School Receptionist
Job description
Original text imported from Reed
School Receptionist
Location: Greenwich
Start Date: ASAP start
Contract Type: Long-term (with potential for permanent)
Hours: Full-time, 8:00am - 4:00pm
Salary: £16 - £18 per hour (depending on experience)
A welcoming and busy Secondary school in Greenwich is seeking a professional and organised School Administrator / Receptionist to join their team. This is an excellent opportunity for someone with strong administrative experience who thrives in a fast-paced, front-facing role.
About the Role:
As the first point of contact for pupils, parents, staff, and visitors, you will play a key role in ensuring the smooth day-to-day running of the school office. This position requires a calm, professional individual who can manage multiple priorities while maintaining a warm and approachable manner.
Responsibilities:
- Manage the school reception, greeting visitors and handling enquiries
- Answer and direct phone calls, emails, and face-to-face queries
- Maintain accurate pupil and staff records, ensuring confidentiality at all times
- Support safeguarding processes, including logging and reporting concerns
- Assist with general administrative duties including filing, data entry, and correspondence
- Work closely with senior staff and support the wider school team
Requirements:
- MUST have either, SIMS, Bromcom or Arbor experience
- Strong IT skills (Microsoft Word, Outlook, Excel)
- First Aid qualification or willingness to undertake training
- Safeguarding awareness training or willingness to complete
Experience:
- Previous experience in an administrative or receptionist role
- Experience handling phone, email, and in-person enquiries
- Experience managing sensitive or confidential information
- Experience working in a school or educational setting (desirable)
- Experience in a busy, front-facing environment
- Understanding of safeguarding processes, including recording concerns
Key Skills:
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to remain calm under pressure and prioritise tasks effectively
- Strong organisational skills and attention to detail
- Ability to handle sensitive situations with professionalism and care
- Friendly and professional manner as a key representative of the school
Personal Qualities:
- Approachable, calm, and reliable
- Discreet and trustworthy when handling confidential information
- Punctual and dependable
- Able to work independently and as part of a team
- A genuine, child-centred approach
What We Offer:
- A supportive and collaborative working environment
- Opportunities for training and professional development
- The chance to play a vital role within a busy and welcoming school community
Commitment to Safeguarding:
Reed is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people. All applicants will be subject to enhanced DBS checks and appropriate vetting procedures.
How to Apply:
If you are an organised and professional individual looking to make a difference in a school environment, please submit your CV and a brief supporting statement.
Key skills
AI-extracted from the job advert
Application advice
5 AI-generated recommendations to maximise your chances.
⭐ Lead your CV personal statement with your SIMS, Bromcom, or Arbor experience — the advert lists this as a hard requirement and it will be the first filter applied.
📊 Quantify your reception workload: e.g. "Managed front-of-house reception handling 80+ daily visitor sign-ins and 50+ phone enquiries across a 600-pupil secondary school."
🎯 Include a dedicated 'Safeguarding' line in your skills section referencing any safeguarding awareness training completed, as the advert explicitly asks for this knowledge.
🏫 If you have prior school or educational setting experience, place it at the top of your work history with the school name, pupil numbers, and MIS system used — the advert flags this as desirable.
🔒 Mention your enhanced DBS status (if held) prominently near your personal statement, as all applicants will be subject to enhanced DBS checks before starting.
Suggested CV bullets
3 bullets our AI drafted for this specific advert, mirroring its ATS keywords.
Add these 3 bullets under your most recent experience:
- •Managed front-of-house reception at a 750-pupil secondary school, processing 60+ daily visitor sign-ins via SIMS and maintaining 100% accuracy on safeguarding log entries across a 12-month contract.
- •Handled 40+ daily inbound phone and email enquiries using Microsoft Outlook, reducing average response time from 4 hours to under 90 minutes by implementing a shared inbox triage system.
- •Maintained confidential pupil and staff records for a 500-student roll, completing a full data audit in Arbor that identified and corrected 120 outdated contact entries ahead of an Ofsted inspection.
Free to copy — tailoring requires a 30-sec CV upload.
Your cover letter is ready
We've drafted a cover letter for Remedy Recruitment Group. Preview the opening, then unlock the full personalised version.
Letter preview — tailored to Remedy Recruitment Group
Dear Hiring Manager,
Reception work in a secondary school demands more than a friendly face — it requires precise record-keeping, safeguarding awareness, and confident use of school MIS platforms. I am applying for the School Receptionist position at Remedy Recruitment Group's Greenwich placement because my hands-on experience with SIMS and Microsoft Office, combined with my background in safeguarding procedures, aligns directly with what this role requires.
My background in school administration includes managing a high-volume front desk, maintaining accurate pupil and staff records with strict confidentiality, and supporting senior staff with data entry and correspondence. I have completed safeguarding awareness training and understand the importance of logging and escalating concerns promptly and discreetly.
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Interview questions
10 questions generated from this advert.
Technical
- ›Which school MIS have you used — SIMS, Bromcom, or Arbor — and what tasks did you carry out on it day-to-day?
- ›How do you use Microsoft Excel in an administrative role? Can you give a specific example of a spreadsheet you maintained?
- ›Walk me through how you would log a safeguarding concern using the school's recording system.
- ›How do you ensure pupil and staff records remain accurate and confidential when multiple staff members need access?
- ›Describe your experience managing a busy school email inbox — how did you prioritise and respond to enquiries?
Behavioural
- ›Tell me about a time you had to manage several urgent tasks simultaneously at a busy reception desk. How did you prioritise?
- ›Describe a situation where you handled a sensitive or confidential matter at work. How did you ensure discretion?
- ›Give an example of a time you dealt with a distressed parent or visitor. How did you de-escalate the situation?
- ›Tell me about a time you identified a safeguarding concern. What steps did you take?
- ›Describe a time you had to learn a new IT system or software quickly. How did you approach it?
STAR answer examples
Model answers using the Situation-Task-Action-Result framework. Adapt to your own experience.
Tell me about a time you had to manage several urgent tasks simultaneously at a busy reception desk. How did you prioritise?
Tell me about a time you identified a safeguarding concern. What steps did you take?