UK Job Description Template · Teacher (Secondary)
UK Secondary Teacher Job Description Template 2026
Job purpose
To plan and deliver high-quality lessons in subject specialism, support student learning and progress, and contribute to the wider school community. Foster a positive classroom environment that enables all students to achieve.
Key responsibilities
- • Plan and deliver lessons in subject specialism (Key Stage 3, 4, sometimes 5)
- • Mark and assess student work providing constructive feedback
- • Track student progress against age-related expectations and exam targets
- • Communicate with parents on student progress and behaviour
- • Maintain classroom discipline and positive learning environment
- • Contribute to schemes of work and curriculum development
- • Lead extracurricular activities (clubs, trips, after-school sessions)
- • Participate in staff meetings, CPD, and whole-school initiatives
- • Pastoral responsibility (often as form tutor)
- • Engage with safeguarding processes and DSL escalations
Essential skills
- ✓ Strong subject knowledge for specialism
- ✓ Pedagogical knowledge for the relevant key stages
- ✓ Classroom management
- ✓ Differentiation and inclusive teaching practice
- ✓ Assessment for learning
- ✓ Communication with students, parents, and colleagues
- ✓ Safeguarding awareness and procedural knowledge
Desirable skills
- + Specific exam board experience (AQA, Edexcel, OCR for relevant subjects)
- + SEND specialism or experience
- + Specific specialism (e.g., dyslexia, EAL, gifted and talented)
- + Subject leadership / Head of Department experience
- + Pastoral leadership experience (Head of Year, Form Tutor)
- + Specific extracurricular skills (sport, music, drama, debate)
Qualifications
Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) — typically achieved through PGCE plus induction year. Bachelor's degree in subject specialism. NPQs (National Professional Qualifications) for senior leadership track. DBS check mandatory.
Experience
NQT/ECT: 0-2 years. Main pay scale teacher: 2-6 years. Upper pay scale / TLR holder: 6-10+ years. Head of Department: 8-12 years. Senior Leadership: 10+ years.
UK salary ranges
Junior
£31,650-£37,000 NQT/ECT and early career (M1-M3)
Mid-level
£37,000-£50,000 main and upper pay scale (M4-U3)
Senior
£55,000-£90,000+ Head of Department / Assistant Head / Deputy Head
Working pattern
Secondary teaching is typically 39 weeks teaching + holidays. Daily pattern: 8:30am-3:30pm classroom + planning, marking, meetings into evening. Term-time intensity high; holidays for catch-up and CPD. Hybrid not typical.
Career progression
ECT → Main scale teacher → Upper pay scale + TLR → Head of Department → Assistant Head → Deputy Head → Headteacher. Specialisations: SEND, EAL, exam preparation, curriculum design.
Recruiter pro tip
UK secondary teaching JDs need to be honest about the school context — Ofsted rating, behaviour profile, intake demographics, recent leadership changes. Teachers are increasingly choosy about which schools they apply to and the JD is the first signal of school transparency. Generic JDs lose applications to schools that are honest about context.
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