Maternity Cover
Full time
Extensive individual support enables pupils to...develop a breadth of knowledge and enthusiasm for scholarship. This is a significant strength of the school.
ISI Inspection - 2025
Leaders maintain a school culture that actively promotes inclusion and mutual respect highly successfully. This is a significant strength of the school.
ISI Inspection - 2025
Co-education: phased entry from 2027
See our brochure for further details
Thank you for your interest in a position at the Royal Grammar School Guildford.
The RGS boasts a diverse, vibrant community of individuals in both teaching and support roles and we take pride in the success of our School.
The latest ISI inspection report identified two significant strengths within our School; "mutual respect" and "scholarship". We are incredibly proud of this achievement. Not only does it recognise the consistently high efforts by staff across the School, but the award of not just one, but two significant strengths by the ISI is extremely rare.
The academic standards in the School are excellent and are enriched by an extensive extra-curricular programme in which all academic staff are expected to participate; sports and the arts are important elements in School life.
We announced in December last year the exciting news that, beginning with Year 12 in 2027, RGS will become co-educational, offering girls the same opportunities that our boys enjoy. Transition will be phased and will progress organically through the year groups. You can read more in our brochure (see opposite).
The benefits of working at the RGS go beyond those listed in the job description. If you accept an offer of employment, you would be joining a staff body that collaborates professionally and socially across all departments.
The RGS is an exciting place in which to be a member of staff; I look forward to receiving an application from you.
Dr Jon Cox, Headmaster
The school is an inclusive and welcoming environment where pupils succeed academically and make the most of the extensive range of opportunities
Biology teaching takes place in six well-resourced classrooms equipped with projectors, interactive whiteboards, microscopes, and all other equipment needed for Biology teaching. The Lab Technician currently supports eight teachers working in the department. Commitment, enthusiasm, communication and good humour are central to the department’s success.
The Biology department has 8 full-time teachers, several of whom have other major responsibilities in the school. The department consists of 6 labs with all the usual amenities (gas, water, etc), and we currently deliver the Edexcel IGCSE course and the AQA A-Level course. Biology is a popular subject with around 70 boys taking the subject at A-Level.
Biology is a well-established and successful subject at the Royal Grammar School, Guildford. It is compulsory up to the Fifth Form (Year 11) when all pupils take the Edexcel IGCSE examination. We typically have between 60 and 70 pupils studying Biology in the Sixth Form. The subject is liked and respected by pupils and a significant number of pupils go on to study Biology, Medicine, and related subjects at Oxbridge and other leading universities.
Biology is taught as a separate science from the Second Form onwards on two periods per week. The department has devised a bespoke course which explores some of the more interesting and exciting topics not generally covered at this level, including the origins and early evolution of life, microbiology, locomotion, and senses. There is a particular focus on skill development and practical work. The Edexcel IGCSE begins in the Third Form; the course is linear with no coursework and a final formal assessment at the end of the Fifth Form.
The department currently follows the AQA specification at A Level. It is an academically rigorous and wide-ranging course with no assessed coursework. The boys in each year are taught in three or four sets of up to 12 by two teachers each. Very few boys drop Biology at the end of the Lower Sixth.
The department is committed to providing a broad and inspiring education in Biology, whether or not boys take the subject beyond school. There is an active and popular Medical Society for Sixth Form pupils, and the department runs a programme of extra lessons and mock interviews to prepare candidates for Oxbridge and medical school interviews. This is complemented by an active and popular Junior Scientific Society for years 7 and 8.
The department also has a particularly successful track record in the Biology Olympiad, typically winning around 5 gold medals every year. We also enter our Fourth Form pupils for the Biology Challenge, for which the vast majority are awarded medals.
Job Title: Biology Lab Technician
Responsible to: Head of Department
Responsible for: No direct reports
Job Purpose
To aid in the effective delivery of learning within the department. To provide assistance and advice in meeting the practical needs of the Biology curriculum, including liaising with teaching staff and support staff outside of the department.
A list of detailed duties is shown below; however, the list is not comprehensive and the Lab Technician may be called upon to perform other tasks as directed by the Head of Biology or anyone acting on their behalf.
Key Responsibilities
• To prepare equipment for lessons
• To assist with the day-to-day servicing of laboratories
• Carry out routine equipment maintenance
• Assist with the preparation, purchase, organisation, and storage of learning resources and equipment
• To keep up to date with Health and Safety regulations (by attending courses and reading relevant literature etc)
• Carry out Health and Safety checks in laboratories
• Construct and modify equipment as required
• To improve on existing/design new experiments and equipment as required
• Contribute to the design, development, and maintenance of specialist
• resources
• To order and prepare resources for the co-curricular programme in the
• department
Key Responsibilities (cont.)
• Ensure the safe storage of equipment and materials, and the treatment
• and disposal of used materials (including biohazard materials) and
• responding to actual or potential hazards.
• Procurement, management, and control of practical resources and
• stationary stock.
• Monitor department spending in conjunction with the HoD and Finance
• department, including keeping accurate records of spending and budgeting,
• and assist the HoD in the preparation of the Departmental Budget request.
• Take responsibility for, and document the use of, departmental petty
• cash.
• Reprographics.
• Work closely with the H&S manager, ensuring a safe and compliant workspace.
• Excellent communication skills to enable effective dialogue with colleagues, staff,
• visitors and where applicable, pupils
• Excellent numeric and computer skills
• High level of accuracy and attention to detail
• Highly self-motivated and able to work alone without direction
• Adaptable and flexible with working patterns when required
• Well organised, with a proven track record for meeting targets and deadlines
• Able to perform well and remain professional whilst under pressure
• Well-developed problem-solving skills
• Enthusiastic, with an eagerness to learn new skills and a commitment to personal
• continuous professional development
• Dedicated team-player, who strives for excellence and leads by example
• Tactful and discreet, whilst mindful of observing Safeguarding and professional
• standards
• Displays a smart and professional appearance, representing the School in a
• positive manner
• Committed to contributing towards the School community.
Technicians will regularly be dealing with chemicals and equipment that are hazardous and require specialist training. The role on occasion can be physically Demanding, however reasonable adjustments will be considered.
Your career at the RGS begins with a warm welcome and comprehensive induction. You will be introduced to department colleagues, key people within the School and fellow new starters from across the departments.
Opportunities to get involved in wider school activities are many and varied; sporting fixtures, theatre productions and field trips to name just a few. Then there are the social groups set up by and for colleagues which include a running group, book club, theatre trips, football and a wind band. However you choose to get involved, you are guaranteed to find yourself among like-minded individuals.
System Engineer, joined 2011
What do you love about your department? Team work, Friendly co-workers, Flexibility.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? Cooking, Gardening, Watching movies.
Mairi
Physics Technician, joined 2019
What's the best thing about working at the RGS? Friendly and inclusive staff.
What is your motto in life? Enjoy life - this is not a rehearsal.
Aldona
Finance Manager, joined 2023
What do you love about your department? Kindness and friendliness.
What do you enjoy doing in your spare time? Bake, sport, hiking, time with my children
In addition to joining a successful and sociable staff body you will also receive the following benefits:
Hours of work
Remuneration
Private healthcare
Pension
Commuting Loan
Gym
Dining
Employee Assistance Programme
Full time, term time only
£29,307 per annum pro rata for the length of the contract
Private medical cover is available for all staff. This is paid for by the School, but is a taxable benefit so there is an indirect cost to the individual.
All support staff are automatically enrolled into the company pension scheme. The level of contribution by the individual is 5% the School will contribute 10%.
Interest-free loans are available for rail season ticket holders.
Use of on-site gym at certain times of the day.
A choice of hot lunches, a delicious salad bar and range of desserts are provided daily in the staff dining room during term time.
A free, confidential counselling & wellbeing support service that can support you, your partner or spouse, and dependent children over 16 still living at home.
The RGS is a kind, inclusive, tolerant community where diverse opportunity, personal development, high achievement and collaborative partnership define who we are.
Our values of inclusivity, scholarship, integrity, respect, courage and collaboration underpin all we do.
Students come to the RGS from around 140 different schools in Surrey and the neighbouring home counties and this number is growing each year. We regularly receive four applications for every place.
The RGS curriculum aims to combine breadth with balance. In the first three years all pupils study a broad range of subjects, choosing options at the end of their third year which sees them sitting ten GCSE subjects including English Language, English Literature, a Modern Foreign Language, Mathematics, three separate sciences and a humanities subject. From the Third Form, a Tutor Period is introduced during which boys study Information Technology, Problem Solving, First Aid, Health Education and Study Skills. It is also during this time that initial careers and higher education guidance is given which then continues throughout the boys’ time at the School.
The RGS boasts a thriving Sixth Form with all students studying four subjects in the Lower Sixth and then continuing with three or four subjects to A Level in the Upper Sixth. This is complemented by a range of General Studies courses which are coeducational, organised jointly with Guildford High School.
All students are encouraged to engage in independent research and activities throughout their time in the School via our Scholarship for all programme. Whilst not curricular, there is an expectation that staff will support this provision as their experience and expertise enables.
All members of the teaching staff help with co- and extra-curricular activities, of which there is an impressively wide range. Music, Art and Drama all flourish with performances, exhibitions and workshops. There is a well-equipped auditorium, a large Art School and a purpose built Music Department. We have a very active clubs and societies programme that takes place before, during and after school each day. All the Third Form take part in our curricular, weekly expedition and adventure programme, EXAD. We have five Field Days per year and also offer overseas expeditions, a large Duke of Edinburgh’s Award Programme and numerous sports tours. Staff are invited to attend and support all of these events.
Guildford is a vibrant and exciting place in which to live. Rich in history, it is a welcoming town with a flourishing and varied cultural life. Entertainment is diverse with a number of lively and nationally renowned venues including G Live, the Yvonne Arnaud theatre and the eclectic Electric Theatre. There are outstanding sport and leisure facilities which include the state-of-the-art training venues and sports complexes of Surrey Sports Park and Guildford Spectrum. Guildford offers one of the south east’s best shopping experiences with the iconic High Street combining exclusive and popular national chains as well as a number of independent retailers. Dining options cater for every taste and budget with local traditional and gastro pubs in nearby Surrey villages drawing customers from a wide area.
Educationally, Guildford is thriving. RGS Guildford and Guildford High School are regularly ranked in the top ten single-sex schools in the country. RGS also enjoys close links with other girls’ schools, Tormead School and St Catherine’s, Bramley. The University of Surrey was awarded ‘University of the Year for Graduate Employment’ by The Times and The Sunday Times Good University Guide 2022.
Guildford has the advantage of being very accessible and enjoys excellent transport links. London is just over a 30-mile drive via the A3 and well served by trains (just 29 minutes to Clapham Junction and 39 minutes to London Waterloo). International airports London Gatwick and London Heathrow are only 30 minutes from the town.
Areas of Outstanding Natural Beauty are close by; the Surrey Hills and North Downs are on the School's doorstep and provide opportunities to enjoy the stunning countryside; the south coast is approximately one hour by car.
William Cobbett “
The town of Guildford, which I, who have seen so many, many towns, think is the prettiest, and…most happylooking, that I ever saw in my life.
The setting:
The Surrey Hills
North Downs
South Downs
Picturesque villages
The south coast
Travel by rail:
Clapham Junction 29 minutes
London Waterloo 39 minutes
Portsmouth Harbour 60 minutes
Gatwick Airport 45 minutes
Travel by road:
London 32 miles via the A3; Heathrow 22 miles; Gatwick 34 miles via A3 and M25; Portsmouth 44 miles; Brighton 59 miles
North Downs
The Royal Grammar School Guildford meets the requirements in respect of exempted questions under the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. All applicants who are offered employment will be subject to an enhanced criminal record check from the DBS before the appointment is confirmed. This will include details of cautions, reprimands or final warnings, as well as convictions. It is of fundamental importance to The Royal Grammar School to ensure, so far as possible, that those who take up appointments do not pose a risk to the children in its care.
We are proactively committed to creating a diverse staff body, which reflects the community that we teach. At RGS we value diversity and inclusion; we want to attract the best people for the roles available. This is regardless of age, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender, disability, socioeconomic status or religious beliefs.
Please note: applications will be considered on receipt and we reserve the right to close applications early.
