Head of Year, Phase and Key Stage Interview Pack

A pack with accompanying templates to help your school setting plan and prepare the interview day, including interview questions and tasks, when recruiting a phase leader, key stage leader or head of year. This pack contains concise guidance that allows you to consider the setup of the interview day itself, but if you're new to recruitment or want to ensure the entire recruitment process is smooth, you may find it help to purchase the Recruitment, Interview and Employment Compliance Guidance Pack alongside this interview pack.

When you make your purchase, you'll receive a ZIP file containing the whole pack, including: 

• Concise 8-page Guidance PDF in full colour containing all the guidance, research and information you need.
• 7 fully editable and easy-to-use templates that can be adapted for your setting. These include:

1. Head of Year, Phase and Key Stage Job Role Description
2. Head of Year, Phase and Key Stage Person Specification
3. Head of Year, Phase and Key Stage Interview Questions
4. Interview Task - In-Tray Task
5. Interview Task - Parental Complaint
6. Interview Task - Run a Coaching Session Task
7. Interview Task - Staff Development and Training Plan Presentation

Included in this HoY, Phase and KS Leader interview pack are four different editable interview tasks plus a wide variety of example interview questions so you can find a brilliant middle leader for your school. The job description and person specification for will also support you in advertising for a new phase lead, head of key stage or year group leader, so you attract the right candidates. Use these, alongside the interview tasks and HoY, Phase and Key Stage interview questions to create a recruitment package that's tailored to exactly what your school is looking for in a new middle leader.

The pack is tailored towards appointing a head of year, phase leader or key stage leader, or another role where the post holder will fulfil similar leadership duties. If your school uses the teacher pay scales, this pack would most likely suit recruitment of someone at the top end of the main pay scale or those on the UPS, possibly with a TLR attached. It's designed for a teacher and middle leader who'll be leading across a section of the school which spans different subject areas, so this pack isn't subject-specific like the following two are:

• Class Teacher with Subject Leadership Interview Pack - for a post where classroom teaching is the main responsibility, with subject leadership being one aspect of the role.
• Department / Curriculum Leader Interview Pack - for a middle leader whose main responsibility is leading and managing a particular area of the curriculum with a subject-specific focus. They may or may not have a teaching commitment but would be leading and managing other teachers within their role.

Headteachers, trust leaders, senior leaders, members of the governing body and trustees who lead recruitment processes will find this time-saving pack useful. This pack is also helpful for aspiring heads of year, key stage leaders and phase leaders wishing to develop their understanding of the interview process, or for current middle leaders who are looking for a new post.

Planning and leading an effective recruitment process ensures you've put your school in the best position possible to recruit a new middle leader who's going to lead across a wide area of responsibility in your school. Using carefully selected interview questions and tasks will help to ensure this is a positive experience for both those on the panel and those applying for the role, meaning your new head of year, key stage lead or phase leader has the best possible start in your setting.

Key questions answered:

• How could an interview day for a head of year be structured?
• What interview tasks could be used when recruiting a new key stage leader?
• What interview questions could a new phase leader be asked during the interview process?
• Where can I access more support on the recruitment and post-recruitment process?

If you're looking for support with the recruitment or staff induction processes, we've got multiple packs available to help you. Best of all, you can get 20% off each item if you buy 3 or more resources about recruitment and induction, so why not see what's available?

If you're new to the recruitment process or are looking to build your understanding of how to tackle recruitment through each stage of the process, including advertising, shortlisting, interviewing, pre-employment and employment compliance, then you'll find the following pack useful.

• Recruitment, Interview and Employment Compliance Guidance Pack

If you're looking to recruit for multiple school roles, you may find the following packs supportive to help you plan interview days for those roles too:

• Headteacher Interview Pack
• Assistant and Deputy Headteacher Interview Pack
• School Business Manager Interview Pack
• Head of Year, Phase or Key Stage Interview Pack
• Head of Department Interview Pack
• SENDCo Interview Pack
• DSL and Safeguarding Role Interview Pack
• Class Teacher with Subject Leadership Interview Pack
• ECT and Class Teacher Interview Pack
• Teaching Assistant Interview Pack
• Midday and Wrap-Around Care Role Interview Pack
• EYFS Practitioner Interview Pack
• Attendance Co-ordinator Interview Pack
• Pastoral and Mental Health Role Interview Pack
• Outdoor Learning Role Interview Pack
• School Administrator Interview Pack
• Premises Caretaker and Site Manger Interview Pack

To support your new staff member with induction into your setting, why not have a look at the following help guidance pack:

• Staff Induction Pack

To provide meaningful professional development from the beginning of your new staff member's employment, skills audits are a valuable way to amplify the induction process, identify CPD opportunities and support the appraisal process.

• Skills Audits