This is a rewarding executive headship; you will be able to lead this unique and highly regarded school on to the next stage of its remarkable journey. You must exhibit confidence, empathy and a clear focus on building a healthy workplace culture to benefit the wellbeing of the staff and our children and young people.

It is an exciting opportunity for the new Headteacher to develop and implement effective strategies to raise standards and continually improve pupil attainment and progress.

About You

To be successful;

• You must be able to demonstrate a proven track record of working with children and young people with SEND
• You will have an established understanding of the foundation for working with young people with CLDD
• You will be a passionate champion of equality and diversity in relation to accessing personalised and relevant curriculum for our young people
• You will need the tools and strength to adapt and cope positively in order to create improved mental health outcomes for all in the face of significant challenges. You will excel in supporting both staff and pupil resilience.
• You will need a solid understanding of the SEND code of practice and the underpinning legislation in the Children and Families Act to ensure that statutory duties are delivered
• You will need to understand the broader context around Disability and have awareness of the types of support available
• You will need to be skilled at gathering and responding to the voices of all young people in the school including those who communicate through behaviour, symbols, signs or alternative and augmentative communication
• You will need to be commitment to enabling each pupil to becoming a self-advocating, independent adult who uses their full potential to contribute to their community
• The Head will need to have a solid understanding of accountability frameworks (such as Ofsted) and update to date knowledge of SEND guidance and research with regards to curriculum and assessment.
• The Headteacher will need to have strong leadership knowledge and skills to be able to monitor and evaluate current provision and strategically plan for improvement within budgetary constraints
• The Headteacher will have the skills to utilise the strengths of the current staff and partners to maintain the existing strengths whilst driving further improvements.

The Support you will receive

The new Executive Headteacher can expect the full support of the Head of School, an enthusiastic Senior Leadership Team and Staff together with the Governors’ encouragement and help.

The School’s SEA, Lis Marsden, will also be keen to assist and advise together with a large team from the Local Authority particularly if the partnership to develop a new Secondary satellite progresses as expected.

In addition, the Local Authority will invite the successful candidate to two induction sessions run by the school improvement service. There is also a ‘comprehensive induction package’ available to support Governors and new Headteachers through the first year.

Mowbray School is the largest special school in North Yorkshire and is split across two sites.

The main site in Bedale currently has 237 children aged from 3 to 16 years of age and the satellite site in Ripon is primary aged, it was opened in January 2020. Both sites have extensive grounds and are well equipped with specialist teaching rooms.

Bedale - 101 Primary Pupils and 137 Secondary Pupils

Ripon - 51 Primary Pupils (Capacity should increase to 60/65 by 2022/23 - Primary Provision only)

The Bedale site is unique in that it has its own onsite 5.5-acre working farm and has a large separate nature area, with several staff who are forest school trained. The school has highly trained and qualified staff with a comprehensive Outdoor Learning programme. Mowbray School has been awarded Advanced Accreditation by the National Autistic Society in 2020.

Please take virtual tours round our wonderful school sites:

• Ripon
• Bedale

Other significant awards reflecting the expertise of the staff include;

• Challenge Partners recognised area of excellence (Mowbray ‘preparation for adulthood’ curriculum)
• Attachment and Trauma Aware School
• Emotion Coaching School of Excellence
• Well-being Award for Schools and has
• Investors in Pupils
• I Can Primary Talk Enhanced School
• ECO schools Ambassador Status
• SSAT Research Quality Mark- Extender level
• Youth Sport Trust- Silver Partner School
• Sports Mark- Gold award
• Heritage School Status
• Specialist Leader in Education through The Swaledale Alliance

Our school is looking forward to restarting our activities and clubs during the current academic year:

Theatre Club, Golf Club, Bike Club, Dance Club, Homework Club, Film Club, Football Club, Egg Washing Club, Pony Club, Computer Club, Rebound Club, and DT Club.

• Pupil premium - 43% of pupils are in receipt of the pupil premium.
• Free school meals - 30%
• Ethnicity - 3.7%
• Service families - 12.4%

All of our pupils have EHCP’s. Applications exceed places available. In the last academic year we accepted 58 new children. In addition there were an additional 128 applications. Of those applications we could have met needs in 66 cases but were unable to offer a place as the School is full.

The school has a number of challenges which it has to address. These are briefly referred to in the Aims and Vision Statement attached. Governors anticipate that if the additional satellite Secondary provision can be created in partnership with the Local Authority in the next 2/3 years then the school population will increase to closer to 400 Pupils from the current 291.

The short term difficulty is the need to balance Primary and Secondary provision using the already overused facilities at the Bedale site. Whether or not the satellite is created, the facilities and infrastructure at Bedale have to be brought up to date recognising the needs of our Pupils and the basic fact that the site was originally built for up to 120 Pupils and now has a 238 Student population. Governors are addressing this with the Local Authority who are aware of our concerns.

Over the last 7 years the school has built additional classrooms, a Sports hall, extended the Staff Room and provided other facilities. The cost involved has largely been provided from the School’s own Budget.

The Ripon Satellite was a partnership project with the Local Authority who provided agreed capital sums for the conversion works which were under the School’s control. Currently the Local Authority are considering the provision of a Rebound Therapy facility at Ripon. In Bedale planning permission has been received for a Rebound Therapy provision including an additional classroom. So far the School have put aside £250K for this project and further funds have been promised from a local Charity and a School Support Charity Trust.

Our Pupils:

Are respected, valued and listened to, and can develop positive relationships and their self-esteem. They feel part of a caring community; they are safe and treated with confidentiality. Take responsibility for their own actions and develop their awareness of those actions on others.

• Are happy, purposeful, confident and independent
• Are able to achieve their own potential, having their achievements recognised and celebrated

All the pupils have an Education Health Care Plan (EHCP) for variety of SEND needs including;

• Moderate, severe and complex learning difficulties
• Speech, language and communication difficulties
• Physical and sensory impairments
• Dyspraxia
• Social, Emotional and Mental Health difficulties (SEMH)
• Autistic Spectrum Conditions including Asperger’s

Our pupils are grouped into the following pathways of learning and the percentage of pupils per pathway:

• Formal learners - 42%
• Formal pastoral learners - 36%
• Semi-formal learners - 22%

Ofsted Recognises - “Opportunities to develop independence are more extensive than at the previous inspection. Pupils respond exceptionally well to the additional opportunities they have to make decisions, to work with partners and to complete tasks such as taking turns, making a Christmas meal, collecting eggs and looking after animals on the school farm” – Ofsted 2017

The Governing body Role

Our school has a skilled and experienced Board of Governors. In the past year, four newly appointed Governors have strengthened the board who challenge the school to constantly improve. This has led to the school expansion, improvement and strong financial position. Governors meet on a regular basis and are active in their support of the school.

Executive Headteacher will be welcomed to collaborate with the Governing Body ensuring continuing good communication between Governors and Senior Leadership.

Governors understand that their role is to support, challenge and act as the ‘critical Friend’ of the Executive Headteacher, Head of School and Leadership of the School. The Executive Headteacher and Head of School are very much considered to have the role of Managing Directors.

Ofsted Recognises – “Governors have continued to develop and improve the fabric of the school and use funding wisely to extend facilities. Much has been achieved in this regard in the four years since the previous inspection” – Ofsted 2017

Ofsted Recognises – “Leaders and governors give priority to keeping pupils safe. The extensions and improvements made to the buildings since the previous inspection demonstrate the priority they give to pupils’ safety and welfare” – Ofsted 2017

Our staff are our greatest resource. They are incredibly committed, loyal and dedicated, and always have the best interest of the children and young people at heart. They are determined to find something at which every child can shine. Staff get to know the pupils in the school very well and use this knowledge to personalise opportunities for learning.

Class teachers lead their support team through shared goals, working in close partnership with parents and carers, Governors and the local community, to provide an excellent, individual educational experience for all. Inter-staff relationships are positive, everyone is committed to the strong moral purpose of the schools shared purpose and goals.

Current senior leader team and responsibilities:

• Executive Headteacher
• Head of school
• Deputy Headteacher- Primary
• Deputy Headteacher- Secondary
• Assistant Headteacher- Ripon site
• Assistant Headteacher- Preparation for adulthood, Working Life, FE &Careers lead
• Assistant Headteacher- PHSE; RHSE; Behaviour regulation across school; Work place well-being

Staff (Teaching & Non-teaching): 

Staff with Teaching and Learning Responsibilities (TLR) = 9

• Within the primary department, they run specific Pathways
• One person is responsible for the Primary PE premium
• In the secondary department, this tends to be by subject specialism and one person oversees the formal pastoral and semi-formal secondary pathway.

45 Teachers across both sites (not all have class responsibilities and some are part time):

• Bedale - secondary classes - 14
• Bedale - primary classes - 12
• Ripon -primary classes - 7

87 Teaching Assistants across both sites, including:

• Specialist Support Staff
• Higher Level Teaching Assistants
• Advanced Teaching Assistants
• General Teaching Assistants
• Parent liaison officers - 2 working allocated by department.
• Child protection officer – 1

Support/Admin staff:  

Bedale - 4

Ripon - 2

 Ofsted Recognises – “The leadership team has maintained the good quality of education in the school since the last inspection. Together with your deputy, you continue to make an effective team, sharing a commitment to help and support pupils and their families. Good opportunities for pupils’ personal development and strong relationships between pupils and staff continue to be at the core of the school’s work” – Ofsted 2017

Ofsted Recognises – “The additional expertise that specialist staff have brought to the school has quickly been used to good effect to extend and deepen the curriculum in all key stages” – Ofsted 2017

Our school ethos is SURE and underpins all learning and values that parents, pupils and staff share and wish to promote and develop here. SURE stands for ‘Achieving Success through Understanding, Respect and Endeavour’

SUCCESS:  Mowbray School teaches children the skills and knowledge they need to help prepare them for adulthood, meet their emotional needs and well-being. Success is relative to each individual and measured by each pupil achieving his or her true potential. We believe that through mutual respect, relationships and understanding, children will learn and achieve success, celebrating achievements personally with each child.

UNDERSTANDING: We understand that all children have different educational needs and that those we educate have significant difficulties. All staff seek to understand and respect each child’s personal circumstances, to empathise with and help them understand their own difficulties and personal well-being. Equally, pupils are taught that all people have feelings and emotions, and to understand how others are affected by their actions. Above all, Mowbray School aims to provide a learning environment that values individual and cultural difference; that promotes equality and diversity and ensures a passionate approach towards meeting the needs of children in North Yorkshire.

RESPECT: Pupils need to respect their own abilities and raise their own self-esteem to enable them to achieve their true potential. All children also need to understand that others wish to be treated fairly, kindly and politely. One of the greatest challenges our children face is how to interact with others. Often, the reason they have been allocated a place at Mowbray School is because relationships with others, whether adults or children, have failed. Equally, our school staff by their conduct and relationships they make, can provide excellent examples of personal integrity and compassion to meet each child’s individual needs.

ENDEAVOUR: It is important that children learn that they need to put considerable effort into everything they do in order to succeed. Mowbray School helps young people with significant and complex learning difficulties to achieve their best. We provide education appropriate to each individual child and recognise the need to address the whole child to ensure that his or her social, physical, cognitive and emotional needs are interwoven in their education.

We believe that children thrive when encouraged and supported; they respond to being treated in a positive and nurturing manner. The principles that comprise SURE are valued by both children and staff. They reflect our desire to help children to understand their difficulties, develop respect for themselves and others and, through this, become successful in what they do and achieve.

Our role is to help all those who need it and to support parents, pupils, and the school community in achieving success for all pupils.

Through working together with pupils, parents and all agencies involved in the child’s well-being, achievement will be deeply rooted within his or her world and provide a stable base for future development.

How we aim to support our pupils

Provision at Mowbray School is underpinned by our desire to:

• Develop a nurturing culture of lifelong learning
• Promote intellectual, physical, social, aesthetic, spiritual and moral development of pupils
• Inspire communication and independence skills
• Prepare pupils to control their own lives
• Help and encourage pupils to become valued members of social groups, communities and uphold British values
• Promote a healthy lifestyle and a sense of self-worth
• Develop lively, inquiring, creative minds
• Ensure that creative and inspirational teaching leads to exciting, enjoyable and inspired learning
• Maintain the highest personal expectation of each pupil, recognising and developing strengths and talents
• Engage learners in meaningful work -related learning, by developing ambition, enterprise skills and securing best possible post school outcomes
• Have a wider local, regional and national influence to ensure pupils access best practice

Our Values 

The Governors and staff of Mowbray School value equal opportunities for all through:

• Inclusive values, understanding the needs of others, self-regulation, independence and autonomy in preparation for adulthood
• A safe supportive, caring and dynamic school environment where all are valued as educators and partners in school improvement
• Access to the National Curriculum and the personalised Curriculum which is designed to accommodate individual pupil needs and to ensure maximum progress in preparation for adulthood
• An environment where creativity and individual interests are nurtured and provide a medium for driving forward school improvement
• The celebration of success and positive outcomes for all

To read the Governors’ Aims and Vision click here.

This statement follows the above principles but includes reference to the challenges facing the School and the vision of the future direction of travel for the school. The statement makes it clear that the Governors need to reach pragmatic solutions to the challenges and be willing and ready to build close working relationships with other SEND providers including the local Education Authority.

We need a leader with vision to guide us through this process to develop and continue to improve our School by taking advantage of the opportunities now presenting themselves and others as they occur for the benefit of all our Pupils.

Ofsted Inspection – Rated Good

Ofsted Recognises – “You make sure that pupils know how to keep themselves safe. Pupils told inspectors that they feel safe in school because ‘staff help you all the time’ and ‘staff care for you” – Ofsted 2017

Ofsted Recognises – “Behaviour in lessons and around school is managed consistently well. Pupils like the wide range of rewards and work hard to achieve them. They enjoy the awards and praise assemblies, the prize box and golden tickets” – Ofsted 2017

Ofsted Recognises – “Specific targets for pupils’ personal and social development are strong. This is because they are focused on individual needs and the next steps to develop key skills and behaviours to support their learning” – Ofsted 2017

Please find attached our recent NAS Advanced Accreditation Report 

Current levels of pupil achievement, attainment and progress:

All pupils have SEND and an EHCP and work below age related expectations. Progress is measured, tracked and analysed on an individual pupil basis.

Formal learners have the potential, to gain nationally recognised qualifications e.g. Entry Level Certificates (ELC) and some with the correct support, to attain Level 1 and 2 qualifications (GCSE grades 9 to 1; BTEC, Occupational Studies & Functional skills).

At the opposite end of our ability range, pupils who work within the semi-formal pathway work well below age related expectations and below that of our formal learners. In addition, they will have a range of sensory needs, emotional, communication and physical needs, which may require specialist input from SALT (Speech & Language Therapists); occupational therapy and physiotherapy.

Qualifications taken 2020/21

• AQA - GCSE Maths
• AQA - GCSE English with spoken language
• BTec - Art Level 2
• BTec - Sport Level 1
• BTec - Land based studies Level 1
• Pearson - GCSE PE short course
• Functional skills level 1 Maths
• AQA Entry levels in variety of subjects
• NCFE Occupational studies Level 1 and Entry level
• Variety of AQA unit awards

Current School Strengths

• Quality of teaching and learning
• Curriculum -Preparation for Adulthood- recognised as an area of Excellence by Challenge Partners review in March 2020
• Staffing expertise and CPD offer
• Success with children
• Breadth of our curriculum
• Range of qualifications available for pupils to study
• Highly regarded school and high demand for places
• High quality leadership
• Tracking progress and gathering evidence

School Improvement Plan and Key Priorities

• Leaders focus on improving staff’s subject, pedagogical and pedagogical content knowledge.
• Devise systems to monitor and improve the effectiveness of curriculum links between subjects.
• To maximise opportunities to raise pupils’ aspirations and ambitions.
• Further develop the delivery and development of the school curriculum, to meet pupil needs/outcomes.
• To work with NYCC to address capacity challenges and improve facilities.
• Leaders at all levels continue to monitor robustly, EHCP outcomes through the curriculum offer.
• Leaders to ensure that there is consistently strong practice across both sites through sharing knowledge and practice.
• As Mowbray continues to grow in size, leaders to ensure that this growth is managed well so that improvement is sustained.
• Leaders consider how best to develop post-16 provision in the locality.
• Leaders to clarify a common vocabulary which would help articulate our provision.
• Leaders ensure that the identified successes over the past year are implemented into provision moving forward.

Please read more about our:

Progress Review of our Strategic Improvement Plan 

Summary Review of our Strategic Improvement Plan 

Challenge Partners Report 

Future considerations

• Governors agree with the SLT that closer working with other SEND providers in the future will be appropriate to extend opportunities for our Students and improve efficiency and good practice. Governors recognise that they need to be flexible and proactive to take advantage of opportunities as they present themselves.
• The Executive Headteacher is working with NYCC to expand provision for secondary Pupils and also to secure capital investment at the Bedale site.

Our families are our most important partners. We endeavour to always make them feel welcome and able to contact us with any thoughts and concerns they may have.

Our pupils are complex and each child has a unique set of strengths and needs but through our partnerships with parents and our efforts to support parents to meet other people with similar experiences, we strive to all work together to achieve the best outcomes for each child.

Our School enjoys excellent relationships with parents and carers. We have two Family officers specifically appointed to support and help our parents/carers. The feedback received indicates how much that support and help is appreciated. Special contact and ‘training’ evenings are arranged to assist all Parents/Carers understand the curriculum and the way subjects are taught to attempt to ensure students gain the best advantage they can from school.

The School has excellent involvement with the wider community even though the catchment area is so large. Bedale became the second town in England to become a “Makaton Friendly Town” as a result of an initiative by school staff.

Relationships with local and wider community

The School has excellent involvement with the wider community even though the catchment area is so large. Bedale became the second town in England to become a “Makaton Friendly Town” as a result of an initiative by school staff.

Our Senior Education Adviser, Lis Marsden supports Mowbray, with a wealth of experience supporting other Special schools in the County and will support us with development plans moving forward.

The local authority also provides support through ‘Inclusion’ team officers; they host regular meetings and invite all Special school Headteachers to provide a forum for discussion and to share information. In particular, the SEND team strive to support the school (through regular meetings) around consultations for placement with specific pupils for their needs and circumstances. The needs and ambition of the school are recognised by the LA. There has been regular contact and discussions at all levels.

The review the Local Authority recently completed of the SEND needs within North Yorkshire. Although not published indications are that there will, amongst other things, be a need for the development of a Secondary satellite provision for “High Achieving Autism” Students (Formal learners) in partnership with Mowbray School.

This could/would satisfy the increasing demand for SEND places and address, some of Mowbray School’s current challenges. It complements the Governor’s current aims and visions.

Collaborative partnerships:

• Challenge Partners- North East Hub. Senior leaders work collaboratively on a variety of jointly agreed projects to raise the quality of the work of the school. Through this senior leaders support other special schools across the country through school reviews, these reviews are collaborative by nature
• Red Kite teaching school alliance
• APPG Speech and Language Difficulties-Parliament committee
• Emotion Coaching North East Network Group and Emotion Coaching recognized Organisation UK
• NAS Autism Accreditation Network meetings
• Makaton Regional Tutor network meeting and National initiatives
• NYCC Healthy schools and Workforce Well-Being and PSHE network team
• Working with the DfE RSHE (relationships, sex and health education) National Strategic Planning team
• Member of the Bedale Cluster of Schools, local joint activities for the pupils
• Swaledale Alliance- where appropriate CPD opportunities are available to staff

Bedale

A market town since 1251, it has the only listed Leech House in the country and a harbour 70 miles from the sea! The Tourist Information Centre is at Bedale Hall (DL8 1AA) and is well stocked with leaflets on local and regional attractions. Bedale is a traditional Yorkshire market town mentioned in the Domesday Book.  Its Georgian heyday is reflected in the elegant buildings lining the historic market square. The 12th century church, St Gregory’s, has been named as one of Britain’s best.

Ripon

The little city that packs a big punch. Ripon is a cathedral city steeped in history and home to magnificent historical buildings and long observed traditions. You will find a trio of award winning museums and a gothic cathedral that dates back to the 7^th century that are waiting to feed enquiring minds.

With a thriving market place and a magnificent cathedral, this busy little city will earn a place in any visitor’s heart. Reaching out from the market square are small streets and snickets that are home to the eclectic and specialist shops for which Ripon is so loved. Amongst them are cafes and pubs, offering refreshment and home cooked food throughout the day.

This city’s history is entwined with the church, both due to the cathedral in Ripon city centre and its proximity to the nearby Fountains Abbey.

Ripon also boasts an outstanding racecourse, a glorious stately home, a magnificent abbey and popular theme park. There are always great things to do in Ripon.

The growth of the city through trade and manufacturing led to the building of a canal to link it to the navigable parts of the River Ure. Today this makes Ripon a delightful city to explore, with riverside and canal sidewalks that reach into the countryside and buildings that span the last thousand years.

North Yorkshire

North Yorkshire is England's largest county and one of the most rural. The area comprises the Yorkshire Dales and North York Moors, three Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty and a stunning coastline around Scarborough and Whitby. There are ruined castles and abbeys, serene gardens, unique breweries, thrilling rides and industrial heritage. The area hosted the phenomenal Tour de France ‘Grand Depart’ in 2014 and has since created the Tour de Yorkshire, an annual event with global recognition. Our success in supporting these events led to Harrogate hosting the UCI Cycling World Championships in 2019.

North Yorkshire has plenty to offer the outdoor enthusiast. From the hard gritstone of Almscliff and Brimham rocks to the limestone of Malham, Gordale and Kilnsey climbing venues are in abundance. The Yorkshire Dales is the premier area for caving and for mountain biking; there are the bridleways of the Dales and North York Moors as well as the renowned trail centre at Dalby Forest. There are a small number of sailing clubs on reservoirs around the county and fantastic surf sport venues and sea kayaking on the east coast.

While the county is rightly known for its wide open spaces, it also incorporates attractive market towns including Pickering and Helmsley, traditional seaside towns, the Spa town of Harrogate and the ancient city of York - the most visited city outside of London. There are a wide range of shopping, leisure and cultural facilities as well as excellent schools, universities, road and rail links, there really is everything to offer you and your family as a place to work, live and enjoy!

Travelling further afield we have convenient connectivity, with close proximity to metropolitan cities of Leeds and Newcastle and with a little over two hours commute on the main train line to London. We border the Lake District, Lancashire, County Durham, and Yorkshire & Humber regions with all they have to offer.