Receptionist

Leigh Academy Blackheath (LAB) is a co-educational 11-19 Outstanding comprehensive school, located in Blackheath, Royal Borough of Greenwich. LAB is also an International Baccalaureate World School, delivering the highly regarded Middle Years Programme at KS3, and will open its new P16 provision - LAB16, in September 2023.

‘Pupils behave exceptionally well. Classrooms are calm places where pupils can focus on their learning’ - OFSTED December 2022

We believe that every learner is entitled to an enriching, varied and personalised education; delivered through a broad and balanced curriculum that provides challenge, irrespective of need, starting point or background. If you are as passionate about achieving this as we are, and have the drive and determination to ensure all students realise their full potential, we invite you to join our team.

‘Staff are proud to work at this school where everyone’s contribution is valued’ - OFSTED December 2022.​​​​​​​

‘Leaders provide excellent development opportunities for all staff. They are conscious of staff workload and well-being’ - OFSTED December 2022

We are seeking to appoint a reliable and confident Receptionist to join our team as soon as possible. Our successful candidate will be pivotal to the smooth running of the school office - you’ll be the first point of contact for many members of the academy and external stakeholders, and will also be responsible for admin-related tasks. Applicants should be professional, personable and committed to providing an excellent service on behalf of Leigh Academy Blackheath, and above all else our appointed candidate will have a positive work ethic and can-do attitude. Applicants should also be highly confident in many aspects of IT, and will be expected to utilise the Google Suite of tools for most aspects of their work. Our successful candidate will be proactive, flexible with the ability to use own initiative. This is a fast paced role, therefore, we are looking for someone who has excellent time management skills and able to work under pressure.

Our successful candidate will be able to:

• ​​​​​​​Maintain a good general knowledge of the Academy systems in order to carry out duties effectively and successfully;
• Manage and organise work of a confidential and complex nature, with considerable tact, diplomacy and a high level of commitment, customer care and flexibility;
• Actively promote our shared visions and values;
• Prioritise and manage a varied and complex workload;
• Ensure equal access and opportunities for both students and staff within the academy.

​​​​​​​This is a permanent role offering an actual salary of £19,666 per annum (£22,864 full time equivalent), based on 37 hours per week, Term Time + 1 week inset.

Working at Leigh Academy Blackheath: We are an Outstanding co-educational 11-19 yr comprehensive school, heavily oversubscribed, and our school is a beacon of excellence for secondary education in the Royal Borough of Greenwich. We are driven by the belief that every learner is entitled to an enriching, varied and personalised education; delivered through a broad and balanced curriculum that provides challenge, irrespective of need, starting point or background. Our mission is to ensure all our students develop into powerful citizens of the digital future on both a national and global scale.

Our strong learning community works together and shares the value of collaboration; every member of our academy family works together to achieve success, cultivating a strong sense of belonging. Our belief in ‘human-scale’ education, delivered through a schools-within-schools model, ensures every one of our students is known and valued. Strong pastoral care is at the heart of our academy and we place great importance on building strong partnerships with parents and carers.

Since opening in September 2018, Leigh Academy Blackheath (LAB) has established itself as the local community’s preferred choice for their child’s secondary education. We have received in excess of 1,100 applications for this September’s 180 Year 7 places, with over 300 first choice preferences. It is an exciting time to be joining our learning community.

At LAB, everything we do is built upon our core values of: Respect, Integrity, Ambition, Scholarship and Resilience. We are a strong team and work hard together to ensure every student realises their full potential. Staff have access to a wide range of professional development opportunities both within the academy and across Leigh Academies Trust (LAT). A flexible approach with a can-do ethos is required, as is drive, grit and boundless enthusiasm. A sense of humour is essential!

Being part of Leigh Academies Trust: As of 1st September 2022, our Trust comprises 30 geographically organised academies (14 secondaries, 14 primaries and 2 special) educating 20,000 students, and employing 3,000 talented staff. The Trust is establishing four ‘clusters’ of academies: North Kent; Central Kent; South East London; Medway. In addition, the Trust is responsible for one of the region’s biggest initial teaching training organisations, a large teaching school hub and is an accredited apprenticeship provider. Our future plans are found in our Vision 2030 document available on our website.​​​​​​​

As part of Leigh Academies Trust, you will have ample opportunity to collaborate with your peers both within the academy and across the whole Trust. This is an important part of our vision as we know through experience that we perform better when we work together. You are supported to undertake regular self-development to continue your professional development and hopefully progress further within the organisation.

Click here to view the benefits available to all LAT employees from day one. 

Our commitment to safeguarding: Leigh Academies Trust and all of our academies are committed to ensuring the highest levels of safeguarding and promoting the welfare of our pupils, and we expect all our staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We adopt a fair, robust and consistent recruitment process across all academies and business units which is inline with Keeping Children Safe in Education guidance. This includes online checks for shortlisted candidates - you can read more about this in our Recruitment Guidance. All offers of employment are subject to an Enhanced DBS check, references, and where applicable, a prohibition from teaching check.

​​​​​​Our commitment to equality and diversity: As a Trust, we are passionate about diversity and recognise that as individuals, we all bring something unique to the role regardless of any protected characteristics which is why we treat all of our people equally, without compromise. We are committed to providing equality and fairness throughout our recruitment and employment practices and not discriminating on any grounds.