Housemaster/Housmistress from September 2026

The Housemaster/Housemistress contract may be combined with a teaching contract or an instructor’s contract, or any other contract at OSH.  This means that the successful colleague may be able to undertake wider duties at OSH subject to their availability and also suitability for those duties. 

Old Swinford Hospital has one junior house for boys in their first year, two new girls boarding houses and three senior houses for boys aged 12-18.  The Housemaster/Housemistress are assisted by a Matron and a team of tutors.

Family accommodation in the boarding house is provided.

Welcome to OSH

Old Swinford Hospital is one of the country’s leading state boarding schools. A large number of the School’s students are boarders who come from a wide range of backgrounds in the UK and also from the EU and overseas. A third of our pupils are day pupils, who usually go home after lessons, unless they are involved in sport or music, CCF or DofE. The School is now fully co-education.

OSH is calm place to work. It is inclusive, tolerant and welcoming. The atmosphere is supportive and orderly, and it is also very relaxed because for many of our pupils their school is also their home. Parents, pupils and staff are all on the same side and our pupils want to learn before going out into the wider world and making their own contribution to it. 

We have had two very favourable Ofsted visits, one for boarding and one for curriculum. You can see these via our website www.oshsch.com  We enjoy a very good academic reputation and regularly feature in the lists of the most academically successful maintained schools. We’re not about league tables, however. We pride ourselves on developing in our pupils a balance of academic achievement, character and resilience and we’ve been doing this now for nearly 360 years.

Our extensive extra-curricular programme contributes to our pupils becoming happy, healthy and interested young people, for whom sport, music, art, drama, outdoor pursuits feature in their everyday lives. 

Person Specification

The person appointed will:

• Have had significant experience of working within a boarding house or having undertaken similar residential duties;
• Have excellent interpersonal skills;
• Be a good communicator;
• Liaise well with all relevant stakeholders within a boarding school community;
• Recognise the unique demands and rewards of working within a boarding school;
• Develop a good working knowledge of both safeguarding and the National Minimum Standards for Boarding;
• Possess exceptional leadership qualities;
• Take an active part in the development of their subject curriculum within the school;
• Demonstrate an interest in contributing to extra-curricular activities;
• Be flexible and imaginative in developing new ideas and resources, as well as adapting to curriculum changes.

General Job Specification and Conditions of Employment

The Housemaster/Housemistress shall:

1. Embody the mission and aims of the School through his/her work in boarding.
2. Be responsible through the Deputy Head to the Headmaster for all matters pertaining to the good order of his/her house and the welfare, behaviour and pastoral care of the students who are allocated to the House and any others as required by the Headmaster.
3. Other than in exceptional circumstances and with the agreement of the Headmaster, reside in his/her boarding house whilst the School is in session.
4. Lead and monitor the House Action Plan, ensuring its continual operation and review by including the House Team in its development and monitoring.
5. Take responsibility for the organisation and operation of the House Team, consisting of a resident, a matron and non-resident staff, to ensure continuous cover and supervision of the students in the House.
6. Participate in the School duty rota for the supervision of meals and other duties within the School as directed by the Deputy Headmaster.
7. Operate his/her house in accordance with School policies and procedures and in a manner which conforms to the National Minimum Standards for Boarding.
8. Ensure that students in his/her House make full use of the opportunities for extra curricular activities and that they adhere to the high standards of discipline and appearance as required by the Headmaster.
9. Support and monitor participation in the co-curriculum and develop opportunities within the house for co-curricular enrichment.
10. Ensure that House records, including the House Diary, SIMS entries and pupil files are up to date, meaningful and accurate.
11. Act as line manager for the House Matron and Boarding Tutors and ensure that all duties are properly discharged.
12. Participate in the promotion of boarding within the School and elsewhere, including assistance as required with the interviewing of candidates for boarding places, the organisation of House Open Days and Open Evenings, Induction Days and the like, and the attendance at any marketing events as requested by SLT.
13. Attend Housemaster’s meetings.
14. Lead House Assemblies each week.
15. Ensure the good order and discipline of all members of the House at School events, including assemblies and inter-house events.
16. Participate in appropriate professional development activities and the School’s Performance Management Scheme.
17. Undertake such other duties connected with boarding in the School as the Headmaster may from time to time reasonably require. 

The Housemaster’s evening boarding duties currently include six Sunday evenings over the course of the year and two evenings per week. The Sunday evenings are intended to fall mostly but not exclusively on those Sundays at the beginning of each half term.

The Weekends are split up in to 6 Sessions

Saturday          8:00 - 13:00                13:00 – 18:00                 18:00 – 23:00

Sunday            8:00 – 13:00                13:00 – 18:00                18:00 – 23:00

Out Weekends

If required Housemasters/Housemistress shall make a contribution to help cover one outweekend per academic year. The Duty house will have the same slots at the weekend.

Outweekends will not necessarily be in your boarding house, you may be required to cover in an alternative boarding house. This will be no more than one shift plus the Sunday evening to re-open the house.

Housemaster          2 sessions

Residential              2 sessions

Senior Duty Team   1 session

Bank Holiday Weekends (estimated to occur once every 7 years)

• Housemaster covers 3 sessions  
• All Tutors and Matron and a Senior Duty Team member contribute a session each (the latter to be replaced by Housemaster if an incident needs going off site eg Hospital run)
• The Monday night covered by usual Tutor for a Monday (make up for start of terms/half terms etc)

Equal Opportunities

Old Swinford Hospital welcomes applications for employment from all sectors of the community.

Suitability to Work with Children

Old Swinford Hospital is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and applicants are required to undertake an enhanced Disclosure & Barring Service check.

The School reserves the right to close the job advert early where sufficient applications have been received and so we encourage early applications to ensure consideration for the post.