It’s November. It’s wet, and it’s getting cold. This morning I walked round a lake. It was pond-like, the air misty, even milky, and during the whole walk the sun promised to slip through, but never quite did. Willows stood upright, sharp and distinct, like pencil drawings. Tiny, industrious birds flitted from the bush ahead … Continue reading Walking in winter
The joy of the job
We cannot cure the world of sorrows, but we can choose to live in joy. Joseph Campbell There’s a scene in Star Wars – a New Hope that used to give me nightmares as a boy. Our heroes Luke Skywalker, Han Solo, Princess Leia and Chewbacca find themselves trapped in the Trash Compactor on the … Continue reading The joy of the job
5 principles for better inclusion
Here are five simple principles we are using to help guide our thinking in the way we support our school leaders and SENDCOs around inclusion. Principle 1/ I don’t have to be an expert to play my part Working in SEND can be a lonely place. There is lots of technical and legal detail, and … Continue reading 5 principles for better inclusion
Cultivating humility
If you are humble, nothing can touch you, neither praise nor disgrace, because you know what you are. Mother Teresa We love people who don’t boast, and want to be led by those who put others first, yet we seem to be surrounded by a ‘me-first’ culture played out both on the international stage, and … Continue reading Cultivating humility
Ten tips for new leaders
The first few days as a leader of a new team can be daunting, as you plan how you want to set your expectations, build your team and eventually lead change. Here are ten tips to help: 1/ Accept feeling you are an impostorImpostor syndrome is a deep feeling that you are not enough, despite … Continue reading Ten tips for new leaders
Leadership lessons from planting trees
It's taken us years of having a garden to consider planting a tree. We finally summoned up the courage last spring, partly to hide the gap of the big maples that the neighbours behind us took down a few months ago, and partly because we wanted to experience the joy of watching trees grow, season … Continue reading Leadership lessons from planting trees
Finding your mentor
A mentor is someone who sees more ability within you than you see in yourself, and helps bring it out. Bob Goshen. Who would you call, beyond your family, to share good news or to ask for advice or to share a difficult situation at work? Right now, many of us are writing plans for … Continue reading Finding your mentor
How to write your SEF (reflections on school self-evaluation)
Each year as a HT I would - sometime between May half term and September 1st - pull out my old SEF from a cupboard or laptop folder, and summon up the courage to rewrite it. Yesterday I met with five experienced current and past school leaders and, with a pile of our school’s SEFs … Continue reading How to write your SEF (reflections on school self-evaluation)
A positive way of giving a negative message
The way you treat people is what they become. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe. When we sit down with a teacher after observing their lesson, we think carefully about all the myriad elements we might choose to feedback. And mostly we know to only select the one or two elements which are helpful for them to work on right at … Continue reading A positive way of giving a negative message
10 tips for more effective one-to-ones
Image - Gregor Cresnar One to ones are quiet, focused collaboration time for employees and bosses to connect. It’s their time, not yours. Kim Scott - Radical Candor We can all point to memories we have of great and terrible line managers we’ve experienced, and the shape of the clumsy boot-print or lifelong inspiration they … Continue reading 10 tips for more effective one-to-ones
Mountains
Mountains are the cathedral where I practice my religion. Anatoli Boukreev.I like walking in mountains and spending time in them. I am drawn back by a kind of gravitational pull every month or so, even to those I’ve climbed before. I’ll head off on a Saturday morning alone or with a close friend or one … Continue reading Mountains
The paradoxes of teaching
A paradox is an odd or self-contradictory statement which has about it the ring of truth. (Greek – para = contrary to; doxa = opinion). Maybe it’s the natural cynic in me, but I enjoy looking for paradoxes at work. It offers a sideways look and alternative perspective to the daily grind. What seems at … Continue reading The paradoxes of teaching
Small is beautiful – 10 ways Trusts can support small schools
How do we support and celebrate our smallest schools in challenging times? In our family of schools we have a large number of brilliant small schools. Fourteen of our forty-three members of the Oxford Diocesan Schools Trust educate fewer than 150 pupils. And so, while we definitely don’t pretend to have all the answers, here … Continue reading Small is beautiful – 10 ways Trusts can support small schools
To do or not to do
One never notices what has been done; one can only see what remains to be done. Marie Curie We all use to do lists. For food shopping, reminders for our children, holiday packing and of course at work. From the back of an envelope to a computer screen, this most simple of reminders seems to … Continue reading To do or not to do
Being authentic
“Speak your truth quietly and clearly; and listen to others.” Desiderata - Max Ehrmann I spoke with our school leaders last week about why I believe that being authentic is key to how we forge relationships and work as a team. In July, I discussed with our chairs of governors how we could better support … Continue reading Being authentic
5 ways to build trust
Trust takes years to build, seconds to break, and forever to repair. Amy Rees Anderson When employees have confidence in their leaders, they feel mutual respect, a sense of belonging and are less likely to leave. Research shows that employees at high trust companies report less stress, higher productivity, and more energy at work. Where it … Continue reading 5 ways to build trust
When things go wrong
‘We learn from failure, not from success.’ Bram Stoker There are times in our working lives when we all feel a little bit lost. A project goes wrong, we feel we’re losing the class or a job ends badly. When we are going through this we feel pain, frustration or disappointment. This creates a sense … Continue reading When things go wrong
The Kindness of Leaders
“It’s a wonder I haven’t abandoned all of my ideals, they seem so absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly kind at heart.” Anne Frank (1929-45) Kindness has always been some way down the pecking order as a leadership skill. In the … Continue reading The Kindness of Leaders
Hope in the dark
We will never have a perfect sense of what needs to happen next. We are always feeling in the dark. We do not have to become somebody else - the more authentic and grounded our hope is, the more true and helpful it is. Breanna West. The week before half term I watched part of … Continue reading Hope in the dark
Walking the dog
Parents, husbands, lovers and friends are all very well, but they are not dogs. Elizabeth Von Arnim, 1936 I love climbing mountains, I enjoy a walk along a river and I like strolling to the pub. Each of these are satisfying in their own way, but having a dog at my side will always make … Continue reading Walking the dog
Praising your team (10 ways to do it better)
I can live for two months on a good compliment - Mark Twain December is the point in the year when we reflect on the year nearly done, and think about colleagues we worked closely with and to whom we owe a great deal. School leaders do a lot of asking all year long, and … Continue reading Praising your team (10 ways to do it better)
4 steps to build belonging
There are no problems we cannot solve together, and very few that we can solve by ourselves. Lyndon Johnson Belonging goes to the heart of our existence as humans. It’s a foundational layer of the Maslow hierarchy and it explains why Covid was so hard for so many. We know the WhatsApp groups to which … Continue reading 4 steps to build belonging
How to run a Tutor Time Reading Programme (TTRP)
A house without books is like a room without windows - Heinrich Mann #1 The Why? Why we have to raise reading age#2 The What? The Reading Canon#3 The How? The routines which make morning reading work Whether barricading the blockade with Jim Hawkins, sensing disaster through Piggy’s spectacles or helping Liesel Meminger hide a Jewish accordion … Continue reading How to run a Tutor Time Reading Programme (TTRP)
Fishing from a smaller pool
There are schools that draw teachers into the profession, develop them and retain them, and those that drive teachers away. Jonny Uttley Hiring great staff is not easy. But how do we unearth real talent and hold onto it? Some say there are fewer people in the recruitment pool with the right blend of knowledge … Continue reading Fishing from a smaller pool
How to write (and get more out of) your school development plan
I've written hundreds of SDPs (or SIPs). Many bad ones, and some good ones. I've written some really clever, smart-looking ones alone that were hardly touched, and a few really simple ones together that we used daily. I know what it feels like to pour in hours of planning only for an SDP to gather … Continue reading How to write (and get more out of) your school development plan
Whose yardstick?
It’s been a difficult few weeks for school leaders, especially reflecting on recent news, and seeing the national reaction. It is a moment of pause to reflect on a national inspection system which is not designed to support headteachers, but within which they are called to work. It's no wonder being a headteacher feels as … Continue reading Whose yardstick?
What’s your news?
The sculpture is already complete within the marble block before I start my work. It is already there. I just have to chisel away all the surplus material - Michelangelo The Opera del Duomo – the committee in charge of decorating the cathedral in Florence – had an unfinished project on their hands. A document … Continue reading What’s your news?
Running better meetings
The meeting paradoxMost meetings are unnecessary, badly run, involve the wrong people, the wrong things, are dominated by loud people, or are just boring. But the interesting thing is that some of our most creative and productive work comes when we collaborate closely with others. Meetings absorb more time and drain morale more than almost anything … Continue reading Running better meetings
Have Courage
‘To dare is to lose one’s footing momentarily. To not dare is to lose oneself.’ Soren Kierkegaard We met with our headteachers a couple of weeks ago and ‘Have Courage’ was the theme of my reflection. Right now it’s a tough time being a school leader trying to be courageous. I thanked people who had … Continue reading Have Courage
Leading Difficult Conversations
The purpose of a difficult conversation is to honestly address a colleague’s performance, behaviour or relationships, so that you can help them improve. Done well, it is a timely, professional and a kind conversation, which provides an opportunity for reflection and impetus for changed behaviour. As I wrote in my series on confidence, school leaders … Continue reading Leading Difficult Conversations
Finding My Vocation
This is the final post in the series about building my confidence. The good news we learned in Steps 1-6 is that our degree of confidence is neither predestined, nor permanent. It’s a skill rooted in a set of behaviours we can learn and habits we can build, which help us become more confident. Here, … Continue reading Finding My Vocation
Making Confident Decisions
This is the sixth post in the series about building my confidence. The good news we learned in Steps 1-5 is that our degree of confidence is neither predestined, nor permanent. It’s a skill rooted in a set of behaviours we can learn, and there are practical steps we can take to build habits which … Continue reading Making Confident Decisions
Facing our fears
"There is nothing to fear but fear itself" - FD Roosevelt This is the fifth post in the series about building our confidence. The good news we learned in Steps 1-4 is that our degree of confidence is neither predestined, nor permanent. It's a skill rooted in a set of behaviours we can learn, and … Continue reading Facing our fears
Knowing our own strengths
This is the fourth post in the series about building my confidence. The good news is that our degree of confidence is neither predestined, nor permanent. It's a skill rooted in a set of behaviours we can learn, and there are practical steps we can take to build habits which help us become progressively more … Continue reading Knowing our own strengths
Being more assertive: speaking up in meetings
This is the third post in the series about building my confidence. We’ve learnt that our degree of confidence is neither predestined, nor permanent. It’s a skill rooted in a set of behaviours which we can learn, and there are practical steps we can take to build habits which help us become progressively more confident. … Continue reading Being more assertive: speaking up in meetings
Improving my public speaking
This is the second post in the series about building my confidence. We learned in the last post the good news that our degree of confidence is neither predestined, nor permanent. It’s a skill rooted in a set of ideas and behaviours which we can learn and apply. There are practical steps we can take … Continue reading Improving my public speaking
How confidence works
This is the first post in a series about how we can build our confidence: It can be a real eye-opener when we realise just how much success and happiness is based not on people’s talent or knowledge, but on the strange lightness of spirit we call confidence. We often lack confidence because deep down … Continue reading How confidence works
Ten ways to deal with failure
Try to fail more. That’s my one resolution this year. To be fair I’m already fairly well qualified. I’ve failed so many times at so many things that it would be difficult to know where to begin. At work, friendships, unfinished projects, decisions regretted. On the surface I see this as serial failure. A litany … Continue reading Ten ways to deal with failure
5 ways to kick perfectionism
If I waited for perfection, I would never write a word. Margaret Atwood Ever spent too long on a Powerpoint presentation, quit a project or found yourself going over an essay for the tenth time? Perfectionism creeps into every facet of our lives. We want to be perfect at work, we're obsessed with our appearance, … Continue reading 5 ways to kick perfectionism
3 ways to manage my imposter
In September 2021 Dame Kate Bingham, the woman tasked with chairing the government’s Covid-19 vaccine task force, told the Times Education Commission that she had doubted her abilities when asked by Matt Hancock, then health secretary, to lead procurement of vaccines. “Why me?” She asked, “I can’t do this. There must be someone better.” Bingham … Continue reading 3 ways to manage my imposter
No such thing as a free lunch
We seem to have a problem in Britain with whether we want to help our poorest families. It’s not just a problem with definition – who is and who isn't poor - it is where two groups of people talking about poverty are coming at it from two totally different places. This is marked by … Continue reading No such thing as a free lunch
Getting Under the Skin
I once experienced something strange in school. It was as I approached the staff room door in my first few days of a remote school in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe. The staff room was a cool respite from the blinding sun bouncing off the red soil of the school yard. I could hear a … Continue reading Getting Under the Skin
Algorithmic Amnesia
The grade calculation cock-up has broken students’ belief in what they have achieved. This is more important than whether it is ministers, civil servants or Ofqual who should be held accountable. We need to celebrate the achievements of this generation properly to correct this rite of passage, and introduce them to adulthood with a little … Continue reading Algorithmic Amnesia
What we have to give
Small changes will help us confront what’s wrong, support those who need it most and remind ourselves what we have to give. My son begins his primary PGCE in September. He leaves self-employment and begins life as a teacher. What a year to start. I’m excited for him, but also afraid of what lies in … Continue reading What we have to give
Building Character: Being More Marcus
I like Marcus Rashford. I like the fact that he’s from Wythenshawe and not part of the establishment. I like that, although he’s a football star, he describes himself as pretty ordinary. And I like that last week with quiet dignity, he reminded those in power of their responsibilities for our poorest children. We see … Continue reading Building Character: Being More Marcus
Part 2/ Helping our children to be happier – mental health and Maslow
In Part 1: Part 1/What's wrong with our children? I described how children have been affected by Covid-19 and tried matching this with the Maslow model. I explained that establishing positive mental health will mean recreating pleasure in the physical world, building the happiness that only people bring and finding again the lack of purpose … Continue reading Part 2/ Helping our children to be happier – mental health and Maslow
Part 1/ What’s wrong with our children? Mental health and Maslow
Children have made it most of the way through this pandemic. But having spent three months isolated from friends, stuck with their family and watching the adult world grind to a halt around them, many are mentally in a mess. It’s been tough for all of us. Some have faced the deep pain of loss, … Continue reading Part 1/ What’s wrong with our children? Mental health and Maslow
Words – Lost and Found
In 2017 I bought the beautiful ‘Lost Words’ by nature writer Robert Macfarlane and artist Jackie Morris. Each page is a visual hymn to the beauty of nature nouns. Macfarlane’s conjuring poems and Morris’s glowing watercolours summon lost words back: “Once upon a time, words began to vanish from the language of children. They disappeared … Continue reading Words – Lost and Found
Kayaks and Cairns
Whenever lockdown ends, I imagine we all have a special place (other than the pub) to which we’re yearning to escape. On this Bank Holiday, I’m thinking of two days spent with my boys in the great outdoors a while ago, which didn’t quite go as expected, but where we’ll definitely be heading again when … Continue reading Kayaks and Cairns
What we ration grows in value
The experience of millions of parents battling with home learning may help schools when children return. By restricting freedom and limiting exercise to once a day, the government has inadvertently raised the value of physical activity. In an incredibly short space of time, that hour of exercise has become precious. Indeed, we feel short-changed by … Continue reading What we ration grows in value
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