SEMH Teacher - Richmond
Full-time, term-time only
September 2026 start
£194 - £250 PAYE per day, in line with M1 to M6
*** Interviews are arranged ASAP ***
There is probably a handful of children you have taught over the years who you still think about. Not because things went well. Because they did not, and you know why, and it was not them. In a mainstream setting, those children eventually move on. The system moves them on. You carry the feeling that with more time, fewer targets, and a different kind of support around them, something could have shifted.
This role is built for that feeling.
This is a state special school in Richmond for pupils aged 7 to 19. Every pupil holds an EHCP and has Social, Emotional, and Mental Health needs as their primary area of difficulty. Many of the young people in KS3 are working at a primary curriculum level. What they need is not a secondary specialist who knows their subject cold. They need a teacher who knows how to pace a lesson around a child who is barely holding it together, who notices the moment things are about to tip and steadies the room without anyone noticing. That is what you already know how to do.
The setting
The school operates across two sites, both accessible from across South West London and Surrey. Classes have a maximum of eight pupils. Adult-to-pupil ratios are high, and staff work closely together around each young person.
The curriculum is adapted to individual needs. You will not be delivering lessons to a timetable that does not account for who is in the room. Progress here is real but it rarely looks like a data point. A pupil who comes in, stays, and tries something is a good day. The school understands that and measures accordingly.
Leadership is experienced in SEMH and well-regarded by staff. The culture is one where new staff are supported properly, not left to figure things out alone, and where the team looks out for each other.
The role
You will teach a KS3 class in a specialist SEMH setting where most of your pupils are accessing primary-level curriculum content. Your job is to hold the room, adapt constantly, and build the kind of consistency that lets a young person risk learning something new.
Day to day, you will:
- Plan and deliver adapted lessons to a class of up to eight KS3 pupils
- Work as part of a close staff team around each young person
- Contribute to EHC Plan reviews and progress discussions
- Support pupils through periods of dysregulation and back into learning
- Bring your knowledge of the primary curriculum to a secondary-age group who need it
Who this role suits
Applications are welcome from:
- Primary-trained teachers with QTS considering a move into specialist SEMH education
- Secondary-trained teachers with solid experience delivering the primary curriculum
- Teachers from mainstream backgrounds who want proper SEND support from day one
QTS is preferred. It is not a hard requirement. What matters more is your experience of SEMH, your ability to stay steady when pupils cannot, and your willingness to learn what you do not yet know about this age group.
To apply
Get in touch by responding to this advert or contact Heeji Moon at Parker Smith Inclusion.