Deputy Head

Thank you for your interest in North London NHS Foundation Trust (NLFT).

As of 1 April 2026, NLFT has formally merged with Tavistock and Portman NHS Foundation Trust—marking the start of an exciting new chapter. This is a unique opportunity to join a forward-thinking organisation at a time of transformation, where we are strengthening access to mental health services, responding more effectively to complex and specialist needs, and advancing our work in education, research and innovation.

By bringing together our combined expertise, we are building a stronger, more collaborative Trust—one that delivers consistent, high-quality care and improved outcomes for the diverse communities we serve.

At the heart of our approach is  The North London Way . We are committed to:

• Working collaboratively at every level, guided by our shared values

• Shaping a positive, inclusive culture where staff and service users thrive

• Empowering our teams with the skills, tools and autonomy to drive meaningful change

• Delivering excellence and continuously improving the quality of care we provide

• Embedding research, innovation and technology across our services

• Taking a trauma-informed approach in everything we do

We are proud to be an inclusive employer that values diversity. We actively welcome applicants from all backgrounds, particularly from our local communities, and are committed to creating opportunities for everyone—including apprentices, veterans and care leavers.

The North London Way to deliver: Better Mental Health, Better Lives, Better Communities.

Our trust website is:   

As a values‑driven Trust, we recruit through our values. Our selection processes focus on behaviours, attitudes, and examples that reflect our organisational values and commitment to compassionate, high‑quality care.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is a set of technology that can perform various tasks that typically required human intelligence. Your application is your opportunity to demonstrate to us how you meet the requirements of the role.

We recognise that AI tools can support accessibility, equity and confidence for applicants. However, it’s important that examples and responses genuinely reflect your own experience and abilities, as these will be explored further during the selection process. AI must not be used to provide misleading or false information during any stage of the application journey.

Further guidance can be found in the NLPSS Applicant Toolkit  

North London NHS Foundation Trust is committed to fair and transparent recruitment and requires applicants to provide accurate information, as misleading details may affect their application or employment and may be verified in line with the Fraud Act 2006. For further information please visit 

Job overview

The post holder will be part of the Gloucester House multidisciplinary team and lead the school part of the service alongside the Headteacher. The deputy Headteacher will be operationally responsible to the Headteacher. Gloucester House is led by a clinical Head of Service.

The Deputy Headteacher works in collaboration with the Headteacher and The Head of Service leading the organisation and management of day to day issues to ensure the effective, efficient and safe delivery of services at Gloucester House.

The Deputy Headteacher contributes to the leadership, management and strategic direction of Gloucester House and the staff team therein.

This role will work closely with the Headteacher and Leadership team to ensure high quality education for all its pupils with the overall therapeutic integrated approach within Gloucester House.

The Deputy Headteacher will contribute to the development and delivery of the educational component of an integrated educational and CAMHS provision for children and young people between Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 3.

The Deputy Headteacher will support the Headteacher in the co-ordination of the educational aims and provision of good quality learning, teaching and standards for children at Gloucester House.

Main duties of the job

• To be responsible, alongside the Head of Service and Headteacher, for day to day management of staff, pupils, visitors and overall health & safety in the wider context of Gloucester House and Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust Policies and Procedures.

• To lead (alongside the SLT) in the monitoring, evaluation and review of development planning documents, health & safety and risk assessments.

• Ensure Health and Safety procedures are adhered to for all children and staff at Gloucester House including off site visits.

• To Lead and work alongside others using Team Teach as part of Health & Safety and Care and Control Policies at Gloucester House.

• To contribute to ensuring coherent assessment, recording & reporting systems alongside clinical colleagues in the wider context of the Tavistock and Portman NHS Trust

Policies and Procedures.

• To deliver effective operational management of Gloucester House alongside other SLT members.

• To contribute to our commitment to diversity and equality of opportunity within the staff team and within the children and families.

• To contribute to the Senior Leadership Team, and strategic work at Gloucester House, analysing and planning for its future needs and developments within a local, national and international context.

Please read the full and person specification for the full role and responsibilities required. 

Working for our organisation

GLOUCESTER HOUSE:
Gloucester House forms part of the Tavistock Clinic and is managed by the North London NHS  Foundation Trust. It is a specialist school and CAMHS team which provides education and clinical services for up to 21 pupils aged 5-14 years who have social, emotional and mental health needs, often alongside other learning difficulties such as specific language or literacy difficulties and sometimes more general learning difficulties. Many of our pupils are neurodiverse.

Baseline records show that all pupils are underachieving when they start at Gloucester House. Many of the pupils who attend are from socially disadvantaged backgrounds, some of whom  have experienced trauma or other adverse experiences in their early lives. The pupils come from 
both inner and outer London boroughs.

Gloucester House aims to provide a safe and nurturing environment through an effectively integrated educational and therapeutic approach to promote the holistic development of the children and young people.

Detailed and main responsibilities

Please read the full and person specification for the full role and responsibilities required. 

Person specification

Qualifications

Essential criteria

• DFE recognised qualified teacher

• Evidence of recent relevant Continuing Professional Development

• NPQH and/or other postgraduate leadership qualification or equivalent experience

Desirable criteria

• have gained appropriate advanced or further professional qualifications or have carried out research/study in a relevant area

Experience

Essential criteria

• Recent successful teaching experience at primary level and/or early secondary

• Recent management and leadership experience in either a Primary or Special Education

• Have had successful experience in some aspect of special educational provision for children who have been affected by social, emotional, mental health and behavioural difficulties

• Have the experience and ability to co- ordinate and convene a range of meetings internally and externally to achieve the purpose for which they are intended

• Successful management of school self-evaluation, development planning and the OFSTED process

Desirable criteria

• Have had an experience and proven record of management at a middle level in a multi-professional setting

• Working with & engaging the involvement of external partners

• Have the experience and the ability to work closely with parents and carers in an integrated therapeutic and educational setting

Skills

Essential criteria

• An ability to manage a complex workload, which includes monitoring and planning for the pupils’ range of needs

• Ability to develop others potential whilst developing accountability in a sensitive way

• Successful management through monitoring and evaluation

• Have a mature ability to communicate effectively and authoritatively with those persons and bodies responsible for children placed at Gloucester House in ways that make the work and a child's situation and progress comprehensible to them

• Have an understanding of, sympathy with and commitment to, therapeutic treatment and processes in education in general and (as practiced in Gloucester House in particular.)

• Ability to translate vision into practice

Knowledge

Essential criteria

• Knowledge of safeguarding children and young people procedures

• Knowledge of how to implement strategies for school improvement, including attendance and behaviour for learning.

• An understanding of good teaching practice in primary years and the conditions required to raise levels of achievement.

• Cultural sensitivity, demonstrate equality, diversity and inclusion awareness and application of EDI issues

Desirable criteria

• Have a well-grounded knowledge of child development and special needs issues and recognition of their relevance and application in a special educational environment

PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

Essential criteria

• Self-aware, self-motivated and reflective

• Proactive, positive, and enthusiastic attitude

Other

Essential criteria

• Keyboard / IMT skills

Due to the high number of applications that are received for some posts, we reserve the right to close any vacancies before the stated closing date. Therefore, please ensure you apply without delay if you wish to be considered for this role.

In line with NHS protocols, only those applicants who demonstrate clearly how they meet our person specification will be shortlisted for interview. We regret that it is not possible to contact all applicants for every vacancy. If you have not been contacted within 4 weeks of the closing date, please assume you have not been shortlisted for the next stage.

You must already have the right to work in the United Kingdom or fully meet the eligibility criteria for sponsorship under the Skilled Worker visa route. We welcome applications from candidates who require visa sponsorship; however, we can only consider these where all UKVI requirements are met. Before applying, please ensure that both you and the role satisfy the relevant UK Visas and Immigration (UKVI) points‑based system criteria, as applications that do not meet these requirements cannot be progressed.  For more information about the criteria, please click  here

References will be required to cover your last 3 years of employment/training. One has to be from your current or most recent employer and the others from your previous employer. The references should be from persons with management responsibility or HR.

Please note, in order to progress your application your data will be processed by our 3rd party recruitment providers – North London Partners Shared Service, who conduct recruitment activities on behalf of North London NHS Foundation Trust. As part of pre-employment checks your identity and right to work documentation will be verified remotely (in most circumstances), using a certified identity verification service provider TrustID. You will be asked to capture an image of the relevant documents as well as a “selfie” using your smartphone/tablet (if available) for facial matching. TrustID will also perform a digital address check using Trunarrative and Equifax, which is a soft check and does not leave a footprint on your credit rating. For more information, visit 

The Trust uses electronic new starter forms on Trac to collect personal details. Information collected is securely stored and used to set up the employee record on the ESR HR system.

We are an equal opportunities employer and are committed to creating an inclusive, fair, and supportive workplace for all. We actively welcome applications from individuals who are under‑represented within our workforce and are dedicated to eliminating discrimination in all its forms.

As a Disability Confident (Two Ticks) employer, we guarantee an interview to disabled applicants who meet the essential criteria for the role and are committed to making reasonable adjustments throughout the recruitment process.

By applying for this role, you accept in the event you are successful that your personal data may be transferred from the Trust to another NHS organisation where your employment transfers within the NHS. This is in accordance with the streamlining programme which is aimed at improving efficiencies within the NHS both to make costs savings for NHS organisations but also to save you time when your employment transfers.