Sunday 2 December 2018

Why I’m supporting the Ban the Booths Campaign

I have spent twenty-five years teaching and leading schools across Staffordshire, Stoke-on-Trent and Cheshire. I have led a school with a resource base for children with statements for behaviour, I have led a school out of an OFSTED Category, and I have worked as Local Authority Improvement Advisor with a number of schools that require improvement.

In my experience, the vast majority of children who display the most challenging behaviour have a significant challenge establishing a sense of belonging. This can be a result of a difficult start to life, communication and learning difficulties, a chaotic home life, or from being excluded from school. There are two routes to school exclusion: through the official routes of fixed term and permanent exclusions, or the more widespread practice of social exclusion. 

Tragically, I have worked with children who have moved schools two, three or sometimes four times before the age of nine. I have witnessed children demonised by small groups of parents who use the language of zero tolerance and no excuses. I have seen schools where a disproportionate number of the most challenging children in a local area attend because neighbouring Headteachers tell parents that the schoolup the road” is good with behaviour. The incentives for excluding through the back door are high, with an improved league table position and more funds available to spend on well behaved” children. 

There are other forms of social exclusion in our schools that I am less familiar with; these include an insistence on an expensive uniform and sports kits, school trips that cost more than a family holiday and hidden extras that nurseries ask parents to contribute to. I thought I was well informed on the subject of exclusion until Monday 12th November when I discovered the practice of exclusion through excessive isolation as reported by BBC News. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/education-46044394

I was aware that some schools used isolation, and I agree there are times when children need to be removed from a class for a short period, taught in a small group or taught on their own. However, I was genuinely shocked by the reported conditions of isolation used in some of our schools; large classrooms converted into isolation suites, poorly lit booths where children completed worksheet after worksheet, children spending seven hours a day in self-styled punishment booths. My professional opinion is that excessive isolation will cause the most vulnerable pupils harm,  and is likely to be a passport to full-time disengagement. 

I acknowledge that not all schools are misusing isolation and Vic Goddards blog talks openly about the conditions of isolation and how alternatives to exclusion are being used at Passmore Academy.  

https://passmorespedagogy.wordpress.com/2018/11/13/i-am-saying-it-quietly-we-have-booths/

However, I do believe that excessive, punitive isolation is fundamentally wrong. 

For our most vulnerable children developing a sense of belonging takes time, resilience, and love. Children of all ages need trusted adults who will teach them how to behave, they need clear rules and boundaries, and they need interventions that are time-limited and do not cause further emotional damage. They need a proportional response to poor conduct that does not significantly disrupt the learning of others; they need interventions that do not prejudice their entitlement to full-time education, and finally, they need an approach that will enable them to learn from their mistakes. 

The best schools I visit have a strong sense of place and a core identity that is deeply felt by all the pupils and staff. The best schools have brilliant adults that show relentless kindness and take responsibility for all the children in their community.

Therefore, I am supporting the #BantheBooths campaign which calls for: 

•           The removal of deep confinement booths in all schools
•           The regulation and reporting of all children isolated for more than half a day
•           Funding to support schools in shifting from Isolation booths to better practice

I fully appreciate that not every booth is misused, but there are too many examples of excessive use, too many examples of disengaged children being off-rolled to theschool up the road, and too many parents choosing home education. (1)

Schools in England have more freedoms than ever before, the #BanTheBooths campaign is a clarion call for School Leaders and Governors to develop robust reporting and monitoring arrangements to enable schools to evaluate the impact and conditions of isolation in their own schools. 

(1) https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/2018/11/15/schools-putting-parents-pressure-home-school-pupils-want-expel/


Friday 17 August 2018

Three is the Magic Number



My friend Bill is a photographer. He is adept at capturing images of daily life in our hometown of Sandbach and tells me that his rule of three for taking a high-quality photo is moment, composition and edit. 

The rule of three has been known and used throughout history, the Latin phrase “omne trium perfectum" translates to everything that comes in threes is perfect.  Shakespeare's Julius Caesar, Mark Antony starts his speech by using the rule of three: Friends, Romans, countrymen, lend me your ears. Advertisers have enticed us to buy their products with promises of chocolate that will help us to work rest and play, fast food that is finger licking good and cars that are vorsprung durch technik. Early in my teaching career, Tony Blair prioritized education, education education. 

Education may have been a millennial priority, but the reality is that assessment, metrics, and accountability is the current hendiatris pervading our education system. Test outcomes rule over every other measure of school quality. Published league tables celebrate schools with advantaged intakes and schools with the highest tests scores become exempt from routine inspection. The high stakes nature of the tests has led to a narrowing of the curriculum, shortened Key Stage 3 and repetitive test paper drill and practice. 

The Government drive for school performance to align with the Olympic motto of faster, higher and stronger is admirable, but over-reliance on test results to judge school quality is having a negative effect. 

The School Leaders Union the NAHT, the Beyond Levels movement led by Dame Alison Peacock and the Educational Select Committee have presented a robust challenge towards the data-centric approach. Challenge is also emerging from an unlikely source, OFSTED. Her Majesties Chief Inspector for Schools thoughtful, evidence-based approach is questioning King Data and has identified the quality of the curriculum as a key indicator of school quality. 

“School leaders need to recognize how easy it is to focus on the performance of the school and lose sight of the pupil. I acknowledge that inspection may well have helped to tip this balance in the past.”


At our most recent inspection in November 2018, I welcomed the fact that I spent as much time talking about the quality of our curriculum as I did talking about numbers. 


The TES has reported that  OFSTED is considering replacing the judgment for outcomes with a broader measure of the quality of education. 


It is important to remember the rule of three when judging the quality of education in our schools. Equal emphasis on outcomes, curriculum, and personal development should be considered, data from national tests should be used to raise questions and politicians and policymakers should remember that the most important work we do in our schools cannot be distilled into a simple soundbite-friendly metric. 



Wednesday 18 April 2018

An Inspector Calls


Yesterday I awoke to the uncomfortable news article in the TES -https://www.tes.com/news/exclusive-ofsted-looking-no-notice-school-inspections-again - Ofsted are considering introducing “no-notice” inspections for all schools. A “no-notice” inspection is one where Inspectors turn up on the school car park and inform the school that they will be inspecting the school over the next one or two days. Currently, the vast majority of schools receive a maximum of half a days notice before an inspection takes place.

It is important to note that schools can currently receive a “no-notice” inspection if there are concerns about behaviour and or safeguarding at the school. 

Waiting for Godot

My first experience of OFSTED was back in summer of 1996: a time when England last performed well at an international football tournament, Ask Jeeves was the search engine of choice and the year Dolly the Sheep was making headlines across the world. I had proudly been appointed as the new maths lead in a great school in my hometown- Stoke-on-Trent. At the time of my January appointment, the school knew they were going to be inspected in June. Despite the positive outcome for the school, the long lead-in time led was damaging for the school, it led to excessive workload, a June half term spent double mounting and mitering borders, and the premature retirement of a successful and well respected Headteacher.  

Like the size of Mars Bars from the 90s the notice of school inspections has shrunken. I believe this is a positive development I would even argue that the two days notice schools, given to schools under the previous inspection framework, was still too long. I was saddened to hear of a colleague missing the 2011 FA cup final between Stoke City and Manchester City because their school had received notice of an inspection on the Friday before the final. 


All’s Well That End Well

The current arrangements of half a day notice should continue for one simple reason- half a day gives School Leaders and Governors the opportunity to rearrange their diaries, return from school trips or cancel travel to national CPD. The current one and two-day inspections are highly focused and rely heavily on evidence presented by School Leaders and Governors. Leading a school through an Ofsted Inspection is the Headteachers responsibility and one of the reasons why they are the highest paid lead professionals in our schools. A negative Ofsted report can have a devastating impact on a school community and delegation of this core duty should rarely happen, for instance when a Headteacher is unfit for work or if they are on a long-term secondment. Moving to a “no-notice” arrangement would effectively “shackle” Headteachers. 



Much A Do About Nothing

I know of no School Leader, Governor or teacher who is of the opinion that a no notice inspection is an improvement on the current arrangements.  The previous two Chief Inspectors considered “no-notice” inspections and it was trialed in some schools. The policy was kicked into touch for two key reasons: 
  • Little time for parents to give written feedback to Inspectors
  • The logistical challenge of School leaders and Governors being available for Inspection. 

So why after huge strides to improve the quality of school inspections and the relationship between Ofsted and schools is the spectre of no notice inspection being revisited?

The reason is the response of 1128 parents to the three questions below.



In my opinion, the three questions are poorly designed and do not provide strong enough evidence for the introduction of a policy that would be unpopular and damaging. Schools effectively now have a workable short notice period, and the logistical challenges far outweigh any perceived benefits of reducing the notice period further.




Amanda Speilman’s considered, evidence based approach towards improving inspection is helping to build trust between teachers and the inspectorate. A return to ideological pronouncements based on a weak evidence is a backward step. 





Sunday 18 February 2018

Happy Birthday to The Chartered College of Teaching

Here is a piece I  have been asked to write for the Cheshire West Governors bulletin. 


The Chartered College of Teaching

As the first teacher and university graduate in my immediate family, I know how proud my mum and dad are that I became a teacher.  I enjoyed my time at school. However, I was never one of those people who always wanted to be a teacher. People talk about the teacher who inspired them, and for me, it was Mr Rowe, from Parkhall Primary School, Stoke-on-Trent, but my most significant influence and person who motivated me to be a teacher is without question, my father.

Dad left school at fifteen and like his dad, his granddad and all the men in our family he started working in the coal mines. After many years working full time underground he gained the necessary qualifications to become an electrical engineer and became a proud member of the Association of Mining Electrical and Mechanical Engineers. Teaching in a primary school would not have been the first choice for a boy from a working-class background and my school heavily promoted careers in heavy engineering and the armed services; I am eternally grateful that my family has supported my journey towards becoming a school leader.

I have now worked in schools for twenty-four years, and it was with great excitement and anticipation when I heard about the formation of The Chartered College of Teaching in 2016. I joined the College as Founder Member in January 2017 and would like to briefly share my experiences from the last 12 months of membership.

Being  Connected

Developing strong and constructive professional networks is the one piece of advice I would offer to all new teachers. Being part of Chartered College Community has enabled our school to strengthen our networks. In the last twelve months, our school has developed strong partnership working with The Ignite and CLTA teaching alliances, we worked with St Bernard’s Catholic Primary School to bring the Learning First Conference to Chester, and we have connected and visited some of the most successful schools in the country.

Being  Informed

Through interactions via social media,  journals like the “Impact Journal”, and educational conferences, I feel that I, and our staff at Hartford Manor, have never been as well informed.

Being Recognised

As a school leader membership of organisations like the National Association of Headteachers and qualifications such the NPQH give you professional recognition. By working with The Chartered College, teachers will have the opportunity to engage with a programme that will lead to Chartered Teacher Status.

Being  Inspired

Over the last twelve months, our school has engaged with teachers from across the country. The opportunity to engage with professionals like Dame Alison Peacock, Simon Smith, Sinead Gaffney and Michael Tidd has raised our game as we continue to strive to be the best school we can be.


In summary, The Chartered College of Teaching has been an inspirational place to be, and I would ask Governors and School Leaders to encourage teachers and students to consider membership.