PART I: MUSIC AT WINCHESTER
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 seven hundred individual instrumental lessons given each week by a visiting staff of over fifty specialist teachers as well as six 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 Glee Club (the school's Choral Society), or as part of one of the ensembles. There are two orchestras, a chamber orchestra, Baroque ensembles, a viol consort, string quartets, jazz groups, rock groups, woodwind ensembles, brass ensembles, five choirs and a regular programme of chamber music.
The Music School, which is located centrally within the school campus, offers excellent facilities for music-making, with a large rehearsal and concert hall, fifty 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 back stage 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 sixty 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, 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.
PART II: ROLES AND RESPONSIBILITIES OF VISITING MUSIC TEACHERS
Visiting Music Teachers work under the guidance of the Director of Music, assisted by the Head of Piano, Head of Strings, Head of Singing, and Music Administrator, in order to provide the best possible instrumental tuition and to promote musical activity throughout the College.
Visiting Music Teachers are required to:
PART III: PERSON SPECIFICATION AND KEY QUALITIES
The successful candidate will be able to demonstrate the majority of the following skills, experience or attributes:
PART IV: BENEFITS, TERMS AND CONDITIONS, AND APPLICATION
Start date
As soon as possible.
Hours of Work
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.
Salary
The hourly rate is £43.39.
Pay levels are reviewed in September annually; the next review for this post will be 1 September 2023.
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.
Induction and Continuous Training and Development
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.
There is an annual cycle of appraisal offering the opportunity to reflect on professional practice and development opportunities.
The school also offers a wide range of apprenticeships supporting staff development and progression.
Pension and Life Cover
On employment, employees will be auto-enrolled into the College’s pension scheme according to legislative thresholds. Those who are not eligible for auto-enrolment may still elect to join the College’s pension scheme.
Initially, when joining the College’s pension scheme, employees will become a member of the College’s Group Personal Pension Plan (GPP). For this Plan, known as Tier 1, the employee contributes 4% and the employer 3%.
After 9 month’s membership of the Tier 1 plan, employees may opt to join Tier 2, which is also a GPP, where the employee contributes 5% and the employer 9%.
Employees in Tier 1 automatically qualify for a Life Cover of 2 times salary. On entry to Tier 2, Life Cover changes to 4 times salary.
Annual Leave
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.
Sports Facilities
The school offers all staff free access to its excellent sports facilities, including gym membership, tennis courts and in 2023, a new 25m swimming pool. Exercise classes, including spinning and circuits are also available.
Wider Benefits
Winchester College is situated in the heart of beautiful, historic Winchester. Staff are offered a free tour of the College, with discounted rates available for booking venues within the school’s grounds for hospitality events. On-site car-parking is available and free staff lunches are offered daily during term-time.
Disclosure Check
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. If, in the course of carrying out the duties of the post, the postholder 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.
References and Other Pre-employment Checks
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.
HOW TO APPLY
If you have any questions about this vacancy or the recruitment process, please email recruitment@wincoll.ac.uk .
Closing date for applications: Noon on Friday 2 December 2022.
The school reserves the right to appoint prior to the closing date.
Those wishing for an informal conversation about this role are invited to speak to Sarah Baldock, Director of Music, srb@wincoll.ac.uk
Data Protection
Winchester College collects and processes relevant personal data as part of its everyday operations and is obliged to process it in accordance with the Data Protection 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.
Any queries about this policy or how personal data is processed by the school should be referred to the Data Protection Liaison Officer.