We are seeking a committed, compassionate and proactive Behaviour Mentor to join our dedicated pastoral team at Orchard Mead Academy.
This is an exciting opportunity to make a real difference to the lives of young people by helping them overcome barriers to learning, build positive relationships and develop the skills they need to succeed. You will join a supportive and collaborative team committed to promoting high expectations and ensuring every student feels valued, included and supported.
Job Overview
As a Behaviour Mentor, you will work with students who need additional support to manage their behaviour, engage positively with learning and meet the academy’s expectations.
Working closely with Heads of Year, teachers, the SEND team and senior leaders, you will identify students’ needs, contribute to support plans and monitor the impact of interventions. You will provide a calm and consistent presence, supporting students to reflect on their behaviour, take responsibility for their actions and rebuild relationships where needed.
You will also contribute to the effective running of the academy’s behaviour support provision, helping students remain engaged with their education and supporting their successful return to lessons. Building constructive relationships with parents and carers will be an important part of the role, ensuring that support is coordinated and expectations are clearly understood.
We are looking for someone who combines empathy with clear boundaries and high expectations, recognising that every interaction is an opportunity to help a young person move forward.
What We're Looking For
The successful candidate will have:
Experience of working with young people, ideally in a school, mentoring or pastoral support setting.
The ability to build positive, professional relationships with students who may find school challenging.
An understanding of barriers to learning and how these can affect behaviour and engagement.
A calm, patient and consistent approach, with the confidence to respond effectively to challenging behaviour.
The ability to help students develop emotional regulation, conflict resolution and positive decision-making skills.
A commitment to inclusion and supporting students with additional needs, including those with SEND.
Excellent communication and teamwork skills, with the ability to work constructively with colleagues, parents and carers.
Strong organisational skills and the ability to maintain accurate records, monitor progress and follow agreed support plans.
An understanding of safeguarding responsibilities and the importance of confidentiality and professional boundaries.
A willingness to develop their practice through training and contribute to the wider life of the academy.
Why Orchard Mead Academy?
We are a welcoming, inclusive, and ambitious school that is going from strength to strength. We recently celebrated our best-ever exam results, and we have been praised by Ofsted for our collaborative culture in which staff feel well-supported by leaders. Our large school site offers plenty of outdoor spaces and modern facilities, creating an ideal teaching and learning environment. Our professional development offer means that everyone is encouraged and supported to expand their expertise and develop their career. Above all else, you will join a team where people care about one another and value each other’s contributions.
As part of The Mead Educational Trust (TMET), you will benefit from a comprehensive package of family-friendly policies and benefits that go beyond sector norms. These include a menopause policy, critical illness and neonatal support, a free online GP service for you and your dependents, high-street savings, discounted bus travel and much more. We are continually investing in intelligent work design to reduce workload and give colleagues more time and energy to focus on what matters most.
Through the Mead Institute for Professional Learning, you will also have access to high-quality CPD, professional qualifications, apprenticeships, mentoring, secondments and clear pathways for career progression. We are proud that colleagues who joined us in support roles have gone on to become teachers and senior leaders. Wherever you start, we will support you to go further.
This post will involve contact with vulnerable groups (children, young people and/or adults) and is therefore, exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and subject to an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) Disclosure check. This exemption means that shortlisted applicants for this post will be required to declare all criminal convictions, cautions, reprimands, and bind- overs both spent and unspent in their application, before interview and regardless of the passage of time.