Head of KS2-3 Bridge - Liverpool Secondary

Job Title: Head of KS2–3 Bridge Responsible To: Assistant Principal (Inclusion / SENDCo) Salary: Main / Upper Pay Scale + TLR 2 (dependent on experience) Contract Type: Full-time, Permanent Job Purpose The Head of KS2–3 Bridge will lead a specialist, highly structured Bridging Group designed for vulnerable or lower-attaining students transitioning into secondary education. The postholder will ensure that students who require additional academic, language, or social support can successfully bridge the gap between primary and secondary expectations. As a specialist primary-trained practitioner operating within a secondary environment, you will deliver an adapted, high-impact curriculum that builds essential literacy, numeracy, and cognitive skills. A seamless fit with the academy’s core pedagogy is essential. You will be responsible for establishing an environment of absolute clarity and predictability, embedding 'Teach Like a Champion' (TLAC) techniques to cultivate exemplary learning behaviours, maximize academic stretch, and prepare students for seamless, confident integration into mainstream KS3 lessons. Key Responsibilities Strategic Leadership of the Bridge - Lead the vision, design, and implementation of the KS2–3 Bridge curriculum, ensuring it aligns with secondary KS3 expectations while honoring primary mastery principles. - Coordinate the phased integration of students into mainstream classes, developing highly personalized, data-driven transition plans. - Collaborate closely with KS3 subject leaders, pastoral teams, and the SENDCo to ensure a unified, consistent approach to student progress and behaviour management across the academy. - Evaluate the measurable impact of the Bridge provision, producing regular progress reports and trend analyses for the Senior Leadership Team (SLT). Curriculum, Teaching and Learning (TLAC Focus) - Model and execute exemplary classroom practice by embedding high-structure TLAC techniques (e.g., Engineered Efficiency, Tight Transitions, What to Do, Radar) to eliminate learning downtime and build absolute focus. - Deliver a broad, rigorous, and appropriately adapted curriculum that specifically diagnoses and targets individual gaps in literacy, language acquisition, and communication. - Foster foundational learning behaviours by explicitly teaching students how to track speakers, participate via Cold Call, and execute No Opt Out loops to build academic confidence. - Implement evidence-informed interventions that accelerate reading ages, vocabulary acquisition, and functional mathematical fluency. Transition, Progress and Attainment - Assess students’ baseline strengths and barriers to learning accurately, tailoring day-to-day provision to meet neurodiverse and complex learning needs. - Track, analyse, and interpret student performance data systematically, implementing swift course corrections when a student's progress plateaus. - Nurture students’ social, emotional, and academic resilience during the critical secondary transition phase, systematically fading out scaffolds to build authentic learner independence. Family and Community Engagement - Build exceptionally strong, trusting relationships with the families and carers of Bridge students, keeping them actively informed of academic and social milestones. - Liaise professionally with primary feeder schools, local authority transition teams, and external professionals to capture vital historical data and secure holistic student outcomes. Person Specification Qualifications & Professional Development - Essential: Qualified Teacher Status (QTS). - Essential: Primary-trained (Key Stage 2 specialist) with a proven track record of accelerating progress in upper primary. - Desirable: Evidence of further professional study or leadership training relating to transition, SEND, or literacy development. Experience - Essential: Extensive experience teaching or leading within a Key Stage 2 environment, with a deep understanding of primary curriculum delivery. - Essential: Proven experience supporting pupils with complex barriers to learning, including EAL, SEND, or socioeconomic disadvantages. - Essential: Practical experience implementing high-structure, high-expectation classroom routines and TLAC methodologies. - Desirable: Experience working within, or closely collaborating with, a secondary school setting to facilitate primary-secondary transition. Knowledge and Skills - Deep pedagogical alignment: A profound understanding of, and commitment to, the Teach Like a Champion (TLAC) framework, specifically regarding behavioral routines and high-ratio engagement. - Expertise in literacy: Exceptional knowledge of systematic synthetic phonics, reading interventions, and early language acquisition strategies. - Relationship building: Superb interpersonal skills, with a proven ability to build psychological safety for anxious or disengaged learners. - Strong organizational and data skills: Highly capable of managing multiple student transition profiles and interpreting progress metrics. Personal Qualities - An unwavering belief that every child can achieve academic excellence regardless of their starting point. - A proactive, solution-focused, and highly resilient approach to overcoming historical barriers to learning. - The ability to offer warm, empathetic care while maintaining uncompromisingly high standards of discipline and effort. Safeguarding Statement The organisation is strictly committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people, expecting all staff and volunteers to share this unwavering commitment. The successful candidate will be required to undergo an Enhanced DBS check, secure satisfactory professional references, and clear all statutory pre-employment screenings. This job description outlines the main duties of the post at the time of writing. It may be amended in consultation with the postholder to reflect changing educational or operational requirements.