Welfare Officer: Attendance & Belonging

Ark; Hawkesley; On-site; GBP 27,000 - 36,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Higher salaries on main pay scale

More training days

Pension scheme

Ark Rewards program

Interest‑free loans

Gym discounts

Employee Assistance Programme

Free fruit

Free soup

Job summary

Ark Kings Academy is seeking a Welfare Officer: Attendance & Belonging to join our welfare team. You will help ensure pupils attend regularly, feel a sense of belonging and receive support to thrive.

The role intersects attendance, wellbeing and family support with a data-informed approach to remove barriers to participation. You will work with pupils, families and external agencies, mentoring and using early-help strategies to support those facing anxiety or engagement challenges, contributing

Qualifications

• Responsibilities include supporting attendance interventions and promoting pupil wellbeing.

Responsibilities

• Oversee attendance interventions from early identification through to statutory processes where required.
• Support pupils experiencing anxiety or emotional difficulties using mentoring and early-help interventions.
• Collaborate with safeguarding and pastoral teams to promote attendance, wellbeing and belonging.

Job description

About The Role

The Welfare Officer: Attendance & Belonging will be a key member of the academy's welfare team, helping to ensure that every pupil attends regularly, feels a strong sense of belonging and receives the support they need to thrive. The role sits at the intersection of attendance, wellbeing and family support, recognising that positive relationships, emotional wellbeing and engagement are fundamental to successful school attendance.

The postholder will be instrumental in the academy's support-first approach to attendance, working with pupils, families and external agencies to identify and remove barriers to participation in education. They will oversee attendance interventions from early identification through to statutory processes where required, using data-informed practice, targeted support and effective partnership working to improve outcomes for pupils and families.

Alongside attendance responsibilities, the Welfare Officer will play a central role in promoting pupil wellbeing and belonging. Through mentoring, early-help interventions and therapeutic approaches such as ELSA (or equivalent), they will support pupils experiencing anxiety, emotional difficulties or other barriers that affect engagement and attendance. By building trusted relationships with pupils and families, they will help create the conditions for every child to feel connected, valued and successful as part of the school community.

Working closely with safeguarding, pastoral and inclusion teams, the Welfare Officer will contribute to a culture where attendance, wellbeing and belonging are everyone's responsibility, ensuring that children and families receive timely, effective and compassionate support.

We’re proud to share that our school has been recognised as a top-performing secondary school nationally, receiving a top 5% badge in Employee Agency, Inclusion, Leadership & Line Management, and a top 10% badge in Employee Satisfaction in the Spring 2026 census with The Engagement Platform (TEP).

Benefits

• Salaries 2.5% higher than main pay scale.
• Twice as many training days as standard.
• Generous pension scheme.
• Access to Ark rewards – a scheme offering savings from over 3,000 major retailers
• Interest‑free loans – up to £5,000 available for season ticket or to buy a bicycle.
• Gym discounts – offering up to 40%.
• Access to Employee Assistance Programme – providing free, confidential counselling, legal advice and a range of different support.
• Free fruit in Spring/Summer terms
• Free soup in Autumn/Winter terms

Find out more about the benefits of working for Ark at arkonline.org/careers/why-work-with-us/

About Us

We are an all-through school serving the local community with pupils from Nursery - Year 11. Our mission is to create a school in which every child thrives, academically and socially.

Over the past 2 years we have made remarkable progress, moving from an Inadequate Ofsted rating to a Good. This achievement reflects the dedication and hard work of our staff with Ofsted commenting that pupils understand the high expectations that staff have for them and strive to meet with.

The strengths of our school include:

• Behaviour: Our pupils know the school rules of, ‘ready, respectful and safe’ and demonstrate these qualities in their behaviour towards each other and their teachers.
• An ambitious curriculum: Our well‑sequenced curriculum, spanning early years to Year 11, ensures that all pupils, including those with special educational needs, receive a high‑quality education.
• Reading strength: Our effective teaching strategies empower pupils to become fluent readers, setting them up for success in their academic journey.
• Personal development: At Ark Kings Academy, we prioritize personal development, preparing our pupils for their future roles as responsible citizens.
• Attendance: Our pupils and parents recognise the importance of high attendance, and at secondary, we sit above the national average.

Visit arkkingsacademy.org/jobs learn more about us.

Diversity and inclusion:

We aim to build a diverse and inclusive organisation where everyone – staff and students – can do their best work and achieve their full potential. We want to reflect and represent diverse perspectives across our organisation because we know that doing so will make us stronger and more effective. To know more about Ark’s diversity and inclusion commitments, please click on this link.

Safeguarding statement:

Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people in its academies. In order to meet this responsibility, its academies follow a rigorous selection process to discourage and screen out unsuitable applicants.

Ark requires all employees to undertake an enhanced DBS check. You are required, before appointment, to disclose any unspent conviction, cautions, reprimands or warnings under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975. Non-disclosure may lead to termination of employment. However, disclosure of a criminal background will not necessarily debar you from employment - this will depend upon the nature of the offence(s) and when they occurred. To read more about Ark’s safer recruitment process, please click this link.