Job Introduction
We are seeking a minibus driver to safely transport a small number of pupils with physical disabilities, some of whom are wheelchair users, to and from school on a daily basis.
As a minibus driver you will be responsible for:
- Safely transporting pupils and escorts to and from school
- Health and safety of passengers
- Minor maintenance of the minibus and daily vehicle check.
The successful candidate will need:
- A driving licence that allows driving a minibus with up to 16 passengers
- Experience of driving a minibus (would be an advantage but it not essential)
- MiDAS certificate, or willingness to provide this as training will be provided
- A positive attitude and flexibility
- Good interpersonal and communication skills with pupils and adults
- Empathetic to pupils’ individual needs
- The ability to work on your own initiative
- An understanding and commitment to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people
Ideally the successful candidate will also hold a First Aid qualification and have experience of working in a school environment but this is not essential.
Training on moving and handling will be provided as it will be necessary to assist the pupils with wheelchairs.
The postholder will be able to build strong relationships with pupils, in addition to fulfilling the safeguarding requirements of the role and adhering to the school’s safeguarding policy.
Portchester Community School is a medium sized, forward-looking 11-16 Community School and enjoys a good reputation in the local community. Within the school we also have a resourced provision for physically disabled pupils who are integrated fully into the life of the school, which brings a richness and variety to the curriculum and adds to our extensive after school provision. We are proud of the way we address the needs of all of our pupils.
The school also continues to pride itself on its caring ethos and has recently been awarded the National Gold Standard for its Social, Moral, Spiritual and Cultural work.
If you would like to have an informal discussion or have any questions about the school or the role, please email our SENCo, Mrs K Howell, k.howell@portchester.hants.sch.uk
An Application Pack can be downloaded from our website at www.portchester.hants.sch.uk under the ‘About Us’ menu, or email: recruitment@portchester.hants.sch.uk
Please email your completed application to recruitment@portchester.hants.sch.uk Please return the equalities monitoring form in line with the details shown on the form.
Closing Date: Monday 4 November 2024
Portchester Community School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect this commitment. All successful candidates will be subject to Disclosure and Barring Service checks along with other relevant employment checks.
Online searches will be completed on all shortlisted candidates as part of the recruitment process.
We are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, gender reassignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.
This post is covered by the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 because it is a post which involves working directly with children or young people. If shortlisted for interview you are therefore required to declare whether you have any criminal convictions (or cautions or bind-overs) including those which are ‘spent’. The amendments to the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 (Exceptions) Order 1975 (2013 and 2020) provide that when applying for certain jobs and activities, certain convictions and cautions are considered ‘protected’. This means that they do not need to be disclosed to employers, and if they are disclosed, employers cannot take them into account. Guidance and criteria on the filtering of these cautions and convictions can be found on the Disclosure and Barring Service website:
https://www.gov.uk/government/collections/dbs-filtering-guidance
Safer Recruitment
We are committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expect all staff and volunteers to share this commitment. We will ensure that all our recruitment and selection practices reflect this commitment. All successful candidates will be subject to Disclosure and Barring Service checks along with other relevant employment checks.
