Lead Practitioner: MFL - Mayfield School in Portsmouth

Salary Information: L1-L7

Closing date: 11.05.2026

Start date: September 2026 (or before if available)

Interview date: 14.05.2026 (early applications may be invited before this date)

Do you want a rewarding role supporting and making a difference to your colleagues where children's learning is at the centre? Then this is the vacancy for you.

Overview

Mayfield School seeks to appoint an enthusiastic, caring, and energetic Lead Practitioner: MFL. This role is an amazing opportunity for someone who wants to make a difference to young people.

What does Mayfield have to offer:

• A highly skilled, diverse, and driven team of committed employees who are dedicated to the education of children
• Employee Assistance Programme
• An exciting and vibrant environment in which to work
• Supported development to meet your career aspirations
• Being part of an inclusive Trust across primary and secondary education
• Access to Blue Light card (subject to eligibility)

We are looking for someone who:

• is passionate about their subject;
• will work closely with the Assistant Headteacher: Teaching and Learning in leading the development of Teaching and Learning across the School, including being part of the Teaching and Learning team;
• will lead the development of high-quality teaching and learning across your curriculum faculty to secure outstanding outcomes for all our students;
• will lead key principles of the Trust T&L principles as agreed with the Assistant Headteacher: Teaching and Learning;
• will lead aspects of the delivery of the Personal Development Curriculum and to ensure the promotion of students’ physical and emotional wellbeing throughout the school day;
• will be a tutor and play an active role in the contribution to their House ethos;
• will consistently model Mayfield’s expected standards of Teaching and Learning and on many occasions to exceed these expectations in all areas of their own practice.

Our school

Our school is a very special place where students, staff and governors work in a community where we aim to 'Believe. Achieve. Succeed.' every day. This is driven by our set of shared values - Ambition, Inclusion and Respect.

Mayfield School is at the heart of a thriving and diverse local community. We are one of the first single-site, all-through maintained schools in the country, which we believe provides us with a unique opportunity to improve and shape the lives of all students (Year R – Year 11) in our community. We strive for all students at Mayfield School to receive a high-quality education, in a safe environment where all children are valued, supported, inspired and future ready. Mayfield prides itself on the positive relationships fostered, knowing every young person as an individual and challenging each of them to have the highest possible aspirations through our ambitious and inclusive curriculum.

How to apply

Please go to our website: www.mayfield.portsmouth.sch.uk and complete the application form, and return to recruitment.mayfield@salterns.org

Early applications are encouraged as we reserve the right to close the vacancy if a suitable candidate is found.

Further information

If you would like to have an informal discussion about the role or would like to arrange a tour, please contact our HR Department on 02392 693432. If you require any special arrangements or assistance in completing the application form, please do contact the HR department.

Safeguarding

Mayfield School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect this commitment. All successful candidates will be subject to Disclosure and Barring checks along with other relevant employment checks.

Some forms of employment, occupations and professions are exempted from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. Working within a School is exempted from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. You are applying for a role that is eligible for an enhanced DBS check and access to the barred list and if shortlisted for interview you will be required to complete the relevant self-declaration and disclosure form and taking into account the offences that are protected or filtered declare:

• All unspent convictions and conditional cautions
• All spent convictions and adult cautions that are not protected (i.e. that are not filtered out) as defined by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (as amended in 2020)
• If you have been barred from working with Children and/or Adults at risk

The DBS check will reveal both spent and unspent convictions, cautions, reprimands and final warnings, and any other information held by local police that’s considered relevant to the role. Any information that is “protected” under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 will not appear on a DBS certificate. The successful candidate will then be asked to complete an application for the relevant Disclosure and Barring Service check or if subscribed to the update service provide the necessary details to allow a check to be made.

The amendments to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (2013 and 2020) provides that when applying for certain jobs and activities, certain convictions and cautions are considered ‘protected’. This means that they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. Guidance about whether a conviction or caution should be disclosed can be found on the Ministry of Justice website. Guidance on the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the Exceptions Order 1975 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

The filtering rules were updated on 28 November 2020 as follows: warnings, reprimands and youth cautions will no longer be automatically disclosed on a DBS certificate the multiple conviction rule has been removed, meaning that if an individual has more than one conviction, regardless of offence type or time passed, each conviction will be considered against the remaining rules individually, rather than all being automatically disclosed.