Purpose of Post
• Ensure that the people of Gwynedd are at the heart of everything we do.
• Ensure effective and efficient teaching and learning, standards, management, leadership and governance of Gwynedd schools.
• Ensure high-quality education for every child and young person across the county by working with others to contribute towards school effectiveness, improvement and development.
• Provide appropriate support for schools to promote and maintain improvement and ensure an effective challenge to meet the statutory duties of the Local Authority.
• To be a contact point for continuous support for the Headteachers of a specific number of schools.
• Lead on aspects in relation to standards, provision and leadership to support statutory and non-statutory education aspects at every location allocated under instruction.
• Contribute towards the highest possible attainment standards for everyone by providing appropriate support for schools to promote and maintain improvement and ensure an effective challenge to meet the statutory duties of the Local Authority.
• Work in partnerships locally and regionally to provide advice and guidance to schools and the Authority on education.
• Contribute to providing positive support which is supportive and challenging for all Gwynedd schools.
• Advise and support schools and stakeholders (including parents and governors) on leadership matters and education management.
Responsibility for Resources. e.g. staff, budgets, equipment
Responsibility for maintaining standards, leadership, governance and the management of a number of specific schools.
Computer and mobile phone.
Main Duties
The School Support Officer is expected to have thorough knowledge of the schools that they support, paying due regard and implementing in accordance with the need on a full range of aspects which ensures that pupils achieve the expected progress.
The School Support Officer is expected to support Gwynedd Headteachers by working alongside them to overcome a vast range of challenges which our schools face on a daily basis. The School Support Officer is expected to be available and respond promptly and offer quality guidance.
The School Support Officer is expected to lead and be responsible for providing support and a professional challenge to schools across the county and across key fields, namely: Leadership and Management, Teaching and Learning, Planning and Supporting the Curriculum, Behaviour for Learning, the Progress of each Learner.
The School Support Officer is expected to be a key part of fostering the culture where schools support each other, with everyone's focus on ensuring that the children of Gwynedd are making progress and reach their full potential.
The School Support Officer is expected to fulfil the post by referring directly to the Education Acts, the School Improvement Framework, Regulations, Codes of Practice and the associated legislation relating to the post.
It is a challenging post, and the School Support Officer is expected to have high levels of specialist knowledge, interpersonal skills, communication and leadership, as defined by the National Standards.
The post-holder could be asked to adopt responsibility and strategic management on a whole service level of some aspects in terms of the education services in Gwynedd as appointed by the Head of Education and the Assistant Head of School Support.

To be effective, the School Support Officer needs to:
• have relevant experience and credibility that comes from successfully leading in a school;
• relate well with others, reflecting the culture that we wish to foster in Gwynedd;
• show the ability to influence and persuade others to act, and also show promotion skills at a high level, often under challenging circumstances, and
• exhibit the standards required to manage and support the individuals and the teams to deliver the general aims of the education service in Gwynedd.
⁠
Responsibilities and Duties
To have direct responsibility for an allocated number of schools which will be appointed by the Assistant Head of School Support annually.
To act as a contact point for the schools that they support for a wide range of enquiries. Headteachers' enquiries could relate to a variety of aspects relating to running a school, namely human resources, finance, governance and school improvement.
Ensure guidance to Headteachers' enquiries in an effective and efficient manner. The School Support Officer is not expected to be an expert in every field as there will be expertise within the team of School Support Officers.
Promote formal collaboration between schools to implement good and excellent practice by promoting the concept of a learning establishment.
Offer support and provide a challenge for learning and teaching in the classroom (pedagogy) in an allocated number of schools by providing support and advice on learning methods, teaching and skills, and evaluating the quality of the learning and teaching, as well as noting effective learning and teaching practices that could be shared within and across Gwynedd.
To have direct responsibility for coordinating curriculum support by setting a challenge and strategic support to learning and teaching strategies and developing the curriculum (including within a specific subject field).
To be responsible for providing support and a professional challenge within an allocated number of schools across key fields, namely:
• The progress of each Learner (including groups of learners namely ALN, FSM etc.).
• Leadership and Management
• Governance
• Teaching and Learning
• Planning and Curriculum Support.
Offer guidance on aspects of the Additional Learning Needs, Inclusion and Well-being field, ensuring the input of specialists where appropriate.
Responsibility for ensuring that the Local Authority fulfils its statutory duties by supporting an allocated number of schools through the self-evaluation, improvement and quality assurance processes.
Whether directly, or through the medium of support commissioned as appropriate, contribute towards resolving specific matters relating to matters associated with the subject/curriculum.
Ensure quick and effective implementation when monitoring standards and progress in schools and to broker additional effective support for schools, as required. This includes leading on support plans for schools that were agreed on.
Lead an agreed attitude on improving schools across Gwynedd and, if required, Isle of Anglesey. The specific field will be agreed based on experience and expertise across the team.
Maintain and develop effective work relationships with national strategies and other external bodies, prepare and present information for external monitoring as appropriate.
Maintain and develop extremely important partnership work with Headteachers and Governing Bodies to ensure that development is enriched by the expertise already present in schools.
Provide advice and recommendations on appointment, performance management and mentoring Headteachers, including supporting governing bodies with the above processes.
Contribute to school modernisation plans, ensuring that these are fulfilled effectively. Support schools and school leaders through processes relating to the field of modernisation.
Contribute to planning and providing a Professional Learning Offer to ensure School Improvements across Gwynedd in response to local, regional and national priorities.
Work with the Assistant Head of School Support and school leaders to prepare for Estyn visits (school and Local Authority) and contribute to them, and to support any relevant follow-up activity.
Ensure that complaints/enquiries are dealt with efficiently and advice is given to Headteachers, Governors, stakeholders and members of the public in an appropriate and timely manner.
Every School Support Officer will be responsible for aspects of the service on a county level which will be appointed by the Assistant Head of School Support and / or the Head of Education.
⁠Additional
• The nature of the work means that the post-holder will deliver work outside normal working hours.
• Responsibility for self-development.
• The post-holder may be required from time to time to attend training courses, conferences, seminars or other meetings as necessary due to his/her training needs and Service needs.
• Ensure compliance with Health and Safety rules in the workplace in accordance with the responsibilities noted in the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974 and the Council’s Health and Safety Policy.
• Operate within the Council’s policies in relation to equal opportunities and equality.
• Responsibility for managing information in accordance with the Council’s information management standards and guidelines. Ensure that personal information is treated in accordance with Data Protection legislation.
• Commitment to reducing the Council’s carbon emissions in accordance with the Carbon Management Plan, and to encourage others to act positively towards reducing the Council’s Carbon Footprint.
• Undertake any other reasonable duty which corresponds to the salary and responsibility level of the post.
• Responsible for reporting any concern or doubt that a child or vulnerable adult is being abused.
Special Circumstances e.g. the need to work unsociable hours, special working arrangements etc.
The need to work unsociable hours.
The above is only an outline of the duties of the post to provide an idea of the responsibility levels associated with the post. This job description is not comprehensive and the duties of the post could change from time to time without changing its basic nature and level of responsibility.