Headteacher St John's Special School and College

St John’s Special School and College caters for learners aged between 2 and 19 years of age who have severe and profound multiple learning difficulties.

We are a pupil centred school who embrace the diversity and differences of all our pupils. Our fantastic staff, who are highly skilled and dedicated, support pupils to access an exciting and engaging curriculum in order to develop and secure skills for life and promote overall development. We strive to provide a stimulating and caring environment which promotes success and achieving together. Our values are to be specialist, collaborative, dynamic and aspirational.

Our curriculum framework is used flexibly to teach individual targets derived from the five areas of learning within pupils’ Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCP) and is continually evolving to meet the needs of our pupils.

Our pupils love learning and enjoy coming to school.  We aim to make learning irresistible in our school by making it exciting, functional and relevant to our pupils, while meeting their individual needs.  We pride ourselves on using specialist techniques and strategies to support our young people.  We are constantly learning and refine our practice with new ideas.  All our staff receive high quality specialist training so that all our young people have access to the best practice and provision.

We work closely and collaboratively with families and other professionals which supports our pupils to reach their full potential and prepare them for life beyond St John’s Special School and College.  

Bedford Inclusive Learning and Training Trust are forward thinking, with a vison to create a partnership of outstanding Special Schools to support the Special Needs Community in Bedford and the surrounding area, to offer excellent opportunities for pupils and their families.  There are opportunities for further development within the Trust with the Special Free School that BILTT are building, due for completion in September 2023/24.

The Governors of St John’s School are seeking to appoint an exceptional, dynamic and inspirational Headteacher who has a proven track record of initiating, managing and leading effective change.  Your high level of professional values and educational philosophy will ensure that St John’s School makes sustained improvements in all aspects of life. You will have the commitment and aspiration for our pupils and staff to reach their full potential and have a commitment to  the attainment and achievement of greater levels of independence for pupils who have complex, medical, behavioural and physical learning difficulties.

Candidates will be committed to the collaboration and effective partnership working required to secure innovative personalised learning pathways for students with complex learning difficulties and have an exceptional appreciation of student-centred approaches. You will be a highly motivated leader who is committed to implementing significant and sustained improvements across St John’s School and the wider Trust and who is enthusiastic to see all of our pupils flourish in safe, secure and welcoming learning environments.

Governors are looking for a leader who has high aspirations for the continued professional development of our staff and for the highest quality engagement with the wider community, our families, employers and other stakeholders.

If you are seeking a new challenge which will deliver and maintain outstanding approaches to the quality of education for our pupils and you have the ability to make exceptional developments across the Trust, then please complete an application form.

A relocation package is available for those living outside Bedfordshire (UK)

To obtain an application pack or for further details for this exciting post, please download a pack from: www.st-johns-school.co.uk send an email request to: bernice.russell@biltt.org or telephone 01234 407100 and leave your name and address for a pack by post. Tours of the school are highly recommended