Chailey is a thriving, successful school set in rural Sussex, just north of Lewes, and within easy reach of Brighton and Haywards Heath. We are proud of our traditional values and innovative approaches to Teaching and Learning. 

Staff are friendly, dedicated and supportive; our students are happy and proud to be part of the school. We have a very low level of staff turnover because we are kind and supportive to each other.

Staff describe Chailey as “kind, caring, and nurturing” with a strong sense of community. Our recent staff survey highlighted what makes us special:

• A culture of kindness that permeates everything we do
• Supportive, collaborative teams where colleagues feel like family
• Positive relationships with students, creating a calm and respectful atmosphere
• Inclusive and nurturing environment, with exceptional pastoral care
• Broad, enriching education—we’re not an exam factory; we value creativity, trips, and personal development

Chailey is a school where teachers and students can thrive. Of course, working in a school is demanding and all of our staff are hard-working and go above and beyond to support our young people.

Visitors to Chailey School often comment on the calm teaching environment and fantastic relationships between students and teachers.

We had our last Ofsted visit in January 2022 which we were very pleased with.

The Ofsted report contained comments such as:

• ‘This is a kind school. The school’s values of kindness, resilience, independence and creativity permeate everything.’
• ‘Welfare and wellbeing are high priorities in this small rural community school.’
• ‘Pupils are knowledgeable about diversity including Black history and gender equality, sexual orientation and gender identity. Pupils respect different ethnicities and cultures. They value the different contributions that everyone makes.’
• ‘The curriculum is designed well to meet the needs and aspirations of all pupils including the most able.’
• ‘Leaders and governors are ambitious for what pupils can achieve. Parents and guardians speak enthusiastically about the school.’

We believe that this is a very strong foundation from which to aspire to excellence in everything we do.

If you’re looking for a school where professional excellence meets genuine care, join us and help everyone be the best they can be.

Current Vacancies

Student Support Manager

This is an important post for the school; liaising with parents to provide collaborative guidance and care, and supporting the learning and progress of students.   We all know that some students find learning in a school setting hard.  The successful post-holder will support the Head of Year and Faculty Team Leaders in raising standards of attainment and achievement within the year group, provide support, care and guidance for students within designated phase in order to maximise learning and work pro-actively to implement school policy systems and processes to reinforce the expected climate for learning.

Further details are set out in the application pack on our website (www.chaileyschool.org) or please contact Serena Rodd (PA to the Head Teacher) srodd@chaileyschool.org  We would be very pleased to show any potential candidates around the school and to discuss the position further. Please contact us to arrange a suitable time.