Stepping Up North

Today I have spent the day chilling but also reflecting on our final face-to-face event of the academic year for the Step Up Network.

My weekend started by leaving work and driving to Birmingham International Railway Station, at the next stop I was joined by fellow volunteer, leader and friend, Elaine Hayes and we chatted all the way up to Manchester. So much so, that as I had moved carriage and forgot to get my bag, this was removed by the train manager but luckily very quickly retrieved much to Elaine’s amusement.

After a short walk to the Premier Inn Manchester Piccadilly, our accommodation and venue, we got ready to go out for dinner, on our way we bumped into Nikkie Godbold (and her husband James), one of our speakers in the lobby. We then headed to the Blues Kitchen, an American themed restaurant and bar, where we met Vicki Maguire. I first met Vicki through her interview with me on the podcast. I immediately took note of her ability to listen incredibly intently and connect with others; I knew she had to speak at an event. Over the course of 90 minutes, amongst the lovely food and music, we chatted and chatted all things education and life.

Upon returning to the hotel, I grabbed my laptop and went downstairs to make a few final adjustments to the presentations. I again bumped into Nikkie and James, we sat together for an hour discussing all things leadership. I remember when I first followed Nikkie on social media; I was a trainee teacher and she was a headteacher, I loved the thoughts she put out, the work of her school and the appreciate her team showed towards her (in particular their fantastic curriculum work); Nikkie has now gone on to lead many more schools now as a Deputy CEO. These connections sum up the network and the importance of connecting, but also the joy that comes from it.

The following morning after a breakfast and Cafe Nero pit stop, we went down to set up the event. The room and space was brilliant, on the lower ground floor with plenty of breakout space. Our exhibitors, Leadership Edge and Male Childcare & Teaching Jobs joined us and set up. Within 30 minutes we were set up. Then people started arriving. As if by magic as I was walking out of the toilets, Krissi Carter walked down the stairs. I finally got to meet Krissi after conversing with her and her infectious energy. I thought I knew a lot about Krissi having followed her for such a long time, but I realised from her talk, there was so much more to find out about her.

Then more and more people arrived including our other speakers: Vicki, Nikkie, Louise Jaunbocus-Cooper, Adam Levick and Akeim Mundell BEM. Louise I had seen speak virtually through her work in her day job and outside of it on diversity; I had followed Adam’s leadership journey and his recent transition from primary to secondary teaching. I had also had the pleasure to meet Akeim a few weeks ago, but had followed him for a while previously; the impact he has had through his leadership and volunteering serving the community of Manchester is inspirational.

Then boom, our final event of the academic year started, Elaine Hayes and Brooke Waldron acted as co-hosts for the day whilst I was on operational duty. Elaine opened with our Step Up welcome, sharing who we are, what we’re about and the impact we’ve had so far. I then gave my meme and GIF filled presentation of the Step Up story.

First up then was Krissi, who shared a very open, honest and important story of her own journey surrounding her health and wellbeing. Giving tips and resources to help our attendees with their leadership journey.

After Krissi, Nikkie stepped up and shared a talk all around the importance of your why as a leader. Nikkie provided us with time and space to define and attune to our values.

Our final speaker before the break was Louise, as Co-Founder of MixEd and also as a senior leader leading on DEI, Louise shared seven tips and experience points for leading on anti-racism.

After a short comfort break, Adam then started off the second half leading a talk all about curriculum design and ensuring we are providing our children with inclusive experiences.

Penultimate speaker, Vicki shared a talk entitled ‘Get Curious’, all about turning difficult and challenging conversations in a slightly different way.

And finally, Akeim led on all things personal development and pastoral care. Akeim’s talk was the perfect ending, reminding us all of the power of education and the influence we have on the children and young people in our school.

After Akeim, we held a short Q&A session, followed by Brooke sharing on how people can continue to engage with Step Up as well as the exciting plans that we have.

Then, as all good things have to come to an end, but as we have found with many of our events, people did not want to leave. The networking continued and continued. And then, many chose to carry on networking at the after event social over lunch.

I then was able to reflect on the journey home with my fellow volunteer, Dr Rachael Jackson-Royal who joined us as an attendee. We reflected on what went well and our key takeaways for improving future events.

It made me realise how far we have come, yet we are only at the start and the impact we’ve made so far (keep an eye out for our impact report at the end of the year). I am ever so grateful for all of our volunteers, speakers, exhibitors and attendees at our Manchester event, but also our previous events. As a key takeaway after all of our events, we ask as a volunteer team, how will we continue to keep our community engaged until our next event? So, if you have any ideas, thoughts or things you would like to take into consideration, then comment below.

Let’s continue to connect and empower each other to step up together.

How have I thrived?

• Travelling up to Manchester and organising our final face-to-face event of the year.
• Engaging with more educators based in the north.
• Making more connections with amazing people.

What am I reading to help me thrive?

• Closing the Vocabulary Gap as I lead on disciplinary literacy across our curriculum.

What am I looking forward to thriving in?

• Taking stock and a rest after a busy year of Step Up, which is not over yet. I am also looking forward to our events in 2024/25.
• Another evening in the pool, sauna, jacuzzi and steam room.

Why I am an ally. Why I support Black Men Teach.

I am still buzzing (whilst also resting) from a fantastic two days at the Black Men Teach Retreat. I’ve followed BMT over the last two years and have been in awe as to what they do. In particularly, I have also followed the work led by Albert and Johnoi (the co-founders of BMT). I first came across them when watching a short film about the Teach First Network Leader Conference, which they attended. I continued to follow on social media the work they were doing to ensure that black male educators and black boys can thrive in education.

Upon arrival at the hotel, only a stones throw away from my home, I saw their rollup banner and a number of printed materials showcasing their work. I was immediately awestruck by the amount they do, considering there is a core team of seven, all of whom are full time in their day jobs. Something that should be commended and celebrated.

It was picking up their main flyer, showcasing all that they do, that makes you realise why BMT is important. Why a commitment to diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging is important. And for those non-black educators, why allyship is so important.

The figures speak for themselves. As someone who has recently done a lot of research into recruitment and retention in the school leadership space, these figures are shocking and kudos to BMT for actively leading the way in combating this; something I will continue to support.

When I entered the room, as one of the first people there, I was then again awestruck by the kindness, authenticity and connectivity of the room. I met so many amazing people, within 30 minutes I’d made connections from all over the country including the inspiring and kind David C Hall who shared his work with me and gifted a copy of his book to me. David, thank you. It was great to sit next to Nicola Gordon as everyone arrived, Nicola I met through her messaging me on LinkedIn about joining the Step Up London event and here we were sat next to each other at a BMT event with Nicola facilitating a workshop. After catching up with Albert and Johnoi respectively and meeting Akeim Mundell BEM, who is speaking at the Step Up Manchester event in a few weeks time; the day started!

After the introduction from the BMT Co-Founders, it was great to hear from Nadine Bernard, a primary headteacher and CEO of Aspiring Heads CIC. It was such a great way to start the event, having followed Nadine and hearing her at virtual events, the opportunity to meet and hear her speak so candidly, honestly and authentically about wellbeing was a joy to be within the room.

The next session was led by Jordan Crawford all around suspensions and behaviour in schools. This is an area I’ve not led on yet, and to hear the work of Jordan and his team from a secondary perspective was really insightful. He explained to me personally about the capacity and structure of his team to ensure effective staff and student wellbeing.

After lunch, which included informative discussions with David, Johnoi and Adrian Rollins (a secondary headteacher based in the Midlands), Johnoi himself led a session on using AI to support productivity and wellbeing. I have been personally sceptical of AI and haven’t really used it. Johnoi’s informative and open talk about his balance and wellbeing, really made me realise I should be embracing this. And I did. Straight after the session, I trialled it to help create a model text for an English unit I am planning.

After Johnoi’s session, we retired to our rooms to put our belongings in there and settle in. To our surprise a treat from the team awaited us. Again, creating a sense of belonging. Thank you BMT, I will wear my hoodie with pride. The quote within the goodie bag from Maya Angelou, also summed up the experience really well:

My mission in life is not merely to survive, but to thrive; and to do so with some passion, some compassion, some humor, and some style.

Maya Angelou

I think this quote will make its way onto my noticeboard in my classroom.

We then returned down to have our final workshop of the day led by Nicola Gordon. I didn’t realise until this point that Johnoi and Nicola met by sitting together in a workshop at the London Leadership Day, and Johnoi said he knew Nicola was the right person to lead the session. And he definitely was not wrong. Nicola started off by sharing her essential oils which cleared our sinuses and headspaces to be fully immersed into the session. Nicola shared thinking, research, imagery and tasks for us to be intentional with our wellbeing. Nicola your session was awesome – thank you!

We then retired until dinner, many of whom made use of the leisure facilities. I only intended of being in the pool for about 30 minutes and stayed for over 90, as I spoke and connected with different people on the retreat. Talking about life, work, networking and wellbeing. I felt like I gained a whole new network within my network already and really enjoyed myself.

Then was dinner. The team thought about everything. They had games and activities to play, food, presentations and the opportunity to chat, network and laugh. I had a great table of people who I sat with. The laughter and conversations were non-stop.

Whilst I had an early night, the room was a buzz of activity as I left, as I am sure some very competitive games got started.

The following morning, the events carried on with wellbeing activities including a meditation and gym session. Even with the best intentions, my wellbeing that morning was catching up on sleep, before having breakfast. And at breakfast I continued to have fantastic conversations, this time with David C Hall and Paul Armstrong. We talked about purpose, passion and what we want to give to the sector. Again, it was a moment where I stayed for much longer than intended as we engaged in such thoughtful discussion.

It was also in this moment that the kindness, care and friendship of all attending, as we all interacted with each other positively and politely with each other with lots of laughter and fun.

The final session of the day was the closing keynote led by Patrick Cozier (a secondary headteacher in North London). Patrick spoke about longevity in leadership using his calm leadership model. He shared his own experience, as well as that of others and learning along the way; along with a great amount of inspiring Instagram Reels. Thank you Patrick, apologies I didn’t get to talk to you as much and gain more wisdom from you. I am glad though you’ve signed up to be a speaker with Step Up next year, so can’t wait to hear you again.

Then, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Whilst, this blog is a celebration of the retreat and the work led by the BMT core team, I don’t think I can fully put into words how awesome the weekend was. I am so proud to have been able to attend in support of BMT, but in particularly Albert and Johnoi who have supported Step Up from the start and continue to do so (Albert and Johnoi have collectively attended every event so far!). Gents, you are true gentlemen, true connections and friends. Thanks for all you do. Thank you to you and the BMT community for welcoming me into your community. I stand with you as we pursue racial equity within our education system.

If you’re not following BMT, then get following, engage and support.

How have I thrived?

• Engaging with my wellbeing and networking as part of the BMT retreat.

What am I reading to help me thrive?

• I have recently revisited by Lonely Planet Guide to Europe to support my holiday planning for the summer – a key part of my wellbeing.

How am I looking forward to thriving?

• Continuing to engage with BMT was a supporter, follower and ally.
• Hearing BMT Core Team Member, Akeim Mundell BEM speak at the Step Up Manchester event in two weeks time.
• Engaging in reflection for my own wellbeing and productivity.

This is me, Who am I?

Ever since our Step Up London Leadership Day in February, I’ve thought very much about this. Who am I? It was the first time I got to meet the wonderful Hannah Wilson, who’s closing keynote focusing on legacy and presence, got me thinking about Who I am.

Hannah, in her passionate and articulate way, pointed out through the support from Resilient Leaders Elements, we often lead with what we do rather than who we are. Thinking about Hannah’s introduction and the tools she used to frame it, when I got to my hotel the night after the event in the day, it was something I was intrigued to check.

The first tool I used was the MBTI tool. This tool looks at your personality in detail and assesses key strengths in your character and areas for development that you should be aware of.

I came out as an ESFJ (also known as a consul), I very much agreed with the findings above. But, as with all these quizzes and assessments, there are parts I of course challenge, such as in this case being inflexible or too needy. I do recognise though the need for an impartial assessment to identify areas of your personality you might not be aware of. Equally, not sure I’d think I’m like Taylor Swift!

Another tool recommended is the five voices assessment. I was really intrigued by this one, as I felt I had elements of all (which you naturally do). I was pleased to see that I was seen to be a connector.

I love connecting with others, whilst I am naturally introverted, but confident (and more of an ambivert), I do love widening my social, personal and professional networks. Although, I do recognise I spend a lot of my time where I am the leader, the organiser, the host, and not the attendee. So, I am looking forward to putting my connector voice to the test as a connecting and networking attendee.

I was surprised to see that my secondary voice was creative (I expected it to be a pioneer). However, I do recognise that I am a creative thinker, a problem solver, an innovator. Whereas we sometimes relate being creative to things such as art and design etc.

The final tool I used, which was recommended, was the RLE Lite tool provided by Resilient Leaders Elements. It was really interesting, I wholly agreed with the results. I think I’m not a very resilient person – I get frustrated easily; I have a lot of patience, but this quickly goes when frustration kicks in. Furthermore, awareness, I recognise still being in a new school that I still do not have a lot of awareness of some people and things.

So, ultimately, what’s the purpose of this blog? Why share this? Why use the tools?

I think it’s important to recognise your own developmental areas (your ‘underdeveloped strengths’ as Maggie Alphonsi talks). I’m going to fill these gaps with coaching, with reflection and intentionality.

So, when thinking about who you are – think beyond your job and career. Think about who you truly are.

How have I thrived?

• Identifying who I am as part of my identity and how this supports my personal development.

What am I reading to help me thrive?

• I am about to start ‘Process’, which is part of the ‘Traction’ series of books curated by Gino Wickman.

How am I looking forward to thriving?

• Using these tools to strengthen my persona, performance and personality.

The power of connecting… the power of networking…

Whilst I am a connector, a networker, a people person, I am actually an introvert (probably more likely an ambivert). I love being around great people and bad people who suck joy are people I dislike being around.

If I think, I’m very fortunate with those who I have to connect with: family, friends, colleagues, former colleagues, those within my network and much wider than this. If I listed all the groups of people I am able to connect with, the list would be long.

I remember an old boss once said to me ‘Good people connect with other good people.’ I’ve revisited this idea several times in my life. As I started to become more attuned with my values, it allowed me to disconnect with anyone who was not bringing me any joy. Doing this, whilst tough initially, has made me stronger and happier. In some cases you can’t do this as easily (e.g. colleagues you disagree with, family members you don’t gel with and so on).

When I started social media professionally I never thought it would lead to meeting people in real life and connecting with them on a regular basis, unless I ended up working with them.

I never thought grassroots networking would see me attend conferences with friends I knew from this space.

Regular socials and meet ups with people I met in this space.

Discussing issues and finding solutions with people I met in this space.

Developing relationships with organisations to support my work, but also that of the networks I run.

And much more that we’ve done and will continue to do.

These people are a key part of my life and career. My social and professional networks have grew as a result. And I feel a much better person and professional as a result.

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How have I thrived?

• Recognising the joy that connecting and networking brings to me.
• How fortunate I am to have, but also, how hard I have worked to build a network.

What am I reading to help me thrive?

• I am just starting the book ‘Process’

What am I looking forward to thriving in?

• Continuing to maintain and grow a strong personal and professional network.
• Exploring how to share my learning of networking with others.

#HeForShe and the 8 Cs

Yesterday marked International Women’s Day 2024. An annual event of celebration and awareness to remind ourselves of the inequalities still prevalent in society today based around sex and gender. I’ve blogged several times on this, in particular around #HeForShe Allyship.

HeForShe logo

I also acknowledge that when coming into education I was naive as to the inequality and inequity that there is within our school and education system. I was drawn to WomenEd (as Keziah one of the co-founders was my teacher at school), and I read the books, the blogs, watched events and have even attended a WomenEd walk and talk (I love how in our Step Up IWD event on Thursday, Amy reminded me that’s where we first met and connected), I recognised the problem, although I will never know how it truly feels to be marginalised as a woman.

The WomenEd ‘Communitree‘

As part of International Women’s Day there is always a theme. This year, the theme is #InspireInclusion and what we all know about inclusion is that it goes beyond sex as one of the nine protected characteristics in the equality act. Again, inclusion is something I was naive of when I came into education. Of course I was aware of SEND, EAL, Gifted & Talented, Pupil Premium etc. I was aware of the Equality Act 2010 as I was a trained HR and retail manager prior to coming into education, and had completed a CIPD qualification. But, did I truly understand what diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging was in education? No. Thank you Diverse Educators for your knowledge and training.

WomenEd have eight values. The 8 Cs. As a values led leader and values led person, this aligns really well to my thinking and reflection. I’ve thought as a #HeForShe how can I be a better ally?

I have used the eight C’s of WomenEd to frame how I can be an ally. I invite my fellow #HeForShe allies forward to share their pledges and use the values to frame their intentions:

I will continue to seek clarity into the state of gender equality/inequality in education. I will read books, blogs, gender pay gap reports that support my development of understanding.

I will use social media to communicate with women leaders in education, fellow allies, future allies and others to amplify the voice of women in education and to make people aware of the issues.

I will build, develop and maintain connections with female leaders, WomenEd networks and HeForShe allies. I will continue to lead the Step Up Network to forge these connections, with the support of my four newly appointed vice chairs.

I will encourage confidence in female education leaders by providing them with speaker opportunities at our Step Up events.

I will collaborate with WomenEd with the Step Up and other networks I’m involved with.

I will contribute to the WomenEd community through working in partnership, writing blogs and sharing on social media.

I will challenge events that are not diverse and challenge poor behaviour towards women. I will also challenge the curriculum in school where it is not diverse, inclusive or equitable in terms of women.

I will change my involvement with WomenEd by attending another face to face event as a HeForShe.

I must thank all of those fantastic people, fantastic women, who’ve enabled me to grow and develop as an ally. Entering the profession, and knowing I supported gender equality, without realising the full problem, to becoming an advocate for WomenEd. I’d like to personally thank Christalla Jamil, Vivienne Porritt, Keziah Featherstone, Parm Plummer, Hannah Wilson, Elaine Hayes, Nikki Arkinstall, Chris Reddy, Patrick Ottley-O’Connor and the wider community within WomenEd. Together we are stronger!

I also want to recognise all the fantastic women I have in my life: my family, friends, colleagues, headteacher, line manager, Step Up volunteers, Step Up event speakers and many more.

I hope you’ve all had a fantastic International Women’s Day and are ready and raring to inspire inclusion.

How have I thrived?

• Reflecting on my commitment as a #HeForShe and an inclusive ally.

What am I reading at the moment to help me thrive?

• Thrive by Sebastian Olway to support our subject leaders to thrive further.

What am I looking forward to thriving in?

• Planning our Step Up events for 2024-25 ensuring a diverse line up held in inclusive spaces.

Step Up London

As I’ve now, decompressed, reflected and recovered from our fantastic Step Up London Leadership Day yesterday, it feels right to summarise the event following on from the months of planning and organisation that has taken place. This was the network’s second face-to-face event (after our Birmingham event in October), each of which are differing formats to trial which works best; this event was more of a conference style.

We were pleased to be hosted by the wonderful London Screen Academy, a sixth form specialising in film and media based in Highbury. The weekend started with many of our volunteers travelling down from the Midlands on Friday night and meeting for an Italian in nearby Clerkenwell.

The following morning the team joined by our keynote speaker, Hannah Wilson, travelled to the venue to set up. Everyone rolled their sleeves up and got stuck in managing deliveries, laying out tables and merch, setting up technical requirements in each of the rooms and ensuring everything was ready for our attendees.

Then at 10.20am, doors opened, and we welcomed our guests. That first 40 minutes was such a buzz of old and new connections, meaningful conversations and introductions.

My colleague Utha, who acted as one of the co-hosts for the day started the event explaining who we are and what we stand for. It was when Utha was presenting a slide all about our impact, that I realised in six months just how far we have come and how much of a difference we are making. I then in a very animated way shared the Step Up story, again using a number of GIFs and memes to tell the tale, at which point many nods came from across the room.

And then we were off to session one, with Lucy Preston talking all things impact in the classroom, Nav Sanghara leading a session on daring leadership, and Sarita Sharma sharing her story and thoughts on leadership barriers and journeys.

30 minutes later, we moved onto session two: our very own Adam Brett-Aguirre led a session all about how to win at pastoral leadership; Mide Ola-Said gave a great talk all about managing change in schools and was able to concentrate despite us setting up the buffet, and Lekha Sharma’s workshop on building culture, was a popular choice for many.

Then, the important part of lunch. We used a local provider for the buffet, Myddleton’s Deli based in Islington. The spread was phenomenal. Everyone was well fed and happy with the food.

Then whilst some continued to network, many of our attendees went to Hannah Wilson’s session all about Leadership Awareness.

And then we moved onto the final session, where four workshops were taking place simultaneously: Kate Owbridge talking all things looking after yourself; Nadirah Khan sharing a very empowering, authentic and inspiring leadership journey of resilience; Nick Kitchener-Bentley sharing his wisdom and experience all about LGBTQIA inclusion in schools and Claudio Sisera with Jordan Tully leading a Q&A session all about early years and childcare leadership.

The whole group then came back together for Hannah’s keynote on leadership presence, impact and legacy to get us thinking about our next steps for the future.

We then said a lot of thank yous, which I will go into more below. Adam (the other co-host) summarised our next steps as well as facilitating feedback from everyone. And then we were done! But as Amy one of our other volunteers said “You know it’s a good event Ben when no one wants to leave”, 30 minutes later people were still connecting; and others had gone down to the Brewhouse and Kitchen in Highbury and Islington to continue the connection and conversation (a key part of our Step Up events are social events before and after).

It was an incredible day. There are many thank yous and acknowledgements:

• London Screen Academy and in particular, Laura Fraser, the business manager for being so supportive, flexible and helpful in the organisation and operation of the event. Laura you’re amazing, thank you!
• Chloe Cawthorne of Teach First and Claudio Sisera of Male Childcare and Teaching Jobs. MCTJ for their ongoing sponsorship of our network. Chloe for finding and securing the venue, as well as championing everything that we do.
• Our attendees, you made the day by your contributions, engagement and attendance. Many of you came up to volunteers and speakers thanking them – there was so much kindness and positivity at the event.
• Our speakers for volunteering to speak on a Saturday, inspiring our attendees and passing on wisdom. And in particular our keynote speaker, Hannah for speaking, running a workshop and attending despite landing from Dubai the previous day. Hannah you really are an inspiration.
• Our exhibitors who came and joined us, sharing great resources, offers and opportunities for those in attendance at the event.
• And of course our wonderful volunteer team who made the day happen (Utha Vallade, Adam Brett-Aguirre, Elaine Hayes, Amy Jeetley and Christine Ivory). They are not only great volunteers, but great connections within my personal and professional network. I don’t think I’ve ever led a team who are so inspiring.

So, another event down. Another triumph for Step Up as we disrupt educational leadership ensuring it is supportive, empowering and diverse for all. The authenticity, positivity and happiness from the event really made the day worked well. I’m so proud of the event and look forward to the connections I now have as well as those within the Step Up community who’ve got a lot out of yesterday.

It took me a while to digest all of the lovely comments face-to-face, as well as all the social media notifications (which I am still dealing with) and emails. Keep an eye out for the post event content (which will be released soon) as well as all the other opportunities, events and offer that will come from the network.

Thriving in 2024 – Week 4 & 5

Well not sure if I have thrived if I’m combining two weeks worth of blogs (face palm).

So ways in which I have thrived over these two weeks include:

⁃ Finally getting an answer to the health issues/symptoms I’ve been experiencing and the start of a plan to manage this. Equally, I feel I am thriving in terms of my willpower in the changes to my diet and exercise habits.

⁃ Really enjoying mentoring a student. He’s doing so well and I’m really enjoying working with him.

⁃ Work is going really well in terms of teaching and leadership. So pleased with the impact, progress, staff responsiveness, SLT feedback and working with other schools.

⁃ Prioritising me, has been a key one – I’ve had many quiet, but enjoyable nights in.

⁃ Getting into the swing of studying with my NPQ. I’ve found taking myself to a cafe, putting a podcast and do not disturb on is really ensuring I focus on this. I’m finding the NPQ is really well aligned to what I’m doing in school and is making me more confident.

⁃ Time with friends and family. Including a quieter celebration of my birthday.

Ways in which I haven’t thrived:

⁃ It continues to busy and I feel like I’m keeping up, but I’m looking forward to half term where I can decompress, reflect and forward plan.

⁃ I love the work I’m doing with networking, but I’m at capacity, as are many other volunteers. I have a plan to combat this, and I look forward to discussing this with the Step Up volunteers at our next group meeting.

Have a great week all.

Thriving in 2024 – Week 3

This week has been an absolute whirlwind, but a really positive one. So ways in which I have thrived this week include:

• A great week in school with my class again. I remember my previous Headteacher saying, you really get your class where you want them by the Spring term, and that has been the case (touch wood), and long may it continue.
• I welcomed a student teacher into my class on Wednesday, who has made such a positive first impression, and I’m looking forward to working with him.
• We held our next Step Up event, hosted by my colleagues Nikki and Adam, the event went really well and I’m incredibly grateful for the speakers, Claire, Brooke, Ed, Elaine, Utha and Charlotte.
• I had the fantastic opportunity of presenting at my old university, Birmingham City, to give a talk to their third year students who will be starting their career later this year. I was so impressed with the professionalism and responsiveness of the students. A really lovely opportunity thanks to my former lecturer, Gary and my school for releasing me.
• I have spent time with friends and have had a great laugh, put the world to rights, had some nice food and connected.
• And my favourite moment of the week was leading staff CPD on curriculum and subject leadership. We did some co-coaching, really responded to the Ofsted and SIP areas on curriculum and subject leadership with clarity and focussed on developing a knowledge engaged curriculum. The feedback within, just after and the following day I received from staff made by heart beam with pride.

Ways in which I haven’t thrived:

• As it’s been a busy week, I really needed to listen to my body and make sure I am having enough down time rather than constantly being on the go.
• Continuing to work on my health and diet, ensuring I am taking the advice of others and being really strict with this.
• Trying to sort out celebrations for my birthday – I’ve left it much later this year to sort things.
• Screen time – still a priority.
• Finishing my scheduling routines and managing my diary.

Have a great week all.

Thriving in 2024 – Week 2

I’ve had a wonderful first week back at work and a fantastic weekend, I’ve definitely felt like I’ve thrived this week. So ways in which I have thrived this week include:

A fantastic first week back, which saw my class come back and smash their first week out of the park. It also included leading a staff briefing, organising our middle leadership rota, having my instructional coaching proposal approved and much more.

I had many meetings regarding the Step Up Network this week including with our volunteers and our partner, Teach First, which enabled me to feel positive and enriched regarding what we are planning and trying to achieve.

A coaching session with my coach, Mark discussing my professional and personal goals.

I’ve made sure that I am going to the staff room to switch off and spend time with colleagues, to eat, relax and rest.

I’ve walked every day, ate well and regularly exercised. I’ve also spent time with friends and enjoyed their company.

I’ve had a lovely weekend in London celebrating my Mum’s 60th Birthday and retirement last year with my family.

Ways in which I haven’t thrived:

I’m still adjusting to changes in my diet, exercise and health. This week my focus is getting back to swimming.

Screen time – with the volunteering and leadership I do, I’ve spent much time in front of a screen, so thinking how I can utilise my time with other hobbies rather than being glued to a screen.

Here’s to a great week…

Thriving in 2024 – Week 1

A new format I thought I would trial, is by writing a short blog each week with how I am thriving, in areas I’m willing to share and how I want to thrive more/what I am focusing on.

So, this week, I have thrived by:

Completing the pre-reading for my NPQ. I took myself out to a local bar, got a coffee and put an educational podcast on. This enabled me to focus more and minimise distractions. As someone who is a huge people watcher, it was a huge achievement on how quickly I engaged with the reading, made notes and evaluated what I learned and how I will implement this into my day job and what I’m leading on.

I went on my first solo trip to Geneva and Lyon. If I’m honest, I wasn’t feeling it when I went, what it enabled me to do was to put less pressure on myself and take things slowly. There were many occasions where rather than doing more walking or sightseeing, I took a book to a coffee shop and had a change of scenery. I also thrived by changing my travel plans at the last minute due to many New Year closures in Geneva.

I started RED January, very much encouraged by my friend and network volunteer colleague, Amy Jeetley. We’re mutually holding each other to account. Whilst I’ve been on holiday I’ve walked over 4000 steps each day.

I’ve begun to change my diet, after a doctors appointment. I’ve cut down massively, made some changes and tried new things. Listening to a Diary of a CEO Episode on Gut Health was something that reinforced the importance of this.

Areas I want to thrive more in:

Further enhancing my health by the right food and regular exercise.

Trying to switch off more from both my day job and passion projects.

Getting the balance between activity and non-activity.