A problem shared isn’t necessarily a problem halved, but meeting up with other school leaders as part of an organised group can give you some much needed perspective and motivation. Here’s how to go about exploring what professional heads’ groupings might be in your local area, along with some suggestions for starting one of your own.
As another year draws to a close I wanted to take the opportunity to reflect on some of the wonderful opportunities that have been afforded to me and to my schools this year in terms of the visitors we have had to the Laxey/Dhoon Federation and the visits we have made to other schools and conferences.
Schools are surely all about people. Schools are about, first and foremost, the young people who attend each day; the children who are there to motivate, inspire, challenge and engage. Schools are about the staff, from the teachers to the support team; from the administrator to the caretaker; from the ancillary helpers to the kitchen staff – irrespective of which contract they’re given, each has a key role in the running of the school and in the lives of the learners. Schools are about the parents who are such key partners in the education of the children. And schools are about community.
in my schools we use the partnership word when we talk of engagement, voice, involvement, collaboration and anything else that involves the perspectives and actions of others. If the learners are truly at the heart of what we do as a school, if each SIP objective is linked to impact on pupil learning, if each new idea, initiative or drive is centred around improving outcomes for children then everyone and anyone who can and should be involved does so in partnership.
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