Ditton Primary School, Liverpool Road, Widnes, WA8 7HD 

Pastoral Lead & Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead (DDSL)

Term time only plus one week, 37 hours per week,

Monday to Thursday 8.00am to 4.00pm Friday 8.00am to 3.30pm

Scale 7 Point 23 to 27 (£34,434 – £38,220 pro rata)

Required as soon as possible.

Warrington Primary Academy Trust and The Governing Body of Ditton Primary School would like to appoint a motivated, efficient and organised Pastoral Lead & Deputy Designated Safeguarding Lead to join an excellent team of staff, committed to delivering the highest standards of education.  To improve pupil progress and attainment by minimising barriers to learning, maximising participation, and ensuring pupil well-being and safety are absolute priorities.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

1. Pastoral Support & Learning Mentoring

• - Targeted Interventions: Plan, deliver, and evaluate specialized 1-to-1 and small-group programmes to address social, emotional, behavioural, and learning barriers (e.g. anger management, bereavement, self-esteem, conflict resolution).
• - Programmed Delivery: Deliver specific inclusion and social programmes, including Stonewall activities, Kidsafe, and lunchtime social skills/structured play sessions.
• - Nurture & Environment: Create and maintain a purposeful, orderly, and supportive environment.
• - Staff Capacity Building: Train, model, and support teaching staff in strategies to manage challenging behaviour and promote inclusion.
• - Monitoring & Impact: Monitor pupil progress before, during, and after interventions; maintain evaluation records to evidence impact.

1. Supervision

• - A school staff wellbeing supervisor providing a confidential, reflective space for SLT/teachers and all school staff to process pastoral pressures, manage occupational/home stress, and navigate challenging dilemmas

Core Responsibilities:

• - Reflective Space: Offering structured, confidential conversations to help staff talk through heavy workloads, complex student cases, or difficult disclosures without fear of performance judgment – work or homelife.

Emotional and Pastoral Support: Helping staff who carry heavy loads to set safe professional boundaries, recognize personal limits, and prevent burnout. Encouraging sometimes difficult conversations to rectify situations to avoid stress and angst.

Organisational insight: Identifying systemic workplace stressors—such as tight deadlines or role ambiguity—and working with senior leaders to improve staff wellbeing where needed.

Signposting and training: Guiding staff toward specialized mental health services, e.g. Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) or introductory trauma-informed frameworks, offering a school staff wellbeing supervisor who can listen and give advice.

1. Family Support, Attendance & External Agencies

• - Parental Engagement: Build constructive, supportive relationships with parents/carers; act as a key contact for hard-to-reach families and parents in crisis.
• - Home-School Link: Maintain playground contact with parents every morning. Conduct home visits and outreach where home circumstances present barriers to learning.
• - Attendance Promotion: Work with Inclusion and Attendance leads to address lateness, absence, and attendance barriers.
• - Multi-Agency Collaboration: Liaise and collaborate with health, social services, school nurses, local authority teams, and community organisations. Complete MAPs/early help paperwork and participate in multi-disciplinary meetings.
• - Parenting Support: Organise or facilitate parenting support activities/courses and create directory resources for families.

1. Safeguarding & Deputy DSL Responsibilities

• - Safeguarding Support: Support the DSL in ensuring safeguarding is central to the school’s ethos. Serve as a point of contact for staff raising concerns and escalate issues to the DSL as appropriate.
• - Statutory Knowledge: Maintain strong working knowledge of Keeping Children Safe in Education, Working Together to Safeguard Children, and local safeguarding arrangements.
• - Case Management & Referrals: When delegated by the DSL, progress individual safeguarding, early help, and child protection cases. Make referrals to external agencies (e.g., Social Care, Channel/radicalisation, Police, DBS).
• - Record Keeping: Ensure accurate, detailed, and secure child protection files (CPOMS) are transferred safely to receiving schools when required.
• - CPD & Training: Support the DSL in delivering staff training on peer-on-peer abuse, harmful sexual behaviour, online safety, and emerging risks. Undertake required DDSL updates annually.
• - Audit & Policy: Contribute to the annual Education Safeguarding audit, policy updates, and governing body reporting.

1. Support for the School & Wider Community

• - School Ethos: Contribute actively to the school development plan, values, and vision.
• - Supervision & Trips: Assist with supervision of pupils outside lesson times (unstructured play, before/after school) and accompany trips or extracurricular activities as required.
• - Clerical & Admin Support: Undertake necessary administrative tasks pertaining to welfare, attendance, and record-keeping.
• - First Aid: Perform appointed person First Aid duties as required.
• - Trust Contribution: Support MAT-wide initiatives and collaborate with partner schools across the Warrington Primary Academy Trust when required.

Applications and further information about this job opportunity can be found here: www.halton.gov.uk www.dittonprimary.co.uk

Prospective candidates are welcome to visit the school by appointment, please email ditton.busman@wpat.uk to arrange. All candidates are required to read our Safeguarding and Child Protection policy which is available to download on our website.

Applicants should e-mail their application to:  Mrs Alison Campbell, School Business Manager  ditton.busman@wpat.uk

Please note that website is currently out of action, please email your application as directed above to Alison Campbell.

Closing date for applications: Thursday 8^th October 2026 at 12 noon

Shortlisting: Friday 9^th October 2026

Interviews will take place: w/c Monday 12^th October 2026  

Our school is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. The successful candidates will be required to apply for enhanced disclosure from the Disclosures & Barring Service. Further details can be found on homeoffice.gov.uk/agencies-public-bodies/dbs/

Warrington Primary Academy Trust is an equal opportunities employer.

How to apply

Please apply online via the link provided.

Please note, we do not accept CVs. Please fully complete the on-line application form.