affecting the management of Houses (pupils in
Years 9 to 13).
Welfare
Health and Safety Governor To monitor and review accident reports and risks / risk assessment for all three
schools.
Child Protection Senior Deputy To ensure that senior pastoral colleagues are aware of the latest developments in
Child Protection, both in King’s and outside.
Food Senior Deputy To enable direct discussion between pupils and the Catering Manager about food
issues.
Health Senior Deputy To bring together a group of colleagues, both pastoral and members of the
support staff, to discuss issues relating to Health such as: Eating Disorders,
provision of food in the Dining Hall, Long term illness, Mental Health problems
among children.
Strategic
Foundation Headmaster To enable the three Heads, along with the Bursar and Senior Deputy, to take a
Executive Committee
strategic view of the development of the three schools in all important aspects of
their operation.
Scenario Second Deputy To look at all the factors that might affect the school’s strategy in the short and
medium term.
Strategy Senior Deputy To consider the findings of the Scenario Committee and draw up strategic
recommendations for SMT and governors.
Marketing Director of Marketing To consider all aspects of the promotion of the three schools and, in particular,
the advertising strategy, promotional events and literature, and contact with the
local media.
Other
Junior Schools’ Headmaster To look at matters of common interest to our senior and junior schools and to
Management
consider in particular the transition from junior to senior.
Charity Committee Head of Sixth Form To generate ideas about and arrange many of the school’s charitable initiatives.
Cathedral Liaison Headmaster To look at forthcoming events affecting both institutions and to consider the
welfare of choristers and their families.
Uniform Committee Senior Deputy To discuss any relevant issues to do with uniform, dress and appearance.
School Council Head of School A forum where pupils, representing Forms and Houses, can express their opinions
on aspects of school life.
Other ad hoc committees and working parties are established from time to time to look at particular issues (eg Pay and Conditions,
Prospectus). There are other regular meetings to which any staff with relevant input are invited (eg Calendar meetings to determine
the content of the calendar for the next term; Review and Development meetings to discuss our version of appraisal of staff). Pastoral
staff meet regularly by Houses /Forms or by Year Group (in alternation). Three members of the SMT attend meetings of the Parents’
Committee. Three also attend meetings of the Development Trust, whose role is to oversee the work of the Foundation Development
Office. The Headmaster, Bursar and Senior Deputy attend main and Finance and General Purposes meetings of the governors.
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Second Deputy Head (Pastoral)
Main aspects of the role
There have been two holders of this position (created in 2003) at King’s so far. Both have been promoted to the role of Senior Deputy as
a result of the two Senior Deputies in question moving on to Headship. It is expected that the new Second Deputy will be someone of
similar calibre and ambition.
The Second Deputy is one of two pastoral deputies with largely overlapping roles who look after the overall running of the school on a
day-to-day basis and work closely together to help to ensure that the school is an orderly, purposeful and happy community which fulfils
its aims. They both have an important role in supporting the work of our two Junior Schools (King’s Hawford and King’s St Alban’s) and
in working closely with the Deputy Heads in each of these schools (both of whom will also be new in September 2011 as the current postholders
have both been promoted to Headships.)
Job Description
Each of the pastoral deputies has distinctive areas of management responsibility which, in the case of the Second Deputy are principally
as follows:
Management
• Assist the Senior Deputy in the day to day running of the school and in the upholding of discipline and standards
Strategic
• Chair the Strategy Committee
• Be a member of the Governors’ Education Committee
Pastoral
• Assist the Senior Deputy in the running of the pastoral system and in the management and training of the team of School
Monitors
• Have primary responsibility for the welfare of girls in the school
• Chair Year Group meetings of pastoral staff
• Oversee arrangements for pastoral staffing
• Take assemblies on a regular basis
Person specification
The successful candidate will:
• Be a highly successful and experienced pastoral practitioner and a teacher up to A level
• Have a good Honours degree and show evidence either of further relevant qualifications or of experience and interest in
pastoral aspects of school life
• Be a creative thinker capable of taking a lead in the developing key areas of school life
• Be a proven leader with the ability to get the very best out of colleagues and also to take difficult decisions and convey them
with tact and understanding
• Be a good team player, capable of making a strong contribution to the overall running of the school as part of the Senior
Management Team and of forming strong working relationships with colleagues based on trust and mutual respect
• Be confident enough to defend a view and to offer constructive criticism as part of the Senior Management Team
• Be a powerful communicator, orally and in writing, capable of conveying the school’s mission and ethos and also of delivering
presentations on pastoral areas of the school’s operation in a way that is clear, informative and, when needed, persuasive
• Be able to manage budgets effectively and to operate strict financial control where needed
• Be an able and efficient administrator
• Have advanced ICT skills and be an advocate of their development in others
• Have a natural ability to get on with, support, understand and command the respect of boys and girls aged 11-18
• Have the ability to manage colleagues in a supportive, good-humoured and effective manner
• Be at ease with parents and prospective parents and willing to promote the good name of the school whenever opportunity
arises
• Be in sympathy with the Christian ethos and activities of the school
Terms and Conditions
• The new Second Deputy (Pastoral) will usually teach 12 – 14 periods per week.
• He/she will be paid at an appropriate point on the Leadership pay spine.
• He/she will have some secretarial support but will be expected to have good ICT skills.
Charity and Community Service
• Oversee the activities of the school in these two areas
Staff
• Be the member of the Senior Management Team responsible for the wellbeing of staff and for their training, appraisal and, in
the case of new staff, induction.
• Be overall responsible for the allocation of teaching to staff
• Be responsible for the annual updating of the Staff Handbook
Parents
• Be the main link person with the staff on the Parents’ Committee
• Be responsible for surveys of parents and the running of parent focus groups
Extra-Curricular Activity
• Have overall responsibility for extra-curricular activity in the school including the management of extra curricular budgets.
Health and safety
• Have a particular responsibility for Health and Safety in respect of the academic activities of the school.
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The school is required to ensure that the successful candidate is checked by the Criminal Records Bureau. Details of the school’s policies
on safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children as well as equal opportunities are available on request.
References will be taken up before the appointment is confirmed.
How to apply
Please download an application form from the “vacancies” section of the school website (www.ksw.org.uk) and send it, completed, to
the Headmaster (Mr T.H. Keyes) with a letter of application which outlines your relevant experience, how you would intend to meet the
challenges of the role and the particular qualities and strengths which you would hope to bring to the post. A CV is not needed but feel
free to include one if you feel that it would be helpful to us in assessing your experience and achievements.
Closing Date for applications Monday, January 24, 2011
First Interviews Monday, January 31, 2011
Second Interviews Tuesday, February 8, 2011
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www.ksw.org.uk
The King’s School, Worcester: a company limited by guarantee
Registered in England: Company Number 4776324
Registered Office: 5 College Green, Worcester WR1 2LL
Registered Charity Number 1098236
Front page photograph by Chris Dobbs cdobbs44@tiscali.co.uk