Recruitment FAQs

• Experience. Working for Twin Summer Centres is a rewarding and varied experience – no two days are the same.
• Shared goal. Everyone has the same goal: to have a productive and enjoyable summer! Productive and enjoyable for the students, the leaders, all Twin staff and the colleges. Twin is constantly looking for ways to improve the experience for everyone, not just the students!
• Weekly Teacher and Activity Leader development sessions. Summer centres are a great place for teachers and activity leaders to share ideas and techniques gathered from different sources and experiences. We would like staff to gain as much as possible from the experience.
• Comprehensive paid staff inductions. We are constantly improving our inductions ensuring staff are provided with all the necessary information to perform to their very best.
• First-Aid training for management staff. Students and staff’s safety is vital, therefore first-aid training has been included into management induction
• Recognition. Based on students’ feedback, Twin Summer Centres award a Star Teacher/Activity Leader of each centre.
• Opportunities to teach business English and employability skills/ Trinity exam preparation. This is a great occasion to gain or expand experience in teaching not only general English but also specialist courses.
• Paid activity and lesson preparation time built into the staff schedule. Twin recognises the extra hours teachers and activity leaders spend outside of the classroom/activity to polish their lessons/activities.
• The chance to try out new roles. Summer Centres provide staff with the opportunity to try out new things, for example to take on a managerial role for the first time. Experienced teachers that spend their year in the classroom abroad can test out if they would like to move into management by taking on a management role in a summer centre. Twin likes to encourage and help new managers to develop. One could start as a Director of Studies in a small centre and move to a bigger centre the following year, and maybe even move on to be a Centre Manager after that.
• Opportunity to take on more welfare responsibilities as a House Parent. House Parent’s role is fulfilling, satisfying and absolutely vital for the positive experience and well-being of individual students.
• Future Opportunities. Twin Summer Centres are part of Twin Group, a large and varied company, which can offer many different career opportunities, career development and progression. Several of the Twin middle and senior managers have worked their way through the ranks, or been recruited once they decided to relocate back in the UK from living abroad, on the basis of work done in summer centres.

Twin values diversity and we aim to have a wide cross-section of people with different skillsets working in our summer schools. Even though the roles in summer centres vary, there are some attributes which are necessary to succeed in all areas. You need to be a positive, enthusiastic person, with the ability to motivate and encourage students. You need to be proactive and willing to go the extra mile to make the centre a success. Your level of English needs to be at least B2 (Upper-Intermediate). Being a team player is key and integral to the running of the centre. Finally, and perhaps most importantly, we should all share the same goal of ensuring the students have the best experience possible.

For further information on requirements for each role, please see the job descriptions.

You must provide proof that you are eligible to work in the UK/ Ireland at the application stage.

Twin will consider all applications from potential staff who are proficient in English. The summer centre is an environment to encourage students to improve their English language ability so we need to ensure all staff have a high level of English to facilitate this.

Yes, we shortlist on the basis of your application form and attached CV.

All candidates must complete the application form. If you wish to return to the same position you previously held, complete the ‘Returning Staff’ section in the application form. For different roles, you’ll need to fill in the ‘New Staff’ section.

Managers and House Parents need to be available for the whole time the centre is open, while teachers and activity leaders need to be available for at least 2 weeks over the busiest period, which may vary from centre to centre. If you have limited availability please contact us before applying.

Initial contracts for Teachers and Activity Leaders are normally 2-3 weeks. Contract extensions are offered depending on performance and student numbers. Management and House Parents contracts are normally for the duration that the centre is open. Contracts generally range from 1 to 6 weeks (up to 12 weeks in Eastbourne). We are usually able to offer longer contracts for candidates who are more flexible.

Yes. References are checked to verify your previous experience; please ensure the contact information for your referees is accurate.

The staff induction takes place at the centre two days before it opens (though this may be different for Eastbourne and Ireland centres), and is compulsory for all staff. Management staff attend a blended induction weekend on June 17th (delivered virtually) + 18th (delivered face-to-face in London/Dublin or Eastbourne- location TBC nearer the time) 2023, and arrive at the centre one day before the main staff induction to prepare and set up. House Parents must attend the first aid training course delivered in London / Dublin on June 18th unless they already hold a valid certificate. The induction days are paid upon the contract completion but travel costs will not be covered. We also require you to complete two online courses on health and safety and safeguarding before your arrival at the centre. Each course should take approximately 1 hour.

A DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service) / Garda Vetting check helps employers make safer recruitment decisions and to prevent unsuitable candidates from working with children. All staff must have a clear enhanced DBS (including children’s barred list information) / Garda Vetting check before starting work. As per KCSE (Keeping children safe in education) this also applies to individuals who have lived or worked outside the UK / Ireland even if the individual has never been to the UK / Ireland.

Twin will cover the cost of your initial DBS / Garda Vetting check. If you intend to work for Twin again in the future, you must either sign up for the update service or apply for a new DBS check at your own expense after 3 years’ continuous service or any break in employment (UK only).

If you are on the DBS update service, we will need to see your original DBS certificate.

Garda Vetting in Ireland must be renewed every 3 years.

All teachers and academic managers will undergo Prohibited List check (UK only). If this isn't possible, an additional reference will be obtained.

Staff members who have worked overseas require a police check for the last country they worked in.

Working hours vary per role and per centre, but days are long and split shifts are common for most roles. Please refer to the “Information for applicants” for more details. All staff will have one full day off per week.

You will get one full day off per week, which will be confirmed by the Centre Managers once staff rotas have been completed.

Due to changing student numbers and needs, staff will occasionally be required to work in another centre. We aim to keep staff in their chosen centre, however, this is dependent upon student numbers.

Activity Leaders are provided with Twin T-shirts, which they must wear when on duty. They should wear practical clothing which is suitable for delivering the activity programme. Managers are expected to dress in a smart, professional manner. Teachers should dress smartly while teaching, and wear a Twin T- shirt during activities, excursions, and airport meet and greets. Clothing that is too revealing, ripped jeans and flip flops are not acceptable for any staff at any time.

Any Activity Leader may choose to also be a House Parent. House Parents look after the welfare of the students in residential centres. In addition to their normal working duties, House Parents supervise wake-up and/ or pre-bedtime, are on-call overnight, take responsibility for day-to-day running of a boarding house, etc. (see Job Description for further details). Please state on your application form if you are interested in becoming a House Parent.

This will vary by role and centre, but most staff members will have to take part in activities, excursions, airport meet and greets, and supervision (as well as teaching for teachers of course!). Please see the “Information for candidates” for further details.

Residential positions: Accommodation on-site for the length of your contract and three meals a day*.

Arrival and departure outside of the contracted dates (coming the day before and leaving the day after) might be available at extra cost.

*If students are off-site on excursions/ walking tours, packed lunches will be provided for staff.

All rooms in Leamington Spa (UK), London Docklands (UK) and SETU Waterford (Ireland) are single en-suite.

You are likely to share a corridor or a flat with students and will be expected to assist in the event of an emergency. You may be asked to move rooms during your contract.

You may leave residential accommodation in the evenings if you do not have any supervisory duties scheduled. For health and safety reasons all members of staff leaving campus must sign out and sign in again on return. You must be prompt with your return time to the centre and be ready to start your duties at the agreed time.

Do not smoke or drink alcohol in front of students, or be in the presence of students while under the influence, at any point. This will be dealt with severely. Staff are reminded that they are expected to act responsibly at all times, on and off duty, especially when in the vicinity of young students.

Limited parking is available at some centres, therefore we must know in advance if you intend to travel by car as a parking space is not guaranteed.

Staff may have access to a computer with the Internet during office hours. As the number of computers is limited, do not expect to be able to use the Internet in every break. There’s free WiFi in each centre.

Bed linen are provided, but towels (apart from Leamington Spa and SETU Waterford) and toiletries are not. It is not advised to bring valuables as we do not guarantee that a safe will be available.

Summer Staff are paid monthly on the last working day of the month, generally 2 weeks in arrears. There are cut-off dates half-way through each month which will be specified in the employment contract. Their wages will be transferred directly into their British / Irish bank account and they will receive their pay slip by email.

Employee salaries can be paid into an international bank account, however the staff member will be responsible for paying any transfer fees, which will be deducted from their salary.

Twin pays statutory holiday pay; this is paid on a monthly basis.

If you have, at least, the CELT/ CELTA, Trinity TESOL, or an equivalent* and a University degree, you are qualified to work in one of our summer schools. We also take on teachers with QTS (i.e. a PGCE - in English - and at least one year experience).

* The qualification must be externally validated by a reputable examination body and/or accredited by a national accrediting body; Candidates must have at least six hours supervised teaching practice; and at least 100 hours of ELT or TESOL input.

In most of the centres, teachers take part in activities every day in either the afternoon or evening on a rotational basis. They may also go on one full and/ or one to two half day excursion per week.

In London Docklands teachers participate in one hour evening activity on a rotational basis and may go on a full-day excursion on Wednesdays or deliver activities on Sundays.

The age of students varies for each centre; our standard age range is 8-18.

We have a maximum of 15 students in a class.

Twin follows a curriculum consisting of course book-based and project-work lessons which teachers will be swapping classes for. This means that students will get a chance to be exposed to various teaching techniques and accents, whereas teachers will get to teach two different classes. There are a limited number of photocopiable resource books on site, but it is intended that teachers will for the most part adhere to the prescribed syllabus.

You will be observed at least twice by the Director of Studies and/or the Head of Academic Quality in the interest of quality control and teacher development. Twin Summer Centres have also implemented peer observation system to better support teachers.

Classes may also be observed by British Council representatives, and ACELS or EAQUALS inspectors in Ireland, as a routine part of their assessment.

Group leaders may also request to observe lessons so they can learn about our methods. You will be given advance notice if a group leader wishes to observe your class.

All teaching staff will have access to a photocopier. However, Twin is an ECO school, and as such provides a syllabus, which keeps photocopying to a minimum.

Please note that the use of a photocopier must be in compliance with the CLA licensing.

If you are diploma qualified (Delta or equivalent) and have 3 years EFL teaching experience then you can apply for the position of Director of Studies.

Twin do not pay travel expenses for centre staff; this includes travel for the inductions.

Non-residential staff will be required to make their own way to their centre.

If you are moved from one centre to another during your contract, we will reimburse that expense on production of a valid receipt.

Please note that for residential centres, most staff will be based on-site and no commuting to the centre will be required.

Twin HQ will be able to provide a reference confirming the dates that you worked for Twin, your position and areas of responsibility.

We value returning staff and usually give them priority when it comes to assigning staff to centres. We like to promote from within Twin whenever possible and our managerial staff are often staff members who started off working with Twin Summer Centres in a role with less responsibility and worked their way up. There is also a one-off loyalty bonus paid each year to returning staff.

If your question is not answered above you should send an email to screcruitment@twinuk.com