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Headteacher

Headteacher

Bishop Wordsworth's School

Wiltshire

  • New
Salary:
Leadership + Teachers Pension
Job type:
Full Time, Permanent
Start date:
01/09/2025
Apply by:
24 February 2025

Job overview

Bishop’s has long been a beacon of excellence, offering students the opportunity to excel both academically and personally. We are immensely proud of our recent Outstanding OFSTED inspection and the high aspirations and achievements of our students and staff. The school’s ethos is rooted in inclusivity, ambition, and a commitment to fostering a love of learning that extends far beyond the classroom.

Following the unexpected departure of our previous Headteacher, the Governors are looking for a visionary and empathetic leader who will uphold and build upon the school's many strengths. This is a rare opportunity to shape the future of a vibrant, high-achieving school at the heart of the Salisbury community, surrounded by the stunning backdrop of our iconic cathedral.

The ideal candidate will:

  • Be an inspirational and dynamic leader, empowering students and staff to excel;
  • Demonstrate a strong sense of moral purpose, ethical principles, and values, leading by example;
  • Be committed to fostering diversity and equality across the school;
  • Prioritise wellbeing, promoting resilience and good mental health for staff and students alike;
  • Hold a deep appreciation for knowledge and a love of learning;
  • Value the school’s holistic curriculum, recognizing the importance of a broad range of co-curricular opportunities;
  • Have a passion for developing outstanding Teaching and Learning;
  • Possess exceptional leadership skills, with the ability to articulate and implement the school’s vision;
  • Have proven experience in implementing effective change;
  • Build highly effective relationships with all stakeholders, demonstrating exceptional interpersonal skills;
  • Show strategic leadership capabilities, including financial acumen and the ability to maximize opportunities for the school.

In return, we offer:

  • A highly successful, happy school with a distinctive ethos and a deep connection to the community it serves;
  • A productive learning environment, strong academic performance, and the capacity for further improvement;
  • Dedicated, talented, and enthusiastic staff who embody and uphold the school’s values;
  • A committed and experienced Senior Leadership Team;
  • Motivated students who actively engage in their learning and the wider life of the school;
  • Supportive and dynamic Governors who provide strategic guidance and constructive challenge.


Bishop Wordsworth’s School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff to share this commitment. Applicants will be required to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employees and the Disclosure and Barring Service. The post you are applying for is subject to an order under Section 4(4) of the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. The School is therefore permitted to ask job applicants to declare all convictions and cautions on a self-declaration form in advance of attending an interview (including those that are ‘spent’ unless they are ‘protected’ under the DBS filtering rules) in order to assess their suitability to work with children.

All offers of employment are subject to satisfactory references as well as an enhanced DBS, Section 128 management check, and other safeguarding checks.

All shortlisted candidates will undergo social media checks prior to interview in line with KCSIE 2024 and in order to provide the appointment panel with any information that may be relevant to their suitability, or have an impact on the school’s reputation. All applicants will be required to provide details of their online profile including names/handles, as part of their application.

How to Apply:

  • Further details and an application pack are available on the school’s website. Please send your completed application form and covering letter to Mrs. A. Lloyd-Gilmour, HR Manager, via email at alg@bishopwordsworths.org.uk.
  • If you do not hear by 10 March 2025, please assume you have not been successful on this occasion.
  • We kindly advise that previous applicants will not be considered for this role.
  • We look forward to receiving your application and thank you for your interest in this exciting opportunity.


Attached documents

About Bishop Wordsworth's School

Bishop Wordsworth's School is a unique school in a unique place. Our founder, Bishop John Wordsworth intended that his school should provide a centre of academic excellence in the heart of Salisbury. Since 1890 Bishop’s has fulfilled that mission and today we educate 1,176 students aged between 11 and 18 and which include approximately 130 girls in our now fully co-ed sixth form. Under the shadow of the Cathedral spire our eclectic buildings span the seventeenth to the twenty-first centuries, reflecting the school’s heritage. This creates a very special atmosphere in which students are conscious, on a daily basis, of their part in a long tradition of academic endeavour.

The school has remained true to its founder’s traditions by following three basic aims:

•To encourage all our students to develop their potential to the full by setting themselves the highest standards of excellence and achievement;

•To develop in all our students the integrity and the means to face confidently the challenges of a fast changing world;

•To inspire all our students to lead happy, purposeful and responsible lives.

Bishop’s enjoys a hard earned reputation as one of the finest schools in the country. The school is well known for its traditions of excellence, its strong links with the Church of England and the Cathedral, and its sense of pride in the school community. It became an Academy School in March 2011, enhancing its reputation for independence and outstanding quality in education. 

Girls were welcomed to the Bishop’s Sixth Form from September 2020 and they now make up around 30% of the 400 Year 12 and 13 students that are on our roll. Standards are very high throughout, both in the curriculum and elsewhere and the young women and men of the sixth form provide outstanding leadership for the rest of the school.  Almost all of our students progress to the most competitive universities, with some also securing high calibre degree apprenticeship positions.

Boys take an 11+ selection test for admission to Bishop’s. Academic standards are very high and are duly recognized as such by OfSTED, DfE and the media, but excellence permeates all other areas of school life. School Sport is exceptionally strong, and the traditions in Music and Performing Arts are impressive. The school is characterised by a culture of challenging students to do their best while, at the same time, offering them the support that they need to do really well. Older students are asked to take leadership responsibilities and operate as role models and mentors for those in lower years.

We place great importance on delivering an all round education for all of our students.  Bishop’s enjoys an incomparable environment in the shadow of the highest cathedral spire in England, and many major school events take place in the Cathedral during the school year. Facilities for learning and teaching are already excellent, and further development of the school site continues.

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