4 questions every headteacher should be asking themselves
Sonia Gill
CEO of Heads Up. We specialise in helping primary schools become outstanding, for children, not for Ofsted.
1. Do I want to be ‘Outstanding’?
This can get lost in an intelligent conversation about the framework, Ofsted. What does ‘Outstanding’ mean anyway?
Forget that.
Exchange ‘Outstanding’ for ‘the school you dream of creating’, with or without inspectors.
Is that something you really want and are willing to learn and stretch yourself and your team to get there? Because you will need to. Because what gets you to Good doesn’t get you to Outstanding.
2. Have I told my team, clearly, what I want this school to be?
I mean really clearly.
Not abstract words and Ofsted phrases. Have you, and can you, and your SLT really describe the core tenants and ideas behind the school you want to create to serve your community?
If not, it’s going to be hard for your team to help you make it a reality.
3. What are the most important challenges we need to overcome to become the school I/we want to create?
I know school life is like an endless list of jobs to do.
But do you know what the key drivers are for your school to work towards and the key challenges to overcome?
If they are front and centre for you and the team, your actions will have a greater impact.
4. Who isn’t on my bus?
Not everyone will be, but if you want to create excellence, you need them to be. That doesn’t mean they agree with everything you want to do, but they agree with why you do things and what you want to create – from there stems meaningful challenge to support you in creating the school you want to create.
It’s not about Ofsted and Outstanding, it’s about excellence in education.
Moving to Outstanding 2020 is coming soon!
Tickets will go on sale soon and behind the scenes I’ve been meeting recently Outstanding Heads so we can bring a great range of speakers once again for this 8th year of the conference.
Tickets sell out fast; at least 75% will be gone within 48 hours of release.
Make sure you get yours by signing up to Priority Ticket Access here: https://ukheadsup.com/events/m2o2020/
This will give you 24 hours to secure your place before tickets go on general sale.
Miss it, miss out.
Click here to sign up for Priority Ticket Access here: https://ukheadsup.com/events/m2o2020/