Advisory Teacher for the Virtual School
About the job
Salary: £48,349 - £52,711 a year
Hours per week: 37
Contract type: Permanent
Are you passionate about championing the educational success of children in care? Do you have the expertise, credibility and determination to influence practice at leadership level and improve outcomes for our most vulnerable learners?
Luton Council is seeking an exceptional Advisory Teacher to join our Virtual School team. This pivotal role champions the progress of children in care and those with a social worker by providing expert educational guidance, professional challenge and strategic support to schools and partners across and beyond the borough.
As Advisory Teacher, you will:
- Champion high aspirations and improved outcomes for children in care and previously looked-after children.
- Provide expert advice, support and constructive challenge to school leaders, Designated Teachers and multi-agency partners.
- Lead on the quality assurance of Personal Education Plans (PEPs), ensuring they are robust, impactful and outcome-focused.
- Analyse attainment, attendance and exclusion data to inform targeted interventions.
- Deliver high-quality training and briefings to stakeholders to raise attainment and promote best practice.
- Contribute to policy development, protocols and strategic priorities within the Virtual School.
- Produce clear, evidence-based reports using Microsoft packages and relevant data systems.
- Undertake regular visits to schools both within and outside the local authority.
Please note this role does not attract sponsorship.
About you
You are an experienced and credible education professional with:
- Qualified Teacher Status (QTS).
- Proven leadership experience within a school or local authority setting.
- Extensive experience working with:
- Children in care and children with a social worker.
- Pupils in culturally diverse communities.
- Children and young people with Special Educational Needs and additional learning needs.
You will also demonstrate:
- Confidence in holding positive yet appropriately challenging conversations with senior leaders and professionals to drive improvement.
- Strong analytical skills, using a range of data to plan, implement and evaluate effective interventions.
- Experience of designing and delivering impactful training to improve outcomes for vulnerable learners.
- Excellent communication skills across all media, with the ability to collaborate effectively with a wide range of partners.
- A strong commitment to anti-discriminatory practice and inclusive education.
- Up-to-date knowledge of safeguarding policy and procedure, including awareness of risks such as Child Criminal Exploitation (CCE) and Child Sexual Exploitation (CSE).
- Specialist understanding of childhood and adolescent development, including the impact of trauma and adverse childhood experiences on social, emotional and mental health, and awareness of needs such as FASD.
- In-depth knowledge of relevant legislation and statutory guidance relating to the Virtual School, Designated Teachers, PEPs, admissions, attendance and exclusions.
Why Join Luton?
At Luton Council, we are ambitious for our children and young people. You will join a dedicated Virtual School team committed to high standards, collaborative working and continuous improvement. This is an opportunity to influence system-wide practice and make a measurable difference to the lives of children who need us most.
If you are driven by equity, excellence and the belief that every child deserves to thrive, we would love to hear from you.
About us
Our ambitiousLuton 2040 Vision– that no-one in Luton will have to live in poverty – is at the heart of everything we do. We recognise that our people are remarkable, talented, committed and passionate about serving our residents.
The people of Luton depend heavily on this council – and that means our workforce! Are you ready to realise the remarkable and help us deliver our vision?
We welcome applications from all sections of the community and are committed to developing a workforce that reflects the diversity of our borough
Application Process
Because of the nature of this job, it will be necessary for the appropriate level of criminal record disclosure to be undertaken. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and therefore applicants are required to declare all unspent cautions and convictions; and also any adult cautions (simple or conditional), and spent convictions that are not protected as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020). A person’s criminal record will not in itself prevent a person from being appointed to this post. Applicants will not be refused posts because of offences which are not relevant to, and do not place them at or make them a risk in, the role for which they are applying. However in the event of the employment being taken up, any failure to disclose such offence, as detailed above, will result in dismissal or disciplinary action by the Authority.
On occasions, we may close a vacancy early due to a very high number of applications being received.
Benefits
We offer a range of excellent staff benefits which include:
- From 25 to 32 days’ annual leave: linked to length of service and grade
- Buying annual leave scheme: buy up to 20 days additional annual leave
- Career Pathways: step up in your career or move into a specialist area
- Pension scheme: with generous employer contributions of up to 20.2 per cent (at July 2023) and 3x salary death in service grant
- Generous relocation package: up to £8,000 (subject to eligibility)
- Employee Assistance Programme: a free, 24/7 confidential counselling and wellbeing support service available to all employees, their partner or spouse and dependent children over 16 still living at home
- Work/life balance: flexible working options including working from home where possible. We welcome requests for flexible working arrangements including part-time hours and alternative working patterns
- Training and support: unlimited access to development courses, mentoring and support and clear career pathways
- Staff offers: includes discounts on your MOT, gym and fitness, restaurants and salons
- Arriva Travel Club: great value savings on local bus travel
How to apply
We understand that job applications take time and effort, but a high-quality application shows that you are professional with a good attention to detail. The recruiting manager may receive a number of applications for each job advertised so you want yours to stand out!
Our ‘How to apply' page has more tips to help with your application: How to apply
Available documents
Attached documents are available under links. Clicking a document link will initialize its download.Salary range
- £48,349 - £52,711 per year