Two Boats School:

Two Boats School is unique. It is set in the leafy surroundings of Two Boats Village, where the breeze takes a lot of the heat out of the air. Although Ascension is an RAF base we are not a 'forces' school. Our funding comes directly from Ascension Island Government and we are accountable to the Administrator.

We follow the UK National Curriculum and at the end of year 11 children take IGCSE or GCSE exams. There are approximately 110 pupils on role between the ages of 3 and 16. Nursery age children attend the school in the mornings only. The majority of children are of St Helenian heritage with a small number of UK children whose parents work for one of the contractors on the island. As most working contracts are for two years there can be a lot of fluctuation in numbers annually. As holiday leave is dictated by the companies the parents work for some children can miss up to 8 weeks of school a year. If they travel to St Helena for their holidays they attend school there.

Class sizes are small by UK standards with between 6 and 15 in a year group. At present in the primary sector the Nursery and Reception groups are taught as single classes. For KS1 and KS2 we have mixed classes with y1 and 2, y3 and 4 and y5 and 6 paired for teaching. All groups in KS1 and KS2 have discrete year based ICT and Science lessons. In year 5 and 6 the children learn Spanish and ICT is taught by the secondary ICT teacher.

In the secondary sector the children are taught in discrete age groups for all subjects except PE where the lessons are grouped as KS3 and KS4. In the secondary sector our largest year group currently has 9 children. Such small class sizes means there can be a wide range of abilities in a class and teachers need to plan lessons carefully to ensure pace and challenge is there for all abilities.

There is a staff of 15 full time teachers, 6 in the primary school and 9 in the senior school. There are also 5 Teaching Assistants who support in various ways in the primary sector. The SMT consists of the Headteacher, Senior Teacher Primary Sector, Senior Teacher Secondary Sector, Senior Teacher Student Progress and Exams and Senior Teacher SEN and Student Welfare. The school has an annual budget of £25,000 for teaching resources and uses this wisely. As a result the school is well equipped and the children are usually well motivated to learn, discipline problems are few.

Every classroom has access to the internet. There is a broadband connection which is slow compared to UK speeds. There are two ICT classrooms housing 12 PCs each which can be booked for use with whole classes. Both of these have a data projector and a full interactive whiteboard kit. With the exception of the Nursery classroom all Primary classrooms are kitted out with interactive whiteboards. In the secondary sector Humanities and ICT have a full interactive whiteboard kit whilst in Science and Art/Technology we have data projectors.

There is also a very well stocked library on site with a wide range of books to suit all tastes and a range of DVDs mostly suited to children. This can be used as a teaching space and is ideal for researching various topics.

ASCENSION ISLAND:

Ascension Island has an area of 34 square miles. It is situated 8 degrees south of the equator in the South Atlantic Ocean. As such the weather is warm all year round rising to a maximum of 30 degrees C. during the months of January, February and March. The breeze of the South East Trade Winds moderates these temperatures. Rainfall is variable and hard to predict. The island is volcanic, and its lower slopes and Western side are made up of volcanic ash with little vegetation. Green Mountain, which rises to a height of 3,000 feet at the centre of the island, is lush and green.

Travel to and from the island is by RAF. These call three times every two weeks en route to service the British garrison in the Falkland Islands. The flights to Ascension are from RAF Brize Norton near Oxford. The flight takes 8½ hours. The vast majority of goods and food for the island is supplied by sea from the UK and South Africa.

The RMS ship brings a limited amount of fresh produce from St Helena on the return journey from Cape Town. It is however necessary to be at the shop at the right time to buy this. Unfortunately this is usually during school hours! It is possible to shop on line with Sainsburys, Tesco or Asda and have it delivered to a shipping agent who will then arrange for it to be shipped here by MOD. They do charge a modest fee for this but it is worth it to increase the choices in your food cupboard!

Despite its small size there is a lot to do on the island. There are numerous walks, the opportunity to go scuba diving, walk or run with the Hash House Harriers and play a wide variety of sports. These include football, tennis, squash and golf (albeit on the second worst golf course in the world). Sea fishing is very popular. This is done both off the rocks around the island and also from boats. Boat fishing often results in the catch of tuna up to 200lbs in weight, after a fight with the fish of anything up to an hour. Conservation is another area where you can get involved in a wide range of activities.

There are no pubs as such on the island, but several clubs are available. These offer a variety of evening functions including skittles, darts, dances and discos. These events frequently go on until the early hours of the morning. There is also an American base on the island which has a snack bar - this is the closest thing to fast food available. Attached to this is the Volcano Club, where a wide range of cocktails are available at very low prices!

Other social activities are based around visiting other people's houses for meals and barbecues, and going to various beach huts on the island.

Although appearing idyllic, living on an island with a population of 1,000 does have its drawbacks. Everyone does seem to know everyone else's business and gossip can be rife - and sometimes founded on rumour. It is essential that anyone working on Ascension has a thick skin, a sense of humour and an ability to laugh at themselves.

It is also essential to be able to draw a balance between social and professional lives. Parents always know what teachers are doing, because they have usually been at the same function!

Upon appointment the successful candidate will receive further briefings through correspondence with the head and teachers at the school. If you do have any questions please either call or email and we will answer them as quickly as we can.