Job overview
EQUA Mead Learning Trust is looking to recruit a passionate and enthusiastic Primary School Counsellor to join their team. Working as a member of staff within our Trust, you will play an active role in ensuring the well-being of children and young people.The successful candidate will be based at The Harbour on the site of Castle Mead School in Trowbridge. The Harbour Programme adopts a holistic partnership approach to supporting children with social, emotional, and mental health (SEMH) needs. You will work alongside a small and dedicated multi-professional team. https://theharbourprogramme.org/
The working hours for this role are 5 hours per week on a long-term services contract. There is an element of flexibility, but it must be delivered within the school day, term time only.
Your duties and responsibilities will include providing a quality counselling service to primary-aged children experiencing a wide range of emotional issues. You will be expected to contribute to the safeguarding and promotion of the welfare and mental well-being of children and young people. The successful candidate will be able to provide a confidential counselling service, primarily on a 1:1 basis; however, therapeutic group work may be required. You must be able to communicate effectively with staff and external agencies to ensure that pupils receive the support they need.
For a complete Job description and Person Specification, please view the attached documents. We recommend viewing these documents, as this will guide you in preparing a strong application and understanding what we’re looking for.
EQUA Mead Learning Trust is a leading educational institution based in Wiltshire. Dedicated to providing high-quality education to students from diverse backgrounds. Members of staff across EQUA Mead will be committed to improving the life chances of the pupils we educate and ensure we give Every Child, Every Chance. As a growing Trust, currently educating almost 6000 pupils across 22 different schools (pre-school, primary, secondary, and sixth form) we are immensely proud of our staff and endeavour to be an employer of choice. This is an exciting time as we continue to grow the number of schools and children we support.
When completing your application, please ensure that you add at least 2 references, with the first being your most recent employer. Please view the attached referencing document to familiarise yourself with our process. Early applications are encouraged, as we reserve the right to interview before the closing date.
In addition, it is essential that your application includes a full employment history and accounts for any periods of time where you were not in active employment.
If you have any questions about the vacancy or would like to know more about EQUA Mead Learning Trust, please do not hesitate to contact Jayne Bullock, jbullock@equamead.org.
This role will involve contact with children and the post holder will be engaged in regulated activity relevant to children and will be subject to an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check before appointment is confirmed.
We will only submit a DBS application to the relevant disclosure service when a position is accepted.
This Trust is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We follow Safer Recruitment procedures and all interviews, regardless of role, will include questions about approaches to safeguarding. Our Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy is available on our website and follows all guidance in the most recent Keeping Children Safe in Education.
All posts involving direct contact with children are exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. However, amendments to the Exception Order 1975 (2013 & 2020) provide that certain spent convictions and cautions are ‘protected’. These are not subject to disclosure to employers and cannot be taken into account. Guidance and criteria on the filtering of these cautions and convictions can be found on the Ministry of Justice website.
Please note that by submitting an application, you acknowledge that we reserve the right to view any publicly available information published online (including social media platforms) as part of our shortlisting process, in line with current KCSIE guidelines.