School Counsellor

Application Pack

Ambition Confidence Success

Everyone Every Lesson Every Opportunity

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Contents Contents .................................................................................................................................................................................................... 1

Principal’s Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................................ 2

How to Apply ........................................................................................................................................................................................... 3

The Appointment Process .................................................................................................................................................................. 3

Advertisement: School Counsellor................................................................................................................................................... 4

Job Description: ...................................................................................................................................................................................... 6

Person Specification ........................................................................................................................................................................... 10

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Principals Introduction

Thank you for your interest in the post of School Counsellor at Caroline Chisholm School. The school is a

dynamic and heavily over-subscribed all-through academy which covers an age range from 4 to 19. The

school caters for around 2000 students, with 420 in the primary phase and around 300 students in the sixth

form. We are seeking an exceptional School Counsellor in our school. The successful candidate will be a

highly motivated individual who has outstanding experience and/or potential.

The post will be instrumental in moving the school back to “Good” and onwards and upwards towards an

eventual “Outstanding” judgement. Caroline Chisholm School has a highly talented and motivated staff

body and a supportive, bright and extremely well behaved student body. It is a busy and exciting time at

Caroline Chisholm. After a disappointing inspection visit in November 2017, the school is determined to

rectify the issues identified in the Ofsted report, and to rapidly improve to become one of the highest

performing schools in the Northamptonshire area.

My vision for the school is that it becomes a centre of excellence in developing innovative teaching as well

as being a school that focusses on developing success, confidence and ambition in all of our students. It is

therefore important that the successful candidate has a true passion and determination for developing the

ethos of the school.

If you feel that our school ethos fits your ambitions, we would very much like to hear from you.

David James Principal

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How to Apply We welcome daytime visits to the school for any candidate who is interested in the role.

To arrange, please email our recruitment team at: ahogan@ccs.northants.sch.uk

To apply, please complete the online application form and include a letter of application, telling us about

your experience and suitability for the post with reference to the attached job description and person

specification.

Please note that all applications must be submitted by: Tuesday 26th November 2019 by mid-day. If you

have not heard from the school within 1 working days of this deadline, please assume that your application

has not been successful on this occasion.

The Appointment Process Interviews for the post are expected to take place on Thursday 28th November 2019.

References will always be requested before interview.

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Advertisement: School Counsellor

Caroline Chisholm School was the UK’s first purpose built all-through school which opened in state of the

art facilities in 2004. The school is a dynamic, successful and highly over-subscribed academy with over 2000

students on roll, of which 420 pupils are in the primary phase and around 300 students in the Sixth form.

We are seeking a passionate and inspirational School Counsellor in our Secondary phase.

Academic attainment across all phases is consistently above national averages and in 2018, 87% of students

obtained the expected standards in reading, writing and mathematics at the end of Key Stage 2. In addition,

79% of students obtained grade 4+ in both English and mathematics at GCSE.

We are seeking a passionate and inspirational School Counsellor in our Secondary phase to be part of our

vibrant and successful learning support team.

If you feel that our school ethos fits your ambitions, we would very much like to hear from you.

The school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and

expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. This post will be subject to an Enhanced DBS

disclosure. All applicants should read the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy (which is

available on our website) and are required to declare any information, as requested, on the online

application form.

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Visits by prospective candidates prior to submitting an application

form are welcomed.

• Closing date for this post is noon on Tuesday 26th November 2019.

• Interviews are likely to occur on Thursday 28th November 2019.

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Job Description:

Responsible to: Assistant Principal

Working time: 30 hours per week, 39 weeks per year

Salary: NCC Grade J, £30,507 - £33,799, Actual part time salary (£21,249 - £23,542)

Job Responsibilities:

• Maintain confidentiality within agreed boundaries (see page 2 for confidentiality contract)

• Continue to develop the skills necessary to support you

• Be a member of the British Association of Counsellors and Psychotherapists

• Have regular supervision, this is required by my ethical codes of safe practice

• Keep notes in line with ethical codes, stored safely and securely

• Attend your sessions on time and give you my undivided attention

• Give you at least 24 hours’ notice if sessions are unable to be kept

• See you as an individual person of value. I will always give you respect and allow you the space and time

to make your own decisions

• I will acknowledge you out of sessions only if you choose to acknowledge me. I will not instigate this and

will not get into conversation with you either in school or outside of school

• To provide an independent and confidential counselling service to pupils and staff, through individual

sessions, responding to their personal, social, emotional or educational concerns

• To promote a caring and supportive environment where such concerns may be explored, thereby

promoting the mental and emotional health at CCS

• To maintain confidentiality (except in those circumstances, in line with BACP practice, where this should

be breached)

• To uphold good practice as described by the BACP ethical guidelines

• To be responsible for their own Professional Development maintenance and updating knowledge and

awareness through Continuing Professional Development (CPD)

• To make referrals, where appropriate and with the student’s consent, to other agencies

• To liaise, where appropriate and with the student’s consent, with members of staff

• To maintain appropriate records and to keep these secure

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• To liaise with school staff and other professionals as

appropriate to ensure the effective operation of the service

• To be alert to trends and patterns of problems and to be willing

to identify causes and recommend corrective action

• To play an active role in Safeguarding students and adhere with guidance to Keeping children safe in

education Statutory guidance for schools and colleges September 2016

• To maintain a high level of knowledge and awareness of changes and developments in the fields of

counselling and education and their impact on the delivery of counselling

• To promote the safety and wellbeing of the students

Notes:

• Whilst every effort has been made to explain the main duties and responsibilities of the post, each individual

task undertaken may not be identified

• Employees will be expected to comply with any reasonable request from a manager to undertake work of a

similar level that is not specified in this job description

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Person Specification Essential

[E] or

Desirable

[D] Requirements Assessment Criteria

Interview

Application

form Reference

Qualifications

E

Minimum of 5 GCSEs, A*-C (or equivalent) to include English and

maths ✓ ✓

E

Competence in the use of ICT to a level appropriate to the post

applied for ✓ ✓ ✓

E

Able to communicate effectively using both the spoken and

written word, including external agencies and professionals ✓ ✓

E

Appropriate level of data protection, security and confidentiality

awareness ✓ ✓ ✓

Professional Skills & Abilities

E Able to demonstrate outstanding interpersonal skills ✓ ✓ ✓

E Able to be an effective team player ✓ ✓ ✓

E Able to work effectively with diverse groups of people ✓ ✓ ✓

E Positive and caring approach to pupils ✓

E Able to organise time efficiently and work to deadlines ✓ ✓ ✓

Experience

E Experience in working with young people and families ✓

E Willing to make home visits ✓

D Experience of supporting colleagues in an education setting ✓

E

Experience in carrying out administrative tasks with an emphasis

on attention to detail ✓

E

Experience in working to an agreed performance level and

taking part in performance review ✓

Applicable to all staff

E

Undertake training as required in order to fulfil the requirements

of the role ✓ ✓

E

Genuine interest in the education of young people and ability to

contribute more widely to the life and community of the school ✓ ✓

E

Play an active role in terms of safeguarding all students and

adults ✓ ✓ ✓