St Martins School is seeking a proactive, compassionate, and dedicated Learning Mentor to join our Wellbeing Team in shaping successful futures for our young people. This is an exciting opportunity to make a meaningful difference in the lives of students with Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND), supporting their emotional wellbeing, mental health, and personal development as they prepare for adulthood.
This post is Fixed term, permanent opportunities are possible in the future.
Working as part of an established team of Learning Mentors, the successful candidate will take a lead role in delivering mental health support and interventions across the school, helping students to develop resilience, emotional regulation, and positive coping strategies.
Key Responsibilities
- Deliver high-quality whole-class, small-group, and 1:1 wellbeing and therapeutic interventions.
- Coordinate and develop the school’s Mental Health Champions programme.
- Work collaboratively with the Designated Senior Mental Health Lead (DSMHL) to promote a whole-school approach to mental health and wellbeing.
- Support students experiencing anxiety, emotional dysregulation, self-harm, low mood, bereavement, and other mental health challenges.
- Deliver interventions focused on Zones of Regulation, emotional literacy, self-esteem, resilience, coping strategies, and managing feelings.
- Provide mentoring and pastoral support to vulnerable students, including those with attendance concerns, social communication difficulties, and SEMH needs.
- Liaise effectively with families, external agencies, therapists, and multi-agency professionals to ensure coordinated support for students.
- Support students during periods of transition, including reintegration, examinations, and preparation for adulthood.
- Maintain accurate records of interventions, outcomes, and student progress.
- Promote positive mental health awareness across the school community through assemblies, events, campaigns, and staff collaboration.
- Support colleagues in developing strategies and approaches to meet the emotional and wellbeing needs of students.
- Contribute to the continued development of the school’s wellbeing provision and offer innovative ideas to enhance support for young people.
Essential Experience and Skills:
- Experience of working with children and young people with SEND.
- Experience of supporting students with social, emotional, and mental health needs.
- Strong understanding of child development, emotional wellbeing, and trauma-informed practice.
- Excellent communication, relationship-building, and de-escalation skills.
- Ability to work independently and as part of a multidisciplinary team.
- A calm, resilient, and solution-focused approach to supporting young people.
- Applicants must also have a full UK driving license so they can travel between school sites.
If you’re enthusiastic about supporting young people with special educational needs to prepare for adulthood and thrive beyond school, we’d love to hear from you.
The core hours of work for this post are: Monday and Thursday – 8:15am-4:00pm, Tuesday and Wednesday – 8:15am-4:45pm, Friday – 8:15am-2:45pm.
We encourage visits to the school prior to application. To arrange a visit, or if you have any questions regarding the role, please contact Victoria Theobald – (Contact details on advert attachment) We look forward to meeting you.
St Martins School and Horizons 6th Form is an 11-19 Special School in Derby, with a mixed student profile of children and young people with a range of learning difficulties and additional complex needs. St Martins shares a site with Noel-Baker Academy in Alvaston, whilst Horizons 6th Form is based at Friar Gate Studios in Derby city centre. We received our fourth consecutive 'Outstanding' OFSTED in October 2024 and we continue to aspire to the highest standards for students and our staff teams.
All candidates are required to provide a supporting statement on the formal application forms which states clearly your reasons for applying, skills and experience for this position.
At
Shaw Education Trust, we believe every role has the power to transform a life.
Whether you’re supporting behind the scenes, inspiring in the classroom, or
leading with vision, you will be part of something truly meaningful.
Our
values— opportunity, integrity, community, and equity —guide everything we
do. Our vision is “Opening doors to the world through the power of
learning.” We bring this to life through our mission: working
together to inspire communities where every school is valued, every voice
matters, and every learner thrives.
We
are a dynamic and growing family of primary, secondary, and special schools,
proudly serving communities from Birmingham to Bury.
Our
people are our greatest asset, and we are deeply committed to their development
through high-quality training, apprenticeships, talent development programmes,
and research opportunities, we empower our staff to thrive as skilled,
confident professionals. We champion wellbeing, value every voice, and foster a
culture where you feel supported, motivated, and inspired to make a real
difference.
You
will join a collaborative network of schools where shared expertise and a
strong professional community drive success. Every academy within our Trust has
an equal voice, and every colleague plays a vital role in shaping tailored
learning experiences that raise aspirations and build brighter futures.
If
you have the passion, dedication, and drive to help shape lives and create
futures filled with promise, we would love you to join our team.
Together,
let’s make the remarkable happen.
We
believe every child has the potential to be extraordinary.
Shaw
Education Trust offer the following employee benefits with your Teaching or
Support Staff employment:
- An
excellent Local Government Pension Scheme (Support Staff) / Teachers
Pension (Teaching Staff)
- Support Staff only based on
working full time, all year - Generous holiday entitlement from your first
day of employment (37 days holiday rising to 39 days after 5 years’
service including Bank Holidays)
- Access
to Medicash Health & Wellbeing Plan: Enjoy health services designed to
support your well-being.
- Free
DiscountForTeachers Scheme for all staff (Support and Teaching), Exclusive
discounts to save money with a wide selection of discounts and exclusive offers
from hundreds of the biggest brands.
- Free
Eye Tests
- Cycle
to work scheme
- Access to our Institute of
Education and fantastic opportunities to help you grow, contribute and
flourish in your role and in the Trust.
We know our people are the key to our success and so we’re
committed to ensuring the employment experience at Shaw Education Trust is a
rewarding one.
Colleagues
within the Trust benefit from: Access to a full range of courses both
in-house and professionally accredited. These courses include a variety of the
National Professional Qualifications and the Early Carer Teacher Programme
delivered by Shaw Education Trust as a delivery partner for Ambition
Institute.
- Experienced
leadership and subject-specific support.
- Guidance
from former HMIs and serving Ofsted Inspectors within the Trust.
- Access
to the Trust’s Institute of Education and SCITT.
- Opportunities
to work with different schools within the Trust as a Professional
Advocate.
- Participating
in peer reviews.
- Access
to a suite of online courses.
- Placement
projects within our family of schools.
Actual Salary: Actual Salary - £30,343 - £34,413
Working hours: 37 hours per week, 38 term time weeks + 5 INSET Days (39 weeks total)
Contract type: Fixed Term until 31st August 2027
St Martins School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share this commitment, click here to review Safeguarding and Pupil Protection Policy https://www.shaw-education.org.uk/our-trust/key-information
This position is subject to robust vetting procedures, including an online search for all shortlisted candidates, successful candidates will be subject to a fully Enhanced DBS check along with other relevant employment checks. You will be asked to disclose all relevant unspent and, where applicable, unfiltered spent reprimands, formal warnings, cautions, and convictions.
As part of our safer recruitment and pre-employment checking process, all shortlisted candidates are required to provide original documentation to verify their identity, qualifications and RTW in the UK. Shaw Education Trust requires all applicants to be eligible to work in the UK with no restrictions as we are unable to offer sponsorship/work visas.
This role involves working with children and young people and therefore carries specific safeguarding responsibilities, details of these responsibilities are set out in the JD. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and the successful applicant will be required to disclose relevant criminal history information in accordance with current legislation and guidance.
Check if you need to tell someone about your criminal record: https://www.gov.uk/tell-employer-or-college-about-criminal-record/what-information-you-need-to-give
SET is an Equal Opportunities employer, we are fully committed to ensuring that our recruitment and selection processes promote EDI at every stage.
In accordance with our safer recruitment policy CVs alone will not be accepted.
We reserve the right to appoint before the closing date as we review applications on an on-going basis and interviews may be arranged as suitable candidates are identified.