Director of Sports

Harrow International School - Dubai

The Director of Sport will provide strategic vision and exemplary leadership in the design and delivery of a world-class sports programme at Harrow International School. The post-holder will ensure that sport remains a distinctive and integral aspect of school life fully embedded within the academic curriculum and the wider co-curricular programme. The role requires a balance between promoting broad participation and establishing pathways for high performance, enabling every pupil via the games model to engage meaningfully in sport at an appropriate level.

The Director of Sport will hold accountability for shaping and sustaining a culture where sports reflect Harrow s values of Courage, Honour, Humility and Fellowship and enhances the school s holistic educational vision, ensuring that strategic design and cultural alignment underpin all aspects of the programme.

Qualifications and Experience

• Ability to think on a whole-school scale and across the full spectrum of sports
• A clear understanding of safeguarding, health and safety, and risk management in a school sports context.
• Excellent organisational and communication skills, with the ability to build strong relationships across the school and wider community.
• Active engagement with external organisations and professionals in the field of sport
• Skilled at managing resources, timetables and strategic planning.

Essential

• A degree in Sports Science, Physical Education, or related discipline.
• Significant experience of leadership within a high-performing sports department, in a British independent or international school.
• Demonstrated success in developing and delivering elite and inclusive sports programmes.
• A demonstrable record of achievement within their sporting discipline for example, having represented their country, coached elite teams, or led successful sports programmes across multiple schools.
• Strong subject knowledge in academic PE and Sports Science.

Leadership and Personal Qualities

• Inspirational leadership with the ability to articulate and deliver a strategic vision.
• A genuine love of working with young people and commitment to their holistic development.
• Solutions-focused, with the highest levels of professionalism.
• Collaborative, resilient and innovative in approach.
• Willingness to embrace Harrow s broad environment and approach to all-round education.

School Values and Behaviours

All staff are expected to conduct themselves in line with the school s values which are: Courage, Honour, Humility and Fellowship. While the School s values set out what matters most to us, the behaviours below are intended as a shared set of expectations to refer to, and standards to aspire to, in our dealings with others. They are the practical application of our values.

COURAGE

• We remain optimistic and purposeful in a disrupted world.
• We take responsibility for our decisions, even the hard ones.
• We always challenge poor behaviour in ourselves and others.
• We are open to new ideas, and seek fresh challenges.

HONOUR

• We keep our promises.
• We act with integrity doing the right thing, even when it is difficult or when no one is watching.
• We respect and value our traditions whilst setting them in the context of today.

HUMILITY

• We work hard to serve others within the School and across our wider communities where possible putting their interests before our own.
• We give and seek honest and appropriate feedback, reflect on our failures and learn from them.
• We support each other through challenges and whatever the outcome, we celebrate those that took part.

FELLOWSHIP

• We respect each other and value our differences, knowing that we are more effective and more resilient working together.
• We are kind and inclusive; we value the contribution that each of us makes.
• We role model the behaviours that we would like to see in others; we ask only of others what we would be prepared to do ourselves.