The posting
Swanshurst is a large, outstanding school for girls aged 11-19 years. We offer excellent support and CPD for staff at all stages of their career. Ofsted (May 2024) described our school to be “an exceptional place for pupils to learn”. They described the curriculum as “exemplary” and one which "explodes into life in the classroom". In relation to staff wellbeing, they noted that “The school is conscious of staff workload and well-being and is committed to achieving excellence in a sustainable way.” We are exceptionally proud to have been judged ‘Outstanding’ in two consecutive inspections. Ofsted (2024) judged Swanshurst to be Outstanding for a second time.
The school is part of the newly formed West Midlands Academy Trust (WMAT) which opened in January 2025. As one of the three founding members, the school has been integral to forming the Trust’s mission:
Relentless focus upon delivering an excellent Quality of Education, resulting in strong progress and attainment for all groups of pupils.
Emphasis upon personal development and well-being for staff and pupils.
We are seeking to appoint a dynamic, driven and strategic-thinking individual to progress and develop school data systems and procedures, ensuring simplicity, accuracy and automation. This is a wonderful opportunity for someone who enjoys working with figures and has an excellent working knowledge of Excel to start or extend their career in a busy, high functioning data and assessment office.
The successful person will have very good IT skills, particularly in Excel and other Microsoft office packages. An appreciation of school management software, e.g., SIMS & Power Bi would be desirable but not essential as training will be given.
The post will manage all the data activities for the school, under the direction of the Assistant Headteacher (Data & Assessment). The ability to communicate clearly and concisely with a range of individuals, excellent planning and organisational skills, accuracy, and attention to detail, combined with the ability to work well under pressure and to deadlines is essential.
This is a full-time post during term-time, with 10 additional days to support the start of each new academic year that must be worked in August.
What you will need to succeed:
Share our passion for wanting the very best for our students and school.
Be a proactive, innovative and solution-focussed professional.
Be an effective problem solver to develop systems at a whole school, department and individual level.
Be highly motivated, able to show initiative and be passionate about making a difference to the lives of young people.
Be emotionally intelligent with the ability to build strong working relationships with students, staff, parents, and carers.
The ability to work in a fast paced, challenging yet always rewarding role.
What you will get in return:
Professional development - this is the key to our ongoing success, so we invest in your development through training and progression opportunities.
A competitive salary.
A competitive pension scheme (Local Government Pension Scheme).
Some elements of flexible working.
WMAT is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all employees and volunteers to share this commitment. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the amendments to the Exceptions Order 1975, 2013 and 2020 which means that when applying for certain jobs and activities certain spent convictions and cautions are ‘protected’ so they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account.
Safeguarding is our top priority. We encourage all applicants to review our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy which outlines our commitment to the safety and wellbeing of students.
Please note that applications must be the creation of the candidate applying. While technology, including artificial intelligence, may be used to help the candidate select certain phraseology, if substantial use of AI is used, the application will be disregarded.
The successful applicant will be subject to all necessary pre-employment checks including enhanced DBS, Prohibition Check, qualifications (where applicable), medical fitness, identify and right to work.
This post is covered by Part 7 of the Immigration Act (2016). Therefore, the ability to speak fluent and spoken English is an essential requirement for this role. To comply with Keeping Children Safe in Education, we will seek and scrutinise references prior to interviews. Referees will be contacted to provide further clarification if needed. All information provided by referees will be compared for consistency against the information disclosed in your application form, and you will be asked about any discrepancies at interview.
Short listed candidates - an online search will also be carried out as part of due diligence on all short-listed candidates.
