Kisimul Group Limited
Deputy Head Teacher (Special Educational Needs)
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About The Role
Deputy Headteacher
Location: Haverhill, Suffolk
School Type: Independent Special School | Ages 8–16
Salary: £59,096.75 – £63,611.59 DOE and Qualifications
Help shape a specialist school from the beginning
This is an exciting opportunity to join Kisimul’s new specialist school in Haverhill as we develop a unique educational community for young people aged 8–16.
The school will provide specialist education for children and young people who are autistic and/or have additional learning, social, emotional and mental health needs. With small class sizes, personalised learning and an integrated therapeutic approach, we aim to create an environment where every young person can build confidence, develop independence and achieve meaningful, aspirational outcomes.
As Deputy Headteacher, you will be instrumental in establishing the culture, curriculum and educational standards of the school. Working closely with the Headteacher and multidisciplinary team, you will help create a setting where young people are understood as individuals, barriers to learning are addressed creatively and high expectations are embedded from day one.
This is an opportunity to make a lasting difference — helping to build a specialist provision where excellent teaching, therapeutic practice, personalised learning and preparation for adult life are at the heart of the school.
Our approach to education
Education will extend beyond the traditional classroom. Alongside formal teaching, young people will learn through real-life contexts, developing functional skills, independence, emotional resilience and confidence for the future.
The school will offer bespoke curriculum pathways shaped around each learner’s strengths, needs, aspirations and outcomes. This may include vocational, accredited and semi-formal learning alongside innovative approaches that make education meaningful and accessible.
An integrated therapy team will work alongside education colleagues to embed therapeutically informed practice across the school. This will include proactive approaches to communication, sensory regulation and emotional wellbeing, supported by person-centred planning that ensures provision is consistent, purposeful and responsive.
Many of the young people joining the school may have experienced disruption, exclusion or difficulty within previous educational settings. We recognise that rebuilding trust and confidence is often the first step towards successful learning.
Our ambition is to help young people re-engage with education, develop resilience and create positive, more independent futures.
The role
As Deputy Headteacher, you will provide senior leadership alongside the Headteacher, helping to ensure the educational quality, operational effectiveness and professional standards of the school.
You Will Contribute To Leading And Developing
- Curriculum development, implementation and innovation
- The quality of teaching, learning and assessment
- Learner progress, personal development and wellbeing
- High expectations and professional standards
- Staff development, coaching, mentoring and professional practice
- Quality assurance and continuous improvement
- Safeguarding, attendance and learner welfare
- Assessment, admissions and transition
- Partnership working with families, professionals and external agencies
You will provide leadership across the school site and, in the Headteacher’s absence, assume the responsibilities of the Headteacher.
This is a significant senior leadership position requiring professional curiosity, sound judgement, resilience and a strong understanding of SEND, education and inspection requirements.
You will bring a genuine passion for specialist education and understand that successful outcomes for neurodivergent young people require approaches that are flexible, creative, relational and individualised.
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Leading through collaboration
The school will benefit from an integrated multidisciplinary team, and you will play a key role in ensuring that education, care and therapeutic approaches work together effectively.
You will collaborate with education colleagues, care teams, therapists, service development practitioners, families and external professionals to ensure that every learner receives appropriate support and remains actively engaged in their education.
As a senior leader, you will model excellent practice, mentor colleagues and contribute to training, advice and professional development. You will help build a culture where staff are reflective, solution-focused and accountable for achieving the best possible outcomes for young people.
Assessment and transition
You will have an important role in assessing and supporting the transition of new learners into the school.
This will include understanding individual needs, contributing to placement assessments, developing effective transition plans and ensuring that relevant information is communicated clearly to everyone involved in supporting the learner.
The role may involve regular travel off-site, locally in relation to day placements and nationally for young people being considered for integrated residential placements. Travel expenses will be provided.
What We're Looking For
We are looking for an experienced and inspirational education leader who is passionate about SEND, neurodiversity and improving outcomes for young people who have experienced barriers to education.
You Will Ideally Bring
- Demonstrable knowledge of SEND curriculum, education legislation and current DfE requirements, with direct experience of leading or overseeing teaching and learning.
- Experience within specialist SEND education, ideally in a senior or management role within a school, specialist setting or local authority.
- A relevant teaching qualification, alongside further qualifications or CPD in educational leadership, management or SEND.
- A strong understanding of neurodivergent profiles and trauma-informed and therapeutically informed education.
- Experience of vocational, accredited and/or semi-formal learning, with the ability to develop bespoke curriculum pathways.
- The ability to inspire colleagues and translate specialist SEND knowledge into excellent day-to-day practice.
- Experience of mentoring, coaching and developing staff while maintaining high expectations and accountability.
- Strong quality assurance experience, including analysing outcomes, identifying trends and developing effective improvement plans.
- The ability to engage positively and sensitively with parents, carers and professionals, including where previous relationships with education services have been challenging.
- Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the confidence to work across education, care, therapy and external professional teams.
- Experience of leading effective meetings, promoting reflective practice and encouraging solution-focused thinking.
- Experience of producing clear, concise reports for governance and other stakeholders.
- Experience of supporting learners through assessment, transition and admission processes.
- The ability to develop clear action plans with measurable outcomes and success criteria.
- A flexible, resilient and creative approach to engaging young people who may find traditional education challenging.
- The ability to balance compassion and relational practice with clear professional boundaries, high expectations and accountability.
- A collaborative leadership style and the ability to build positive relationships across a multidisciplinary team.
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Why join Kisimul?
At Kisimul, we are committed to helping the people we support expand their life skills, abilities and experiences through our therapeutic community and meaningful life delivery model.
We place individual needs, values, aspirations and outcomes at the centre of what we do, bringing together education, care and therapeutic support to help people grow, develop and achieve greater independence.
Our new Haverhill school gives you the opportunity to help translate this ethos into an ambitious specialist education environment — one where young people can develop academically, socially, emotionally and practically.
Your opportunity
This is more than a senior leadership appointment. It is a chance to help build a school.
You will have the opportunity to influence the curriculum, establish high standards of teaching and learning, develop a strong professional culture and help create a provision where young people who may previously have struggled in education can succeed.
If you are an experienced SEND leader who is ambitious for young people, passionate about innovative and personalised education, and excited by the opportunity to shape a new specialist school community, we would love to hear from you.
Our Benefits
- Career Development – Transparent pay grades and opportunities to progress.
- Fully Funded Qualifications – Support to develop your skills and career.
- Blue Light Card – Access to discounts across more than 15,000 UK venues.
- Refer a Friend – Earn up to £500 for every successful hire.
- Financial Benefits – Life Assurance of 1x your annual basic salary, access to a salary sacrifice pension scheme, Stream salary access and discounts with more than 150 retailers.
- Health & Wellbeing – Access to an online GP, confidential telephone counselling, dedicated internal wellbeing support and an Employee Assistance Programme.
- Flexible Working Patterns – The option to work on bank holidays and take the time off at another point that is more meaningful to you.
- Cycle to Work Scheme – Salary-deducted bikes to help you save money.
- Free DBS Check – We cover the cost of your DBS check.
About Kisimul
Kisimul Group Ltd operates a group of independent specialist schools and adult provisions, providing specialist education and residential care for children, young people and adults with autism, severe and complex learning difficulties, global developmental delay and associated behaviours that may challenge.
We are proud to have been recognised as an outstanding company to work for, as voted for in our most recent employee survey.
Kisimul is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and adults, and expects all staff to share this commitment.
We are also committed to creating a workplace that celebrates and welcomes diversity in all its forms. We believe that different perspectives make us stronger and more innovative. If you are excited about this role but your experience does not align perfectly with every requirement, we encourage you to apply — your unique background, perspective and potential could be exactly what we are looking for.
Please note: Due to current UK Government guidelines, we are unable to provide visa sponsorship for this role. Sponsorship is restricted to eligible colleagues who are already employed by the organisation. Please be aware that Children’s Homes positions are not eligible for sponsorship.
All roles are subject to an enhanced DBS check.
If you are ready to help build something meaningful and make a lasting difference to young people's lives, we would love to hear from you.
What is it like to work at Kisimul? Click here to hear our teams talking about life at Kisimul: [https://youtu.be/pP-sFmzkR88]
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