I was blown away by the National Apprenticeship Awards this year. The 'Bright Future' tag line hit me more than in any other year as being a 'real' alternative to the stale old routes of university. I sat through the... Continue Reading →
Every now and then being a school leader means you have to stand up to, or unwillingly meet, the gaze of heartache and conflict. In school leadership you become part of other peoples battles. No one faces this willingly. These... Continue Reading →
Why is it that Ofsted makes so many head teachers go on the immediate defensive? It seems to me that no matter your standing in the Ofsted hierarchy most head teachers or teachers I meet would, if they could, do... Continue Reading →
I can still remember when I first heard the language of judgement in a classroom. I was teaching on an estate in South Bristol. It was 1996 - Education Education Education just a few months away. I was a youngish... Continue Reading →
Yesterday I was a delegate at The Beach Teaching School Alliance (@theBeachTSA) conference called Understanding the Gap. I have a Jeremy Deller print in the loo (rather than toilet- middle class head teacher alert!) It is a print of a... Continue Reading →
I wrote a tweet on Friday that echoed my concerns regarding SATs. I have always been concerned about SATs but these last two years have highlighted these concerns to a point at which I feel that I can no longer... Continue Reading →
I often look towards other people, leaders and leadership for inspiration. I find it in strange places. Recently all these have inspired me to reflect and be better at what I do, which is lead a school… Mandy Harvey on... Continue Reading →
Hans, trolljegeren: Have you got all the troll footage you need? I am all for calling out the trolls... Yeah! Beat those warty old slime balls back to their dank and mossy bridges, where they belong. I am all for... Continue Reading →
I was once invulnerable. Nothing in leadership scared me. Nothing stopped me from doing what I felt was right... many mistakes later I am not so sure. Sometimes I feel like a skinned rabbit, splayed out on my back, in... Continue Reading →
Old Primary Head 