Principal

Education Authority Northern Ireland

2h • Onsite

About The Position

The Principal shall be responsible for the internal organisation, management and control of the school. This role involves formulating the overall aims and objectives of the school, participating in staff selection and appointment, deploying and managing staff, and ensuring equitable distribution of duties. The Principal is responsible for determining, organising, and implementing an appropriate curriculum, maintaining relationships with staff organizations, and evaluating teaching and learning standards. The role also includes ensuring pupil progress is monitored, determining pastoral care policies, and promoting self-discipline and acceptable behaviour among pupils. Additionally, the Principal is responsible for good order and discipline on school premises, providing regular information to parents, promoting effective external relationships, advising the Board of Governors, liaising with the employing authority, and maintaining relationships with other educational institutions. Financial and material resources under the Principal's control must be allocated, controlled, and accounted for. The Principal also arranges for building security and supervision, participates in staff development and performance reviews, and ensures a Vice-Principal or other suitable person can assume responsibilities during their absence. The role may involve teaching pupils and providing cover for absent teachers. The Principal is entitled to a break of at least 30 minutes between 12 noon and 2.00 pm. The role also includes managing staff, ensuring teachers receive necessary information, and supporting newly-qualified teachers and those returning to teaching. Key areas of responsibility include Shaping the Future, Leading and Managing Staff, Leading Learning and Teaching, Developing the School in the Community, Managing the Organisation, Ensuring Accountability, and promoting good relations and equality of opportunity.

Requirements

• Hold a teaching qualification which meets the requirements for recognition to teach in grant-aided schools in Northern Ireland.
• Have a minimum of 7 years post qualification teaching experience in post primary education, and/or equivalent experience in an affiliated educational body working in an area that relates to the post primary sector, within the last 12 years
• Currently hold or have held for a minimum of 3 years AND within the last 8 years: A post with experience of strategic leadership or co-ordination of a whole school area at a minimum level of SMT/SLT to include monitoring and evaluation resulting in measurable school improvement; and/or A post of Principal or Vice-Principal; and/or A post with strategic leadership and management experience within an affiliated body. The above promoted posts may be in an acting capacity.
• Demonstrate evidence of how your leadership has led to measurable school improvement
• Demonstrate evidence of having held a leadership role in strategic planning and/or organisational management
• Demonstrate evidence of experience of contributing to building an inclusive school community
• Extensive knowledge of the Northern Ireland Post Primary Curriculum and current policies and procedures
• Extensive knowledge of current educational developments and the ability to evaluate and respond to new educational challenges and manage change effectively
• Extensive knowledge of effective classroom pedagogy and how to ensure high standards of teaching, learning and achievement throughout the school
• Extensive knowledge of effective data management
• Extensive knowledge of effective organisational management including the appropriate deployment of resources
• Extensive knowledge of effective financial management
• Extensive knowledge of sound financial governance
• Highly developed skills to lead, motivate, manage, challenge and enthuse others
• Highly developed skills to create an ethos and articulate vision for the future of the school
• Highly developed skills to develop good relationships at all levels and promote a collaborative and team approach among staff, pupils, parents and governors
• Highly developed skills to lead strategically and develop self and others in order to achieve outcomes
• Highly developed skills to promote, achieve, monitor and evaluate high standards of teaching, learning and achievement throughout the school
• Highly developed skills to develop effective partnerships between the school and the local community
• Highly developed skills to communicate effectively orally and in writing
• Highly developed skills to organise and prioritise workload effectively
• Highly developed skills to deal with staffing matters in accordance with EA policies and procedures
• Highly developed skills to manage time effectively
• Vision
• A sound value system
• Enthusiasm and motivation
• Assertiveness and confidence
• A caring child centred approach
• Integrity
• Advocacy and empathy
• Discretion
• An ability to cope under pressure
• Tact and diplomacy
• Decisiveness
• Adaptability
• Registered with the General Teaching Council for Northern Ireland (GTCNI) upon taking up employment.

Nice To Haves

• Have successfully completed an additional post graduate (or equivalent or higher) qualification in Education.
• Have experience of financial and/or budgetary management within school/s
• Demonstrate evidence of strategic direction of staff development within school/s

Responsibilities

• Formulating the overall aims and objectives of the school and policies for their implementation
• Participating in the selection and appointment of the teaching and non-teaching staff of the school
• Deploying and managing all teaching and non-teaching staff of the school and allocating particular duties to them
• Ensuring that the duty of providing cover for absent teachers is shared equitably among all teachers
• Maintaining relationships, as appropriate, with organisations representing teachers and other persons on the staff of the school
• Determining, organising and implementing an appropriate curriculum for the school
• Keeping under review the work and organisation of the school
• Evaluating the standards of teaching and learning in the school, and ensuring that proper standards of professional performance are established and maintained
• Providing information about the work and performance of the staff employed at the school where this is relevant to their future employment
• Participating in any scheme of staff development and performance review of teachers who teach in the school
• Ensuring that all staff in the school have access to advice and training appropriate to their needs
• Ensuring that the progress of the pupils of the school is monitored and recorded
• Determining and ensuring the implementation of a policy for the pastoral care of the pupils
• Determining measures to be taken with a view to promoting, among the pupils, self-discipline and proper regard for authority, encouraging good behaviour on the part of the pupils, securing that the standard of behaviour of the pupils is acceptable, and otherwise regulating the conduct of the pupils
• Having responsibility for good order and discipline on the school premises whenever pupils are present, including the mid-day break
• Making arrangements for parents to be given regular information about the school curriculum, the progress of their children and other matters affecting the school
• Promoting effective relationships with persons and bodies outside the school
• Advising and assisting the Board of Governors in the exercise of their functions
• Providing for liaison and co-operation with the employing authority
• Maintaining liaison with other schools and institutions of further education
• Allocating, controlling and accounting for those financial and material resources of the school which are under the control of the principal
• Making arrangements for the security and effective supervision of the school buildings and their contents and of the school grounds
• Participating in any scheme of staff development and performance review of principals
• Participating in the identification of areas in which he/she would benefit from further training and undergoing such training
• Arranging for a Vice-Principal or, if the Vice-Principal is not available, another suitable person to assume responsibility for the discharge of his/her functions as principal at any time when he/she is absent from the school
• Participating, to such extent as may be appropriate having regard to his/her other duties, in the teaching of the pupils at the school, including the provision of cover for absent teachers
• Considering how far the duties of the principal may be delegated to any vice-principal
• Ensuring that teachers at the school receive information they need in order to carry out their professional duties effectively
• Ensuring that newly-qualified teachers and those returning to teaching after a break in service have access to adequate support in their first years of service or resumed service
• Keep abreast of and anticipate educational trends
• Think strategically to build and communicate a shared coherent vision
• Create an ethos and provide direction, which promotes a culture of high expectation, successful learning and achievement
• Inspire, challenge, motivate and empower others to carry the vision and ethos forward
• Model the values and ethos of the school
• Provide high quality leadership to secure improvement
• Collaborate and network with others within and beyond the school
• Foster a culture of shared/ distributed leadership
• Develop, empower and sustain individuals and teams
• Support the development of an open, fair, equitable culture and manage conflict effectively
• Support and challenge performance in order to raise standards
• Work with others to lead professional development for all staff within the context of the school’s development plan
• Cultivate enthusiasm for and commitment to the learning process
• Lead and manage the development of an effective learning and teaching culture
• Lead and manage the self-evaluation process; work with staff and others to analyse a range of data, interpret outcomes and plan for improvement
• Ensure effective implementation of the NI Curriculum, share good practice and work with others to challenge and address pupil under-achievement
• Lead and manage the development and promotion of a positive image of the school within the local community and beyond
• Develop and maintain strong and effective relationships with parents and the local and wider community
• Ensure effective channels of communication are in place between the school and the local and wider community
• Listen to, reflect and act on community feedback
• Recognise and lead others to ensure that strategic planning takes account of the richness and diversity of the school’s communities and community feedback
• Work closely with other relevant statutory and voluntary agencies to enhance the education of all pupils
• Prioritise, plan and organise themselves and others
• Think creatively to anticipate and solve problems
• Make sound decisions based on a range of informed judgments
• Establish and maintain appropriate structures and systems
• Lead and manage the development and implementation of the School Development Plan
• Delegate tasks and monitor their implementation
• Manage resources efficiently and effectively: human, physical and financial
• Create and develop a culture in which all Governors and staff recognise that they are accountable for the success of the school
• Combine the outcomes of regular self-evaluation, ETI inspection evidence and other external evaluations in order to develop the school
• Lead and manage the process of monitoring and evaluating effectively school outcomes, policies and procedures
• Work with the leadership team and others to recognise and disseminate effective practice and challenge and address unacceptable performance
• Work closely with and provide effective reports to Governors on the school’s progress and development
• Promote good relations, equality of opportunity and pay due regard for equality legislation at all times

Benefits

• The Conditions of Service for this post will be in accordance with the Regulations of the Department of Education for Northern Ireland.
• Many great benefits of joining the Education Authority

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Principal
• Education Level: No Education Listed