Receptionist

Are you a conscientious and hard-working individual? Do you work with a high level of professionalism in everything that you do? Are you keen to join an inspirational academy?

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.

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.

If you're as excited by this opportunity as we are, we'd love to hear from you!

Essential skills:

• Excellent organisational and planning skills
• Outstanding accuracy and attention to detail
• Demonstrate a high level of initiative
• Computer literacy in usual office applications
• Ability to work on own initiative
• Committed and enthusiastic
• Excellent attendance and time-keeping record.

This position offers an actual salary of £27,108 per annum (£27,984 full time equivalent) and is based on 37 hours per week, Term Time + 3 weeks inset.

Working at Leigh Academy Blackheath: We are a co-educational 11-18yr comprehensive school and, already oversubscribed, our new 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 over 1,000 applications for this September’s 180 Year 7 places, with nearly 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 April 2024, our Trust comprises 32 geographically organised academies (16 secondaries, 14 primaries and 2 special) educating more than 20,000 students and employing 3,000 talented staff. Nearly 40% of our academies are judged outstanding overall by Ofsted, versus 15% nationally. 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.

Based on the quality and quantity of applications received, Leigh Academies Trust reserves the right to close this vacancy sooner than the specified closing date. Applicants will be notified of this where possible. Therefore, early applications are encouraged.