Blog: School leadership Tips
Six weeks into term, and something's slipping — marking, planning, standards that were sharp in September.
Most heads wait for review time to raise it. By then, it's not a small dip anymore.
This week's blog has a simple test for knowing when to say something — and how to do it without it feeling like confrontation.
Half term's over. And already, something in your team feels a little different.
This is storming season — it happens every year, to every team.
The trick isn't spotting it. It's knowing what to do next: what to fix now, what to model for new starters, what to hand to your SLT, and what to leave for now.
A headteacher told me: “There’s been a parent living in my head, rent-free.”
One difficult relationship can quietly distort how we feel about our whole school community.
Especially when we care deeply and want to do a good job.
This week’s blog is a calming reminder for school leaders carrying difficult situations into the break.
This half term has been full.
New parents finding their feet. Long emails arriving at midnight. Conversations that needed careful handling. Relationships you've been nurturing.
You've done a lot.
More than you'll probably give yourself credit for this weekend.
So before you close your laptop and head into the break, here’s a thought that I hope will help you rest and recharge.
You've explained your position.
They've explained theirs.
Ten minutes later you're still in exactly the same place.
In my latest blog I share two tools that move things forward — even when you strongly disagree
Your Home-School Agreement gets sent out in September, signed by parents, and filed away.
But used well, it's one of the most powerful tools you have for managing difficult parent conversations — calmly and without it feeling confrontational.
In my latest blog I share:
why most Home-School Agreements end up doing nothing
two simple shifts that make it genuinely useful
and how to use it when things are going well, not just when they're going wrong
Money, falling rolls, attendance, and what "exceptional" really looks like — five speakers at Excellence in Education this November tackle the pressures on every school leader's mind. One ticket covers your whole SLT.
A parent says: “My child would never do that.”
You know the evidence is there.
But you also know saying “You’re wrong” won’t help.
One of the biggest shifts in parent conversations is moving from opinion to evidence. But they don’t always believe you.
In this week’s email I share:
• why “evidence anchors” matter
• how to respond when perceptions differ
• a powerful question to ask when parents reject the evidence you’re sharing
Have you had that moment when you open your inbox and amongst the sea of emails there’s one name that might as well be in neon lights?
And not for good reasons.
I think every head I speak to has a few parent emails that emotionally infiltrate the day before they’ve even been opened.
So in my latest blog I share:
two practical email rules heads are using
and how to stop emotionally charged emails driving your response
Tiny tweaks.
Huge difference.