Teacher of Physics
| Posting date: | 11 September 2025 |
|---|---|
| Hours: | Full time |
| Closing date: | 25 September 2025 |
| Location: | Walsall, West Midlands, WS4 2AE |
| Company: | Teaching Vacancies |
| Job type: | Permanent |
| Job reference: | 50131816-d08e-4b68-8342-62aaca6f4f52 |
Summary
What skills and experience we're looking for
As a Teacher of Physics, you will carry out duties in line with the conditions of employment as set out in the current School Teacher’s Pay and Conditions document, and the Trust’s policies and procedures.
Job Purpose:
• To secure high quality teaching and learning, the effective use of resources and high standards of achievement for all students directly taught.
• All teaching staff are expected to meet the requirements of the Teachers’ Standards and these encapsulate the role of a teacher at Queen Mary’s High School.
Teaching and Learning:
• Having regard to the curriculum for the school, plan and teach challenging, well organised lessons and sequences of lessons, informed by secure subject knowledge:
• Planning and preparing stimulating and interesting courses and lessons for pupils in KS3, KS4 and KS5;
• Teaching, according to their educational needs, the pupils assigned to her/him, including the setting and marking of work to be carried out by the pupils in school and elsewhere;
• A keenness to share in the Queen Marys’ High School ethos which aims to support each student as they seek to fulfil their potential through academic excellence and personal development.
General:
• Adhere to the policies of the school and The Mercian Trust, as published and amended from time to time, in particular, policies relating to the safeguarding of children.
• Work towards and support the school vision and the current school objectives outlined in the School Development Plan.
• Contribute to the school’s programme of co-curricular activities.• Work within the school’s health and safety policy to ensure a safe working environment for staff, students and visitors.
• Work within The Mercian Trust’s Diversity Policy to promote equality of opportunity for all students and staff, both current and prospective.
• Maintain high professional standards of attendance, punctuality, appearance, conduct and positive, courteous relations with students, parents and colleagues.
Review and Amendment:
This job description should be seen as enabling rather than restrictive and will be subject to regular review. The Headteacher may ask you to undertake any additional responsibilities that may be deemed reasonable.
What the school offers its staff
Queen Mary’s High School is an 11 to 18 selective girls’ grammar school with approximately 940 students. There are a small number of male students in the sixth form.
Since the school’s successful bid for funding from the Selective Schools Expansion Fund (SSEF), it has been able to increase its PAN and to engage in outreach to the local community with the aim of increasing the number of local disadvantaged children being admitted to the school. This, together with the inclusion of a lower qualifying score for disadvantaged local children, has resulted in the average percentage of disadvantaged students admitted to the school in Years 7-9 being 29% with the aim of this rising to over 30% for the whole school over time.
Located in the heart of Walsall, Queen Mary’s High School has been educating young women since it was founded in 1893. We are a busy, friendly and energetic school with a distinctive family-oriented ethos, a positive culture and an ambition for success. We draw our students from a wide area including Walsall, Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Staffordshire.
Our aim is to enable each student to achieve excellence in all aspects of their life. In order to achieve this, we seek to:
• Provide opportunities for each student to achieve the highest possible standards
• Inspire a love of learning for its own sake
• Foster self-esteem and sensitivity to the needs of others
• Develop an appreciation of our cultural heritage
• Equip each student to take a responsible place in society.
Our Ofsted inspection in October 2021, judged the quality of education to be outstanding, recognising particularly the high quality of the curriculum, teaching and learning in all science disciplines. The Sciences at A Level are exceptionally popular, successful and oversubscribed.
Students at Queen Mary’s High School are aspirational, articulate and eager to learn. A significant number aspire towards careers in the medical professions, engineering and biochemical science disciplines. A significant and increasing number of students progress into STEM related higher education courses.
This outstanding provision in the science department supports the exceptional academic outcomes of our students. In 2025, 60% of entries in Physics were awarded a Grade 7-9 of which 38% were an 8+. At A Level, 39% in Physics were awarded at A*-B.
The science department has a record for success and innovation, practical investigation is a strength and well embedded throughout the curriculum from year seven. The team is committed to rigorous, consistent and effective teaching methods. We discuss our practice, and share pedagogy on a regular basis, both informally and as part of our CPD. We are a team that loves our subjects, and we are passionate in our approach to sharing and nurturing this in our students and supporting them to achieve their very best.
We support our students to become independent, inquisitive and resilient scientists. We run weekly clinics for students to seek help and a school wide peer mentoring programme. Science enrichment opportunities are varied and include masterclasses, the Salter’s Chemistry Competition and Biology Olympiad. Sixth form students take part in the Engineering Education Scheme working in partnership with local industry expertise. Our potential medics are well prepared through the thriving MedSoc, where they are expertly supported with applications to university through a variety of experiential workshops, work placements and profession shadowing opportunities.
Students in all year groups are encouraged to take part in national competitions, participation is high, and our students have gained much success. We develop our STEM enrichment through curriculum visits, for example, to Bletchley Park and we offer a range of support and enrichment clubs, such as our Coding Club ’Girls who Code’. Student participation, leadership and peer to peer support is a valued and successful characteristic of our subject support.
Our Biology, Chemistry and Physics Subject Leaders are expert practitioners, experienced in middle leadership and skilled at leading their respective teams, but the culture of collaboration and interdisciplinary support is significant across their disciplines. The science department at Queen Mary’s High School is a vibrant and supportive place to teach and to learn, for the student and the teacher alike.
• Queen Mary's High School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Safeguarding and Safer Recruitment Policies can be found on our website. This position is subject to appropriate vetting procedures including a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly CRB) which will require you to disclose details of all unspent and unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions and convictions as part of the recruitment process. Queen Mary’s High School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people as required under the Education Act and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. • You are required to: o Uphold the school's policy in respect of child protection and safeguarding matters. o Have commitment to the school's equality policy. o Ensure any extra-curricular activities will be free from partisan, political and religious view (where political issues are discussed, a balanced view is always presented).
OUR OFFER
• A superb staff team committed to doing their absolute best for all in our school community.
• Support from our Trust central teams and other schools in our Trust to ensure you have the tools to deliver success (our schools are all located close to one another, and we work better when we are working together).
• A wealth of support for your ongoing continuing professional development, including a Trust-wide programme for teachers at all career stages, including an exceptional Early Career Teacher programme drawing on expertise from across the Mercian Trust.
• A comprehensive employee assistance and staff benefits package including Simplyhealth (cash-back health plan and 24:7 video call and telephone access to GP and counselling), salary sacrifice schemes including our new Electric Car scheme, and discounts portal (ranging from gym membership to discount cards and vouchers for online and high street retailers).
• There will never be a dull moment; we never stand still, every day offers new challenges and opportunities within an ambitious, forward-thinking team.
Commitment to safeguarding
We are committed to safeguarding at QMHS. Our school’s aims and vision statement very clearly states that we strive to ensure that the individual needs of all our highly able students are met. At QMHS and across the Mercian Trust we recognise that the emotional wellbeing and positive mental health of all members of the community is integral to our continued success. We have built and continue to strengthen a community of support for all stakeholders which includes pupils, staff and parents/carers.
As a Teacher of Physics, you will carry out duties in line with the conditions of employment as set out in the current School Teacher’s Pay and Conditions document, and the Trust’s policies and procedures.
Job Purpose:
• To secure high quality teaching and learning, the effective use of resources and high standards of achievement for all students directly taught.
• All teaching staff are expected to meet the requirements of the Teachers’ Standards and these encapsulate the role of a teacher at Queen Mary’s High School.
Teaching and Learning:
• Having regard to the curriculum for the school, plan and teach challenging, well organised lessons and sequences of lessons, informed by secure subject knowledge:
• Planning and preparing stimulating and interesting courses and lessons for pupils in KS3, KS4 and KS5;
• Teaching, according to their educational needs, the pupils assigned to her/him, including the setting and marking of work to be carried out by the pupils in school and elsewhere;
• A keenness to share in the Queen Marys’ High School ethos which aims to support each student as they seek to fulfil their potential through academic excellence and personal development.
General:
• Adhere to the policies of the school and The Mercian Trust, as published and amended from time to time, in particular, policies relating to the safeguarding of children.
• Work towards and support the school vision and the current school objectives outlined in the School Development Plan.
• Contribute to the school’s programme of co-curricular activities.• Work within the school’s health and safety policy to ensure a safe working environment for staff, students and visitors.
• Work within The Mercian Trust’s Diversity Policy to promote equality of opportunity for all students and staff, both current and prospective.
• Maintain high professional standards of attendance, punctuality, appearance, conduct and positive, courteous relations with students, parents and colleagues.
Review and Amendment:
This job description should be seen as enabling rather than restrictive and will be subject to regular review. The Headteacher may ask you to undertake any additional responsibilities that may be deemed reasonable.
What the school offers its staff
Queen Mary’s High School is an 11 to 18 selective girls’ grammar school with approximately 940 students. There are a small number of male students in the sixth form.
Since the school’s successful bid for funding from the Selective Schools Expansion Fund (SSEF), it has been able to increase its PAN and to engage in outreach to the local community with the aim of increasing the number of local disadvantaged children being admitted to the school. This, together with the inclusion of a lower qualifying score for disadvantaged local children, has resulted in the average percentage of disadvantaged students admitted to the school in Years 7-9 being 29% with the aim of this rising to over 30% for the whole school over time.
Located in the heart of Walsall, Queen Mary’s High School has been educating young women since it was founded in 1893. We are a busy, friendly and energetic school with a distinctive family-oriented ethos, a positive culture and an ambition for success. We draw our students from a wide area including Walsall, Birmingham, Wolverhampton, Sandwell and Staffordshire.
Our aim is to enable each student to achieve excellence in all aspects of their life. In order to achieve this, we seek to:
• Provide opportunities for each student to achieve the highest possible standards
• Inspire a love of learning for its own sake
• Foster self-esteem and sensitivity to the needs of others
• Develop an appreciation of our cultural heritage
• Equip each student to take a responsible place in society.
Our Ofsted inspection in October 2021, judged the quality of education to be outstanding, recognising particularly the high quality of the curriculum, teaching and learning in all science disciplines. The Sciences at A Level are exceptionally popular, successful and oversubscribed.
Students at Queen Mary’s High School are aspirational, articulate and eager to learn. A significant number aspire towards careers in the medical professions, engineering and biochemical science disciplines. A significant and increasing number of students progress into STEM related higher education courses.
This outstanding provision in the science department supports the exceptional academic outcomes of our students. In 2025, 60% of entries in Physics were awarded a Grade 7-9 of which 38% were an 8+. At A Level, 39% in Physics were awarded at A*-B.
The science department has a record for success and innovation, practical investigation is a strength and well embedded throughout the curriculum from year seven. The team is committed to rigorous, consistent and effective teaching methods. We discuss our practice, and share pedagogy on a regular basis, both informally and as part of our CPD. We are a team that loves our subjects, and we are passionate in our approach to sharing and nurturing this in our students and supporting them to achieve their very best.
We support our students to become independent, inquisitive and resilient scientists. We run weekly clinics for students to seek help and a school wide peer mentoring programme. Science enrichment opportunities are varied and include masterclasses, the Salter’s Chemistry Competition and Biology Olympiad. Sixth form students take part in the Engineering Education Scheme working in partnership with local industry expertise. Our potential medics are well prepared through the thriving MedSoc, where they are expertly supported with applications to university through a variety of experiential workshops, work placements and profession shadowing opportunities.
Students in all year groups are encouraged to take part in national competitions, participation is high, and our students have gained much success. We develop our STEM enrichment through curriculum visits, for example, to Bletchley Park and we offer a range of support and enrichment clubs, such as our Coding Club ’Girls who Code’. Student participation, leadership and peer to peer support is a valued and successful characteristic of our subject support.
Our Biology, Chemistry and Physics Subject Leaders are expert practitioners, experienced in middle leadership and skilled at leading their respective teams, but the culture of collaboration and interdisciplinary support is significant across their disciplines. The science department at Queen Mary’s High School is a vibrant and supportive place to teach and to learn, for the student and the teacher alike.
• Queen Mary's High School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people/vulnerable adults and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. Safeguarding and Safer Recruitment Policies can be found on our website. This position is subject to appropriate vetting procedures including a criminal record check from the Disclosure and Barring Service (formerly CRB) which will require you to disclose details of all unspent and unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions and convictions as part of the recruitment process. Queen Mary’s High School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people as required under the Education Act and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. • You are required to: o Uphold the school's policy in respect of child protection and safeguarding matters. o Have commitment to the school's equality policy. o Ensure any extra-curricular activities will be free from partisan, political and religious view (where political issues are discussed, a balanced view is always presented).
OUR OFFER
• A superb staff team committed to doing their absolute best for all in our school community.
• Support from our Trust central teams and other schools in our Trust to ensure you have the tools to deliver success (our schools are all located close to one another, and we work better when we are working together).
• A wealth of support for your ongoing continuing professional development, including a Trust-wide programme for teachers at all career stages, including an exceptional Early Career Teacher programme drawing on expertise from across the Mercian Trust.
• A comprehensive employee assistance and staff benefits package including Simplyhealth (cash-back health plan and 24:7 video call and telephone access to GP and counselling), salary sacrifice schemes including our new Electric Car scheme, and discounts portal (ranging from gym membership to discount cards and vouchers for online and high street retailers).
• There will never be a dull moment; we never stand still, every day offers new challenges and opportunities within an ambitious, forward-thinking team.
Commitment to safeguarding
We are committed to safeguarding at QMHS. Our school’s aims and vision statement very clearly states that we strive to ensure that the individual needs of all our highly able students are met. At QMHS and across the Mercian Trust we recognise that the emotional wellbeing and positive mental health of all members of the community is integral to our continued success. We have built and continue to strengthen a community of support for all stakeholders which includes pupils, staff and parents/carers.