James 🇺🇦

@atrupar @thetimes You were recommended some years ago by my American friend, Jason, who is sadly no longer with us. Not easy to find decent sources of US news for us on the other side of the pond so I'm really grateful for your work. Don't know how you manage it but it is much appreciated!

I talked with @thetimes for a little profile of yours truly. Check it out: thetimes.com/article/dd9680…

@smithsmm Totally agree and nicely put. It is why there are so many coasting schools around and why they will remain that way.

…just to get to the same starting line. Instead we have a system that rewards privilege and doesn’t value hard work and “botheredness” a system that punishes you because you choose to work in areas of challenge and an inspectorate that deems you lesser because of it. 3/3

I have no issue with accountability, schools absolutely need to be inspected. What I do expect however is a fair rub of the green, a system that understands our challenges and can see and value the work that we do. As a school with high disadvantage, three x national SEND…1/3

@MattJones_Globe @ArkSchools I second this. I've been part of the Ark central team and an Ark Headteacher. Joining Ark in 2014 was a threshold in my career where everything changed and I truly learned what was possible. This was largely down to the strength and quality of their 'central' team and its vision.

During the past 14 years, I have had the privilege to benefit from @ArkSchools ‘central’ team. Its growth from a ‘back office’ function to a centre for R&D and facilitator of collaboration between curious leaders has been instrumental in improving outcomes for children.

@jim1902adams The process for requesting EHE is worryingly simple. It really should be the option of last resort but not anymore. Often the text of requests come straight from AI/social media; offers to discuss it are turned down as they don't want the challenge.

I thought you would be interested in this story from The Times: It's my job to check on 700 home-school pupils. What I see is alarming. thetimes.com/article/950ffb…

@TimJamesYoung @tombennett71 The answer absolutely is physically removing the child. School needs to have a Positive Handling Policy with staff trained in de-escalation and safer handling strategies so everyone is kept safe.

@tombennett71 Genuine interested in what the alternative is? Physically removing the one child who's wrecking the room? Often puts adults in more physical danger. Obviously the ideal is a behaviour policy that preempts, but even with the best systems in the world, meltdowns still happen.

The ‘remove the class so one student can wreck a room’ is the dumbest strategy ever devised. It’s like it was invented by a student who wants to wreck a room.

Just home from Blackburn. My opinion, for what's it worth, is that the four consecutive wins in December were a blip and that this is a consistently poor team. It's also a poor division this year but we're still not good enough to be up there. #watfordfc

@kateowbridge @WoodMeena Jeez bet you wonder why you bother sometimes! As you rightly say, when you start out as a Head there are so many instances where you don't know what you don't know. I'd have loved to receive this list every month back then...and for free!

@WoodMeena Let’s agree to disagree then. People who genuinely know what I am like on this platform will know it’s genuinely for free & not a hook. Luckily for me my consultancy is a side hustle so I’m not financially dependant on “hooking” people in. If you don’t like it, don’t look at it.

An ex of mine once said all I did as a DHT in Inner London was sit on my bum all day drinking tea. Hence why he’s an ex! What needs doing in January leaders? Here’s the monthly advice list! (And look after yourself, it’s a tougher term than it appears) kateowbridge.co.uk/what-to-do-thi…

@WatfordFC All these things will have been known all day. The forecast hasn't changed. Waste of time and money.

ℹ️ We regret to advise today's match at Hull City has been postponed due to a frozen pitch.

@Headteacherchat 'Leaders are expected to be endlessly accommodating of others' humanity whilst quietly suspending their own.' This stood out to me. The relentless requirement to be reactive, understanding and accomodating is totally exhausting.

“When is it my turn to be ill?” A short leadership read on why headteacher absence is treated as a systems failure, not a systems design issue. Worth five minutes. headteacher-chat.link/leaders-ill

@75ThunderRoad I suppose the answer to many of your questions is that nothing a school does matters if the children aren't there. With numbers being so alarming it would be a surprise if the DfE wasn't getting involved. How they go about it is, of course, a different matter entirely.

19/19 Politicians need to leave the intricate relational work to schools and families. They just need to give schools the space, time and appropriate resources, in order to make sure that everybody receives the support they need, not least when there are barriers to attendance.

School attendance has, once again, been a hot topic of debate these last few weeks. Last week, we had some schools publicly sharing their attendance campaigns on social media. This week, we've had the Government announcing the dawn of AI generated attendance targets. 🧵 1/

@MrDavidScales This is it. There's no substitute for holding different roles and having different experiences before becoming a Head. Vibes alone don't cut it.

Matt Allison is an assistant principal. He set up a suite of internal provision in his first year and is our SENDCO at the same time. SEND attendance is up 10% in one year, suspensions are down 30%. This is while doing duties, supervising break, lunch and doing send reviews.

@llewelyn20 Interesting perspective. Where do the percentages come from or is it just 'vibes?'

Nope, you're absolutely right. Ofsted and the dfe could do what they like, no one will protest. 75% of Heads are terrified of being told off by someone (they are the original teacher's pets), 20% love the power (and in their insecurity they wield it) and about 5% can't be arsed.

@christiancalgie @Haggis_UK Why put the party on the ballot paper then?

@Haggis_UK That’s correct. That’s how the system constitutionally works

Matt Barbet: People in your constituency voted for a Tory & ended up with a Reform MP.... Is that fair? Danny Kruger(Reform MP): They vote for the candidate MB: & you tell them the party afterwards? DK: Well, that's how it works.. 👀

@Steven_Swinford @GeorgeGreenwood This is exactly why the government needs to stop raising taxes and start making better use of the tax revenue. Makes my blood boil that as a Headteacher I have to justify every £ I spend whilst the rate of waste in central government is astronomical.

EXCLUSIVE from @GeorgeGreenwood Shabana Mahmood has admitted the Home Office is 'not yet fit for purpose' after a secret report found it was dysfunctional, detached from reality and beset by a 'culture of defeatism' on immigration The home secretary said the department had been 'set up to fail' and said the findings of the damning report were all too familiar. She vowed to radically overhaul its staff, structures and culture Her comments come after the release of a highly critical report written by the former Home Office special adviser Nick Timothy, which the department attempted to keep secret for more than two years and was only released after a legal challenge by The Times It identified a catalogue of failings across the department which has exacerbated the small boats crisis and left ministers unable to implement their own policies. Immigration enforcement officers, responsible for deporting illegal migrants, viewed their high failure rates as 'unavoidable in the system' It found an overly 'defensive approach' among the Home Office’s lawyers, a reluctance by senior officials to tell 'difficult truths' to ministers, an optimism bias that led to wildly inaccurate financial forecasting and a general distrust by other departments that was directly hampering operational issues such as deportations Timothy, who was given access to the department and officials during a two-month review of its effectiveness, said 'too much time is wasted' on identity politics and social issues. That included 'listening circles' in working hours in which civil servants meet to discuss their feelings about social and political issues, including policies they were responsible for implementing thetimes.com/uk/politics/ar…

@WeinsteinEdu Would you be able to explain what this new system looks like as I'm afraid I can't picture it. Presumably it doesn't involve schools?

Children learn at different paces, in different ways, and on different days. The education system needs to be structured accordingly.

My expression, caught by the television cameras, doesn't hide my feelings about the brave new era under our new manager! #watfordfc

@Doug_Lemov @NickGibbUK @RobertPeal Just finished reading it and I totally agree. I've been in teaching for 20 years and have seen and experienced the benefits of the changes first hand. We all know things are far from perfect but when it comes to teaching and learning, it is unrecognisable from where we were.

Just want to reiterate how outstanding this book by @NickGibbUK & @RobertPeal is & that everyone involved in education policy, regardless of party, should read it.

@rapclassroom Happy with this. Would have meant an away win for Watford at your Swans on Saturday!

Unpopular opinion: Football needs to switch to 60 minute matches, with the time stopped whenever the ball is not in play.

@LBC @IainDale Spot on Iain. Two things in here that are always in solutions proposed by those on the left: (1) pay yet more tax (2) more and more powers for the state as the quasi parent. These things keep happening but are things getting any better? 🤔

“The thought that the government could spend the money you’ve earned better than your kids can is for the birds.” @IainDale says Lewis Goodall’s idea to increase inheritance tax to 100% is ‘legalised robbery’.

Celebrating #BlackCatAppreciationDay with a couple of pictures of our beautiful Dusty. 🖤