Music has been central to life at Winchester ever since its foundation in 1382 when William of Wykeham made provision for 16 choirboys, Quiristers, who still provide the treble line for the Chapel Choir. The Music Department is now one of the leading departments in the country, offering outstanding opportunities to musical pupils, including sixth form girls who were admitted for the first time in September 2022.
Music is an important activity in the lives of most Wykehamists: two thirds of the pupils learn an instrument, while many learn two or three. There are over 700 individual instrumental lessons given each week by visiting staff of over 50 specialist teachers as well as eight highly experienced full-time staff. Pupils can study music at IGCSE and A-level, and many go on to read music at university. A large number of pupils take music examinations with the Associated Board or with Trinity College: these include a significant number of diplomas each year.
Concerts take place every week, and all pupils are given the opportunity to perform, whether in an informal or House concert, in Winchester Cathedral with the Choral Society, or as part of one of the ensembles. There are two symphony orchestras, a chamber orchestra, Baroque ensembles, a viol consort, string quartets, jazz groups, rock groups, woodwind, brass and percussion ensembles, five choirs and a regular programme of chamber music. The community service programme enables weekly performances outside Winchester College. Many pupils elect to take part in this, learning leadership skills and passing on their training to younger children.
The Music School, which is located centrally within the school campus, offers excellent facilities for music-making, with a large rehearsal and concert hall, 50 teaching and practice rooms, a fully equipped music technology classroom, recording studio, editing suite, percussion studio and rock room. New Hall, which was extensively refurbished in 2014, provides an outstanding performance space, with seating for 400, excellent backstage facilities and first-rate acoustics, while the College Chapel provides an inspirational venue for choral and instrumental music.
The school offers music scholarships and exhibitions to pupils who show musical promise and who are keen to contribute to the musical life of the school. There are currently over 60 Music Scholars and Music Exhibitioners in the school, many of whom are ex-cathedral and collegiate choristers.
Pupils are able to participate in masterclasses, workshops and concerts given each year by visiting artists. Recent visitors have included the Skampa Quartet, Adrian Brendel, Imogen Cooper, Felix Andrievsky, the Heath Quartet, the Schubert Ensemble, the Marian Consort, Gabrieli Consort, Angela Hewitt, Leif Ove Andsnes, Mitsuko Uchida, Benjamin Grosvenor, and The King's Singers.
The Music Department under the leadership of the Director of Music comprises c. 50 Visiting Music Teachers working with four Heads of Faculty (Piano, Singing, Strings and Wind, Brass and Percussion). Other full-time music staff include Head of Academic Music, Head of Chapel Music and Choral Partnerships, Chapel Organist and the Music Administrator.
Visiting Music Teachers work under the guidance of the Director of Music, assisted by the Heads of Faculty and Music Administrator to provide the best possible instrumental tuition and to promote musical activity throughout the College.
Visiting Music Teachers are required to:
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate most of the following skills, experience or attributes:
As soon as possible
This is a zero hours position.
The number of pupils to be taught each instrument inevitably fluctuates over time, and no guarantee can be given regarding the number of pupils from year to year, but the College will endeavour to give reasonable notice if no teaching will be available in a given year. As this is a zero hours position, the postholder will be offered work when it is available; the amount of work offered may vary. The College is under no obligation to provide work.
Visiting Music Teachers are responsible for deciding their own hours of work, within the parameters given above, and in consultation with the Director of Music or their deputies.
The Winchester College term dates are available on the school’s website.
Winchester College’s Visiting Music Teachers are employed by Winchester College.
The hourly rate is £52.13 (excluding any pension deduction).
Pay levels are reviewed in September annually; the next review for this post will be September 2025.
Hours worked are recorded on a monthly timesheet. The postholder’s pay will be paid monthly in arrears to their nominated bank or building society account.
The school is fully committed to the induction, training and development of all our staff, with staff supported to grow and reach their full potential.
We deliver a range of training, run by both our own staff and external providers, varying from highly practical First Aid courses to seminars and learning lunches.
The probationary period will be one term during which time your performance and conduct will be monitored. The College may extend the probationary period if it is deemed to be required. During the probationary period the notice required to terminate employment will be one week (by either the employee or employer). Assuming the successful completion of your probationary period, the notice period will increase to one term.
A pension scheme (either Teachers’ Pension Scheme (TPS) or Defined Contribution (DC) Scheme) and Life Cover (up to 4 times salary) are part of the package.
The College leave year runs from 1 September to 31 August. This position will be entitled to the statutory holiday requirements. These are presently 5.6 weeks. Any Public Bank Holiday occurring during term time is deemed to be a normal working day. Holiday will be deemed to be taken during the Christmas, Easter and Summer Winchester College holiday periods.
The postholder’s holiday pay will be calculated based on their average weekly remuneration.
As Winchester College is an educational establishment, a condition of employment will be that the successful candidate must consent to the school obtaining an Enhanced Level Disclosure Check through the Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS). This will reveal all spent and unspent convictions, warnings, cautions and bind-overs. A policy on the recruitment of ex-offenders is available on the school’s website.
Safeguarding is one of the primary responsibilities of this role. The jobholder is responsible for promoting and safeguarding the welfare of children and young persons for whom they are responsible, or with whom they come into contact with, and will need to adhere to and ensure compliance with the school’s Child Protection and Safeguarding Policy at all times. A Visiting Music Teacher should be conversant with the responsibilities and procedures detailed in this policy and with the Department for Education’s Keeping Children Safe in Education. If, in the course of carrying out the duties of the post, the Visiting Music Teacher becomes aware of any actual or potential risks to the safety or welfare of children in the school, they must report any concerns to the school’s Designated Safeguarding Lead or in their absence the Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead.
The appointment will be dependent upon the receipt of a successful medical check and satisfactory references. The College will usually seek references from shortlisted candidates before interview and may approach previous employers for information to verify particular experience or qualifications. At least one referee must be the current or most recent employer. Where applicants are not currently working with children but have done so in the past, one referee must be the person by whom they were most recently employed when working with children.
Only applications completed on the school website will be accepted.
Closing date for applications: 09.00 on Monday 24 February.
Please note that applications will be dealt with as they arrive. Winchester College reserves the right to appoint before the deadline passes.
Those wishing for an informal conversation about this role are invited to speak to Rafael Bolivar, Head of Strings rlb@wincoll.ac.uk.
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk.
Winchester College collects and processes relevant personal data as part of its everyday operations and is obliged to process it in accordance with the General Data Protection Regulation and Data Act 2018. The school is the Data Controller of this data under the Act and is registered with the Information Commissioner's Office. Its registration number is Z5751669.
If you have any queries or comments about this policy or how personal data is processed by the school, please contact the Bursar and his team by emailing: dataprotection@wincoll.ac.uk or by writing to: Data Protection, The Bursary, Winchester College, College Street, Winchester, SO23 9NA.
In February 2021, Winchester announced a bold new vision and a significant programme of change. ‘Winchester College in the 21st Century’ describes the School’s ambitions for its future and heralds the start of an exciting new phase in Winchester’s development.
Winchester was a pioneering institution when it was founded in 1382 and this new vision will ensure the School continues to be a leader and influencer of great education on the modern global stage. The commitment to provide an intellectual education of exceptional quality and breadth remains unaltered, as do the values which have underpinned Winchester since its foundation. ‘Winchester College in the 21st Century’ will build on these strengths and bring multiple benefits to current and future generations of Wykehamists.
Winchester currently has 735 pupils. Over time, the School plans to admit each year a minimum of 30 day pupils into the Sixth Form (of whom roughly half will be girls) and up to 50 girl boarders. The School will be some 900 pupils, roughly the same as Rugby and Harrow, but smaller than Sevenoaks, Oundle, Wellington and Eton. The number of pupils boarding at the College will remain the same.
The new vision for Winchester includes the following significant changes:
Increasing Access
Academically, Winchester is among the very best schools in the country and is sought after for its combination of superb teaching, pastoral care, sports and activities.
At all levels Winchester encourages pupils to look beyond the curriculum. Div is our unique programme of general cultural studies and offers an excellent preparation for university study. In these lessons, pupils engage with a wide range of subjects, from English Literature to Ancient History to the History of Science.
Pupils in the Sixth Form study linear A-level courses and will ordinarily study three A-level subjects and an Extended Project Qualification (EPQ) alongside Div. Linear A-levels are complemented by the flexibility of the EPQ where pupils are able to more deeply explore their cross-curricular research interests. The EPQ encourages pupils to develop first-class research skills, to synthesise information from a variety of differing sources, and to become accustomed to the demands of independent study.
Music has been central to life at Winchester ever since its foundation, and the school is unique in having maintained its Choral Foundation to the present day. The Music Department is now one of the leading departments in the country and offers outstanding opportunities to all.
Sport is a major part of Winchester life. There are many fixtures against other schools, the redevelopment of the sports facilities is a state-of-the-art complex that opened in the latter half of 2024 allowing all pupils to enjoy and participate in a variety of sports, whilst simultaneously enabling the most talented and driven pupils to train and compete at the highest level.
Much energy is also invested in the Combined Cadet Force, the Duke of Edinburgh Award Scheme, Community Service, and in links with local primary and secondary maintained schools. This commitment provides pupils with many opportunities to work for the benefit of others, inside and outside the classroom, developing the knowledge and skills, and the rights and responsibilities, which will enable them to grow into valuable and productive members of society.
Pupils eat all meals in their boarding houses, talking with their Housemaster/mistress, and interacting with friends, visitors and teachers. We believe that conversational ability, developed both inside and outside the community, equips pupils to talk to anyone, about anything, in practically any situation.
This unparalleled combination attracts pupils from across the world, making Winchester a truly international and diverse community which celebrates every pupil’s individuality, passions and potential.
Winchester College is committed to maintaining the founder’s original intention of offering an outstanding education to any pupil who would benefit from it, regardless of their financial circumstances, and many of the pupils in the College are being helped financially through the school with substantial bursaries.
Winchester College embraces diversity and inclusion in the workplace and is committed to promoting a fair and supportive environment for all our employees. We work hard to create an inclusive culture where different perspectives are recognised, and our staff feel valued for their individuality and share a sense of belonging. Our aim is to reflect the diverse nature of society and of our pupil body. We are seeking to attract a diversity of talent at all levels, so that our pupils understand and benefit from the breadth and depth of such a diverse community. This means recruiting from the widest possible pool of talent.
Both staff and pupils at Winchester College are committed to being the most sustainable school possible. You can learn more about our goal of creating a more sustainable school here.
Full details about the school may be found at www.winchestercollege.org.