Salary: L10 - L18
Job Type: Full time, permanent
Start date: 1 September 2026
Apply by: 18 February 2026 @ 5pm
Interviews: Week commencing 23 February 2026

Job Overview
Required for September 2026
Salary L10 £64,691 - L18 £78,702 depending on qualifications, skills and experience

The Governors of St Peter’s School are seeking a talented and inspirational person to lead our successful Independent Primary School and Preschool in Kettering, Northamptonshire. Founded in 1946, St Peter’s School has grown to be a School with an enviable reputation for excellence in education coupled with a caring, nurturing ethos enabling our pupils to grow in confidence and discover their own talents.

Are you a Headteacher looking for a new challenge, or a deputy head or experienced leader looking to make the first move into Headship. If you are a people person with the drive and ambition to lead our School into its next chapter, incorporating excellent teaching practice and creative pedagogy across the curriculum and putting our pupils at the heart of everything you do, then this is an excellent opportunity for you to flourish in a small school with a supportive Governing Body.

Who We Are
St Peter’s School is a successful, non-selective co-educational Independent day school located in a secure walled campus in a leafy suburb of Kettering in Northamptonshire. Children join us either in Preschool or in Reception Class, leaving at age 11 to go on to independent or maintained secondary school; they leave us well prepared for both. We currently have 15 children in our popular Preschool, and 89 children spread across Reception, Key Stage One and Key Stage Two.

St Peter’s School was founded in 1946 as a charitable trust, in the former Victorian home of the Timpson family. Since then the school has grown within its secure grounds to incorporate an Early Years Foundation Stage and Key Stage One building, as well as our Cedar Hub eco building which incorporates an Art/DT teaching space and wrap-around care facility. We are proud of the reputation we have built for excellence in education coupled with a caring, supportive and nurturing ethos to enable our pupils to grow in confidence and discover their own talents. Our latest educational quality inspection report commends St Peter’s School on the excellent quality of the pupils’ academic and other achievements as well as their personal development.

The Successful Candidate
● an inspiring leader with an established track record for team-building and successful collaboration
● proven leadership and management skills with the ability to personify the school’s vision
● a passion to improve teaching and learning so all pupils are able to excel
● the ability to adapt to an ever changing educational world
● the skills to be an excellent communicator with parents, pupils, staff and the wider community

How to apply
Interested candidates should contact Symon Dawson, Chair of Governors
s.dawson@st-peters.org.uk by email or Maria Capps, Bursar 01536 512066
hr@st-peters.org.uk to arrange a confidential discussion.

The closing date for applications is 5pm on Wednesday 18 February, 2026. Interviews
will be held during the week commencing 23 February, 2026.

Please download the application pack for further details about the application process. We welcome you to visit the School before submitting your application. Please contact Maria Capps via the School Office on 01536 512066 to arrange a suitable appointment to visit us.

Safer Recruitment
St Peter’s School is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people according to child protection and safeguarding guidelines and we expect all staff to share this commitment.
The post you are applying for is classed as having a high degree of contact with children and involves “regulated activity”. As such, it is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974. It is an offence to apply for the role if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children.
All post holders are subject to the necessary pre-employment check, including a satisfactory Enhanced DBS check, including a Child’s Barred List check.

Additionally, all shortlisted candidates will be subject to a number of checks, which includes an online search including social media for publicly available information.