Careers at Bournside
Welcome to our school
Thank you for your interest in a career at Bournside. Choosing the right school at which to work is a big decision and we aim to support you with it. Bournside is the largest comprehensive school in Gloucestershire. We are an established 11-18 single academy trust with a good reputation (Ofsted ‘Good’ in all areas - 2022), wide catchment, and a strong presence in our community. Our school is consistently oversubscribed with a PAN of 300, and most of our students choose to stay with us for their post-16 study.
Current vacancies
Lettings Shift Manager
Reintegration Centre Supervisor
Teacher of Design Technology
Pastoral Support Worker
Applying to work with us
If you would like to apply for any of our positions, please complete an application form and email them to recruitment@bournside.gloucs.sch.uk by the application deadline. We also encourage you to visit our school so you can see for yourself why Bournside is an incredible place to work. We look forward to hearing from you.
We ask all applicants to fill out our Equal Opportunities Monitoring Form
Got a question about our opportunities? Ask us!
No suitable opportunities? Join our talent pool!
Why work at Bournside?
We are an equal opportunities employer and value and respect diversity across our whole school community. Our staff and students are: Purposeful, Proud, Respectful, Curious, Supportive, and Ambitious. These are our values and whilst you’ll see them on our website and our corridor walls, where you’ll really see them is in the way we work together, the way we talk to one another, the way teachers teach and students learn, and the way we ensure that every day, in and out of lessons we are living our vision: empowering lives through learning.
We have over 200 staff and 1,800 students. That means we have the resources to provide a wealth of opportunities for our students: a sports centre and 4G sports pitches; a fully equipped Drama studio, a large library, specialised English and Maths blocks, 12 science labs, and specialist design, technology, computing, and media rooms. Our highly successful sixth formers have their own large base with numerous study rooms.
No one gets lost in the crowd, however. The size of our school means that whatever your role, you’ll benefit from having a dedicated, specialist team around you. Everyone is a member of one of our 6 houses; coupled with our vertical tutor group model for students, the house system aims to nurture and enhance a sense of family and community, strengthen home/school communication, and provide opportunities for older students to act as role models for younger students.
It’s not at all unusual for several generations from the same family to have been part of Bournside School. We’ve been part of the community of Cheltenham for many years having moved to our present site in Warden Hill in the early 1970s. Our value to the local community is developed in many ways: working closely with our neighbouring schools, taking the arts into the community, being the central hub for very many sports local sports teams, and, of course, being the school of choice for families in our part of Cheltenham and beyond.
Professional development
We are forward-thinking in our approach to Continuing Professional Development (CPD) and pride ourselves on the opportunities we offer to support your progression. Whether you join us as a member of teaching or support staff, we invest in your career through whole staff training, sharing best practice, peer observation, personal and departmental development time, focused workshops, external courses, and performance management and review.
We are delighted to have been awarded the Silver Award for Professional Development from the Teacher Development Trust (TDT) in recognition of our CPD provision for teaching and support staff. The TDT is the national charity for effective professional development in schools and colleges and this external audit evaluates school culture and wellbeing, focus, needs analysis and evaluation, internal support and challenge, use of expert knowledge, processes and structures of CPD, and use of research, evidence and innovation.
The auditor praised: 'The idea that unleashing great teaching through quality professional development, which improves outcomes for students and also allows teachers to thrive, is clearly understood by senior leaders in the design of their CPD programme. The consideration of the needs of all colleagues is a real strength here, in particular considering how best to support the CPD needs of part-time staff and flexible working, showing a real understanding of the impact that a supportive working environment can have on teacher wellbeing and outcomes for students. One colleague reflected that ‘CPD at Bournside was more bespoke and tailored to their individual needs than anywhere else they had worked.'
Teacher Development Trust, June 2022
Initial Teacher Training
At Bournside we offer PGCE placements through our partnerships with universities and providers including the University of Gloucestershire, Bristol, Worcester, and Gloucestershire Initial Teaching Education Programme (GITEP). We have a proven track record of providing outstanding mentoring. Working closely with our partnerships, we guide and support trainee teachers to become reflective practitioners through a blend of theoretical learning and classroom-based practice.
During your PGCE placement you will gain a full insight into current curriculum expectations, access up-to-the-minute thinking of teaching ideas, and learn what turns a good teacher into a great teacher. We also run three School Experience Mornings and two Teacher Taster Days per academic year to support you with your PGCE application and help you decide if teaching is right for you.
As the foreword to the Early Career Framework says, ‘Teachers are the foundation of the education system – there are no great schools without great teachers.’ At Bournside, we believe that developing great teachers begins way before you start your first teaching post. That’s why we are enthusiastic, committed supporters of our partnerships and why, if you train in our school, you’ll be provided with a clear, coherent and proven programme designed to give you the best start in the most rewarding of careers.
ITT Coordinator, Mrs Jacquie Pedley
jmp@bournside.gloucs.sch.uk
01242 235555 Ext. 587
Cheltenham Bournside School - Teacher Taster Days
If you have a degree qualification and would like to know more about a career in teaching, join us at our taster day. You will experience different teaching styles, learn how to plan a lesson, teach a lesson as part of a group and hear about different pathways into teaching.