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About Ark

In the UK, the strongest predictor of how a child will do at school continues to be what their parents do for a living – but why should this be the accepted status quo?

Ark is a charity that aims to transform children’s lives through education.

This high-quality learning programme has been rated ‘Outstanding’ by Ofsted, offering a unique blend of theory and hands-on training to ensure successful candidates have the support they need to become incredible teachers for the next generation.

Ark works mainly in communities of lower income with a history of academic underachievement and by joining one of our 39 schools as a Graduate Trainee Teacher, you will be making a direct impact on young people’s lives through high-quality teaching…making educational equity a reality. 

Check out Ark's latest blog HERE

What Does a Graduate Trainee Teacher do?

We provide one of the very best teacher training routes in the UK. You will learn to teach outstanding lessons and help pupils achieve excellent results; opening up a world of incredible opportunities for them.

In this role, you will engage in inspirational professional development that will help you to exceed the level of practice expected of teachers as defined in the Teachers’ Standards.

You will be able to demonstrate consistently high levels of personal and professional conduct, and be a role-model, positively impacting the school and the students.

Supported by a strong network of knowledgeable educators throughout, at the end of your training year you will gain a PGCE qualification and Qualified Teacher Status. You can also progress onto our Early Career Teacher (ECT) programme to continue to build on the skills, theory and practice that you have already learnt.

Our programme places heavy emphasis on diversity both within recruitment of our trainees and within the training. It’s incredibly important that pupils have a rich and diverse teaching body to learn from; they’re able to see themselves in positions of leadership and authority, while their perceptions and world views are broadened.

Ark is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people; all successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service check. Ark Schools are committed to attracting, developing and retaining a diverse workforce, with a broad range of backgrounds, experiences and perspectives.

More About Our Outstanding Teacher Training Programme

Ark Teacher Training (ATT) is a school-based programme offering the perfect mixture of theory and classroom practice.

Trainees are based in school from day one, so you have the opportunity to build meaningful relationships within the school community.

We have around 200 trainees on the programme every year and in Summer 2023 we welcomed our tenth cohort of graduates, so we have lots of experience helping people like you to excel!

We are looking for aspiring teachers from a range of backgrounds to train in our schools in London, Birmingham, Portsmouth or Hastings.

Working in the areas of greatest need across four regions makes for a significant challenge, but we are passionate about what we do. Our sense of purpose to provide quality education to all is integral to our training programme so if you are passionate too, we’d love to see your application!

Desired subjects are as follows:

  • Science
  • Business studies
  • Computing
  • Maths
  • English
  • Geography
  • Languages - French and Spanish
  • History
  • RE
  • Music
  • Primary

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