I recently got this message from a headteacher: ‘We are a school that has moved from Special Measures to Requires Improvement in 11 months.All indicators suggest we will be good however I am not aiming for Good for Ofsted. I want an outstanding provision for our students and any CPD that makes us think […]
I hope SATs went well last week, and the GCSEs & A-Levels continue to. Time. Money. Two resources we never seem to have enough of. But which is more important? Time. Why? Because: money buys time. And what do we do with time? I know school finances are incredibly hard right now. […]
It’s hard in school right now. Falling rolls. Recruitment challenges. Complex needs like we’ve not seen before. I get it. What can you do about it? There’s only so much in your control. And sadly a lot of aspects that aren’t. I’m always looking for those schools who are achieving above average success, in […]
Welcome back after the Easter holidays. Summer 1.And we all know this is an important term for resignations. I’m not trying to depress you, I promise. But we all know May half term is crunch time. With recruitment more challenging than ever, it’s understandable if you want to hold onto every member of […]
Jo had a problem that a lot of headteachers will be familiar with. She had a good team, who worked hard and were mostly fully onboard with her goal of delivering excellence to all her children (though some of them ‘didn’t get it’, most did). They didn’t have the easiest of contexts, being a large […]
I’ve spent over a decade walking into schools and talking to school leaders trying to answer this question: What stops us breaking through the ceiling of normal, and move beyond delivering good education to providing exceptional education? Thinking about how to share what I’ve learned puts me in mind of the old game show ‘Family […]
The bells might be jingling and carols might be singing and the tinsel could be glittering. It’s the most wonderful time of the year (and incredibly busy to fit it all in!). Before we know it’ll be the end of the year and the school gates will be locked for the Christmas holidays. Let’s end […]
Today is the last chance to get early bird tickets for next year’s annual conference ‘Outstanding Against the Odds’. This year we heard from 5 headteachers who deliver educational excellence in tough contexts. Headteachers like: Linda Hothersall and her team at Eastgate Academy serve a community with high deprivation. I’ve been to the […]
Beliefs.We all have them. Some are great, they can help us make good decisions Some are not, they can get in our way. But limiting beliefs can be hard to spot. Here’s how you can uncover beliefs that might be limiting you and your school. Look out for things you assume automatically. For […]