Head of Spanish at King's Ely

About this Role

An introduction to King's Ely

Purpose,Ethos and Values

King's Ely exists to make the most and best ofchildhood, and in particular to give the very best education, opportunities andpastoral care to as diverse a community of children as we can. In doing so we aim to prepare each one tolive positive, productive, successful and fulfilled lives, for the bettermentof themselves and the world around them. We achieve this through the operation of a family of schools centredaround a 2-19 co-educational day and boarding school in Ely, aiming to drawfully on our exceptional environment, history, physical, cultural, spiritualand human resources in doing so.

History

King'sEly can trace its origins from at least 970AD, making it one of the oldestschools in Europe. The School was first established to educate the choristersof the worshipping community of Ely and throughout our history we havemaintained strong links with Ely Cathedral.

In1541, King Henry VIII founded a College of Canons at Ely Cathedral to replacethe monks whose monastery has been dissolved in 1539 and the School receivedits Royal Charter, later becoming known as "The King's School".

King'sEly Today

Inrecent years King's has expanded rapidly, becoming co-educational in 1970, andtoday educating around 1100 children aged 2-18 at Ely, including 185 boarders.

Theschool is divided into three sections: King's Ely Senior (age 13-18) and King'sEly Prep (age 7-13), which occupy adjacent campuses and benefit from sharedfacilities, and King's Ely Acremont and Nursery (ages 2-6) which have their ownself-contained campus about 400m from the main site. Additionally, Fairstead House School inNewmarket (for pupils aged 1-11) joined the King's Ely family of schools in2022.

Themain campus extends to around 75 acres and contains buildings spanning thethirteenth to twenty-first centuries, including many of the historic monasticbuildings adjacent to Ely Cathedral as well as more recent, purpose-builtfacilities and almost 40 acres of playing fields.

King's Ely plays a key role in the localcommunity. We are one of Ely's largestemployers and contribute greatly to the local economy, and we also continue toeducate the choristers of Ely Cathedral. King's Ely also offers a number of bursaries to enable pupils from allwalks of life to benefit from the education it offers.

In its recent ISI Inspection(March 2025), King's Ely was found to meet or to exceed all regulatorystandards. In addition, the Inspectorsjudged the School to have a significant strength in the way in which itshigh quality pastoral care is interwoven with a dynamic enrichment programme.This enables "pupils of all ages to develop their independence, intellectualcuriosity, creativity and socialization particularly well".

The School is rightfullyproud of the Inspection. It is testamentto the community spirit of King's Ely and the commitment and respect shown eachday by pupils, staff and their families.

King'sEly is affiliated with the HMC, Society of Heads, IAPS, the Boarding Schools'Association and the Choir Schools' Association.

Job Description

We are seeking an exceptional teacher and inspiringleader to join King's Ely as Head of Spanish. This is an exciting opportunityto lead a thriving department while contributing to the wider strategicdevelopment of Modern Foreign Languages. We are looking for a leader whocombines academic excellence with warmth, integrity and vision; someone who ispassionate about developing both young people and colleagues and who will helpshape the future of languages at King's Ely.

Reporting to the Head of Modern Foreign Languages,the Head of Spanish will provide strategic, academic and operational leadershipfor Spanish across the School, ensuring the highest standards of teaching,learning and pupil achievement. The successful candidate will enjoy significantautonomy in leading the Spanish curriculum, developing teaching and learning,and promoting the subject. At the same time, they will work in closepartnership with the Head of Modern Foreign Languages, contributing positivelyto the shared vision, strategic priorities and collective success of thedepartment.

The successful candidate will be an outstandingclassroom practitioner with a genuine passion for languages and a commitment toacademic excellence. They will possess excellent interpersonal skills and theability to inspire confidence, motivate others and build strong professionalrelationships founded on trust, respect and open communication. They will be anaturally collaborative leader who recognises the strengths that colleaguesbring to the department and creates an environment in which everyone feelssupported, respected and empowered to contribute their expertise.

They will be committed to creating a positive andinclusive culture in which professional dialogue is encouraged, ideas areshared openly and constructive challenge is welcomed in a respectful andsolution-focused manner. They will demonstrate sound professional judgement,resilience, integrity and empathy, always keeping the needs of pupils at theheart of decision-making. They will recognise that leadership is not simplyabout managing a subject, but about developing people, strengtheningrelationships and enabling colleagues and pupils alike to flourish within aculture of mutual respect, shared ambition and continuous improvement.

This is an exceptional opportunity for an ambitiousand forward-thinking leader to make a lasting contribution to a successfulacademic department.

Thepostholder's duties will involve, but will not necessarily be limited to:
• Writing and reviewing Schemes of Work.
• Setting highexpectations of pupils both in academic achievement and behaviour.
• Commitmentto continuous improvement and innovation, which leads to the teaching ofchallenging and differentiated lessons in the classroom.
• Produce high-qualitypreparation and delivery of lessons to stimulate and encourage pupils'learning.
• Beresponsible for Spanish teachers, supporting their work as subject teachers.
• Encourage,manage and support the professional development of staff within the Spanish Department.
• Encourageconsultation and discussion within the Spanish Department and with the MFL Department.
• Setting and markinginternal examinations.
• Beresponsible for the academic progress of pupils studying Spanish, ensuring effectiverecord keeping of pupil progression and achievement.
• Ensureeffective communications with pupils, parents and guardians and staff.
• Endeavourto provide extra-curricular learning opportunities and trips to enhance subjectlearning beyond the exam specifications.
• Promotethe subject with integrity to ensure pupil numbers remain strong.
• Advisepupils interested in pursuing Spanish and related subjects at Higher Education.
• Undertakecolleagues' PDR.
• Carry outregular lesson observations.

This description is not exhaustive and may well be subject to change over time. The intention is to offer candidates an accurate impression of the expectations commensurate with the post and an outline of the role as it is envisaged at this time.

Terms and Conditions

• The School operates a defined contribution scheme for teaching staff. This scheme is the Aviva Pension Trust for Independent Schools (APTIS) scheme. Further details about the defined contribution scheme are available from the School's Chief Financial Officer.
• Members of staff may educate their own children in any of the three parts of the school or at Fairstead House, subject to availability of places and successful admissions procedures. Staff currently enjoy a discretionary discount on fees for children in Reception year onwards, details of which will be provided upon request.
• The School offers a private healthcare insurance scheme, which staff may opt to join shortly after the start of each academic year (the policy starts on 1st November each year). The scheme can only be joined at the start of the policy year, not part-way through the year.
• School lunch provided when at work over lunch time and tea and coffee throughout the day.
• Limited use of school gym facilities (during specific times) and use of the school swimming pool at specific times (during summer school holidays - small fee applies)
• Limited free on-site parking.
• Employees and their dependants have access to a 24/7 Employee Assistance Programme
• Access to Salary Sacrifice Schemes such as: Cycle2Work, Home and Tech Scheme and Local Gym Membership.
• Members of staff are entitled to 10% discount on all King's Ely school uniform ordered for their own children from Schoolblazer.
• Discounts at local businesses including Poet's House, The Almonry Kitchen & Tearoom, Ely Grazing Company, Sushi and Salad, Griddle Bar and Meathouse, and The Pantry (Newmarket).

• King's Ely is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, and applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and the Disclosure & Barring Service.
• If you are selected for interview, you will need to provide and bring with you photographic proof of identity (eg passport or photo driving license), birth certificate, documentation confirming your NationalInsurance Number or your right to work in the United Kingdom, proof of address (eg recent bank statement/HMRC correspondence/utility bill) and certification of declared qualifications

We appreciate your effort in completing this application and for your interest in working for King's Ely.