Welcome back! A shiny new school year!   I hope you had a great break, and have come back rested and recharged to work your magic, to give your communities’ children great education.   And at the start of the year I bet you’ve got some great new initiatives in mind. Something that is going […]

Another school year is about to wrap up. Wow! Sometimes I feel like we could blink and miss it. But it’s been a full year; yes, it’s had its challenges and yes, there have been triumphs. What remains true is the commitment of you and your team to delivering the best for your children and communities. So pause for a moment with me. And say well done to yourself [...]

Resignation date has been and gone. How was it for you? Some people who need a new opportunity have moved on. Some who you wish were staying are leaving. This presents an all too familiar leadership challenge: recruitment. And yes, we know that’s hard right now. Harder than ever. So here’s some advice if you’re feeling like there’s a hard challenge ahead. Let’s look at your data [...]

Doesn’t summer 1 go by in a blink? One minute it’s Easter, then exams start, then before you know it’s half term! As the break approaches, I wanted to take a moment to wish you a restful and well-deserved break. As ever I’m sure this term has brought its own set of challenges and triumphs, maybe you can think of a few of those wins now? [...]

Exam season is here. SATs, GCSEs & A-levels. So I’d like to wish you, your teams and your pupils the very best. I remember talking to my class about tests and how this was a time to show off what they knew and learn from what they didn’t. It was a time to both shine and learn. [...]

Last week I shared the inspiring story of Jo and the team at Clockhouse and their journey to outstanding. In that story I mention the cultural eco-system. What on earth is the ‘cultural eco-system’? It has 3 elements: Vision Values Strategy And they are critical to creating a high-performing, outstanding, team. But there’s a problem. […]

I don’t know about you but I feel the world is constantly trying to distract me in ways I don’t want. At work, at home, everywhere! I think of distraction as noise. The more of it there is, the noisier it is. And it’s not helpful or nice noise, it’s noise that interferes with whatever […]

Last week we held our annual capability conference: Tackle Under-Performance Quickly, Kindly And Legally   Clare Fowler, Employment Solicitor at the charity YESS Law, shared the four most common reactions from people who are unhappy when you start talking to them about improving their performance: It came out of the blue, I wasn’t expecting it. […]