Post: Head of Years 8 & 9

Employer: The Abbey School, Farnham, Surrey

Salary: £33,074 - £50,470 Corem1-Excelm3 (MPS/UPS) + TLR 2A (£3,391) + SEN1 allowance (£2,679)

Contract type: Full time

Job starts: September 2025

School type: Secondary Special, 11-16, mixed gender

We are an outstanding special secondary school for pupils with learning difficulties and are seeking an inspirational Head of Years 8 and 9 to join our highly motivated and dynamic staff team. The role is available following the promotion of the existing postholder to Assistant Headteacher. This position would be particularly suitable for an aspiring senior leader with a real interest in developing their pastoral expertise. It is also a fantastic opportunity for somebody who would like to learn more about special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) and a range of CPD opportunities will be provided to support this.

You will work extremely closely with our Pastoral Support Team that consists of our Inclusion Manager, Home School Link Worker, Student Welfare Coordinators, Pastoral Support Worker and is led by our Assistant Head Teacher (Pastoral). You will also work closely with the school safeguarding team, developing your knowledge of current safeguarding procedures and legislation and other Heads of Year. For candidates who are interested there will be the opportunity to undergo DSL training in the near future. You will demonstrate the ability to lead, manage and deliver outstanding lessons that are differentiated to meet the needs of pupils working below national standards. You will be creative, innovative and imaginative.

The successful candidate will have a strong academic background, be an excellent classroom practitioner who is capable of inspiring and motivating students and have experience of working with children with special educational needs (please note this does not need to be within a special school setting). We are keen to receive applications from mainstream colleagues too. We welcome applications from both primary and secondary qualified teachers. We have a great mixture of both within our school - something that greatly enhances our curriculum offer! The majority of our students are working at a KS1 and KS2 level with a small number studying GCSEs in English, Maths and Art. We would like to invite you to come and meet us and see our fantastic students and staff in action prior to placing your application.