Careers at Bournside

"Inspiring lives through learning."

Thank you for your interest in joining Cheltenham Bournside School.

Choosing where to work, teach and support students is a big decision and we're here to support you with your next career steps. We are the largest comprehensive school in Gloucestershire; an established single academic trust with an excellent reputation, a wide catchment, and a strong presence in our local community. 

Ofsted rated us 'Good' in all areas in 2022The report highlights that “leaders put the welfare of pupils, as well as academic achievement, at the heart of everything they do” and that the “headteacher has very high expectations of the school”. “Pupils enjoy school” and there is a “strong sense of community for both staff and pupils”.  

Bournside is consistently oversubscribed with a PAN of 300, with most of our students choosing to stay with us post-16 in our thriving Sixth Form

 

Current vacancies

Teacher of Maths
HOURS: Full Time, Permanent

Teacher of Maths

HOURS: Full Time, Permanent DEADLINE 08 Apr 2024


An outstanding opportunity has arisen to work in Gloucestershire’s largest comprehensive school within our excellent Maths department.

We are looking to appoint an enthusiastic Teacher of Maths to join a lively and enthusiastic Maths department based in a £2 million building at Cheltenham Bournside School, where Maths is a very popular subject. ECTs are encouraged to apply for the position.

The successful candidate will be a key part of the team, will teach Maths across the Key Stages and will contribute to the strengths of the department. They will teach Maths to highly motivated and talented pupils from Year 7 to 13, planning and preparing courses and lessons according to their educational needs and providing guidance and advice on their further education and future careers.

You will be joining a Maths department consisting of the Head of Maths, Sophie Williams, 3 key stage leads and 12 teachers.

Candidate Information Pack

Application Form

Reception Administrator & First Aider
HOURS: 37h per week, 39 weeks per year

Reception Administrator & First Aider

HOURS: 37h per week, 39 weeks per year DEADLINE 02 Apr 2024

A fantastic opportunity has arisen to work at Cheltenham Bournside School.

We are looking to appoint an Administrator and First Aider to provide medical support to staff and students within the school and to support the main school office.

As a First Aider in the front office and you will oversee the immediate welfare of those taken ill or injured at school, being the first point of contact for medical emergencies.

You will work within the school office and be first point of contact with parents/carers, visitors, students and members of our community.

We are an equal opportunities employer and value and respect diversity across our whole school community. Bournside is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All posts are subject to an enhanced DBS check.

We reserve the right to interview and appoint prior to the closing date. 

Candidate Information Pack

Application Form

Cleaning Assistant
HOURS: 20 hours per week

Cleaning Assistant

HOURS: 20 hours per week DEADLINE 05 Apr 2024

We are looking to appoint a cleaning assistant to join our cleaning team. As a cleaning assistant, you will provide an efficient and timely cleaning service across the school.

You will usually work Monday to Friday 3:30pm to 7:30pm. There is a possibility that we can offer some flexibility in hours worked therefore if you are looking for different hours or work on specific days, please state this in your application form.

You will be required to work term time, on INSET days and three weeks in the school holidays for deep cleans which is a total of 42 weeks per year.

Candidate Information Pack 

Application Form

General

• Provision of all necessary IT equipment.

Lifestyle and wellbeing

• Attractive salary and pension
• Free one-to-one wellbeing support
• Family-friendly policies
• Onsite parking facilities and cycle storage
• Free access to the school’s Gym
• Cycle to work scheme
• Techscheme – save money on the latest tech from Apple and Currys PC World
• A comprehensive range of staff social events throughout the year
• Our dining centre and Pit Stop Café is open between 8.30am and 1.30pm every day.

Professional development

• Every year, there is some disaggregated INSET time, resulting in additional holiday days per academic year
• Personalised CPD hours to develop areas specific to your practice and needs
• Support to complete further academic study and professional qualifications
• Access to high-quality in-house and external leadership development programmes, tailored to a wide variety of
levels of experience
• Membership of your subject association through your department
• Membership of the Chartered College of Teaching for ECTs
• A well-stocked CPD library.

Statutory and other benefits

• A wide range of statutory benefits including sick pay, maternity, parental, and adoption leave 
• Enhanced Paternity Leave Policy
• We will honour your continuity of service in other state-funded schools in relation to sick pay and pension rights.

General

• Provision of all necessary IT equipment.


Lifestyle and wellbeing

• Attractive salary and pension
• Generous annual leave entitlement
• Free one-to-one wellbeing support
• Family-friendly policies
• Onsite parking facilities and cycle storage
• Free access to the school’s Gym
• Cycle to work scheme
• Techscheme – save money on the latest tech from Apple and Currys PC World
• A comprehensive range of staff social events throughout the year
• Our dining centre and Pit Stop Cafe are open between 8.00am and 1.30pm every day.

Professional development

• Support to complete further academic study and professional qualifications.

Statutory and other benefits

• A wide range of statutory benefits including sick pay, maternity, parental, and adoption leave
• Enhanced Paternity Leave Policy
• We will honour your continuity of service in other state funded schools in relation to sick pay and pension rights.

We will fully support you with your transition to Bournside. Our superb ECT Programme is overseen by our
Assistant Headteacher (Teaching and Learning) who also acts as your Induction Tutor. Unlike some schools, your Mentor will always be an expert colleague in your specific subject area.

Training Partner

We are partnered with our local Teaching School Hub who use UCL as their main delivery partner. Through our partnership with our Teaching School Hub, you will attend face-to-face cluster meetings with other ECTs in the region and grow your network of other new teachers in your area of subject expertise.

Mentor and Tutor Support

In your first year, your mentor will meet with you each week to support you as you progress through the ECF and UCL training modules. In your second year, you will meet with your mentor each fortnight as you continue your development.

Your Induction Tutor will meet with you to complete the formal assessments that form part of your ECT years. At Cheltenham Bournside, your tutor will also meet with you fortnightly to offer further training and support in teaching in our school context.

We use Doug Lemov’s Teach Like a Champion as a core text as part of this training and, consequently, provide a free copy to all ECTs. We also pay for membership to the Chartered College of Teaching for all ECTs.

Supporting workload

As an ECT, you will have a reduced timetable. We use an online tracker aligned with the Teacher Standards which allows you to quickly track activities and areas for development throughout the two-year programme.

What our ECTs say:

My tutor and mentor could not have done more for me, I am so grateful for everything they have done to make time for me and support me in a really personalised and transformational way.

I am so happy with the decision I made to join Cheltenham Bournside. Both my mentor and induction tutor have been so supportive - nothing is too much trouble and they have always had time in order to support me and assist me.

We will fully support you with your transition to Bournside. Will Penny, Deputy Headteacher, oversees the
provision for new staff, including your induction during the first year of teaching with us to support you in
understanding and coping with your new role.

Induction 

Teaching staff will be invited to an induction day in the term prior to joining us. This full day of training provides information about the aspects of Bournside school life which will be needed as soon as you start, such as:

• School Behaviour Code including rewards and sanctions
• Being a tutor including assemblies
• Use of electronic registration and laptops
• Procedures in the Sixth Form
• School Leadership Structure – who to see for what
• Duties
• School communication and meeting systems
• Induction procedures, performance management, and professional development
• Inclusion Support and SEN
• ICT
• Health and safety procedures
• Educational visit procedures
• Our School Library.

Your mentor

You will also be allocated a mentor – most likely your line manager – who will meet with you regularly to ensure you have the support you need.

Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

We are forward-thinking in our approach to 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, instructional coaching, personal and departmental development time, focused
workshops, external courses, and performance management and review.

We are delighted to have been awarded the Gold Award for Professional Development from the Teacher
Development Trust (TDT) in recognition of our CPD provision for teaching and support staff. The auditor praised the consideration of the needs of all colleagues is a real strength at Bournside, 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.

For support teams

New members of the support team will also be fully supported in their transition to Bournside. The HR
Department oversees the provision for new staff, including your induction to support you in the understanding your
new role.

You will be allocated a mentor – most likely your line manager – who will meet with you regularly to ensure you
have the support you need.

Depending on your start date, you may be invited to an induction day before joining us. Alternatively, this will typically be your first day. New starter training provides information about the aspects of Bournside school life, including:
• School Leadership Structure – who to see for what
• School communication and meeting systems
• Induction procedures, performance management, and professional development
• ICT
• Health and safety procedures
• Safeguarding training
• Key policies
• Introduction to basic training requirements.

Continuing Professional Development for support staff

We strive to offer all members of staff excellent CPD opportunities and consider ourselves forward-thinking in our approach to CPD. We use a variety of activities to engage staff with sharing best-practice including whole staff training options, departmental development time, focused workshops, and time for performance management and review.


Submitting your application

If you would like to apply for any of our positions, please email your completed application form to recruitment@bournside.gloucs.sch.uk. We would be delighted to take applicants for an informal tour of the school so you can see for yourself why Bournside is a special place to work. We look forward to hearing from you.

Why Cheltenham Bournside School?

We are an equal opportunities employer and value and respect diversity across our whole school community. Our staff and students are: Ambitious, Curious, Proud, Purposeful, Respectful and Supportive. 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 delighted to have been awarded the Gold Award for Professional Development from the Teacher Development Trust (TDT) in recognition of the exceptional level of 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 coveted 'Gold' award in is very much a reflection of our genuine, shared commitment to inspiring the lives of both students and staff through learning.

The school has a proven track-record in designing and delivering a high-quality, research-informed programme of CPD, which senior leaders quite rightly take great pride in. It was a great pleasure to speak with a range of staff who clearly feel well supported and appreciative of the developmental opportunities unique to the school.

- Auditor, June 2023

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 team, 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.

 

Professional Development

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

 

 

Initial Teacher Training

Cheltenham Bournside School - Teacher Taster Days 

Teacher Taster Day - Wednesday 24th January 2024 

8.45am – 3.00pm 

Would you like to know more about a career in teaching and find out, is teaching for you?  

Join us at our taster day event on Wednesday 24th January at Cheltenham Bournside SchoolThis course is for anyone who has a degree qualification and would like to hear more about a career in teaching. 

You will have the chance to:

  • Spend the day with us to experience school life
  • Observe lessons and see different teaching styles
  • Learn how to plan a short lesson
  • Teach your lesson to our students

Later in the day you will hear from one of our partnership providers about different pathways into teaching and find out what you need to do to apply. There is nothing to prepare and you will be supported every step of the way. We look forward to meeting you!

To book your place or to register interest for future dates, please email jmp@bournside.gloucs.sch.uk.

We are respectfulWe are curiousWe are purposefulWe are proudWe are supportiveWe are ambitious