Badminton School
Catchment Area, Reviews and Key Information

From the first careers talk at school I knew that, very definitely, I should not be a teacher, as I did not want to follow in the footsteps of my mother and sister and various aunts and great aunts, but wanted to find my own niche and be my own person. However, as I spent summers on several internships in the fields of retail management or the law I increasingly questioned my ability to enjoy working in a very business orientated or corporate environment. Reflecting on what I did enjoy led to my time as an au pair and also as a volunteer supporting students struggling with science at a local secondary school to repeatedly pop to the front of my mind; eventually I succumbed to the calling and embarked on a PGCE! My experience in my main placement with a dynamic Head who was aspirational for her students and a cluster tutor who was so charismatic and passionate about consideration of the whole child  (and who was in fact none other than the legendary educationalist Michael Marland) sealed the deal; I was hooked! 

There are so many different types of achievement and the thing is that rarely are they entirely your own- teams are just so vital in enabling a School community to thrive. However, there are a range of things that still make me smile or even maybe leave me still a little bit in awe. One very personal thing has been helping colleagues develop. It is a privilege to be asked to mentor others and equally when line managing to see colleagues develop their roles and grow their abilities. Sometimes that path isn’t easy and if the support given over time yields a breakthrough it is a joy to behold and an honor to have played a small part. 

However, on the more tangible side, the developments that you enable your school to make are a source of joy too: be it a new building, like our Sports Centre which took years of planning consultation and also a step into unchartered territory, for me, of development funding or a change in a system yielding dividends. And I recall changing a pastoral structure to increase staff:pupil engagement over time, which was a knotty decision, but yielded significant and measurable positive pastoral feedback in a short time, to my huge relief!

A successful school has to be one where the happiness and confidence of all is tangible. It is one that is aware of the world and isn’t afraid to adapt to continue to meet the future needs of its pupils; this requires a culture of listening, reflection, evaluation and willingness to adjust. That being said, to be successful everyone needs to feel secure and confident and so strong systems and communication are vital; the way changes that are needed for evolution are well managed and not surprising or destabilizing so that trust is maintained.  Equally, it has to have an ambitious approach in every aspect- staff, pupils, academic, pastoral and wider life skills. Successful schools are not all made in one image - different schools suit the different context in which they sit and different people in their community and that is why choosing a school, as a pupil or as a member of staff, is such an important process of cultural alignment.

It is so hard to pin down just one quality that every person should have…I am torn between self-confidence, as an empowering tool to enable people to go forward, share their views, seek new skills and make an active contribution and hence ultimately feel fulfilled, and respect, which is so important to enable constructive interaction with others, organizations and the planet more generally…….

I might therefore say I would like them all to be thinking people. If one is able to think then what is said and done is considered and when problems are encountered they can be reviewed and resolved. This skill is much needed in our changing and challenging world. Factual knowledge can be searched and with increasing use of data-bases and Artificial Intelligence the ability to add value by thinking creatively will have increasing agency. Hence, in conclusion, I opt for a propensity to engage in thought as my most valued skill as it will empower their future and make the world a better, less problematic and more creative place to be, which hopefully will enhance wellbeing and satisfaction at an individual level too.

Authentic, innovative community…….I think I just I’ll just stick with those three!