School administration interview

[Lesh22]

Hi
I’m looking for some advice!!
I’ve got an interview coming up for a school administrator.. I’ve never done a school interview before, just wondering if anyone has ever done one and know what kind of questions they ask, they have mentioned a task? Unsure what that would be super nervous! Any advice would be great!!

There'll be some sort of inbox exercise... Like prioritising communication.

Maybe drafting a response to an angry parent.

Make sure you know about safeguarding (KCSIE, prevent etc)

Oh and a bit about data protection and confidentiality.

Make sure you emphasise how much you are focused on the wellbeing of the children and read up about safeguarding as already mentioned.

"Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility" is something they will want you to say.

Also that you know what to do if a child disclosed something to you like abuse at home for example.

I had to do a few tasks. One was redactment, so we had an example of a letter and we had to redact it to make it confidential

A very standard question that they might ask is 'what would you do if a child asked you if they could tell you something but only if you could promise to keep it a secret'? The answer is, 'I would say that I cannot promise to keep it a secret but I can promise that I will only tell people who can help you'. You would then tell the school's safeguarding lead.

Brush up on GDPR and bcc'ing emails.

The task will likely be an inbox, where you have to prioritise a list of queries/tasks. Eg. Parent called to complain about bullying; child with a nose bleed has come to the office; class teacher has asked you to book a mini bus; Headteacher needs you to contact a parent about a child's behaviour.

Honestly thank you all so much this so helpful!! Ive got a good understanding of GDPR, but definitely need to do some research on the rest!!

@NancyJoanin this case children would always come first, then would it be parents? Ect ect

@Stardust286was this pretty straight forward? For example just removing anything that contained any personal information? For example name or address?

Our no 1 priority is safeguarding the physical and mental safety of the child. That comes ahead of education. So a child in immediate physical danger, or having a medical emergency, or a possible missing child, overrides anything else. Next would be a concern/allegation of a safeguarding nature. Might be a report from a parent, or a disclosure from a child. Straight to the Designated Safeguarding Lead. It’s not your decision whether it’s serious or not, you report anything.
Once you’ve sorted that, you can chase parents about school trips, book buses, order pens etc.
Safeguarding First. Always.

@NancyJoanThank you! This is so so helpful I really appreciate it!

You’d be surprised at the amount of trust children put in you in the role. They often will reveal many things they won’t tell another adult. As PP have said, safeguarding the child is paramount. You cannot keep a secret, you would note the conversation and escalate to a designated Safeguarding lead.

You will also deal with confrontational parents. Point them first to the teacher. Then advise to follow the complaint procedure. They do not get direct access to senior leaders without following process.

You will be asked eleventy billion questions every single day from not booked lunch to where is a tiny piece of lost property. Patience is a virtue that only school office staff must endure. You must be able to say no, with empathy, but conviction.

You may also be given an excel related task ie sorting/extracting data etc.

YY to "Safeguarding is everyone's responsibility" - if you haven't had safeguarding training, you will receive it. Bity if in doubt .. promise nothing, never keep the secret
, don't ask leading questions.... and ALWAYS report, as soon as possible, even if you think it's not going to make a difference.. .. They talk about you holding the "missing piece" of the puzzle.

If your on reception, make sure you know about things like visitors should have ID with them when signing in... (eg is the man in front of you actually the Bob Jones you're expecting from company A?) ..
What you might do if an adult walked by with no lanyard on them etc (stop and ask if they need help etc)

Why should confrontational parents automatically be palmed off and 'given direct access' to a teacher, but not a person possibly in charge of what the issue is and with significant non contact time?

I'd say you don't assume, or decide, the protocol, but follow whatever system is in place and respect everyone's role and responsibilities.

Yes that's it. Good luck!

How would I prioritize all that u mentioned and in what order. I have a school admin interview next week.

Thank you all I got the job!!

Just saw this answer. Thank you!

Congratulations 😊😊

What questions did they ask you? Please share if it is ok? I have a school admin interview next week. School said they will give me a task. Did they give you a task- what was it?
How many days did they take to tell you that you got the job?