Director of National Programme

We are seeking a new leader for the Primary Science Teaching Trust’s national programme of support for teachers. This is an exciting opportunity for candidates with strategic insight and a passion for education to join our charity in a period of renewed mission and purpose.

You will have significant experience of teaching primary science or of working at a senior level in the education or charity sector, and a strong understanding of how to lead educational programmes to success. You'll be a strategic thinker with great leadership skills, committed to an ethos of equitable and inclusive education.

About the Primary Science Teaching Trust (PSTT)

PSTT is a registered charity with a clear vision – we want to see excellent teaching of science in every primary classroom in the UK. We believe it is vital that children are engaged and inspired by science from an early age. We want to draw on their natural curiosity to help them explore, understand and ask questions about the world around them. Scientific skills and knowledge are essential for every child, whether or not they become a scientist, engineer or medic.

We’ve built a Primary Science Teacher College of over 200 outstanding Fellows, each helping to shape and influence science teaching across the UK. We produce great resources that improve how science is taught and planned, including through the award-winning Explorify website. We provide professional learning and development that supports thousands of schools each year, through our national CPD programme and our network of Regional Mentors across England.

Through our new strategy, we are refining PSTT’s approach (building our work around a clear definition of what excellence in primary science means), targeting our efforts (giving our most intensive support to schools and teachers that need it most) and focusing on the impact of our work. For more information on PSTT’s strategy, definition of excellence, and theory of change, visit our website.

Job summary

The Director of National Programme has overall responsibility for PSTT’s UK-wide programme of support for primary science teachers. They lead the development of the Primary Science Teacher College, ensuring that our Fellows develop professionally and can play their part in delivering our strategy more widely. They also run the annual Primary Science Teacher Awards, with a new focus on increasing the diversity of nominees.

The Director builds on sector partnerships to increase shared understanding of what works in primary science, and – working with the Director of Regional Programme – to incorporate this into PSTT’s core national offer. The Director leads on PSTT’s national thematic activities and our offer for trainee and early career teachers, and commissions new projects and resources as required. They are also responsible for managing our team of Area Mentors and other National Programme staff.