Job Introduction

Music has always been a very important part of life within the School.  Many world famous musicians have been educated at Westminster, including Sir Adrian Boult, Sir Roger Norrington, Ian Bostridge, George Benjamin, Julian Anderson and Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber.

Nearly all pupils at the Under School learn at least one instrument and the school offers Music Scholarships at 11+. An impressive number have taken up music awards at 13+ at Westminster, Eton, Winchester and St Paul’s, amongst others.  

The Under School choir, leads the singing at the school’s weekly church services in St Stephen’s, Rochester Row, and regularly performs at prestigious London venues, including St John’s Smith Square, the Barbican Hall, the Cadogan Hall and Westminster Abbey. They have performed live on BBC Radios 3 and 4, have appeared on BBC, LWT and Channel 4 television, and have recorded theme music for two BBC television series. The choir has also appeared with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Southbank Sinfonia. They have been finalists three times in the National Choir of the Year Competition (formerly the BBC Radio 3 Choir of the Year). The school’s annual carol service is held at St Margaret’s Church, Westminster Abbey and is led by the choir with professional tenors and basses.

Biennial tours have taken the choir throughout Europe and to the U.S.A., Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, China and South Africa, and their varied repertoire includes many works that have been composed especially for them by various composers such as Giles Swayne, John Woolrich, John Gardner, Edmund Jolliffe and Chris Hazell.

The Under School Music Department occupies the lower ground floor of the main school building. The Hall, recently remodelled as a theatre and recital hall, has a Steinway Model B Grand and a Viscount Prestige 3-manual digital pedal organ. There is Steinway Model O grand piano in the music classroom and a 2-manual pedal organ that is used for teaching. A harpsichord made in the Italian style by Colin Booth is available for pupils’ use.

In addition to the full-time Director and Assistant Director of Music, there is a part-time Music Teacher, part-time Administrator and a number of visiting music teachers.

Role Responsibility

This is a full-time role, however we will consider candidates who would be available for four days a week. It is fixed-term role required for one academic year (2024 - 2025).

The Assistant Director of Music is required to work alongside the Director of Music and departmental team. The department enjoys an excellent reputation for the quality and diversity of music created through its choirs, orchestras, jazz and wind bands, chamber music groups, and occasional stage musicals.

The responsibilities of the Assistant Director of Music post include certain key tasks, which are outlined below. The balance of responsibilities may alter depending on the strengths and development needs of the successful applicant.

• To maintain and develop the current curriculum plans for the teaching of music.
• To attend regular Music Department meetings.
• To teach class music to pupils between the ages of 7 and 13. The Assistant Director of Music will teach as required within the Music Department and undertakes all the duties of a classroom teacher.
• To lead co-curricular ensembles, choirs and musicals as directed by the Director of Music. They assist the Director of Music in the planning and management of concerts and other music events. They assist the Director of Music in promoting and recording Music department events in newsletters, school magazines and on the school’s intranet pages.
• To assist with any additional event in which the Music Department is involved (for example School Musicals).
• To undertake any such other task as the Director of Music or the Master may reasonably require
• To complete effective written reports on each pupil as and when required.
• To represent the Music Department at Parents’ Evenings and other external events, as required.
• To be proficient on the piano and preferably one other instrument.
• To follow guidelines, policies and school philosophy as laid out in the Staff Handbook and Music Department Handbook.   
• To support fully the School’s aim to provide a relevant and stimulating syllabus that will engage and motivate pupils

The Ideal Candidate

Please refer to the below person specification.

Equal Opportunities

We are an equal opportunities employer. We therefore encourage candidates to apply irrespective of age, disability, marriage or civil partnership status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion and belief, gender identity, sex or sexual orientation.

Safeguarding and Child Protection

Westminster Under School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children. Applicants must be willing to undergo child protection screening appropriate to the post, including checks with past employers and the Disclosure and Barring Service.

Package Description

Required for: September 2024.

Location: Vincent Square - Westminster Under School

Contract: full-time, temporary (one year fixed-term contract).

Salary: Westminster Under School has its own salary scale, and new members of staff are placed at a point relevant to their qualifications and experience. Details of salary will be discussed at interview with those candidates who are short-listed.

The closing date for applications is midday on Wednesday 8th May 2024.

Interviews will take place shortly after the closing date.

About the School

Working at Westminster Under School

Westminster Under School is a busy, purposeful and vibrant place to be and an excellent workplace. The community is made up of 292 pupils, 43 teaching staff and 50 support staff.

Our teaching staff are friendly and welcoming and all new teachers quickly become part of the rhythm of life here, both inside and outside the classroom. Social events are regular and varied, with plenty of opportunity to socialise outside working hours.

It also does not matter where you come to us from. Some teachers come to us straight from university or having just taken a PGCE. Some have taught in independent schools before while others come from the state sector, or another industry altogether. The common ground is that all our teachers have a great knowledge and love for their subject and are willing to be fully involved in the life of the School and the lives of the children who come here.

At Westminster Under School we will always select the best candidate for every position. However, we know we can only truly choose the best person on every occasion if a broad and diverse pool of candidates see the job advertised and are encouraged to apply.

As such, we continue to work on how our job roles are encountered, and particularly welcome applications from groups who have traditionally been underrepresented here. Westminster Under School is for everyone, regardless of gender, ethnicity, sexual orientation or any other protected characteristic. We hope you are encouraged to apply.

The School

Westminster Under School is a great environment for happy and purposeful pupils, and for the staff who teach them. Our aim is to produce well-rounded individuals with a love of learning and an enthusiasm for life. We expect the boys to be hard working and active participants in their lessons, but we place equal importance on the boys embracing extra-curricular activities at the School.

We want our pupils to enjoy their time at School and we believe that one of the best ways to achieve this is by providing stimulating, challenging lessons. The boys are encouraged to think for themselves, to engage fully in classroom discussions and to take pride in their work. We aim to foster a love of learning in all our pupils and a love of teaching in those who educate them.

The Under School is a day school with approximately 292 pupils aged between 7 and 13. The School was founded in 1943 in the precincts of Westminster School in Little Dean’s Yard, just behind Westminster Abbey. The 17 boys with whom it began rapidly became 60 in number and by 1950 there were 80 boys in the Under School. The boys had to compete for space with the senior school pupils who had returned from evacuation at the end of the war, but in 1951 the Under School acquired its own premises in Eccleston Square. Numbers of pupils continued to rise during the 1960s and 1970s and in 1981 the School moved once again to its present site overlooking the Westminster playing fields in Vincent Square. A stone’s throw from the same Square is the striking Art Deco Sports Hall, which is used by both Westminster Under and Westminster Great School pupils.

To this day, the Under School enjoys a strong and important bond with Westminster Great School. Both schools foster a deep sense of the importance of independent thought and the ethos of a liberal education, giving them a unique shared identity. It is usual for Under School pupils to be offered a place at the Great School, and the vast majority accept their offers, continuing on until they leave the School in Year 13.

Westminster School