Drayton Primary Seeks Finance and Health Safety Support for Daily School Operations
Drayton Community Primary School is recruiting a Finance and Health and Safety Admin Assistant to support the practical running of a one-form-entry primary school serving children aged 3 to 11 in South Oxfordshire. The post combines finance administration, compliance oversight, reception support, and hands-on help with the day-to-day upkeep of the school environment. It is a permanent, part-time role with a term-time-only salary of £21,997, and the school is asking for someone who can start as soon as possible.
The position sits at the junction of school business administration and operational safety. In a busy primary setting, that usually means more than paperwork alone: invoices have to be paid and reconciled, goods must be tracked on receipt, supplies need reordering, and the office has to keep moving when staff are absent or the school is managing a busy event day. The role also carries responsibility for health and safety records, risk assessments, and routine checks that help keep the premises safe for pupils, staff, and visitors.
One sentence captures the scale of the job: this is an office-based role with a boots-on-the-ground remit.
Finance Tasks Anchored in Routine School Operations
The finance side of the post focuses on practical administrative control. Responsibilities include raising purchase orders, seeking approval, overseeing invoice payment, checking receipt of goods, and maintaining the purchase tracker. These are the small but critical processes that prevent a school from drifting out of sync with its suppliers and internal budgets. In a primary school setting, where many operational needs are recurring and time-sensitive, attention to detail in purchasing and payment workflows can directly affect classroom supplies, maintenance response times, and the smooth functioning of the wider site.
Office supplies also sit within this portfolio. The assistant will place orders as required and distribute goods around the school, which makes the role part clerical and part logistical. It is the kind of work that can disappear behind the scenes when it is done well, yet becomes immediately visible when stock runs short or paperwork falls behind. The school is explicitly looking for someone organised, reliable, and proactive, which fits a post where small delays can ripple across several departments.
Health and Safety Administration Runs Through the Post
Health and safety duties form the other major pillar of the appointment. The successful candidate will oversee compliance and health and safety databases, keep records current, and manage a risk assessment database. Staff training requirements related to health and safety also fall within the remit. In a school environment, that kind of administrative discipline is not decorative; it supports safe routines for children and adults across classrooms, corridors, entrances, and shared spaces.
Routine checks are listed as part of the job, including fire alarm testing, monitoring lighting, heating, and security systems, and reporting faults. Regular inspections of school facilities are also built into the role, alongside liaison with external contractors and the Office Manager when repairs are needed. The post goes further still, asking the assistant to carry out minor maintenance tasks such as unblocking toilets or sinks, mopping up spillages, and keeping pathways clear to exits. These are small interventions, but they reduce avoidable hazards in a busy building where young children move quickly through shared areas.
The school’s emphasis on safe working practices is direct and practical. Maintaining a tidy environment, reporting hazards promptly, and making sure compliance records are current all support a safer campus. In that sense, the position blends administrative vigilance with everyday environmental stewardship.
Front-of-House Support and Safeguarding Responsibilities
Alongside finance and safety work, the post includes front-of-house reception support. That means greeting visitors, answering calls, and handling enquiries in a way that preserves a calm and organised school entrance. The successful candidate will also be expected to cover essential reception duties if needed, which makes adaptability a real requirement rather than a welcome extra.
There is a broader support function as well. The assistant may help the Headteacher and Office Manager with correspondence, photocopying, room set-up, event preparation, meet-and-greet duties, and occasional cover for gate duty, lunch duty, or wraparound care absences. Emergency support is also part of the brief when directed by school leadership.
First aid administration appears in the responsibilities too, including handling incidents and maintaining medical records, with training available if required. In a primary school, that combination of readiness and record-keeping matters because injuries, minor illnesses, and parental communication often move quickly through the school day. The role therefore asks for someone who can stay composed, switch between tasks, and keep information accurate.
School Context and Recruitment Conditions
Drayton Community Primary School describes itself as a welcoming, community-focused school just outside Abingdon, with strong transport links to the surrounding Oxfordshire area. It notes an active parent group, a dedicated staff team, and children who take pride in their achievements. The school is a maintained primary with 194 pupils enrolled and a current Ofsted rating of Good from September 2023.
Applicants should be aware of the school’s recruitment requirements. An enhanced DBS check is mandatory, and candidates must be eligible to work in the UK because visa sponsorship is not available. Applications are accepted through the school’s own recruitment route, and CVs will not be considered.
The post is aimed at someone who can help keep the school’s administrative, compliance, and operational systems working together without friction. In practice, that means handling the kind of work that keeps a primary school safe, organised, and ready for the next school day.