Deputy Headteacher

About Varndean School

Varndean School is a Local Authority maintained secondary school in Brighton & Hove, proud of its place at the heart of a diverse and vibrant city. We are a school defined by our commitment to belonging: not as a slogan, but as a deliberate, structural and daily practice.

Excellence at Varndean is not accidental; it is deliberate, intentional and sustained. We hold high expectations for every student, grounded in relational trust and a deep belief that where students feel they belong, they achieve. Our Articulating Belonging framework, Artsmark Platinum status, Senior Student Leadership programme and our rich extra-curricular life are all expressions of this conviction.

We are now seeking an exceptional Deputy Headteacher to work alongside the Headteacher and the wider leadership team in helping to lead and sustain the next stage of Varndean’s development. This is a significant leadership role for someone who is ready to take genuine responsibility for whole-school improvement and who shares our values and commitment without reservation. The role is to start in September 2026.

Deputy Headteacher

The Deputy Headteacher will provide strategic leadership across a key area of school life, to ensure that Varndean continues to be a school where every student is known, valued, challenged and supported to thrive. The post-holder will be a visible, values-driven presence: holding high expectations, building the capacity of colleagues and making decisions that place students’ best interests at the centre.

Specific responsibilities will be shaped to reflect the strengths and experience of the appointed candidate alongside the evolving priorities of the school. This is a genuinely developmental post, offering substantive preparation for Headship within a supportive and outward-facing school community.

We welcome applications from experienced Deputies seeking a fresh challenge and from Assistant Headteachers who are ready to take the next step. Visits to the school are encouraged.

We are looking for a leader who:

• Contributes to a Senior Leadership Team that leads by example in every respect: building strong, honest and collaborative working relationships with colleagues, offering support and challenge in equal measure and creating the conditions in which senior leaders, like the students and staff they serve, feel known, valued and equipped to do their best work.
• Has a clear, confident grasp of what makes excellent teaching and can communicate this with authority and credibility.
• Leads through relational trust by holding colleagues to account with clarity and consistency and developing them with genuine care.
• Uses data with rigour and intelligence to identify underachievement and drive sustained, targeted action.
• Is a visible, purposeful presence in school, tackling low expectations wherever they are found and contributing to a safe, inclusive and purposeful atmosphere.
• Champions the school’s Articulating Belonging framework and the 10 Belonging Principles and ensures these are embedded in practice across all aspects of school life.
• Communicates with clarity and integrity across a wide range of audiences including students, families, staff, governors and partners.
• Models the belief that schools have a crucial role in changing lives and improving life chances, and engenders that belief in others.

Varndean is an excellent place to work. Ofsted in 2022 described the “inspirational leaders”, the “expert” teachers, “impressive” pupils and the “exceptionally strong” staff training.

We hope you will be interested in joining us. If so please complete the application form and send/e-mail it, with a covering letter to Shelley Baker, Headteacher, Varndean School - kirstiewright@varndean.co.uk

If you would like to arrange a visit to the school, please email kirstiewright@varndean.co.uk who can arrange this for you.

The closing date is 9am Monday 18th May 2026. Early applications are encouraged as the school reserves the right to interview excellent candidates in advance of this date.

Why Varndean:

Joining Varndean means joining a school with a clear sense of who it is and where it is going. For the right candidate, this is a rare opportunity: to lead with genuine authority, to be developed with genuine care and to do so within a school community that practises what it preaches about belonging for the whole community.

The Deputy Headteacher will join a Senior Leadership Team that is outward-facing, reflective and committed to growing the people within it. They will be supported by a school culture in which professional honesty, mutual trust and high expectations of one another are the norm.

Beyond the school itself, the post-holder will benefit from:

• Membership of the Thrive Together Schools Alliance (TTSA), a collaborative partnership of Brighton & Hove schools united by the purpose of improving lives for every child, offering peer support, joint professional development and the kind of honest collegiate relationships that make school leadership sustainable.
• An established reputation for national innovation and excellence, including the Senior Student Leadership programme, recognised by Challenge Partners as a national Area of Excellence and Artsmark Platinum status which gives the incoming Deputy Headteacher a platform of genuine credibility from which to lead, contribute and grow.
• A school that is known and respected locally: with strong relationships with partner primary schools, Secondary Schools, Brighton & Hove Local Authority and community organisations such as Citizens UK.
• A rich, professional development culture, in which performance management is a genuine conversation about growth, CPD is evidence-informed and purposeful and leadership preparation, including for Headship, is taken seriously and actively supported.
• A staff body that is skilled, values-driven and deeply committed to the school's mission. Colleagues who will challenge, support and inspire in equal measure and among whom the right candidate will quickly feel that they belong.

Varndean is a school that believes excellence and belonging are not competing priorities. That belief extends to every member of the community including the Deputy Headteacher we are excited to appoint.