What an extraordinary time this has been for all involved in education. As we write this edition of CANVAS, we are looking ahead to an uncertain future and there is no major sector or section of society which has remained untouched. Education and its provision, however, has faced unparalleled disruption on a global scale, right through from infant care through to tertiary learning. The response to this across the educational spectrum could be considered remarkable both in its pace and level of innovation with the changes to the delivery of teaching, and the collaboration across schools and sectors for the benefit of young people. In a sector so full of passion and pride, where learners always come first, there has been extraordinary commitment from so many during the pandemic.
Leadership has been paramount, from Heads and their senior teams as well as from governing Boards. The need for collaboration right across the educational gamut, as well as within individual organisations, has placed teamwork and communication at the heart of all it is doing. To know your team well and understand how they operate, particularly when under pressure, is significant and this is an area where we continue to offer support to our Schools community.
The rapidly increased use of existing technology, as well as adoption of new platforms and systems, has been a learning curve for all but one that has enabled many of the innovative approaches in learning to happen. This will be one of the key areas where we continue to see development, opportunity and innovation across this sector.
There remain significant challenges ahead, and there is no doubt that the need for change will continue at pace. At the heart of it all, however, remains school communities, and collaborative leadership must be central to these. We need to identify and support leaders who can drive that innovation, embrace the future and forge a path together with their teams to deliver the greatest benefits to their respective communities. We at Saxton Bampfylde salute all those who have worked tirelessly to do this.
To share his thoughts on these areas, we were delighted to hear from Julian Drinkall, CEO at Academies Enterprise Trust, as he considers the impacts of the recent pandemic on his own schools including the support they have needed and perhaps more importantly the strength they have shown. Julian considers how innovations that were made pre-Covid have positively impacted on the governance and collaborative capabilities for the schools. He firmly believes these have ensured resilience and ongoing endurance – absolutely what this sector will need going forward.
In a crisis, leadership is needed but is also scrutinised and questioned more than ever. This puts substantial pressure on executives while also raising the risk assessment requirements at non-executive level. The past few months have seen a shift, indeed for some a rather sharp one, in the response from Boards of Governors and Trustees across the education sphere. Our Chairman and Partner Stephen Bampfylde outlines his observations as to what this means and how this function has evolved and the increased sharing of pressure and responsibility whilst still empowering the Head and Executive team to deliver day to day.
To follow on from this we hear from Cassandra Woolgar, Partner and Occupational Psychologist in our Leadership Services practice, as she considers how to enhance and support positive responses from leaders. She explores some of the key methodologies and assessments that can be used to help identify and nurture leaders’ strengths to deliver the greatest success for themselves, their teams and the wider school communities they are supporting.
We are also very pleased to share our Partner Perspective, offering a closer glimpse into the work and thoughts of David, who works very closely across much of our Schools practice work.
We do hope you enjoy this edition and welcome any feedback you may have.
