Head of Habs Diploma

Haberdashers' Elstree Schools; Elstree; On-site; GBP 70,000 - 90,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Competitive salary

Approximately 17 weeks holidays

Private Pension Scheme through Aegon

Fee remission on school fees

Life assurance

Employee Assistance Programme

Professional development

Free lunch

Free onsite parking

Gym and sports facilities access

Wellbeing programmes

Vivup benefits platform

Job summary

Haberdashers' Elstree Schools invites applications for the Head of Habs Diploma. You will lead across Habs Boys and Habs Girls, shaping a coherent, academically ambitious EPQ/ERP programme with strong independent inquiry and high-quality mentorship.

The role blends teaching with leadership, developing curriculum across two campuses, and working with senior colleagues to secure excellence in delivery and impact within our thriving, forward-looking educational community.

Qualifications

• Experience leading EPQ or ERP or comparable research programmes.
• Ability to develop and articulate a coherent, academically ambitious Diploma offer across two schools.
• Strong track record of curriculum leadership and mentoring colleagues.

Responsibilities

• Develop and articulate a compelling intellectual vision for the Habs Diploma across both campuses.
• Hold direct strategic and operational responsibility for EPQ and ERP across Habs Boys and Habs Girls.
• Design and oversee a programme empowering students to formulate meaningful questions and conduct independent research.
• Build capacity of colleagues to support high-quality independent inquiry through mentoring.
• Lead the ongoing evolution of electives, service and visiting speaker programme.
• Evaluate and communicate the Diploma's contribution to Sixth Form outcomes.

Skills

EPQ/ERP leadership

Curriculum leadership

Independent inquiry facilitation

Strategic thinking

Job description

Head of Habs Diploma Reports to: Director of Innovation Line management: Interdisciplinary Projects Coordinator Key relationships: Heads of Sixth Form; Heads of Futures; Deputy Heads Academic; Heads of Department; Heads of Oxbridge Habs has been awarded Independent School of the Year 2025, with Haberdashers' Elstree Schools receiving both the award for Outstanding Educational Partnerships and the overall top accolade of Independent School of the Year 2025. This national recognition reflects our long-term commitment to social impact and the deep, sustained collaborations we continue to build with our state sector partners. It is an exciting and proud moment to be joining our community. An opportunity to shape a model of education that takes seriously what young people need to flourish in the twenty-first century. The Habs Diploma sits at the heart of our ambition to provide an education that prepares young people not merely for university, but for thoughtful and purposeful participation in a rapidly changing world. It embodies our conviction that disciplinary knowledge, intellectual breadth and independent inquiry are mutually reinforcing, and that each matters profoundly in an age of increasing complexity and technological change. Through the Extended Project Qualification (EPQ), Extended Research Project (ERP), subject enhancement, electives, service and a visiting speaker programme, the Diploma creates space for students to pursue significant questions, encounter ideas beyond examination specifications and develop the habits of mind associated with serious scholarship. We are seeking an exceptional teacher and curriculum leader to provide the Diploma with renewed strategic direction. Its purpose is to develop a coherent and academically ambitious educational offer, secure excellence in its delivery and articulate its value to students, parents, colleagues and the wider educational community. The Opportunity Reporting to the Director of Innovation, the Head of Habs Diploma will lead across Habs Boys and Habs Girls. The post carries a teaching timetable of approximately two-thirds of the standard allocation, creating substantial scope for programme leadership, curriculum development and delivery. Key Responsibilities

• Develop and articulate a compelling intellectual vision for the Habs Diploma, ensuring that it remains academically rigorous and responsive to changing demands in higher education, employment and society.
• Hold direct strategic and operational responsibility for EPQ and ERP across both schools.
• Design and oversee a programme through which students learn to formulate meaningful questions, engage critically with evidence, conduct independent research and communicate ideas with clarity and precision.
• Build colleagues' capacity to support high-quality independent inquiry, creating a strong culture of mentoring across both schools.
• Lead the quality, coherence and continuing evolution of electives, subject enhancement, service and the Visiting Speaker Programme.
• Ensure that the Diploma cultivates intellectual curiosity, critical judgement, creativity, independence, resilience and the capacity to engage thoughtfully with complex problems.
• Use evidence with discernment to evaluate the programme, strengthen provision and communicate its contribution to the Sixth Form experience.

About You

You will be an excellent teacher and intellectually serious educationalist, able to move confidently between first principles and practical implementation. You may already hold a substantial curriculum or academic leadership role, or be ready to assume your first significant whole-school responsibility. In either case, you will combine imagination with organisational discipline and possess the credibility to lead through influence as well as formal authority. You will understand the relationship between disciplinary knowledge, independent inquiry, and human flourishing. You will have experience of leading, teaching or coordinating EPQ or a comparable research programme, together with the capacity to develop colleagues as mentors and sustain excellent provision at scale.

Why Habs?

Habs is a forward-thinking, inclusive and caring community on a shared campus. Our purpose is to empower young people to make a profound impact in the world. We are ambitious for our students and colleagues, curious about better ways of doing things and willing to examine established practice with courage and intellectual honesty.

What we offer

• A competitive salary, commensurate with the candidate's experience and the size of the School
• Approximately 17 weeks holiday per year
• The opportunity to work in a vibrant, ambitious, and supportive school community alongside exceptional colleagues who are deeply committed to excellence and to one another
• Private Pension Scheme through Aegon offers four flexible options, each with generous employer contributions
• Discount on school fees for children at any of the Elstree Schools (fee remission set at time of child joining)
• Additional life assurance cover
• Access to the Employee Assistance Programme
• (EAP), providing confidential support and advice
• Extensive professional development training opportunities
• Free lunch and refreshments
• Free onsite parking and access to travel on the schools extensive coach network
• Free access to state-of-the-art sports facilities including the gym, swimming pool, and fitness classes
• Wellbeing initiatives and programmes, such as yoga, mindfulness sessions, and health checks
• Access to an online GP service, providing quick and convenient healthcare advice
• Access to Vivup, the staff benefits platform, featuring discounts, financial advice, and wellbeing resources