Head of School

The Federation comprises two special schools and one 19-25 specialist College in Birmingham. The schools are LA maintained, whilst the College is an Independent Specialist Provider, with its own Board of Trustees. The College is in a soft Federation with the two schools.

Cherry Oak is a Primary Special School for children aged 3-11 years and is based in Selly Oak. Our pupils have Speech, Language and Communication Difficulties and/or Cognition and Learning Difficulties. Approximately half of our pupils are diagnosed as being on the Autism Spectrum. All have Education, Health and Care Plans (EHCPs), and are referred to the school via Birmingham City Council's Special Education Needs Assessment and Review service, known as SENAR. We cater for 111 pupils.

Victoria School is an all age 2-19 special school based in Northfield; supporting pupils with cognition and learning needs, profound and multiple learning disabilities (PMLD), physical disabilities and complex medical health and learning needs. We cater for 228 pupils.

Victoria College is based on the same site as Victoria School in Northfield. We support young people with PMLD and complex medical and health needs. The college opened in 2013 and we have 30 learners on roll.

The Federation's vision is 'inspire and empower students through collaborative working and to promote their holistic development'. Our values statement is "We R.I.S.E Together - Respect, Inspire, Support, Empower".

• Promote outstanding classroom practice for pupils with a range of learning difficulties and disabilities, including Autism
• Provide inspirational and supportive leadership to the team of teachers and support staff
• Have an in-depth understanding of SEND, relevant curriculum and safeguarding
• Demonstrate excellent communication and interpersonal skills
• Have a track record of leading whole school initiatives
• Motivate and support colleagues and work collaboratively across the Federation and with other professionals
• The ability to lead with clear direction, building on the success of the Federation
• The strategic innovation and drive to help build on the exciting plans that have been established and are in place for the school and Federation's future development
• A commitment to ensure that all pupils achieve the very best outcomes
• Implement a clear vision, combined with highly effective communication skills that will inspire, motivate and lead the community forward for further success.

• An opportunity to work with our fantastic pupils and staff team!
• A happy and caring community that always puts our pupils first
• A highly motivated staff team who are committed to getting the very best outcomes for our pupils
• Excellent opportunities to further develop your leadership skills and career pathway
• A commitment to continuing professional development
• A strong and supportive Governing Body
• A culture of promoting positive mental health and wellbeing through a well-planned strategy

The Governing Body actively encourages all candidates to visit the school prior to interview. Please contact Gary Coffey to arrange an informal visit to the Federation on or email

If you wish to discover more details about this exciting opportunity, then please visit: Hosted on My New Term

This post is covered by Part 7 of the Immigration Act (2016) and therefore the ability to speak fluent spoken English is an essential requirement for this role.

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. Further information about filtering offences can be found in the DBS filtering guide.

This school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and expects all staff to share this commitment. The successful candidate will be subject to all necessary pre-employment checks, including: an enhanced DBS; medical fitness; teacher prohibition check, identity checks and right to work.

All applicants will be required to provide two suitable references.