The Truth about
Headship
(But… only the good bits!)
NCSL Leadership
Conference
Wednesday 24th March 2010
Leader’s Lead
“He who thinks he
leads, but has no
followers , is only
taking a walk”
Leaders Lead
“Being in power is like
being a lady…
… if you have to tell people
you are, you aren’t”
Margaret Thatcher
Outstanding Leadership
“Ofsted have found that all
outstanding headteachers had
one factor in common they all
had a deep sense of
moral purpose”
Christine Gilbert March 2010
Leadership or Management?
Delivering the National
Curriculum throughout a
school is management not
leadership
People don’t follow managers
Moral Purpose
What is moral purpose?
Starbucks
 Hewlett Packard
 Cadbury
 Jon Lewis
 Richard Branson

Moral Purpose
Moral purpose transcends the external
visible purpose of the organisation –
which by definition will be both
organisational and management based.
What is your vision for a school?
My Vision for School
Teacher – The desire to see each child
in my class enjoy school and enjoy
being in my class
Headteacher – The desire to see each
teacher/child develop a richness
of relationship that builds a
powerful sense of community
The school as Community
“This school is the family I don’t
have at home”
Teaching Assistant
That’s a good
idea I think I’ll
do that
You
can’t
Moral Purpose is not
something you do it is
something you are
Traits and Core Belief Systems
Outstanding Leaders
“It is impossible to separate
the role of the leader from
the leader as a person”
Developing Outstanding Leaders (2009)
John West Burnham
Leaders Lead
“People don’t at first follow worthy
causes. They follow worthy leaders
who promote causes they can
believe in. People buy into leaders
first and then the leader’s vision”
John Maxwell
The Purpose drives all you do
Two Examples
1.
2.
The secretary chatting with
the elderly gentlemen
The redesigning of the
curriculum
Towards a new Curriculum
What do we want
children to leave
with from their time
at The Wyche?
The National Curriculum
The School Curriculum
comprises all learning
and other experiences that
each school plans for its pupils.
The National Curriculum is
an important element of
the School Curriculum
The School Curriculum
General Ethos
1a
1b
1c
1d
Happy Memories
Enjoyment and Fun
Love of learning
Friendship and Community
The School Curriculum
Relating to Self
2a
2b
2c
2d
Self Esteem and Confidence
Reaching Potential
Developing a sense of Spirituality
Being Healthy
The School Curriculum
Relating to Others
3a
3b
3c
3d
3e
3f
Friendship
Understanding Relationships
Developing Relationships
Teamwork
Global Awareness/Responsibility
Cultural Appreciation
The School Curriculum
Managing Learning
4a
4b
4c
4d
4e
4f
4g
Improving learning and performance
Communication
Application of Number
ICT
The Arts and Sport
Thinking Skills
Creativity and Problem Solving
The School Curriculum
Managing Situations
5a
5b
5c
5d
Managing conflict
Managing Disappointment
Managing Time and Resources
Managing Risk and Uncertainty
The Vehicle
The “vehicle” is the means
we used to describe how we
would deliver the Wyche
Curriculum
Farmers Market
Future Recordz
Scenes
We went on
Mission Maker and
looked at space
props, scenes, and
characters.
BD Homes
BD Homes
WSR Radio Station
WSR went live on air in Spring 2009
Tanzania
Running a Supermarket
If I ran a
supermarket my
philosophy would
be the same
Leadership is who
you are
The School becomes you and
you become the school
“The school is just like a little
version of Geoff”
Friend and Colleague from Kent
“There is no blueprint for
headship the role is a
varied as those who do it”
The Power of Leadership
“The true meaning of
leadership is influence –
nothing more, nothing less”
John Maxwell
SAT scores in Year 6
Leadership from the heart
Teachers change the world,
one child at a time”
Headteachers transform
the world one school
at a time