THE top job is up for grabs at a York village school.

St Mary's CE School in Askham Richard has advertised for a new head with a salary of between £50,151 and £58,135.

They are looking for someone who is "a creative thinker with high expectations for all, you must be able to demonstrate well-developed leadership skills, a talent for motivating others and the expertise to effectively manage the budget".

The school, which has only 106 pupils on roll, was rated "outstanding" by Ofsted in 2011 and by the Statutory Inspection of Anglican and. Methodist Schools (SIAMS) in 2016.

Back in 2011 the school ranked among the top performers in the Key Stage 2 results in the country.

Out of more than 15,000 schools nationwide, St Mary’s was ranked fifth.

The then head teacher, Ruth Ellis, said the success was down to “quality teaching, very supportive governors, staff children and parents”.

The top national ranking followed a number of success stories at school.

In July, it achieved of the same year the school achieved its best ever Key Stage 2 test results up to that point with Year 6 pupils achieving 100 per cent in both English and in Maths at Level 4 - the expected level of achievement - and 94 per cent in English and 88 per cent in Maths at Level 5, the highest level.

At that time St Mary’s was the only school in the City of York Council area to achieve 100 per cent in this measure.

In the advert for the new head teacher the school say: "Based on our core values of compassion, friendship, koinonia - Christian fellowship - and trust, we aim to provide an environment for all members of our school community where positive attitudes to learning and creativity are promoted and valued within the context of Christian belief and practice.

"The school is reflective of a small community based village school, which has a community feel in a welcoming environment.

"The Christian ethos at St Mary’s is of central importance to our stakeholders and we are seeking a head teacher who will ensure these values are effectively promoted and upheld."

The school has strong links to the Pathfinder Teaching School Alliance, the current head, Steve Jones, is a member of the head teacher board for both the South Bank cluster of schools and the small schools cluster group."

Anyone wanting to apply for the job should contact City of York Council and if anyone wants to visit the school they should contact Mr Jones on 01904 552540.

The application closes on Sunday, December 13 with short-listing by Thursday, December 17 and their will be an assessment event on Thursday, January 14 and Friday, January 15 after which the new head will be appointed.