English Teacher

South Gloucestershire Council; Emersons Green; On-site; GBP 36,000 - 48,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Generous annual leave (pro rata)

Wellbeing support

Staff discounts

Job summary

South Gloucestershire Council is seeking an English Teacher for Vinney Green Secure Children’s Home. You will deliver engaging lessons, support safeguarding, and help young people rebuild confidence and literacy skills within a trauma-informed environment.

Work with very small classes, plan inclusive curricula, assess progress and collaborate with care colleagues to keep education central to development and progression pathways.

Qualifications

• Must hold QTS or QTLS with experience teaching English to secondary pupils.
• Strong subject knowledge and ability to plan an inclusive curriculum.
• Understanding of trauma-informed practice and adverse childhood experiences.
• Ability to build positive relationships, maintain boundaries and handle challenging behaviour.
• Demonstrated assessment, communication and teamwork skills.
• Experience in SEMH, SEND or similar specialist settings is a plus.

Responsibilities

• Deliver engaging and ambitious English lessons to develop literacy and progress.
• Plan and deliver high-quality lessons meeting individual starting points.
• Apply trauma-informed strategies to support regulation, engagement and behaviour.
• Assess progress, identify barriers and plan interventions.
• Promote confidence, independence and a positive attitude to learning.
• Collaborate with education and care colleagues to keep education central.
• Contribute to an inclusive curriculum supporting progression to further education and work.

Skills

QTS or QTLS

English teaching experience

Trauma-informed practice

Relationship building

Assessment & collaboration

Education

Secondary teaching qualification

Job description

How you'll make a difference

Vinney Green Secure Children’s Home provides a safe, nurturing environment where young people can benefit from high-quality care, education and opportunities to develop vocational and essential life skills.

As an English Teacher, you will deliver engaging and inclusive lessons that help young people rebuild confidence in their learning, develop key literacy skills and achieve positive outcomes. You will combine high expectations with empathy, adaptability and a genuine belief in every young person's ability to succeed.

Working within a trauma-informed environment, you will support young people whose experiences of adversity, trauma and disrupted education may have created significant barriers to learning. Through building positive relationships, creating emotionally safe learning spaces and providing consistent support, you will help young people re-engage with education and realise their potential.

What you will be doing

• It will be your responsibility to deliver engaging and ambitious English lessons that develop literacy skills, address gaps in learning and prepare young people for qualifications and future opportunities.
• Working with very small classes, you will have the opportunity to get to know each young person, tailor teaching to their needs and recognise progress at every stage. You will:
  • Plan and deliver high-quality lessons that meet individual starting points while maintaining ambitious expectations.
  • Apply trauma-informed strategies to support emotional regulation, engagement and positive behaviour.
  • Assess and monitor progress, identifying barriers to learning and planning appropriate interventions.
  • Promote confidence, independence and a positive attitude towards learning.
  • Work collaboratively with education and care colleagues to provide consistent support and ensure education remains central to each young person’s development.
  • Contribute to an inclusive curriculum that supports progression to further education, training and employment.

What we need from you

• It is essential that you hold Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) or Qualified Teacher Learning and Skills status (QTLS), alongside experience of teaching English, ideally to secondary-aged pupils.
• We are looking for someone who has strong subject knowledge and the ability to plan and deliver an ambitious, inclusive curriculum that meets the needs of all learners.
• An understanding of trauma-informed practice and the impact that adverse childhood experiences can have on learning, behaviour and engagement is essential.
• You will be able to build positive relationships with young people, maintain consistent boundaries and respond confidently to challenging behaviour.
• You must have effective assessment, communication and teamwork skills.
• Although not essential, you may have experience in SEMH, SEND, alternative provision or other specialist settings.

What you need to know

• This is for a limited term contract due to end October 2027.
• Your working hours will be Monday to Friday, 8.30am - 4.00pm.
• Please note that due to the nature of this role it is a requirement of employment that an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check is obtained for this post.
• The salary is plus a secure unit allowance of £2,903.04 per annum, pro rated to hours worked and enhancements for Sunday and Bank Holiday working.
• Young people can present physically threatening behaviour and the environment can become tense and anxiety provoking, so for everybody’s safety surveillance cameras are in use in most areas of the building.
• Vinney Green operates a full non-smoking environment, and there is no provision to facilitate smoking anywhere on site. Staff’s personal belongings are required to be left in a provided locker on entry into the building and we may require you to undertake a further physical fitness check.
• You will join a dedicated team that understands the impact of adversity and works to create a safe, supportive environment where young people can experience success. Seeing a young person re-engage with education, develop their skills or begin to believe in their own potential makes this a uniquely rewarding role. Our very small class sizes allow for personalised teaching and stronger connections with learners. You can adapt your approach, respond to individual needs and celebrate achievements that might once have seemed out of reach.

Interviews will be held on 17th and 18th November 2026.

How a career at South Gloucestershire Council is different

• As part of our benefits package, you will receive generous annual leave (pro rata), employee wellbeing support and you will have access to a range of staff discounts, including eye tests, travel, shopping and leisure activities.
• We recognise that our diverse team of skilled and dedicated people make us a great place to work. We welcome applications from everyone and ensure that individuals are selected, promoted and developed on the basis of their merits and abilities.
• We value our staff as individuals, investing in their careers and we are recognised for the quality, breadth and depth of our training and development offer, which helps make the greatest long-term difference in work.
• We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the safety and welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. Ensuring all our staff are given right skills, knowledge and support to recognise and respond effectively to potential abuse or neglect.

Our teams at South Gloucestershire Council are making a real difference to the lives of people who live, work and learn here.

• We're building and shaping communities which people are proud of.
• We're working with the most vulnerable in our community to help them achieve what they want in life.
• We're investing in our schools to ensure every child and young person in South Gloucestershire achieves their full potential.

We've achieved a great deal, but we need talented and dedicated people to ensure we continue to make a difference.

We’re making a difference, be part of it!