Lots of talk yesterday and today about Johnson, Sunak, fines, law breaking and, around teaching and medical, Fabricant and his scurrilous claims around teachers and nurses popping into the staffroom at the end of the day together for a drink. Many people are trying to sweep under the carpet. We all broke a few rules, …
Tag Archives: worry
Dear Mr Zahawi…
Dear Mr Zahawi, I hope this letter finds you well. Unfortunately, it finds me less than well. It finds me exhausted, feeling inadequate and not really knowing which foot to put forward first. I understand 1 in 10 teachers were off school last week. In my school it was higher. In some it will have …
The House of Cards
I spent many a time in my youth trying to build a house of cards. Hour after hour spent delicately balancing just two cards that where so carefully placed that they would support each other. The joy of getting just two to stand was immense. Then I started on the next two and somehow managed …
Things You Need to Hear
Everyone is exhausted. Everyone. It’s been an absolutely manic half term. For some it’s over today, for many of us there is still a week to go. If you’ve made it…well done. I think we all thought this half term might be different. A return to some kind of normal. And to an extent is …
Hi Ho, Hi Ho, It’s Back to School We Go
This week brings the return to school for lots of us. I’m sure, like me, most people are experiencing the the mix of positivity about getting, lamentation for the end of the holiday and nerves over Covid and what the future will bring. There are people who want to get back to normal, people who …
Dear Mr Williamson, further to my previous letter.
Dear Mr Williamson, It has been a while since I last wrote to you. In a number of ways many things have changed. We have welcomed back almost all pupils and greeted them with smiles, warm hearts, cheeriness and sensitivity as they have returned to school this term, no doubt anxious about what it would …
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Ask a Headteacher Anything – Part 2
Twitter could ask me anything – and they did! Here are all of the questions I was asked, and my answers. Who do you turn to when you don’t know what to do? I’m fortunate, I have a supportive wife, a great deputy, a cluster group and great governors, so I go to them. Perspective …
When the going gets tough, the tough…feel pretty awful.
This week was a tough week. Nothing major, and people, I’m sure, are dealing with much worse. Just a multitude of little things all piling up at once…governor meetings to prep for, lots of staff absence, few niggles here and there, safeguarding and social care issues, a high level of cover needed from me. Coupled …
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10 Things I Wish I’d Known Before I Became A Head
1. You are responsible for more than you could ever imagine. The list is never-ending. My neck is on the line for things I never even knew existed. I am still surprised by things that come at me that I am responsible for even three years on. It’s a constant whirlwind. Most of them won’t …
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Mind Consuming?
Of course teaching is time-consuming, but it’s not just that. It mind-consuming too. Yes there is a lot to do during the day, marking, planning, meetings, supporting, helping, guiding, writing, but the one thing that takes up most of my time in the day is thinking. I find this aspect of the job the most …
The Secret Headteacher 