It's how he says it...

Five weeks on, the term seems to be moving at an accelerating pace. Open Evening has come and gone with lots of positive feedback from our new visitors as well as existing families. Staff and students worked extremely hard to showcase our day-to-day practice with real enthusiasm. 

We have started the self-evaluation meetings with faculties, performance management reviews are coming up and generally the mood remains positive… and then we have the latest media soundbites relating to the views of Sir Michael Wilshaw. 

I’ve always thought that it is healthier to address these types of issues as they arise rather than just ignoring them. So, I read about it, thought about it and then I raised it at a staff meeting. I don’t think that I have ever seen my staff of 200-plus with more than 110 teachers, a group of hard-working, dedicated and skilled individuals, so demoralised and feeling that they were just at the mercy of whoever else wanted to come along and berate them in a public forum.