At Waldegrave School, we are proud of our reputation as a high-achieving, inclusive and supportive secondary school. We believe that our staff are our greatest asset, and we are committed to creating a positive and collaborative working environment where every member of the team feels valued and supported.
Whether you are an experienced educator or just starting your journey into teaching, Waldegrave offers a vibrant, purposeful workplace where you can grow professionally and make a lasting impact on young people’s lives.
Read below how we can support your next career move or start into teaching.
There is a strong commitment to training and professional development. We use Bluesky, a centralised system for staff members to track and manage their CPD activities, access resources, and engage in self-reflection and evaluation. We also engage several on-line training providers to easily supplement learning in a flexible way as well as partnering with several local universities. Working with other leading schools, you will get the opportunity to meet, collaborate and share best practice. We have supported non-teaching roles complete apprenticeships as well as other professional courses.
We support career progression, enouraging whole school responsibility, offering short term honorariums and TLRs for key strategic projects, and supporting training including NPQML and NPQSL. WE have a strong track record of our teaching assistants moving on to become qualified teachers; many undertaking their training at Waldegrave. Support staff are also supported to project internally whether that be moving to a new role within the school or taking on leadership responsibilities and line managing a team. We have also supported staff through apprenticeships, achieving this degree equivalent qualification and consequent career progression.
We pride ourselves on fostering a supportive and collaborative working environment where every staff member feels valued. New employees receive tailored induction and ongoing mentorship to help them thrive in their roles. We prioritise staff wellbeing through open communication, teamwork and access to regular professional development. We take workload into account with every decision and plan our working calendar carefully to avoid conflicting pressures as much as possible. As well as your line manager, each department has a member of the senior leadership team allocated. You can raise queries or questions directly with them and you will be assured that your team will be represented in senior planning meetings.
We offer a range of flexible working options to help staff maintain a healthy work-life balance, including part time roles, job shares and term only contracts. For certain roles, we can offer some working from home and some flexibility around working hours. Our school is committed to supporting personal and family commitments through adaptable scheduling where possible. By promoting flexibility, we aim to create a more inclusive and supporting workplace for everyone.
Waldegrave offers access to generous pension schemes; the Teachers’ Pension Scheme for teachers and the Local Government Pension Scheme for support staff. These provide long-term financial security with employer contributions and benefits designed to support your future.
We champion a cycle scheme here at Waldegrave School and we are always looking at ways to reduce our carbon footprint. The scheme is beneficial for staff who live locally and we encourage them to cycle with reduced rates on bikes and equipment.
Waldegrave School is just a short walk from local bus routes and mainline train stations, including Strawberry Hill and Twickenham, providing direct connections to central London and surrounding areas. We are also a short distance for more major stations such as Richmond and Surbiton.
We have an excellent on site caterer through Cucina where you can purchase hot meals, snacks, salads and sandwiches. We provide tea, coffee and hot chocolate to all staff in our newly refurbished staffroom.
