It’s all in the timing
I am not naturally someone who leaves a lot of time before getting ready to go out, much to my husband’s frustration. If we have ten minutes before we need to leave for an appointment I will try to fit in another three or four jobs – sure that I will have enough time to…
Community and Support
Reflecting on the past year, I can safely say that one of the best pieces of advice I received when I started as a Deputy Head was to join a union that was specifically for school leaders. My Head recommended ASCL, I think this was because this was his union and I guess he had…
Planning Meetings
The heading of this blog might seem obvious and possibly even superfluous. However, it is something that I have to remind myself about and very importantly carve out time and headspace for. An example was last night, I had a meeting with a parent that I wasn’t sure about, I hoped I could persuade them…
Sometimes you need to shout about it!
Stepping up to the next level can be uncomfortable at times and may come across as shouting about your achievements, self-promoting or even, dare I say it, sucking up. I have been thinking about this as my role at work will change in a years time, I will become the senior deputy for professional development.…
Preparing for the step up
I had the privilege, a few weeks ago, of sharing my experience of stepping up to senior management with someone who is looking to move up from middle management. Preparing for the conversation and talking about how she could build on her current experience made me reflect again on what I did to gain the…
Key differences between middle management and senior leadership – A different rhythm to the year
I’m writing this in the summer term which feels very different to two years ago. Two years ago, even though I had additional responsibilities to my middle management role my timetable had significantly reduced as my exam classes were on study leave – there was time to review schemes of work or update our resources,…
The first year
It is okay to make mistakes In your first year, and to be honest in every year, you will make mistakes. Don’t beat yourself up about this, it is part of being a human being. Say sorry, learn from them and keep moving forward but don’t dwell on them – the jump up to senior…
Decision Making and Planning Horizons
Decision Making One of the first pieces of advice my Headmaster gave me in my current role was that the pace of decision making would be (and should be) slower as a senior manager – I needed to allow time to make decisions. I thought I knew that I would need to consider more people’s…
Time well spent
Whist thinking about what to write as the next reflections on the first two years of senior management I keep coming back to how I spend my time. I am inclined to measure my day by what I have achieved, how many tasks I have ticked off my list and there is the tendency to…
Two years in – finally starting my blog
I have been saying for almost a year now that I would start to blog as a way of reflecting on my own experiences during the first few years of senior leadership – today I finally sat down and set things up. The point of it….essentially to stop and think, I have written odd bits…
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Reflections of a Deputy Head 