FAQs

The HR Administration team can be contacted at HR@cheltladiescollege.org or on +44(0)1242 707308. The HR Department is open from 8.00am to 5.00pm on Monday to Friday each week, throughout the year.

Should you need any help whilst completing your application form, you can use the 'Live Chat' feature provided by Vacancy Filler, our on-line applicant management system provider. Alternatively you can email our provider on support@vacancyfiller.co.uk (please include the advert reference in the subject line). If you wish to speak to the technical support team, please call them +44(0)1509 236434. Assistance is available from 8.00am to 6.00pm, Monday to Friday.

The closing date, and where possible the recruitment day, are given in the advertisement or vacancy information. Shortlisting typically takes place within 24 hours of the closing date/time and you could expect to hear from us shortly after this has taken place – and contact with those to be invited will often be by phone initially.

All candidates are interviewed and assessed against the criteria set out in the job description and person specification, which can be found within the Vacancy Information Booklet for the role.

All employment offers are made subject to checks in line with the Independent Schools Inspectorate and National Minimum Boarding Standards legislation. These are as follows: clearance from the Disclosure and Barring Service; Overseas Police checks (if applicable); satisfactory Department for Education and Barred List checks (including prohibition from Teaching and Management, if applicable); evidence of the right to work in the UK; satisfactory references; medical clearance.

This can vary but typically it can take up to 6 weeks to complete these checks. 

We take compliance and child protection very seriously here at College and therefore, in most circumstances you will not be able to start with us until all checks are completed.

As a minimum you will be interviewed to assess your fit to the person specification for the role. Other assessment tasks or activities will very much depend upon the role that you have applied for – but you will be given full details of these before the interview date. We aim to provide an opportunity to you to understand as much about the role and working at College as possible and therefore relevant opportunities to meet with potential colleagues etc are often included in the timetable. 

You should also expect for us to undertake a 'safeguarding' interview, in order for us to be confident of your suitability to work with (or around) children. This applies to all roles at College.

With a population of approximately 115,000, Cheltenham is a thriving Regency town in Gloucestershire. It’s situated in the Cotswolds, an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty and home to some of the most beautiful villages in England.

Cheltenham has much to offer, with good shopping and excellent restaurants, wine bars and cafes. Home to Cheltenham Racecourse, known for Jump Racing and the renowned Cheltenham Festival in March, and Cheltenham also hosts four thriving artistic and cultural Festivals; Literature, Music, Jazz and Science. Online magazine SoGlos is an excellent resource to discover events across the region. The town and surrounding areas, including the Cotswolds, Gloucester and the Forest of Dean, have housing to suit all needs and a range of excellent schools, both state and independent.

Commuter links into Cheltenham are good and the M5 motorway is close by. There are easy road and rail links, with Bristol, Birmingham and Oxford all accessible within an hour’s travel. Regular trains and buses also run to London which is approximately 100 miles away.

Our page about Visiting College provides more information.

No - a significant number of our teaching staff have previously worked in the state sector and we genuinely welcome applications from those from all teaching backgrounds. 

We do need to ensure that we have the right level of skills and experience across the teachers in all departments, in order to ensure that we can provide the necessary skills to teach and support our girls. However, where there are opportunities we welcome applications from those who have recently graduated, with or without a teaching qualification. In these situations, you will be provided with a comprehensive support, mentoring and training programme. 

Generally all teachers are expected to work 6 Saturday mornings across the year, whether full time or part time.  There are some responsibility roles that require more than this, given the nature of the role.

Unlike many other boarding schools, there is no expectation for teaching staff to undertake any duties in the boarding houses. We have a full team of pastoral staff to manage and work in the Boarding Houses. There are opportunities for teaching staff to undertake roles in the management of both day and boarding houses but this is not a requirement. In these circumstances a reduction in teaching load is given as well as appropriate additional remuneration. Teaching staff are, however, always very welcome to get involved in boarding house life if they wish to.

All teaching staff are expected to be involved in at least one co-curricular activity or club and this very much varies according to individual interests.

At CLC the teaching timetable commitment is typically less than other schools, particularly outside of the independent sector. As a full time teacher you will usually have 18 hours of ‘classroom’ teaching (with slightly more for those teaching Music or PE). Time is allocated for lesson preparation and marking, as well as report writing. A reduction in timetabled lessons, along with additional remuneration, is given if additional roles are undertaken – examples of this might include 2nd in department, tutor, EPQ co-ordinator, timetabler.

Changing jobs is an important decision and our recruitment and selection processes are designed to be a two-way process. Recruiting the right people is vital and therefore we ensure that we have in place a robust process. This includes providing all candidates with the opportunity to gain a good understanding of working at Cheltenham Ladies’ College, meeting potential colleagues and students along with getting a good understanding of the role. We do our best to ensure that you enjoy the experience; we will provide you with as much information as possible before the day and are always on hand to answer any questions you have before and on the interview day.

Typically as a full-time member of the House staff you will work 53 hours per week for 35 weeks of the year on a varying shift pattern and will sleep in for 4 nights a week. Rotas allow for a full day and a half off duty each week as well as shorter periods each week. The rotas operate over 7 days a week and you will be expected to work an appropriate number of evening and weekend shifts. If you are employed on a part-time basis you will work a reduced pattern, typically with a pro-rata number of evening and weekend shifts. We welcome alternative working patterns where possible providing that the needs of the House and pupils are still met. 

The main focus of the role of Boarding Housemistress / Houseparent at College is on this Pastoral role, however some do teach. It very much depends upon the house, the individual, their teaching subject and College needs in terms of their subject, so each situation is dealt with individually.

It is not a requirement for Housemistresses / Houseparents to have a background in teaching and we welcome applications from those with any relevant qualifications and background.

We offer support for CPD and relevant pastoral courses. We are keen to promote and develop our staff from within and several of our staff have progressed from a House staff role to that of Deputy Housemistress. Vacancies are advertised internally and, where we can, we aim to provide the opportunity for departmental promotions and additional responsibility.

College sees Pastoral Care as being of fundamental importance. It is so key to the wellbeing of the pupils that this is the single focus of each House and we have a dedicated team within each House to provide this to the highest standard.

Our Boarding Houses are located away from the main College campus and are all within a short walking distance of College. As such, they become a home-from-home for the pupils and have a real sense of community.

We employ many professionals in our Support areas and opportunities for personal and professional development are provided where possible. We offer support for CPD including study for professional qualifications, subject to being relevant to your role. 

Vacancies are advertised internally and, where we can, we aim to provide opportunity for departmental promotions or to move to new roles within College.

CLC is open 52 weeks a year, throughout the College holidays (apart from the Christmas week). Weeks worked and work patterns vary very much according to the Department and role requirements.