Leadership


by getting people to work differently: people who already have fixed ideas as to what works and what does not; people who have made up their minds on issues as a result of being bombarded by press, unions and political exhortations urging them to respond in this way or that; people who have families, mortgages, life plans and a reasonable work life balance. A fortuitous outcome of this programme has been the identification of a certain type of entrepreneurial leader with the conviction and determination to succeed, supported by a well thought through education brief pointing the way to success.


Leaders of the future Headteachers, both new in post and those ready for a refresh, will require similar support in prioritising the important changes ahead, in delivering those priorities, in properly consulting with those around them and most importantly of all in developing the confidence needed to believe in themselves. Leaders of the future will have to be able to organise their thoughts, make their own decisions as to what really matters for their pupils, prioritise important changes and explain why they are important; any new initiatives will have to be seamlessly integrated into their strategic plans moving forward. They will have to operate “outside their comfort zone” in the words of The National College, challenge their thinking and practise and develop their “contextual literacy” skills. They will need support to allow them to believe in themselves; plough their own field; avoid the temptation of competition; take things slowly; weigh things up carefully and recognise what is good and must be kept and what must be jettisoned. The government has proposed a number of ways in which school


leaders’ skills can be upgraded to cope with these changes. The National College has been asked to review the content of the National Professional Qualifications for Headteachers (NPQH) to make sure that


it meets the leadership standards of other countries and of other sectors of the economy. The NPQH is expected to focus on the occupational requirements of being a headteacher, and to draw on the contents of the MBA and Masters in Public Administration courses. The first 100 teaching schools which will lead the training and professional development for staff have just been announced. Will this be enough?


• Ros Fox is director of education services at Appleyards, a multidiscipline professional services consultancy. For more information on the services they offer visit www.appleyards.co.uk.


From good to outstanding A


Sharron Philpot Headteacher of Devonshire Infant School, Sandwell


fter being in her post for two years, Sharron Philpot felt that she needed to further her own professional development as well as that of her Senior Management Team. Not wishing


to undertake a general course for new heads such as New Visions, Ms Philpot was looking for something more specific which would be local and could be tailored to the needs of her school. Ms Philpot had been the deputy head during her previous school’s


Ofsted inspection and knew that the school’s next inspection was looming. With this in mind Ms Philpot selected a course that offered the possibility of training in self-evaluation by a serving and highly experienced lead inspector of schools, as well as the opportunity to


“I really felt that I was able to lead the inspection and inspectors, with the


knowledge that I knew exactly what they were looking for.”


link up with other schools in the area to create a critical network that would be to each school’s current and future mutual benefit. As she observed, often a headteacher can be evaluating their own


school well but by taking quality time out of school along with the deputy, there is a great opportunity to focus more rigorously on how the school is performing and get an objective view on where the development points are. In this case, the course leader highlighted sometimes simple, yet important aspects which needed to be developed. This point is illustrated by Ms Philpot in her own words: “I enjoyed the fact that the course was local – to pair up with a school in my own local authority and be able to spend time evaluating


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other schools is such a good idea. Often things are too busy or moving too quickly to spend quality time looking at your own provision. The day the course leader visited my school was a perfect opportunity to validate my own judgements. I planned the day she spent with us in school as if we were actually being inspected, which gave my staff and me a great opportunity to see exactly where we were in terms of Ofsted judgements.” After the initial visit, Ms Philpot held a staff meeting to discuss


and review the report that the course leader provided on the visit and draw up an action plan of what needed to be done. An experienced third party view of the school really helped Ms Philpot to focus her objectives to make her school even better. It also gave confidence in terms of validating the judgements that both she and her deputy had made. The true success of the training is evident in the “outstanding”


judgement of the Ofsted inspection that the school had three months later, as explained by Ms Philpot: “I really felt that I was able to lead the inspection and inspectors,


with the knowledge that I knew exactly what they were looking for and was able to confidently discuss the evaluation schedule throughout the inspection.” Following this success, Ms Philpot has been made executive


headteacher of the neighbouring junior school, and was able to quickly evaluate the school and put an action plan in place to ensure rapid improvement. This too was noted when the school was inspected and found to have moved from “satisfactory” to “good”. A key aspect of this training programme is that it actively encourages


working and learning with other schools, which is vital. Sharron tells us why: “At the end of the day, we are all working towards the same goal – providing the best possible education for children in our care. I firmly believe that schools working together can achieve this more effectively.”


• Sharron Philpot used HeadLine, a leadership training programme which has been delivered to over 250 primary schools in England run by Appleyards Education Services.


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