Magdalen College School, founded in 1480, is one of the country’s leading independent day schools.
We are seeking to appoint an inspirational, accomplished and talented individual to lead, co-ordinate and manage the provision of Sport at MCS through the next stage of its development throughout the school. The successful candidate will promote excellence in teaching, learning and achievement; and maintain and encourage the culture of enjoyment of sport at all levels. Further information and application instructions are contained herein.
The Role
The school is seeking to appoint a Director of Sport to lead, co-ordinate, and manage the provision of Sport at MCS through the next stage of its development, throughout the school.
The successful applicant will be expected to promote excellence in teaching and learning and achievement; and maintain the culture of enjoyment of sport alongside excellence in performance.
The Director of Sport will be responsible to the Master via the Usher, for the proper discharge of his or her duties. These duties will include all aspects relating to the leadership and administration of a year-round coaching and training programme, planning a competitive and balanced fixture list, and inspiring pupils within the School to play sport both inside and outside school. This will be in addition to other duties in the school, as reasonably requested by the Master and the Usher.
The Department
The Sports Department is the largest in the school and oversees the provision of all sport across the Junior and Senior School. Heads of Sport manage their own programmes in a way that allows pupils to flourish in a number of sports. They are ably supported by highly qualified Sports Professionals and experienced PE & Games teachers. We are fortunate to have a number of Level 3 and 4 qualified coaches, many of whom have played sport to the highest level. The introduction of greater departmental inset has proved invaluable in sharing technical knowledge across all sports. Sports staff act as mentors to pupils who are aiming to progress through performance pathways, but also have a focus on increasing the numbers of pupils representing the school at all levels. Sport at MCS has seen sustained improvement and success over the last 10 years: sports teams across focus sports are habitual county champions (both boys and girls), and teams regularly advance far in national competitions – for example, the senior boys were National Schools Tennis Champions in 2018 & 2019.
The Candidate
The ideal candidate should be technically knowledgeable and have great enthusiasm for participation, as well as displaying a high level of organisation and the ability to demonstrate initiative. It would be advantageous if the candidate has experience of either playing or coaching at a high level.
An ability to work closely with the Sports Department and provide support for coaches from the School’s classroom teaching staff is key, as well as communicating effectively to pupils, parents and staff.
Magdalen College School is committed to the safeguarding of pupils, and any offer of employment will be subject to an enhanced DBS disclosure, the receipt of satisfactory references, the school’s pre-employment medical questionnaire, plus sight of relevant original ID documentation and degree certificate(s). This role will be in regulated activity and will require a children’s barred list check as well as an enhanced DBS check. The enhanced DBS check is due to this role being exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974.