Creative Arts Therapist - SEMH primary school

Post Title           Creative Arts Therapist

Summary   Aspire Academy Bexley is part of London South East Academies Trust. Aspire Academy Bexley is a primary SEMH school which provides education for pupils who have an ECHP plan and live in London Borough of Bexley as well as offering places to out of borough children. All pupils at Aspire have a diagnosis of SEMH. Many pupils also have a diagnosis of ADHD, ASD, speech and language difficulties and trauma. 

An opportunity has arisen for a robust, self-motivated and energetic Arts Therapist to join the therapy provision within the school, supporting and sharing the lead on a holistic and whole-school approach to mental health and well-being. The candidate will have capacity to work with an integrative evidence based approach both directly and indirectly to meet the various needs of the pupils. 

They will offer formal sessional work to support students, staff and parents alongside promoting well-being through innovating whole school initiatives, advocacy and training/supervision for staff members. The Therapist should be a team-player, also able to work independently within the school to manage their caseload. They will be supported by a larger therapy team (comprised of therapists from the 10 schools within the Trust), whose meetings and peer supervision they will contribute to weekly.  The candidate will report both to the Heads of School and to their line manager.

An essential part of the role will be to ensure that we achieve and maintain a truly integrated therapy & learning provision where emotional wellbeing is fundamental in ensuring that our pupils are able to engage in their learning and make progress. 

Post Location Aspire Academy Bexley

Position Status                            Fixed term until July 2023 then reviewed

Contractual Hours: 36

Contractual Weeks: 39 

Salary: Bexley 12 (salary fte £31,140 to £36,639)

Post Start Date: Asap

Closing Date: 28th April 2022

Interview Date:                            Week commencing 2nd May 2022

Aspire Academy Bexley 

Aspire Academy Bexley provides a continuum of education, and support and guidance for pupils in Bexley and beyond whose needs are not best met in a mainstream school.  We work closely with local stakeholders including primary and secondary schools in Bexley and the Local Authority as well as a wide range of support agencies to ensure that we can deliver the best education, interventions and opportunities for our pupils.  Our offer is not only in our schools but beyond them in supporting pupils at risk of exclusion in the local community.  Our aspirations are high for all of our children and young people and we believe in inclusion in the widest sense.  Our ethos is of engagement and positive participation, a message we communicate to pupils, our staff and our stakeholders. For further information about the school please visit the school website: www.aspirebexley.org.uk   

London South East Academies Trust

London South East Academies Trust currently comprises eight schools, providing high quality education for 5-19-year olds across the boroughs of Bromley, Bexley and Surrey. Our schools, all rated Good by Ofsted, include a mainstream primary alongside special and alternative provision.

Formerly known as Bromley Educational Trust, our expanding multi academy trust was renamed in 2016, reflecting our aim to develop excellent education across the wider region.

Your Opportunity

Further details about this vacancy are available on the job description. Alternatively, if you wish to discuss the post further please contact Heather Hopkins/ Julie Arkwright, Interim Co-Head of School, on 020 83041320 or email head@aspirebexley.org.uk 

Your Application

To apply for this vacancy please complete the application form, available to download from the downloads section below, paying particular attention to Section 4 of the form, to indicate how you satisfy the criteria set out in the Person Specification. Once you have completed this, the form should be submitted via email to admin@newhorizonsfederation.org.uk . Alternatively, paper applications should be sent to School Business Manager, c/o Horizons Academy Bexley, Lensbury Way, Abbey Wood, London, SE2 9TA.

The closing date for your application is as stated above.

References will be requested for those shortlisted only and prior to interview.

Only those shortlisted for interview will be contacted.

This post is considered to be a customer-facing position; as such it falls within scope of the Code of Practice on English language requirement for public sector workers.  The school therefore has a statutory duty under Part 7 of the Immigration Act 2016 to ensure that post holders have a command of spoken English sufficient for the effective performance of the job requirements. The appropriate standards are set out in the person specification. These will be applied during the recruitment/selection and probationary stages.

The school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Offers of employment are subject to a satisfactory enhanced DBS disclosure and other employment checks.

The school is committed to equality and diversity in employment practice and service delivery.

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