Day Housemistress/master (non-resident) Wimborne House

Canford is ‘a school community where all are inspired to explore, empowered to express and challenged to excel’. 

This vision is not just a form of words. It underpins how we live and work together, how we seek to educate and support our pupils and how we develop our staff who commit so much of themselves to those young people in our care. As a community we bring a sense of purposeful engagement and a courageous attitude to the challenges and opportunities which life brings; we aim high but pursue our goals with humble ambition and we strive to make a real and positive difference to our world through gracious leadership. 

From September 2026, we seek to appoint an outstanding and inspiring teacher (all subjects considered) to take on the leadership of Wimborne House, one of our three successful day houses. This is a rewarding and influential role at the heart of school life, combining a commitment to excellent teaching with a passion for exceptional pastoral care.

The successful candidate will lead and develop a dedicated team of house staff, fostering a warm, inclusive and aspirational house culture. They will play a central role in supporting pupils’ personal development, wellbeing and sense of belonging, ensuring that each individual is known, valued and encouraged to achieve their full potential.

As Housemistress/Housemaster, you will be responsible for safeguarding and promoting the welfare of pupils within the house and across the wider school community. You will bring energy, empathy and resilience to the role, alongside the ability to remain calm, fair and positive when working with young people. Building strong, constructive relationships with parents and guardians will be an important aspect of the position.

We are looking for a candidate with a strong track record of achievement, ambition and leadership potential. Experience and an awareness of the busyness of boarding school life would be advantageous but is not essential. More important is a dynamic and engaging personal presence, coupled with warmth, integrity and a genuine commitment to pastoral excellence. Excellent communication, organisational and teamworking skills are essential, as is the ability to work both collaboratively and independently.

This is an exceptional opportunity for a talented educator to contribute meaningfully to a thriving school community. Canford is committed to supporting professional development and offers excellent opportunities alongside a highly attractive benefits and accommodation package.

For further information, and to apply, please visit our website www.canford.com/Job-Vacancies.
For queries contact the HR Department on 01202 847590 or by email: recruitment@canford.com

Closing date: Sunday 12^th April 2026

Pastoral

Overall Purpose

There are seven boarding houses in total (four boys’ and three girls’), three day houses and a Sixth Form College.  Each boarding house has approximately 50 pupils starting from the Shells through to Lower Sixth.  Day houses have approximately 80 pupils. The Housemaster/mistress (HsM) in charge of each house is the key pastoral figure in a pupil’s life.  Being ‘in loco parentis’, s/he has the overall responsibility for the welfare and progress of all the pupils in the house and for communications between parents and the School. The HsM should be a frequent and visible presence in house, whether formally “on duty”, or at other times. 

Given the nature of the role and life in a boarding school, situations will arise when a HsM will need to be available at short notice (even when off duty in the event of an emergency).  HSMs are expected to be available during the GCSE results’ and A level results’ period. 

 Each day HsM has a team of seven tutors, together with one matron. The HsM will need to liaise closely with bursarial departments. Their primary aim is to ensure the safety, support and pastoral well-being of all pupils in their charge, whilst providing a positive and fulfilling experience. They will seek to encourage and inspire the members of the house, not only to achieve excellence in academic and co-curricular activities, but also to develop their social skills by interacting and working with others. In short, they will help pupils to grow into confident, mature, civilised and successful young people.

HsMs should aim to establish a firm, fair and friendly atmosphere in house. It is important to build as good relationships as possible with all pupils, by supporting in general, and by encouraging the best in each individual. Communications between all house staff and pupils should be good, and reasons for policy clearly explained. The intention is that the ethos in house will produce pupils who work hard towards exams to the limit of their ability, who become involved in school activities such as games, music, drama or any other worthy group, and who learn to work with others and become respected, well-motivated members of the house.

Each HsM has commitments to both academic and co-curricular programmes as required.

Duties

Pastoral Support

•  Promote safeguarding and the welfare of all pupils for whom s/he is responsible or with whom s/he comes into contact; ensuring compliance with the school’s Safeguarding and Child Protection Policy at all times; and reporting any concerns to the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead/Deputy Head Pastoral.
• Foster as good links as possible with the parents by way of welcome, regular information about their children, alerting them whenever a significant problem appears, hosting receptions during the year and promoting opportunities which will build a strong house community for all families. HsMs should be available for consultation with parents at other times to deal with problems arising at school or at home.
• Welcome all new members of the community and see that they are properly inducted into the house and school.
• Have an overview of the academic progress of pupils in their House, liaising with the pupil’s tutor as appropriate.
• Attend mid-week chapel and school assembly with their house whenever possible. Day HsMs are expected to attend Sunday Chapel on Remembrance Day and to be present on Community Weekends where possible.
• Hold house assemblies every Monday morning so that pupils are given information and guidance.
• Be available to all pupils in house for help and guidance, be it academic, social or personal.
• Seek to develop leadership, teamwork and other crucial ‘soft skills’ in all pupils.
• In term time, crises may occur at any time and duty staff/SLT duty member may need to seek advice and guidance from the HsM who should be contactable and should advise duty SLT if offsite for more than two hours’ duration.
• Be responsible to the Headmaster for all aspects of life in the house.
• Arrange that all assessments are discussed between the pupil and a member of the tutorial staff.
• Set high standards of personal behaviour and manners and expect these from all pupils.

 Compliance and Administration

•    Be aware of all appropriate legislation including Keeping Children Safe in Education (KCSIE) and ensure that these are maintained appropriately within the House.
•         Write house reports positively, with as much encouragement as possible, while also ensuring that important matters are communicated clearly.
•        Keep clear, organised records of all pupils; these would include assessments, reports, letters from parents and prep schools, medical details and occasional notes which may have importance in the future, wherever these are not kept on the School’s MIS.

Managing House Staff and Operational Matters

• Give clear guidance to their House Leader and Pupil Leaders, and work with them to create a happy, positive, forward-looking house.
• Give a positive lead to the tutors, matron and any others working in the house, so that a good atmosphere is created.
•  Promote, support and help to develop where possible the professional skills of their house staff.
• Organise a fair duty rota for staff to ensure that the house is supervised at all times, whilst ensuring that reasonable rest breaks for staff are observed throughout the term in accordance with the working time directive (which can be advised by HR). 
• Attend all staff and HsMs’ meetings as organised by the Deputy Head Pastoral. Attend full staff meetings and be there to represent the interests of their pupils as well as to keep other staff informed of any relevant facts needed for an understanding relationship between a pupil and his/her teachers.
• Work closely with the Deputy Head Pastoral and Assistant Head Pastoral contributing to the review and development of pastoral initiatives.
• See that buildings are properly looked after:  that breakages and faults are reported to the Estates Director, and that pupils are encouraged to treat the school property with respect.
• Assist in the recruitment of pupils to the school by a) building up the closest possible relations with the feeder schools; b) meeting prospective parents; c) hosting drinks parties (sponsored by the Admissions Office) for current and prospective parents d) promoting the taste of boarding programme and weekend activities to day pupils. 

Teaching

Overall Purpose

All teachers should make a positive contribution to good practice in the school by generating enthusiasm for the work in their departments, building good relationships with colleagues, parents and pupils, and by encouraging and establishing high standards in the teaching and learning of a specific subject or group of subjects.  In addition, they are asked to contribute fully to the wider educational offering including pastoral and co-curricular provision and to the development of the whole school community in accordance with the aims of the school.

All staff are expected to promote the safeguarding, wellbeing and welfare of all pupils at all times.

The core teaching hours take place from 0800 to 1800 Monday to Saturday, with wider contribution required for pastoral and co-curricular activities during evenings and weekends

Workload will be determined by the SLT in discussion with the teacher.  Duties are likely to vary from teacher to teacher, but will include the following:

Academic responsibilities

• Prepare and deliver effective lessons according to schemes of work or as set out by the Head of Department/Line Manager.
• Set and mark work regularly for all pupils.
• Keep accurate records of pupils’ progress and achievements.
• Apply assessment framework as laid out by the Deputy Head Academic
• Set and mark a share of the internal examinations within the Department
• Set and mark coursework as required
• Write internal and external assessments/reports as required
• Attend and contribute to Departmental meetings
• Show willingness to share ideas and contribute to Departmental Resources
• Take a share of responsibility for activities organised by the Department (eg field trips, lectures, societies)
• Attend INSET meetings as required – demonstrate active engagement with CPD and an ability to share and apply this learning effectively.
• Attend Staff meetings as required
• Adopt a professional approach to teaching modelling behaviour expected of pupils

Co-curricular expectations:

Canford offers a wide and varied co-curricular programme including Sport, Music, Drama, CCF, Outdoor Adventure and Community Service.  Typically, a full-time teacher without additional responsibilities would contribute 4 afternoons sessions (Monday to Saturday) per week, throughout the academic year.  This would be pro-rata for part-time staff:

• Activities will be allocated which best align with a teacher’s skills and interests, where possible.
• A requirement to support weekend and evening activities during term-time
• An expectation to support School trips outside term-time. 

Pastoral expectations:

• House duties will be required, allocated during evenings and weekends.  Part-time teachers will be provided a pro-rata allocation.
• Staff attendance at assembly, chapel each week. 
• Other expectations include:
• All staff will be allocated tutees and will be required to meet the expectations of a Canford tutor, including tutor meetings in line with expectations set out by the School.
• An expectation to drive on School business, which may require you to complete a mini-bus driving assessment qualification (depending on ability/qualification).
• Timely completion of compliance training such as safeguarding, first aid and annual declarations to confirm an awareness and understanding of the School’s policies and procedures.
• Support marketing and admissions events such as Open Day, admissions assessment processes and other events involving feeder schools both on and off site where required.
• Support colleagues and engage with wellbeing initiatives both for pupils and staff.

No job description can fully convey the full responsibilities that are required for the successful operation of a Housemaster/mistress role and roles and responsibilities may evolve over time.

KNOWLEDGE/ EXPERIENCE

Pastoral

Essential

• An honours degree in a relevant subject
• A track record of achievement and ambition
• Significant experience of classroom teaching and excellent subject knowledge
• Experience of working within a boarding or day house
• Experience of managing stafF
• Diplomacy and decisiveness in the implementation of policy and problem solving
• Sympathy with the values of a liberal education
• Excellent management and teamwork skills
• Expert classroom management skills & rapport with pupils
• Excellent interpersonal, relationship building and communication skills with well-developed pastoral instincts
• A considerable work rate and high degree of administration efficiency
• Good/effective ICT skills
• Love of working with young people
• Enthusiasm to participate in the School community, supporting a wide range of activities
• Strong, dynamic character with warmth & charisma
• Deep reserves of stamina, emotional intelligence and resilience
• Proven aptitude for organisation and quick logical thought
• Attitude, style and presence of a role model for both pupils and staff
•  Collegiate spirit and light touch
• Willingness to work on professional development and to assist others to do so
• Willingness to continue learning throughout your career

Desirable

• A recognised teaching qualification such as a PGCE
• Experience of classroom teaching
• Understanding and experience of dealing with pastoral problems within the boarding school environment
• Ability and experience working in co-curricular areas such as sport, music, drama etc

Teaching

Essential:

·       •    An honours degree in a relevant subject
•    A track record of achievement and ambition
•    Excellent subject knowledge
•    Excellent communication skills
•    Expert classroom management skills and rapport with pupils
•    A considerable work rate and high degree of administration efficiency
•    Good/effective ICT skills
•    Love of working with young people
•    Enthusiasm to participate in the School community, supporting a wide range of activities
•    Strong, dynamic character
•    Excellent interpersonal skills with good pastoral instincts 
•    Stamina, emotional intelligence and resilience
•    Willingness to work on professional development and to assist others to do so
•    Willingness to continue learning throughout your career
•    Proven aptitude for organisation and quick logical thought
•    Attitude, style and presence of a role model for pupils

Desirable

•    A recognised teaching qualification such as a PGCE
•    Experience of classroom teaching
•    Understanding of the boarding school environment
•    Experience of working within a boarding school
•    Ability and experience working in co-curricular areas such as sport, music, drama etc

Canford School is committed to equity, diversity and inclusion in all areas of our Community and encourages applications from all suitably qualified candidates.

Canford School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment.

Those selected for interviews will be required to provide a Safe to Receive reference from their faith leader.  All successful job applicants will be required to undergo child protection screening.