School Administrator

Polaris Education – Redstone Hall School
School Administrator
Basic Salary: £21,257.48
Contract: Full Time, Term Time Only
Hours: 37.5 hours per week
Location: Ipswich, Suffolk

Benefits

• Company pension
• Life Assurance
• Employee Discount Scheme

Are you ready to join a supportive and nurturing community that works together to achieve the very best outcomes for its pupils? If so, our new school in Ipswich could be the perfect place for you to develop your career and make a real difference to the lives of children and young people.

About the School

Located in Ipswich, Suffolk, our new school offers a safe and supportive environment for up to 30 pupils aged 5–18.

Our school forms part of the Polaris Community, which has been passionately improving the lives of young people for over 30 years, alongside our growing portfolio of schools across the UK.

We’re incredibly proud that 100% of our inspected education services have been rated Good or Outstanding by Ofsted.

Role Responsibilities

• Promote the safeguarding and welfare of all pupils and visitors
• Promote and act on initiatives to improve quality of life and wellbeing for pupils and staff

Reception

The School Administrator will provide a warm welcome for parents, visitors and colleagues and deal with their requests in an efficient and professional manner.

Key Tasks and Activities

• Answer the telephone in a friendly, professional and efficient manner and record and pass on messages as appropriate
• Ensure visitors sign in, sign the safeguarding disclaimer and are provided with a visitor’s badge
• Accurately maintain the shared calendar and update school information
• Provide refreshments for visitors
• Work at parents’ evenings and other evening events as required
• Maintain an effective resource-ordering process, keeping orders up to date and following up where appropriate
• Inform the relevant staff member when deliveries arrive
• Distribute internal and external post and correspondence as appropriate
• Arrange ID cards for all new starters and governors for the school
• Liaise with transport services and taxi suppliers as necessary to support pupil transport
• Support education staff in providing work experience opportunities for pupils

Administration

Provide full administrative support to the Headteacher, School Management Team and all other education staff at the school.

Key Tasks and Activities

• Produce letters and memorandums
• Undertake filing and photocopying and assist users with the operation of the photocopier, including changing inks and attempting to resolve issues
• Be responsible for the maintenance and monitoring of the photocopier
• Provide administrative assistance as required by the Leadership Team, including ordering resources
• Ensure all information is treated confidentially and exercise absolute discretion at all times
• Accurately minute meetings as directed by the Senior Leadership Team (SLT) and, where relevant, telephone conversations with parents/carers
• Schedule and attend school-based meetings with parents/carers as necessary
• Use IT hardware and relevant software packages efficiently to access, manage, retrieve and share information as required
• Use office equipment competently and keep up to date with developments and changes to equipment
• Maintain paper and electronic filing systems efficiently and in accordance with current systems and processes
• Ensure documents are prepared and data is entered onto SIMS
• Undertake stocktaking and order materials and equipment as required
• Deal with school correspondence, emails and phone calls
• Support the Headteacher with local authority correspondence and quality assurance paperwork and visits
• Oversee and manage the school diary, including room bookings and meeting schedules

Attendance

Key Tasks and Activities

• Monitor and track whole-school attendance and punctuality and send out letters where appropriate
• Assist with the production of termly reports for the Headteacher and Governing Body
• Develop and maintain links with parents/carers, children and the local authority’s Educational Welfare Service
• Monitor and ensure the correct attendance codes are entered in class registers and on SIMS
• Contact parents/carers to establish the reasons for pupils’ absenteeism by telephone and letters
• Work closely with the Deputy Headteacher and Headteacher to establish authorised absences and agree appropriate actions
• Maintain and monitor the school’s attendance records and produce returns and reports as necessary
• Monitor and maintain an accurate computer record of pupil attendance
• Monitor the late arrival of pupils and maintain accurate, up-to-date computer and paper-based records and files
• Advise and support parents/carers in promoting their children’s regular school attendance
• Clearly communicate the school’s attendance procedures and expectations to parents/carers
• Collect and analyse attendance data to identify and track attendance patterns
• Input daily attendance data onto the SIMS management system
• Produce termly attendance reports and certificates

Requirements

• Excellent interpersonal and written and verbal communication skills
• Knowledge and understanding of child protection and safeguarding practices and protocols
• Excellent organisational skills with a systematic approach to workload management
• Excellent time-management, planning and prioritisation skills
• Experience of developing systems and processes
• Excellent understanding of SIMS
• Ability to work within allocated budgets and monitor expenditure
• Full working knowledge of relevant policies, codes of practice and legislation
• Ability to relate well to children and adults
• Ability to work constructively as part of a team, understanding school roles and responsibilities and your own position within these
• Ability to identify your own learning and development needs and actively seek learning opportunities
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and handle information appropriately
• Ability to work under pressure
• Ability to work on your own initiative

The successful candidate will be required to complete an enhanced DBS check, the cost of which will be met by Polaris Education.

Polaris Education is an equal opportunities employer and positively encourages applications from suitably qualified and eligible candidates.

Polaris Education is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults and expects all staff to share this commitment.